[MUSIC PLAYING]
Hello.
NARRATOR: Assaulted by 40-knot winds
and building 25-foot seas--
We are going to take a shot at getting some
of these pots on here, and pray we can catch
the crab we need to catch.
NARRATOR: --Captain Keith looks for gear positioned
for the weather, betting that cleverly set pots will
lead to safely hauled strings.
KEITH: Got 18 on this string.
I might be able to haul this string literally
with the weather on the port side,
and drift down the string sideways, and just let the wind
blow us down from pot to pot.
NARRATOR: To keep the smaller starboard rail facing down sea,
Keith positions the boat perpendicular to the wind,
using the port side wave wall as both a shield and a sail,
allowing the Wizard to drift down the string
while hauling, keeping the crew protected
and the operation running.
[SHOUTING]
Stay sharp at the rail.
Whoo!
Come on!
This is it.
NARRATOR: Approaching his first pot--
Now, let the drift begin.
NARRATOR: --the veteran skipper relinquishes control
of the 155-foot vessel to the gale,
allowing the southerly gusts to blow it down sea to the buoy.
This is not Crab Fishing 101, this is Advanced Crab.
Instead of fighting the ocean, you're
trying to work with the ocean.
Heads up!
Whoa!
[BLEEP]
But she will remind you who is in charge.
All right, I'm drifting in on it,
just the way we're supposed to.
Viva sun crab, baby!
We've got the first one.
[LAUGHTER]
Whoa.
That's a [INAUDIBLE].
OK, there we go, right there.
Welcome aboard, boys!
OK, so far, so good.
Let's head to the next one.
MAN: Yeah, bubba!
Come on around, girl.
Come on around.
Whoo!
Yeah.
Come on.
Get around for me.
Get around.
Right there.
Watch yourself.
[BLEEP] are we out here, man?
Ah, dude!
He's stacking them quick here.
He is stacking up.
I won't be shocked if we're jogging here pretty soon,
Randy.
Let's get-- whoa, whoa, whoa!
Heads up port side.
Watch out for the next one.
Watch out!
[GRUNTING]
MAN: Look out!
Everybody hang on.
We're gonna roll pretty hard here.
Hold on!
Ah!
Oh, [BLEEP]!
MAN: Damn it!
You OK?
Give me a heads up.
All right.
Remember, guys, it's gonna be our blind side.
Everybody, port side, blind side.
Whoo!
This weather has gone from bad to real bad.
Not gonna take too many more chances.
It's stacking up.
We went from [BLEEP] 15 to 20 to 25.
Now, they're starting to see some 30-foot combers
coming through here.
Whoa!
We're not setting a new land speed record for hauling gear,
but we are getting 'em on.
NARRATOR: After hauling gear set against the weather--
We just need to keep chugging along and putting them down,
you know, 300, 400, 500 crab at a time.
Set this back.
Now, we've got about 140 crab pots
we got to go through that are going
to have over a 30-hour soak.
NARRATOR: A shift in wind direction
allows Keith to haul more strings, even
in a building sea.
[INAUDIBLE]
We have a string there, there, and there.
Those are all set to haul in the weather.
I'm going to have the weather on the starboard quarter, which
means we're going to be taking wave after wave right
through the work zone.
But if I don't get this right now,
we're not gonna get it until this storm blows through.
All right, I'm going straight into it.
So stay sharp at the rail.
Come around, Keith, come around.
Won't get the weather on the starboard side too much.
Oh my god.
Whoo!
There it is.
Boom shaka!
Whoo!
[LAUGHS]
They're not getting any easier.
There's no protection from any of it.
Turn your face one way, and then it starts spraying that way.
Where did my pot disappear to?
Where are ya?
OK, that pot's got to be right here somewhere.
It's got to be right here.
Oh, [BLEEP].
All right, you guys, hang on. Hang on.
Everybody hang on! - Wave!
Wave! Wave!
Wave!
Whoa!
[BLEEP]
Oh my god.
Holy crap.
[SIGHS] I can't take any more chances out here like this,
not on this course.
It's time to call it quits on this attempt.
This little rodeo just came to a close.
KEITH: It's just gotten too big.
We've got major snow squalls.
Barely just able to warn the guys in time.
Hey, that's it.
Let's go.
I got lucky.
That could have been a lot worse.
Let's just hope it blows through fast.
Thinking right now, I just got to get this boat
on a little bit safer heading.
And then we'll figure out if we can fish.
Well, let's just hope it happens.