Tell me about your youtube channel
It’s about me out fishing almost every weekend with my family! I love the outdoors and have made so many new fishing friends. Such a great feeling in the fishing community especially those who follow Jun about it being more than fishing. In fact people seeing my dad and I wearing More Than Fishing hats, hoodies and shirts has made many conversations and new friendships when we’re out there!
What inspired you to become a YouTuber?
Watching all the Bay Area fishing YouTubers but especially at first Jun’s channel, Daniel of Philosphoy D, Matts of Fisherman’s Life, and Taku of Outdoor Chef Life. Once we started fishing my dad and mom made videos to remember our times and we decided, hey, why not share on YouTube too?
Can you tell me a little bit about how you got started?
My first ever fish was on a line my dad put out at Fort Baker Pier. We were dropping a crab pot off the pier and my dad put out a small rod with a worm. I saw it move and reeled up a tiny striped perch! It was so beautiful! A couple weeks later my dad and I went to Albany Bulb near our house and using squid we caught a few baby leopard sharks and baby bay rays! I was so amazed by them! A week later using pile worms we got 8 black perch at the same place! That was it. I was hooked! Loved the tug!
What was the best fishing trip you ever took?
Easily my first boat trip with our friend Danny. We had met him at Lake Temescal in Oakland on Labor Day 2020. He was there fishing with a friend and saw my dad’s MTF hat and asked if we knew Jun! He told us he had just fished with Jun the week before! He started asking me about fishing and I think he was surprised how much I knew. I told him I really wanted to catch a lingcod some day and he said he’d take us out on his boat! We went out of half moon bay a few weeks later and I got a 27” ling in only 30 seconds of jigging! Danny said it was the fastest he’d ever seen someone get a keeper ling! (We know one guy who took years to finally get one! wink wink) We also caught lots of rockfish and my dad caught a big ling too that day. That was such a great trip, my first ocean boat fishing experience.
If you could catch anything, what would it be?
More and bigger salmon! Phil of Fishing & Fiddle met us at the More Than Fishing Surf Fishing Tournament in 2021 and offered to take me out to get my first salmon. We got one out of Santa Cruz, 23”, and it was so fun. We ate it as both sashimi and grilled. I want to get more and bigger salmon soon! Then more lingcods! Then more halibut, and more stripers too! oh and maybe a steelhead?
What is your favorite thing about doing this?
The tug of a fish on my line! And I love releasing the fish and seeing them swim away, that’s so cool. But really the friendship and going after new fish I’ve never caught and all the fun sharing these experiences with others. People have been so friendly and nice to me and supported my fishing adventures. We get invited a lot on people’s boats too. It’s wonderful. We’re so lucky.
Do you have any favorite videos that you’ve uploaded?
My sturgeon video is really special. My dad asked to take my rod a few times as we thought it was a bay ray and I was struggling but I kept it and brought it in all by myself!
Anything else to add?
As I said so many people have been so friendly, so nice, and so supportive of my fishing. But as Jun says at the end of his videos sums it all up for how much I love fishing and the community: stay safe out there, be kind to one another, and remember it’s not just fishing…. 🙂
ABOUT MIMI’s PARENTS
I’m daddy Rich! My name is Richard Sintchak and my wife is Yue (Amy) Li. We met in Beijing when I went to China back in the late 90’s to study Mandarin Chinese for a few months and I ended up staying for 5 years! After we got married in 2000 and had a son 20 years ago (Mimi’s brother Ben) it took me 9 years to convince Amy to have another child as I wanted a daughter! Little did I know my daughter would get so into fishing! And did she ever! I fished all the time as a kid growing up on the north shore of Long Island in New York (Port Washington to be exact) where I fished for flounder, snapper, bluefish and eels from about age 8-13. Later after moving to SF area as a teenager with my family I did a little trout fishing, went on a couple salmon charters, but it was Mimi’s interest that really rekindled my fishing spirit again almost 2 years ago.
