Born to Dive

© Jack Kearns

The diver in his youth.

At the kickoff party for the Jack Kearns Spearfishing Tournament on Friday in Coral Gables, one charming man enjoyed a veritable revolving door of honorable salutations and hand shakes – the man behind the tournament, the legendary Mr. Jack Kearns himself. Not only is Kearns the tourney's namesake, he also plans on competing – likely diving over 100 feet. "It's still a few years before I'm 80," he said, "so why not?" 

If he's pushing 80, then Kearns has been freediving and spearfishing for over 70 years. Born in Hollywood, CA, Kearns' father, Jack "Doc" Kearns, boxed professionally and moved his young family to Chicago when he began to manage some of the top names in the sport – most notably, Jack Dempsey.  A young boy in Chicago during the days of gangsters, betting, and non-violin toting violin cases, "Jack Jr" grew up tough. Constantly challenged to showcase his fighting blood to other local youngsters, his demonstrations lead him to the back seat of cop cars on over two-dozen occasions. (He later hijacked one.) "I grew up boxing – the professional type, you know?" says the playful Kearns, putting up his dukes.

But even before the fights and handcuffs, Kearns took an interest in exploring Lake Michigan and Lincoln Park Lagoon. Before the age of 10, he fashioned a spear out of a slingshot and curtain rod and – without a mask – dove deep in the frigid Chicago lakes to spear and sell carp. Kearns soon realized he had a love for diving and the rare skill necessary to become a gifted diver: he could hold his breath for ridiculous lengths of time. "My lungs have a 9-liter air capacity," he claims, while most people have under six. So, you could say, he was born to dive.

After moving to Miami in '51, Kearns remembers racing along the rocks on the South Florida jetties and partnering with other local divers (and later marrying one), many of whom dove sans snorkel for years.  Since then, Kearns has been awarded several accolades to earn himself his own tournament with the South Florida Freedivers. According to the group, he participated in numerous national and international spearfishing competitions beginning in 1957 – from Florida to California (where he practically froze) and even Cuba. He placed in many, won in Cuba in 1987, and has held world records in spearfishing Sailfish and Cubera Snapper.

Rightly so, the South Florida Freedivers treat this gent like the godfather of diving. He's one of them, but wiser – the Obi-Wan of the water. He even has a reef, a wreck, and a couple rocks named after him off of the Florida Keys. If you don't already think he's impressive, you try diving down 125 feet with a spear gun in your hand and emerging at the surface with a fish in your hand. All without a tank.