Unless you are willing to risk frostbite ice fishing, there is not too much to keep a fisherman from going though fishing withdrawals over the long winters in Colorado. Enter the fishing expos. These expos offer the deprived angler an opportunity to gather with other fisherpersons and see all the new stuff to buy. I went to two of these shows this year and learned a few things.
Most importantly, never bring more money that you are willing to spend! These shows are like walking into an anglers casino there are no clocks or windows, and lots of bells and whistles (or was that a duck call). The only thing missing is the scantly clad cocktail waitresses offering free drinks. If you were to believe the promises made by the venders, by late fall there should not be a single fish left in any lake in the nation!! If I spend $6,000 for a trip to Alaska I will catch HUGE fish, guaranteed! There are so many great deals and new products available, your pockets can empty faster than I blow fuses in the SeaSprite!
For the first show of the season I brought along my finance manager, the duchess. We looked at float tubes, waders, rods and reels, lures and flies, boats and campers. We found some incredible deals as long as you wear XXXS pants, size 15.5 shoe, or want 17-inch flashers. There were some good deals on the high-end stuff, but my saner half gently guided me away from those bargains. We did not dally too long, or eat there, and were done looking in an hour and a half. Other than enough brochures and magazines to keep me busy for a month, we walked out of the show empty handed!
The next show I went to was with a fishing buddy. Things were a bit different this time. TimT and I met at 1000 to beat the crowds. We had looked at the schedule of presenters so we did not miss anything important. We watched fly-fishing and casting demonstrations, saw bait presentations in a huge, clear tank filled with fish. We even sat and watched some fellows tie flies. We looked at float tubes, waders, rods and reels, lures and flies, boats and campers. We found some incredible deals as long as you wear XXXS pants, size 15.5 shoe, or want 17-inch flashers (sound familiar?). Beef jerky samples were everywhere! I even took the time to look at all the boats to get ideas for the SeaSprite re-fit. After eating a fine polish dog with sauerkraut and mustard, we went back in and walked the entire show again, just to make sure we did not miss anything. I did not get back to my truck until 1630. I was so tempted to go back that evening and purchase some thing I had seen, but financial responsibility got the best of me.
I would really recommend these expos for anybody even remotely interested in the great outdoors but like Las Vegas, dont bring more money than you are willing to lose!
Joel Brunk
joel.brunk@ultimatebass.com
