The Action Sports Report: Fishy Business

The pros show us their best catches.

by Chris Palmer

[Ed.'s Note: The Action Sports Report is a weekly blog that covers sports from skateboarding to snowboarding to FMX.]

For today's shredder, not all fun happens in the powder or the dirt. Sometimes a simple little stream can be heaven on Earth. Lately, more and more riders are reaching for a rod and reel and heading to where the fish are biting when they've got down time. Yes, fishing has become the de facto off-hours sport of the action sports fraternity. To prove it, we asked a few guys to give us their best fish stories. And we've got the pictures to prove it.

Daron Rahlves

Hometown: Truckee, CA
Sport You Rip: Skiing
Type of Fish: Dorado (Mahi-Mahi)
Fishing Hole: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Stats: 75lbs
The Fight: "We came upon this wooden pallet floating on the surface of the water and a bunch of little fish were loving the shade it provided. I loved it too, especially when I hooked up with this monster. It took me 40 minutes to reel it in. It ran my line out three times and jumped like crazy, but it was tasty.!"

Larry Ward
Hometown: Murrells Inlet, S.C.
Sport You Rip: Supercross
Type Of Fish: Yellowfin Tuna
Fishing Hole: 55 miles out in the Atlantic
Stats: 45''; 50 pounds
The Fight: "Most of the time we catch about ten or more dolphin-fish (aka Dorado/Mahi-Mahi) and one or two other types of fish. But we always know when we have a tuna because they take as long to reel in as ten dolphins!"

Paul Thacker

Hometown: Anchorage, AK
Sport You Rip: Snowmobiling
Type Of Fish: Steelhead trout
Fishing Hole: Anchor River, AK
Stats: 29"; 18lbs
The Fight: "This baby hit like Mike Tyson and then gave 20 minutes of the strongest, most aerobatic fight ever. Pound for pound the strongest fish I have ever caught."

Nate Holland

Hometown: Squaw Valley, CA
Sport You Rip: Snowboarding
Type of Fish: Steelhead trout
Fishing Hole: Trinity River, CA
Stats: 22"; 7.5lbs
The Fight: "I had heard Steelhead are one of the best fighting fish out there—they weren't kidding. This fish hit like lightning and then ran my line up and down the river for a good 30 minutes. This trip was one of the best of my life and this was definitely my best catch."

Ryan Villopoto

Hometown: Poulsbo, WA
Sport You Rip: Supercross/ Motocross
Type Of Fish: Yellow Eye Rockfish
Fishing Hole: Edna Bay, Alaska
Stats: 12lbs
The Fight: "This guy didn't put up much of a fight because they're down really deep so you can just sort of pull them straight up to the top."

Ricky Carmichael

Hometown: Clearwater, FL
Sport You Rip: Supercross/ Motocross/ Stock car
Fishing Hole: Cabo San Lucas, Mex
The Fight: The GOAT hasn't had much luck with the old rod and reel as of late but passed on this pic from a recent fishing trip to Cabo San Lucas. As you can see, the only thing Ricky caught was a healthy buzz. At least he's got more wins than anybody on the globe. Cheers, Ricky.

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