 RAPALA – LEGENDARY FISHING LURES by John E Mitchell Published by Motorbooks, Hardback, ISBN 0-7603-2271-6
Lauri Saarinen was born in 1905 in Finland. At the age of seven, he moved with his mother to Asikkala, 60 miles from Helsinki. The local clergyman mistakenly entered the name of the village they had moved from – Rapala – as their surname in the parish register. When Lauri Rapala grew up and married, he worked as a lumberjack in the winter and a fisherman in the summer. He thought a fishing lure might help him catch more fish and used a shoemaker’s knife, a file and sandpaper, to shape his first successful lure from cork. Tinfoil from cheese packets and chocolate bars formed the lure’s outer surface. Lauri melted unwanted photographic negatives onto the lure to create a protective coating, since he was unable to obtain lacquer. That was 1936, and the first ‘Wounded Minnow’ lure still exists – it’s black on top, gold along its flanks, and white on the bottom – just like the minnows of Lake P  When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission, which supports our community.
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