Flashback Friday to Gamefisherman’s 40’ Flybridge “French Look” as the game boat to its mothership in this photo taken in 1994.
During the late ’80s and early ’90s, several mothership operations travelled the world’s oceans looking for the next great remote paradise. Of course, the most famous was The Madam and The Hooker, but Jean Paul Richard’s French Look followed closely.
No matter how large newer sportfish get, motherships with game boats provide the most access to global exploration for true far travelled sportfishing operations.
Not only is fuel capacity a consideration in a truly remote location, but when you bring a large sportfishing boat with accommodations for everyone involved, those staterooms go fishing with you.
Not only do they retract from maneuverability and fishability, but previous owner of Gamefisherman, Mike Matlack, also adds. “And the people who don’t want to go out on a rough day, like the wife and kids, either have to go or get taken off the boat. With the mothership you can unload the game boat, and everybody gets to do exactly what they want. The nonfishing people get to enjoy the amenities on board and a crew that caters to them. They can even have some smaller boats to go exploring while the hard chargers go fishing.”
While some operations used a submersible floating dry dock which took all day to submerge and float again, and others employed a crane & cradle which risks swinging fiberglass next to a metal mothership, Richard’s French Look utilized a railway system to load his 40’ Gamefisherman. French Look started off as a Louisiana mud boat of some kind, but Jean Paul Richard finished it in Normandy, France, at a yard that did a lot of French military and government ships who’s missions involved small-boat recovery.
Whether you’re looking for a game boat for your mothership in Australia, or a walkaround to dominate sailfish season a mile off Palm Beach, Gamefisherman will work with you to build the finest custom boat for your needs. Call us at 833-GAME-FISH to start building yours today!