Meet the Fisher: Ryan Sebo
Posted on October 15, 2023 by The Local Fish Team
Ryan is a San Diego-based fisherman who recently made the transition from sport to commercial. We sat down to chat with him about his journey, his favorite catches, and the challenges he’s encountered as he embraces his role of professional fisherman.
NAME: Ryan Sebo
BUSINESS NAME: Seabo Seafood
VESSEL NAME: Seabo
HOW DID YOU GET INTO FISHING?
I’ve been freshwater fishing my whole life. Saltwater fishing only the last fifteen years. One of my best friends grew up deckhanding on all the sport boats and he had me coming out – that’s what started it all for me. Last year was my first time fishing commercially. I bought a new boat and just jumped in head first.
WHAT SPECIES DO YOU FISH?
I’m mostly focusing on Bluefin, Swordfish, Halibut, Yellowtail and White Seabass.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES YOU FACE IN YOUR JOB?
Biggest challenges have been keeping up with boat work. I’m a small operation so working on the boat and keeping it maintained is a lot of what I do. I do all my own maintenance and it can be strenuous. Every three trips I have to pull the boat out of the water and change the oil. Other than that the fish are very far and fuel is a huge expense. Just covering expenses is a huge challenge, much less turning a profit. I wish there was more commercially readily available ice. I’m constantly bagging my own ice. Other than that, it’s just fishing. Tuna isn’t easy to catch.
IF YOU COULD CHANGE ONE THING ABOUT THE INDUSTRY WHAT WOULD IT BE?
There’s readily available ice for commercial fishing at many other ports and that doesn’t even exist in San Diego. Every one of us, even the big guys, are barreling ice down to the boats. I wish it was a little bit more commercially friendly in San Diego.
WHAT’S YOUR PERSONAL FAVORITE FISH TO COOK AND EAT, AND HOW?
My favorite is white seabass with lemon and capers baked in the oven. It’s amazing.
Photo by Seabo Seafood