About Us

Meet The Crew

The highly trained crew of the Condor looks forward to making your trip fun, safe and memorable!

Capt. Fred

Fred is the founder and owner of the Condor Express business. He was a marine and did tours in Viet Nam a bit earlier than the War. He is a graduate of George Washington University. Originally from Ohio, Fred moved to sunny Santa Barbara for business reasons and has never left. He was in the local sportfishing industry as far back as 1973, and in 1979 built the original Condor. As multiple whale and dolphin species returned to the Santa Barbara Channel, the focus of his business changed, and in 2002, as he began to run exclusively natural history and whale watching trips, he had the Condor Express custom built for this purpose. Fred still maintains his captain's license and runs the boat from time to time. He has never lost his sharp "whale spotting" eyes and his love for our local waters. Fred is very active in the community and serves on the boards of many civic institutions.

One of the best experiences of my life, Thank you. Every crew member and employee was exceptional -- great service, attitudes and info - FANTASTIC! Cindy, Visalia, CA

Capt. Mat

As anyone who has listened to Captain Mat can tell right away, he is originally from Long Island, New York. In his younger years, Mat was involved in both the sportfishing and commercial fishing industry, and worked on the east coast from the Grand Banks south to the Gulf of Mexico. Mat moved to the west coast in 1994 and soon thereafter got his Captain's license and worked on the original Condor with Fred. He is now the full time Captain of the Condor Express, and is married with two kids.

Capt. Dave

Captain Dave is an "Ocean State" native and a graduate of the University of Rhode Island. He has worked in the field of marine mammal research, rescue and rehabilitation for over twenty years. He works all over the world as marine mammal consultant, research and rescue team leader, including Japan and the Galapagos Islands. He is our crew member responsible for reporting and coordinating the rescue of entangled whales and dolphins. Dave is also an accomplished videographer and underwater cinematographer. His credits include National Geographic, the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and many Cousteau feature films. Dave brings his extensive marine mammal experience and love for the ocean aboard every trip, and he is a great Captain.

Dennis (aka "DJ")

First mate "DJ", is the "old salt of the sea!" He spent many years commercial fishing in the treacherous and unpredictable seas in the state of Alaska, travelling the waters of the Cook Inlet and Bering Sea to the inside passage of the Canadian waters. He has crewed on a 60 foot racing sloop, racing the pacific coastal waters from San Francisco to Mexico and winning most races. DJ enjoys being part of the team aboard the Condor Express and takes great pride in maintaining the ship in bristol condition.

Matt

Deck hand Matt was born on the Turks and Caicos islands in the Caribbean, where he spent as much time in the water as possible. Later he moved to Laguna Beach California where he surfed and played high school football. Matt came to Santa Barbara to attend the SBCC Commercial Diving School. You will see Matt on the decks and in the Condor Express galley.

Bob

Bob is the staff photographer on board the Condor Express. He is a Loyola University alum, with graduate studies at UCLA. He has taught biology and marine science at the high school and college level. He is a retired 100-ton charter boat Captain and Master SCUBA Instructor. His photographs and articles have been published most recently by the Parque Nacional Galapagos Ecuador, Southern California Marine Mammalogists (SCMM), the Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Center (CIMWI), and coming soon...the Channel Islands Boating Center, CINMS. Bob is married and has a son and a daughter and a grandson.