"Smugglers Ghost" by Steve Lamb
 

At the Gulfport Marina, the guys here were discussing a book by a
local man, "The Smugglers Ghost" by Steve Lamb. I bought a copy they
had and have been reading it. It is about a St. Pete teenager in 1969
nand early 70s who gets involved in selling marijuana and then gets
into big time smuggling. By the time he is 19, he is importing
millions of dollars of weed.
He describes his first venture to import weed from Jamaica aboard a
28' wooden boat with twin diesels. They financed this venture by
selling junk weed they picked in Iowa fields at Rock Festivals. They
would press it into bricks like good stuff and sell for a reasonable
price and made enough to buy the boat and have nearly enough to buy
the weed in Jamaica.
Their trip to Jamaica was absurd with none of them knowing where to
get ganja once they were there or having any real plan. It is crazy
that such a poorly planned trip worked out of pure luck and several
times they came close to being arrested.
Eventually, he becomes the major importer of good Jamaican stuff even
showing the planters in Jamaica how to plant the correct variety and
how to eliminate the male plants before the females produce buds to
get the most resinous buds. I am only halfway through it but it is a
good read and is by Sirena Press.
I just found that the author signed the books at the marina so mine is
signed with his name.
Real Entrepreneurs are always a little close to the edge and some are
over it.