About

Art started his fishing career in junior high school, working aboard half-day boats in exchange for fishing time. He got serious about fishing as a career and after a short stint in commercial fishing, earned his skipper’s license at the age of 19 and was captain of his first fishing trips at the age of 20. Throughout this time, Art was working under captains such as Bill Poole, Frank LoPreste, Bob Fletcher and others. He joined the crew of boats including Cat Special, Champ, Royal Polaris, and Chief as deckhand, second captain and master. The thrill of sportfishing, the reward of teaching anglers to fish better, and the pride in keeping a boat operating smoothly from the engine room to the galley has turned Art into a well-rounded boat operator and business owner.

The boat that was to become Searcher was built in 1970 by San Diego’s sportfishing pioneers Bill and Ingrid Poole. After a 15-month construction, she was launched on May 24, 1970 in Newport Beach, California as “the largest sportfisher on the West Coast.” She was named the Cape Polaris and was the first “long-range” sportfisher–the first in a line of famed Polaris boats built by Poole Boats. Her name was changed to Searcher in 1975.