Tell me about Mimi’s youtube channel
It’s mostly about just having fun, fishing with friends and sharing our adventures and successes! Plus Mimi’s mom Amy really took to taking photos and videos and using a drone on our trips to share with her friends so a YouTube channel was a natural progression from there…
What inspired Mimi to become a YouTuber?
Honestly Jun was a huge part! And his great attitude about fishing and friendship! We loved his videos from the start! Along with Matts of Fisherman’s Life, Daniel of Phiosophy D, Taku of Outdoor Chef Life and so many others. We link to all of Mimi’s YouTube influences in the description of all the videos we upload. Plus our friend Danny really encouraged us and helped spread with word amongst his friends and fellow fisherman too. He helped lay the seeds and interest to so many people and it’s grown well from there.
Can you tell me a little bit about how you support Mimi’s channel? Who films? Who edits?…etc
At first I filmed a little on my iPhone. Then we bought a couple Go Pro cameras but then Amy (Mimi’s mom) really took to filming and editing and we got a drone and another Go Pro and some other filming tools and it just took off! Amy makes most of the videos and does the hard work to create the initial first draft video, then Mimi and I sit down and add some graphics, commentary, music and make the final cut. But it’s a big family effort!
What was the best fishing trip you ever took as a family?
So many great trips we’ve been on in the almost 2 years Mimi’s really gotten into fishing. And so many nice people we meet on Instagram and YouTube have been inviting us on their boats it’s hard to pick one particular trip. But we’d have to say our outings with Danny. He was our first ocean boat fishing trip and we’ve been out with him and his dad a few times. Those days were the ones both Mimi and I got our PB lingcods and I got my 39” PB halibut plus numerous rockfish and crab too. Then again our trips down to the Santa Maria area to fish with the Hook2Cook family have been amazing too and they’ve become good friends. So many great trips with great friends! Lol!
What is your favorite thing about doing this with Mimi?
Time spent with family overall and especially with my young daughter. I had many wonderful moments with Mimi’s older brother Ben when he was a boy but I learned that time goes by so fast and before I knew it that little boy I spent so much great time with was a 20 year old man! And my memories of our great times when he was younger are there but I sometimes regret not making them stronger in my mind. I took for granted my that little young son would always be there! And now he’s this big man! I was determined to make these moments with Mimi stronger and even more memorable. As I know she may seem my wonderful little girl now it will go by fast again! These fishing adventures and making these videos really make the times more memorable and fun.
What is your dream for Mimi?
Happiness, good health, friendships, success and security. Of course! Again, we’ve expanded our friendships and relationships so much through fishing and that’s made her a better person and given her so many life lessons Amy and I could never give her just ourselves.
Do you have any favorite videos that you’ve uploaded?
Wow, so hard to say. Mimi catching the sturgeon always makes me mist up to watch her happiness and joy as she lands that dino but her recent one last November where she learns how fun it is to catch striper on jerkbaits is a close second for sure. With each catch her joy just grew! Then again her first striper one too! She just jumps up and down with unbridled enthusiasm on landing that first keeper striper. Such happiness pouring from Mimi I can’t help but smile. Even as I’m remembering these times I’m smiling now!
How does it feel to be able to spend time with Mimi and support her with her YT journey?
I think I summed it up in so many ways above but with our YouTube channel and our fishing missions it means more time with family, more time catching new fish, and more opportunity to meet new friends and expanding existing friendships. Isn’t that what makes life wonderful?
Anything else to add?
Not much other than to thank Jun and Sunshine for supporting Mimi’s channel and being so warm and friendly every time we see them plus the chance to experience fun and fishing at their More Than Fishing events and tournaments. So many people appreciate what they do and the spirit and joy they spread to all. It’s not just fishing…. It’s More Than Fishing!
MORE THAN FISHING® 
Richard, I’m so glad to read all the wonderful things you shared with Mimi and fishing.
I’d love to hear back from you.
I enjoyed seeing my son and granddaughter’s comments. I love seeing their fishing videos. Keep them coming, Rich and Mimi.
Love always and forever.
Mom/Grandma