July 2007 President's Message: Outing Leaders Needed

By: Todd Fleming
Alamo Fly Fishers – President 2007

“Outing Leaders Needed – Please Inquire Within.” We are the Alamo Fly Fishers, a club dedicated to improving the sport of fly fishing through conservation and education. We are a club rooted in teaching the art of fly casting and fly tying. We are also about promoting fishing ethics and conservation of our natural resources so that this sport will be enjoyed by all those who follow in our footsteps. At our monthly meetings, we invite special guest speakers from near and far to teach us, challenge us, and educate us with topics that will help us enjoy this sport more deeply. But classroom learning, and feature presentations are only part of the education process. Hands on practice and real life experiences are needed to convert these lessons into fly fishing skills and knowledge. That means spending time on the water with fly rod in hand is also required.

Fly fishing education at some point has to move to the water. Theory can be learned and practiced in the classroom, but practical applications need to be experienced on the water. Fishing ethics and conservation will only make sense when we experience these conditions first hand. That is why it is so important for us as a fishing club, dedicated to improving the sport of fly fishing, to get our members out on the water.

You might think that “going fishing” would be the easiest thing in the world to do for members of a fishing club. But either by lack of confidence, or unfamiliarity with accessible water, many of our members never get on the water, and therefore don’t complete their learning process. If they fail to see results of their effort, they may loose interest and move on to other activities. We need to help them stay interested, and experience some fly fishing success. Success is necessary to build confidence and generate excitement to keep learning. To grow our membership, and to achieve our goals as a club, we need to make sure our new members get the training they need, and then get some experience on the water, and have some success too!

We need your help. We need members to step forward and volunteer to lead a simple outing. Our club is located within easy access of a variety of fishable water in all directions. We have an equally diverse group of members with a variety of fishing interest to match. As a club, we organize fishing outings at least once a month, but this should be just the tip of the fishing iceberg. There should be individual outings planned every weekend, and also during the week. There could be multiple outings on the same day to different locations. We don’t all have to fish the same water at the same time. For most locations, this wouldn’t be very productive. We don’t all have the same fishing interest, or schedule. But there is interest to go fishing, and our group is large enough, and diverse enough that everyone can find a fishing partner with similar interests and schedules. Please help us by inviting others to join you when you go fishing.

I would like to see more involvement by our members to lead some simple group outings. These outings might only be for two or three people, but these groups should also try to include a new member. These smaller group outings are the most productive, most educational, and most enjoyable type outings. Whether you are going near or far, half day or longer, weekend or weekday there is probably someone in the club who would like to go with you. It might take a little more organization and advanced planning to lead a group outing, but the rewards will far outweigh the trouble.

The Alamo Fly Fishers was founded by individuals who thought it was important to share their love of fly fishing with others. They were eager to teach fly casting and fly tying to others, but they were even more excited to share technique and fishing locations. Bud Priddy thought this was so important that he authored a book describing fishing locations in the Texas Hill Country for all fly fishermen who would come after him. Kevin Hutchison has taken the challenge to update Bud’s book, and continue the tradition of sharing favorite fishing locations in the hill country. Likewise, Ray Crawford, Captain Sally Moffett, and others have taken time to publish their knowledge of saltwater fishing locations. These books can be used as a primer to plan some great outings. Use these books to get started with planning an outing, and I’m sure they will lead to new fishing locations of your own.

My advice to the newer club members - get involved! For starters, attend the monthly meetings to meet other members and learn about all aspects related to fly fishing. Be sure to participate in the casting clinics, and join a fly tying group on Tuesday evenings. I like to tell people that the monthly business meetings on the third Tuesdays are great, but there is more practical information shared, and more outings planned on the other Tuesday evenings in the same location. If you have a fly fishing question, need help solving a fly fishing problem, or just want to know about fishing a certain location, this is the place to be. And finally, when an opportunity to go fishing comes up, take advantage and accept the invitation. Make an effort to participate, and others will be eager to help you achieve success.

For the veteran members, I hope to hear from you soon. Please volunteer to lead an outing to a favorite fishing location. You decide when, where, and how many should go. Let us know so that we can help you fill those spots. We would also like to get a fishing report from you when you return that includes a story and pictures of the outing for the newsletter.

Now I think it’s time to go fishing! I know there is more than enough water for all of us to share. We just need some leaders for several small group outings. Everyone should be able to lead at least one outing a year. Thanks for volunteering!