Fish Fights: A Hall of Fame Quest [Hardcover]

Bob Rich (Author), Sandy Moret (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2001

One man's quest to catch ten record big-game fish.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I enjoyed the book immensely. I loved the personal insights into some of fishing's legendary guides and personalities. I can thoroughly identify with the commitment to 'catch and release' . . . a fine book on fishing and on life, too."--President George H. W. Bush

"If you love fishing adventures with a fly rod, and want to understand the characters who do, this book will give you hours of pleasant reading."--Lefty Kreh

"Fish Fights really touched a chord with me. I have fished and loved the Florida Keys for over fifty years. Bob Rich brought me back to the memories of the waters, the guides, the relaxing life, but most of all, the champion gamefish."--Curt Gowdy

"In the reading of Fish Fights I was reintroduced to some of my favorite places, folks, and memories...But more importantly, in Bob Rich's Met Hall of Fame quest I was able to see the angling spark that was ignited in all of us so many years ago. Read Fish Fights for yourself and see the spark become a bonfire."--Flip Pallot

"Fish Fights is extremely well written...a truly outstanding book that is easy to read, filled with meaningful facts, and tells a fascinating story."--Mark Sosin

"Fish Fights is a fish story told well. It has all the necessary ingredients to separate it from the norm. Humor, crusty characters and most importantly the 'Quest,' are what fishermen like myself can relate to. Entertainment and helping to find the cure?...Count me in!"--Jose Wejebe

"Don't be fooled by the title...this book is about a lot more than just fish. Bob Rich has captured the essence of the characters that I've known for over 30 years."--Rick Ruoff

"The hardest type of fish writing is storytelling. Yet Bob has written a wonderful and adventurous journey through the different neighborhoods that each species required and through some of the most famous land sights. Filled with well-drawn characters and with great love and respect for the fish he is looking for and its environment."--Chico Fernandez

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Back Cover

"A fishing challenge, a first, a Hall of Fame" are the baits used to lure Bob "Bubba" Rich out onto the waters of south Florida and the Bahamas. If he can catch ten of the most sought-after gamefish in this mecca for saltwater sports fishing - the sailfish, barracuda, bonefish, permit, black bass, wahoo, tarpon, dolphinfish, marlin, and snook - he will become the first angler inducted into the twenty-five-year-old Metropolitan South Florida Fishing Tournament Hall of Fame.Fish Fights is a rollicking narrative of Rich's quest to achieve this goal in just one year, although the award was set up to honor lifetime achievement. With the Florida Keys, the Everglades, and the islands of the Bahamas as his backdrop, Rich chronicles his dogged pursuit of these elusive fish. Yet, this is no mere fishing tale. It also recounts the history of conservation and the development of a catch-and-release ethic by saltwater anglers. Most important, though, it is a rich adventure with an intriguing cast of characters, among them the intrepid Rich himself, the taciturn Rusty, his conch fishing guide, and, of course, the slippery fish with which he tangles. (6 1/4 x 9 1/4, 349 pages, color photos, b&w photos, illustrations)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 380 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press; 1st edition (January 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585742325
• ISBN-13: 978-1585742325
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,014,858 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bob Rich (Buffalo, NY), is the chairman of Rich Products Corporation, one of the premier family-owned businesses in the world. Headquartered in Buffalo, NY, the company does business in over one hundred countries. He is also the author of three other books--Fish Fights: A Hall of Fame Quest; The Fishing Club: Brothers and Sisters of the Angle; and (with Scott Friedman) Secrets from the Delphi Cafe: Unlocking the Code to Happiness.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun Fish Fights, September 20, 2001

By 

Alan L. Haberman (Boston, MA. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fish Fights: A Hall of Fame Quest (Hardcover)

Reading "Fish Fights" was a delightful adventure. It is a picaresque journey in the quest of an impossible goal and its telling in a straightforward, light style makes it easily accessible and satisfying entertainment. I found plenty for the expert on the arcane rules of the contest and the varied, specific skills required to boat (and then release) each of the 10 different, magnificent, maddening, game fish that are the object of this game and deserve, we learn, the respect with which they are treated. But the real delight for me was getting to know the protagonist -- a wonderful, bright, big hearted, gentle but very determined and targeted Captain of Industry (and that he truly is, but you'll have to do a little research to find out, since he doesn't tell us about it) that shares the time of his life with us. Not the least of my fun came from his fast, insightfull sketches of guides and companions, a wonderful selection of slightly askew personalities that reflect the diversity and twists, the surprises and flavor that flows from the open and closed waters of and around the Everglades. I wished I could have been with them, swapping tales, peeling sunbruned skin (me, not them) doling out dreams and plotting how to outsmart those cunning denizens of the not-so-deep. It is a charming, fun filled, man of a book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really enjoyable reading!, July 11, 2003

By 

Steven L. Miller (Monroeville, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fish Fights: A Hall of Fame Quest (Hardcover)

Having known something of Bob Rich from my wife's meeting him at work numerous times I was compelled to read his book when it came to my attention. I was captured by the book in the first few pages. It was the old " couldn't put it down" story. It was the first book I have read cover to cover in 30 years. Upon finishing the book you realize it's every bit as much about fishing people as it is about catching fish. I certainly hope Bob Rich writes another book, as his easy going story telling style just makes you want to run down to the Keys and go fishing!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fish Tales Will Inspire You, July 8, 2001

By 

M. Stroup - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fish Fights: A Hall of Fame Quest (Hardcover)

This true story of one man's ambition to achieve a place in a fishing Hall of Fame inspires and entertains the reader. The author enables the reader to enjoy his quests as if they were a part of his adventure. Not only will sport fishermen will enjoy this book but novices will enjoy and learn many interesting aspects of this exciting sport. I highly recommend this book!