Captain Peter B. Wright

Peter B. Wright is a renowned angler, captain, journalist and  biological scientist.  He grew up in Ft. Lauderdale where he worked on charter boats out of Hillsboro Inlet and spent summers and weekends fishing the Bahamas with Captain Johnny Whitmer.

In 1968, after college, Wright worked as a mate on Captain George  Bransford’s Sea Baby II out of Cairns, Australia  where he wired and gaffed his first two granders.  He became a captain in 1970.

The heavy-tackle and boat-handling skills he learned fishing for giant bluefin in the Bahamas became invaluable Down Under. Wright's  boat was the first in Cairns to have a tuna tower, a transom door, two-speed Fin-Nor reels and curved-butt rods.

He spent five years in Kona in the mid-1970s where he began fast-trolling formaldehyde-soaked baits to be more competitive against Hawaiian lures.  Those baits led to the development of soft trolling lures, including Mold Craft’s "Softhead" series.

A member of the Cairns Black Marlin Hall of Fame, Wright  has caught more marlin over 1,000 pounds than anyone.  In his five-decade career he released countless granders and captured 77.   These include a 1,442-pound black marlin that is still the largest ever weighed in Australia, and the women’s 80-pound record of 1,323 pounds--still standing after 38 years.   Wright is also recognized  for sharing his vast knowledge of fish, techniques and the history of the sport in numerous articles, and at seminars and events.