90 Degrees to Zamboanga: Memoirs of a 20-year Marijuana Smuggling Adventure

by Rick Bibbero

Sometimes comedic and sometimes deadly serious; the story is told by one of its major participants. Naive college students in the late 1960s, looking for excitement and adventure, smuggle kilos of marijuana on their backs over the Mexican border and into the United States. This memoir follows their lives, the cast of characters they meet along the way, and their smuggling adventures for the next two decades as their business ventures rise and fall and their escapades circle the globe, developing into a major criminal enterprise."November 1974: we were still ten days sail from our destination in Thailand where the four of us planned to load our 41-foot sailboat with a ton of the best marijuana on the face of the planet. This would be the largest single load of Thai sticks ever brought to the U.S. to date… if we made it home to California. However, we'd just survived a category four storm that had battered us and left all of our primary navigational equipment waterlogged and useless and us lost somewhere in the Sulu Sea. I figured that we may have been blown some 200 miles off course to the south and were now in some of the most notorious pirate infested waters in the world."

Genres: Nonfiction

544 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 25, 2018

Reviews

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

** Ebook received as a Goodreads Giveaway **

90 Degrees to Zamboanga was a book I wasn't sure if I was going to like or not because of the topic. However, I'm super into any sort of Memoir, and this was no exception. It was full of colorful characters, money, drugs, backstabbing, and adventure!

You see this 20 year Adventure through the eyes of Rick Bibbero. It starts off as a very small Marijuana smuggling operation with a few friends through the deserts of Mexico, and grows into this huge International operation with many people involved and lots of ups and downs. I particularly loved the sections of the memoir about the boat smuggles from Taiwan. So many close calls and lots of interesting details with sailing. You also get the opportunity to see the legal battles Bibbero went through, along with some of the bigger names in the business.

The only downside I found while reading this book is that it was very long and there were SOOOO many characters to follow along with. I had a little trouble keeping some of them straight, but I guess you're bound to have this many people (close friends, business associates, family, friends of friends, etc) in a 20 year Adventure. It was very full of details and I did appreciated that aspect. By far my favorite person involved was "Dave Killian". He was hilarious and I LOVED every single part he was involved in. The entire time I felt like I was reading something that would make a great movie - It was funny at times, serious at other times, full of great dialogue, and great characters!

[Rick Meyer · Rating 1 out of 5]

one would assume that if one were to read a book on the assumption that the story is true they would want that story to be true. what we have here is the author’s “personal memoirs.” and as such what we are reading is a true account factually and faithfully written. that is not the case here. a writer’s first responsibility is to his readership, that what he is writing about is true, especially under the guise of one’s “personal memors.” there is some accountability. this is a poorly written fictional autobiography where the author slams purported characters for his own self-aggrandizement and as a form of petty revenge flaunting himself in the best light possible as a swashbuckling hero of the counterculture, which clearly he is not. in the last pages of this poorly written, self-pitying story while constantly whinimg about those he looked up to while growing up, didn’t see him as the person he chose to see himself- his father, his best friend, his nefarious business associates. he recounts that he lied under oath while on the witness stand testifying on his own behalf at his federal trial for three days (he says that the only true thing he said while fabricating his testimony was a short aside about his dog). if he can do that without remorse while being questioned by a federal district attorney what makes you think that what he is telling you is true? yes, of course some of what he has written is true but you have to ask yourself as a reader which part is to be believed and which is not. that’s asking a lot of one’s readership. a reader deserves to be respected as they place themselves in the hands of the story teller especially when one reads another’s personal account believing that what they are reading is a true, factual representation of what actually happened. what we are getting here is a poor attempt at a factual series of events that took place but which paints the author in the best light in which those facts are fabricated in such a way similar to the medicine man hawking his goods at a carney sideshow. as a reader we deserve to be respected with the truth and not some fictional tale told under the guise of truth. this is all any reader asks and expects of an author. the author knows what happened but isn’t telling preferring to place himself in the best light as his over inflated ego feeds on itself to the disadvantage of those who want to believe yet are led astray by a fabricated self-indulgent story. history is filled with such antics and the best advice i can give is buyer beware.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars. This was a Goodreads Give-away book. Thank you, Goodreads!

