100th Anniversary Episode Aired at a Special Date and Time
ESPN2’s Offshore Adventures is joining the century club of outdoors programming on ESPN2, as it will celebrate its 100th episode of fishing action and adventure in June.
The 100th anniversary episode will air at a special date and time, on Saturday, June 17 at 11 a.m. ET on ESPN2.
This is the third show in the Saltwater Sunday block and the eighth in ESPN Outdoors programming to celebrate 100 episodes. Other accomplished shows include The Fishin’ Hole with Jerry McKinnis, Jimmy Houston Outdoors, The Spanish Fly, and Big Game Fishing the World with Captain Norm Isaacs.
For hosts Chris and Melissa Fischer, what began as a passion for fishing and traveling the world’s oceans has turned into a life-long adventure. The show chronicles the journeys of the husband-and-wife team, daughter Sarah, friend and captain Brett McBride and world-famous chefs as they travel the open sea to discover remote coastal communities with fishing hot spots. After locating and reeling in the day’s catch, the chef gets to work, creating mouth-watering delicacies fresh from the sea. In the last four years, the team has traveled nearly 50,000 miles on the ocean.
“Viewers love the fact that Chris and his wife Melissa basically walked away from a suit-and-tie existence to explore the world together,” said Dan Bowen, senior coordinating producer for ESPN Outdoors. “I suppose there isn’t a person on earth who wouldn’t want to live this way, having extraordinary adventures and seeing new parts of the globe year after year. Furthermore, it’s their amazing ability to captivate viewers and draw them into each adventure that has made this series such a success.”
From its very first episode on ESPN2, which aired October 3, 2002, Offshore Adventures has whisked viewers out of their living rooms and onto the 72-foot vessel, Go Fisch, for exciting treks around the globe. Since then, some of the show’s most memorable moments include battles with 800-pound billfish, swimming with manta rays, and even a nighttime encounter with giant squid.
Offshore Adventures also tapes free-dive spearfishing, as crew members dive up to 100 feet deep on a single breath of air to hunt giant gamefish—often in dangerous conditions.
“We have discovered such an incredible array of unpredictable beauty – from orcas in Alaska to giant black marlin in Panama,” said Chris Fischer, host and creator of Offshore Adventures. “It’s about discovery above the water, next to the water, below the water, and from a cultural standpoint, discovering the local flavor of these coastal communities.”
Since its inception, the weekend editions of Offshore Adventures have averaged more than 250,000 viewing households per year. Between January and April 2006, 7.7 million viewers tuned into the popular weekend program.
In the 100th episode, the show will visit the culinary Mecca of Oaxaca, Mexico, before crossing the dangerous Gulf of Tehuantepec en route to Los Suenos, Costa Rica, for world-class sailfish action. The episode is capped off by a tasty tuna sushi buffet prepared by chef Carlos Cham in the Gourmet Galley presented by Red Lobster.
“Offshore Adventures’ 100th episode represents much more than just a number,” added Bowen. “It is an indication of a long-standing relationship between this extraordinary series and its viewers.”
The 101st episode will air at its regularly scheduled time on Sunday, June 18 at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2. Re-airs of the 100th episode will air June 22 at 5:30 a.m. ET and June 24 at 6:30 a.m. ET on ESPN2.
Since its inception in 1980, ESPN Outdoors has strived to inform and entertain anglers, hunters, campers and people of all ages who enjoy the outdoors. ESPN Outdoors is committed to increasing awareness of, and participation in outdoor activities, a direction best exemplified by television programming on ESPN and ESPN2.
Each year, ESPN Outdoors stages more than 30 marquee events including the CITGO Bassmaster Classic and the ESPN Great Outdoor Games. ESPN Outdoors comprises BASS, the worldwide authority on bass fishing that sanctions more than 20,000 events through the BASS Federation Nation. ESPN Outdoors also features Bassmaster, ESPNOutdoors, a weekly outdoors show on ESPN Radio, programming on ESPN2 as well as a growing array of promotions and activities that deliver a clear message of conservation and ethical sportsmanship.
For more information, contact ESPN Outdoors Communications at (407) 566-2208.
