Courtesy Steve Blair
according to A report in the Ohio Ironton TribuneIronton angler Steve Blair caught a potential world record Pacific cube snapper in Costa Rica in October. But he has no way to properly weigh, measure and record the fish with IGFA for certification.
Therefore, his catch will not be the coveted fishing world record.
That’s a shame because Blair’s Big Fish reportedly weighed over 100 pounds and would break the current IGFA All-Tackle Pacific Cube record of 78 pounds 12 ounces, also caught in Costa Rica in 1988 by Steven Paull.
The photo of the Blair fish does show it as a massive cube, certainly of IGFA world record proportions.
During his October trip to Costa Rica, Blair left to go fishing at dawn and struck out mid-morning, according to the Tribune. He then battled the tough quarry with an 8-foot rod he made himself, using 30-pound test braided line and 80-pound fluorocarbon leader.
Tracy Blair (Steve’s wife) reported that due to the rigorous IGFA certification process, Steve needed witnesses and proper weighing scales and measuring equipment to submit his cubera capture records. However, the small fishing village on the Pacific coast where they live for several months each year does not have the items readily available.
For the past few years, the Blairs have spent several months each year in Estrillos, Costa Rica. They enjoy laid-back coastal homes near fish-filled Pacific beaches. It is located south of San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, and northwest of the famous fishing town of Quepos.
“Steve is happy to know he’s caught it once in a lifetime,” Tracy Blair said in an email to the Tribune. “He said he couldn’t possibly get it to the dock, there wasn’t a cooler big enough.”
Unable to document the gigantic cube, Steve took a photo of the fish, which he then cleaned on the beach and gave the meat to local villagers.