This is a memoir of Rick Bibbero's experiences as a big-time marijuana smuggler and the aftermath of his illegal smuggling adventures. It's an interesting, detailed biography of the author's experiences with his associates, competitors, buyers, and sellers during the 1970s and 1980s in his exploits with smuggling Thai stick. Since it's his story, it is, of course, slanted to his perspective of events. I learned things about smuggling drugs in boats that I never could've imagined. I was surprised at some of the backgrounds of the people that were deeply entrenched in the drug underworld. The events surrounding the drug busts of the major drug dealers and smugglers was fascinating. I think this book could make a great movie.

While the book is interesting and educational, I think it could've been edited to tell the tale with a more focused approach. I did find the "snapshots" of life after arrests of the main smugglers and associates interesting, too.

[Carrie Nellis Crisp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perilous Adventures Of A Drug Smuggler

Mr. Bibbero didn't glorify his activities in his younger years like many do . He tells you about the good and bad things that happened to him and others . I'd actually like to see a movie made to be honest . I think this is a well told story and I recommend this crazy truthful tale to anyone.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this astonishing true story of adventure and survival, Rick Bibbero details how he and his cohorts built an international cannabis cartel. The words bring to life Bibbero's story of exploration, adventure, and survival against all odds. I could not put the book down. Given the rising acceptance of cannabis across the country in 2018, this memoir is a testament to the brave men - and women - who opened up the U.S. marketplace in the 1970s and 1980s. Great read. Well written.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story was quite detail oriented and interesting. The entire time I read this, I kept thinking this would make a great movie! And one I would love to watch. I could see it being directed by Guy Ritchie! There was a balance of humor and solemnity, a cast of crazy characters, and entertaining dialogue. I even laughed out loud a few times. It was an engaging read that even people who are not normally interested in books about narcotics would find this to be an amusing read. Some reviewers mentioned not feeling this was an authentic memoir, I however disagree, as I don't have any evidence to the contrary. Either way, it's an enjoyable read to the very end.

Its a longer book, but it makes sense why, there's just so much information to include. There are many stories and adventures to be told. It's an interesting perspective on an insiders view and experiences in Marijuana trade and hippie culture. I think this is a well told story, and I recommend this tale to anyone. I'm glad I had the opportunity to read this. The author's words give breath to the journey and infuse life in the pages. It's amazing how he manages to somehow survive against all odds, and get away by the skin of his teeth at times.

**Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest unbiased review**Free media does not affect my review.

[Joseph Crosby · Rating 5 out of 5]

A drug smuggler’s tale.

90 Degrees is the history of one very successful smuggler of Marijuana during the boom years of smuggling.
Being the same age as Rick, the stories protagonist I found his tale both interesting and enlightening. Written in a down to earth style I fully enjoyed this tale of adventure and reality. I looked forward to rejoining Rick’s story each night during my daily reading time.

I highly recommend this book for anyone simply looking for a good read.

[Lindsey · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know when your stoned friend starts telling a story, and its really long and drawn out and doesn't make much sense, and they go off on 100 tangents along the way... thats what reading this is like. It's way too long, biased, and not very well written. Meh. I received a digital copy of this book through a Goodreads Giveaway.

[Kim Kenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

I spent liberty time in Patia beach in 1980, five minutes after getting in my hotel room a knock on the door and was asking if we wanted sticks ! He'll yeah best I ever smoked no comparison to what we bought on the east coast!I would love to meet you and tell some of my sea stories! But your on the wrong coast and I sailed on a aircraft carrier!😎

[Nancy Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story. Obviously biased in favor of the author, but still interesting. It could have been cut down quite a bit and gained a lot in the process.