Madrigal decides to return to the surface just two minutes after the tract opens for fishing. Hegnes and deckhand Roy King hastily remove his oxygen mask and hand him a paper towel to blow his nose.
Eight minutes later, a little after 8 a.m., Madrigal is back in the water and making his way to a depth of between 40 and 60 feet where he'll use a pressurized water hose to flush geoducks from beneath the seabed.
Depending on experience, a geoduck diver typically nets up to 70 percent of the money made from a boat's total catch. Madrigal's four seasons of experience give him 60 percent of the Rawdeal's share.
Despite the rough start, in 90 minutes of digging, Madrigal unearthed more than 400 pounds of geoduck. They fetched $9 per pound at the dock.
“It stressed me out a lot,” Madrigal, 33, said. “I've never had that issue before (problems equalizing). My allergies are really bad this year.”
When he's not diving, Madrigal works as a bookkeeper. His excursion off Whidbey Island earned him close to $2,300.
The clock hadn't yet struck noon.