Richard Formato

Richard Formato is an avid catch-and-release fly-fisherman from Wytheville, Va. When not on the water, he operates a small business there. Formato loves to fly-fish in his native Southwest Virginia because of the great water and wonderful people. He also loves to fish the flats and shallows of the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic whenever work and weather permit. He is on the Department of Conservation and Recreation's board of directors and is a trustee of the Shenandoah National Forest and Skyline Drive.

Recent columns

• What about Bob?
• A chance meeting
• A wish for Jack
• Not so Rusty

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• Talk fly-fishing

This past weekend wrapped another fly-fishing show at the Charlotte Civic Center . With prime fly-fishing soon upon us, the timing of this show was perfect for anglers eager to see anything fly related.

Parking in the pay lot across the street, I could already see this show was going to be good. Loping around the entrance, fly fishing show attendees are a pretty easy crowd to spot. Who else wears just a Columbia TFG shirt on a windy winter day?

Once in the hall, there was heavy walking traffic on every aisle. The demographic was a perfect mirror of the state of the industry. I have never seen more white, fifty-somethings with gray beards and wire glasses in my life.

The first aisle was mainly tyers with Harry Steeves holding court, with three or four tyers constantly huddled over his table.

Harry's foam beetles are THE terrestrial – and I always like releasing a fish on one of his patterns, knowing the guy who invented it, and secretly wishing I was half the angler he is.

Also there on behalf of Renzetti Vices was Blane Chocklett. Looking fit and ready for a long season guiding clients on the James, Blane was rightly excited about the buzz over his new patterns, especially considering five of his new flies have logged five World Records!

His new gummy minnows, nymphs and squid patterns are gathering international attention and will be distributed by Umpqua .

I look for him to be featured (long overdue) on the cover of this season's fly magazines as a result.

Some tyers throw down on Blane's flies, pejoratively calling them “lures,” because they are made crafted from Sili Skin and not feather and fur. To this, I respectfully say, you are wrong.

Unless your hook is made of whalebone, all flies are made from some sort of manmade material. Last time I checked, my fly line wasn't made of cat gut either.

When you consider Steeve's and Chocklett's accomplishments, it makes you proud of the power of Southwest Virginia to innovate the power in new fly patterns that are truly changing the face of fly fishing.

In addition to big Carolina fly shops who use the show to capture customer's for standard fly shop fare, there were such conservation agencies as the Federation of Fly Fishers and The Coastal Conservation Association which look to heighten awareness and gain new members for fishery conservation.

One new vendor that I thought was “Best in Show” was the “The Fish Lady.” (www.fishladyart.com)

Mary Jenkins had the best collection of handmade art, furniture and collectibles I have ever seen.

Her twig furniture was all made from hand-gathered wood from the hills around Walland , Tenn. , and her trout mounts were all one of a kind, wild-looking, and beautiful in color and construction.

A lot of fly-fishing “art” at trade shows is really just cheap imported prints dressed up in fancy frames – and it really doesn't qualify as art.

Jenkins collections were all originals crafted by hand by a woman who understands her subjects. Jenkins is an angler. She holds several IGFA records on the fly, and uses actual fish for her subjects.

At the show, there was a lot more rod-building equipment as well. You could literally get in the rod manufacturing business with some of the equipment being offered.

But this was over my head. There were hundreds of feet of equipment that you had to know how to use, with no upfront explanation of what the heck it was. One improvement I wish this show would make is somehow figure out a way to make it more understand to the total novice.

If you would have walked into this show as a total novice… as someone who just went in because you had heard about a fly-fishing show, and always wanted to fly fish, you would have been lost.

You would have seen $500 rods and $500 reels and not known why. You would have seen outfitters offering some fantastic trips – and wanted to go – but been wondering what to do once you got there.

Maybe the answer is for a show to reach out to more people completely outside the industry.

I see a lot of minorities spin fishing, but the fly industry has not learned to connect with those anglers who shop at stores that sell “poles”, and not rods.

As in Charlotte , there are a ton of people who would love to be a part of this sport called fly-fishing, and we need to reach out to them – because they are not going to come to us.

Tight Lines,
Richard