magazine

Blood Knot Magazine

August 14, 2010 by Leigh Leave a Comment

I’ve really enjoyed reading some of the new online fly fishing mags. My latest find is Blood Knot Magazine. Good articles, videos and other content are found there.

I wrote to the editor, Matt, with 4 short questions. His answers appear below.

1) What inspired you to develop Blood Knot?

You ever sit around with friends and tell stories and laugh? Before life got in the way, my best friends and I used to get together once a week for just that and to bounce ideas off of each other. We called those meetings our “state of the union”. There’s an element in that bond that’s evident in fly fishing, and it’s my favorite part of the sport. You spend time with people you care about, you visit areas you might not otherwise see, and then you get to look back one day with those same people. Blood Knot Magazine’s inspiration is just that—an anglers’ bimonthly state of the union from around the world.

2) How long has it been in existence?

Jason Duong, our creative director, he and I started Blood Knot Magazine at the end of last year. We’ve been fortunate to put together a fantastic staff, and we’ll be rolling out our second issue this month.

3) How do you describe it in relation to other fly fishing magazines?

We don’t. Those poor bastards are on their own!

4) Who is the typical subscriber?

You know, everything’s out of whack. The older anglers love what the younger ones are writing, the younger anglers are tuning in to read why the older ones took so long to fish beneath the surface or for other species, and almost as many men as women read “Bitch Creek”, which is written by women for women. It’s some kind of media-oddity goin’ on over here!

5) What is one of your favorite fishing stories/memories?

I almost killed Jason about 15 years ago when we first started fishing together. Only kids, we were fishing off the end of a dock and it was getting dark and time to go. Two sections of my rod were stuck together and I had asked him to pull on one end while I held the other. So when he yanked hard, I let go and sent him swimming. He disappeared and I thought he was just messing with me, so I started packing up our stuff.

After a good while, he finally popped up and was flapping his arms around like a bird and probably choking. I looked at him and said something along the lines of, “Stop fucking around and help me pack,” before he went back down again. When he re-emerged and called for help, he was pretty freaked out. I just stood there digesting what was happening while he waited again under water for my sense of urgency to kick in. When I came out of my stupor, I couldn’t decide whether I was more afraid of diving in and landing on him or his pulling me under while he fought for air. My selflessness and bravery would come with age. I was a wimp.

Luckily, he was only seven or eight feet off the dock the last time he made his way to the surface and I was able to pull him in with my rod. Who knew he couldn’t swim? But God bless him! Mid-air, Jason threw that rod to me before he fell in. That’s character!

FlyFishMagazine.com

August 10, 2010 by Leigh 2 Comments

As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts, I’ve been reading some of the online fly fishing mags and came across FlyFishMagazine.com. There is also a sister blog.

I enjoyed the articles and wrote to the editor, Lee,with 4 short questions. His answers appear below.

1) What inspired you to develop FlyFishMagazine and how long has it been in existence?

FlyfishMagazine started in 2003 as a geocities site that was basically the monthly newsletter for our local chapter of the FFF. Later sometime around 2004 I purchased the domain name FlyfishMagazine.com and started using it as a repository for the stories about some of the adventures me and my pals had on fishing trips together. Most of the funnier stories you read on the site are true. Names do get changed to protect the innocent. Shortly thereafter we added on of those new fangled blogs and the rest is history. Primarily it has been a great way for us to make friends in the angling community and the fly fishing industry.

2) How do you describe it in relation to other fly fishing magazines?

Good question. I think we are we are certainly old school. No page turning flash websites here. We don’t have a high snark factor but aren’t above making a point. I guess what makes us different is that we have been able to build up a network of contributing anglers from all around the globe. Some of them post often and some of them post less often but they all post when they have something meaningful to say. They range from shop owners, professional fishing guides and TV personalities to guys we used to fish with after work. These are guys and ladies who can easily outfish us editorial types with one arm tied behind their backs so we like to listen up when they have something to say.

3) Who is the typical subscriber?

I like to think that we reach a pretty general sampling of the angling community. One of the site ranking websites once indicated that our average reader was 50 years old and had a pretty high disposable income. We posted that old rich guys love FlyfishMagazine.com.

4) What is one of your favorite fishing stories/memories?

There are really too many to pick just one. Every trip (even the ones to the pond behind the house) make some great memories. I’ve been lucky enough to be circled by sharks in the tropics and almost eaten by a grizzly in Alaska. I guess my favorite trip was to the Bristol Bay area of Alaska. Just seeing all those giant salmon and rainbow trout in their home and then at the same time seeing the helicopters ferrying people and equipment to the site of the Pebble Mine that could pretty easily make it all go away really made an impression on me.

US Carp Pro

August 7, 2010 by Leigh Leave a Comment

I’ve been reading some of the online fly fishing mags and came across US Carp Pro. Although I have not tried carp fishing, I enjoyed the online magazine and forum. For those new to the sport, US Carp Pro is packed with stories and information.

I wrote to David Smith, the founder of US Carp Pro, with 4 short questions. His answers appear below.

1) What inspired you to develop US Carp Pro and how long has it been in existence?

Leigh USCARPPRO magazine evolved from a chance meeting with another Brit carper on the bank here in Southern California. Jason Green was a carp angler and photographer in LA and we got to thinking about how we enjoyed the buzz of picking up our monthly carp fishing magazines in the UK. We wondered if it would provide a way to help popularize rough fish here in the USA. Along came Yudu a great, and at the time free, platform to publish magazines online, bingo USCARPPRO mag was born. Jason is back in the UK now but with the help of dedicated band of helpers I’ve put out 15 issues over the past 24 months.

2) How do you describe it in relation to other fly fishing magazines?

USCARPPRO magazine isn’t about a style it’s about a fish, a hard fighting, much maligned fish that frankly is here to stay. What I want to do is bring together all the anglers that chase down these monsters and highlight them in one place. The brownlining scene has latched onto carp as the Hillybilly Tarpon or Golden Bonefish. This scene has explode in the US and has the best chance of introducing large numbers of anglers to the carp fishing experience as their arricles start to appear in the mainstream angling media. Our fly fishing contributors are committted not only to carp, but other rough fish that can be targetted on the fly and also preach catch and release, an important aspect of what we do.

3) Who is the typical subscriber?

I’d say the typical subscriber is now someone who has discovered carp and is looking for all the information he can get. He’s probably scouring the internet and is absorbing the stuff he can glean from Europe but wants to see how it can be applied here on his own waters. There are some very important differences. We’re getteing more and more subscriptions from people who have nothing to do with the carp specialist groups here in north America, but rather have latched onto this ready supply of great sport fish and have discovered that they can be targeted selectively and with a great deal refinement. These are serious anglers looking for a challenge and an extension of their angling experience.

4) What is one of your favorite fishing stories/memories?

As an angler growing up on the crowded waters of England were fishing is a combat sport and peace is hard to find, heading to the wilds of Idaho to catch mirror carp on a deserted reservation lake was by far the most memorable carp experience yet and highlights what this counry has to offer the carp angler. 30 miles from the nearest person, eagles souring overhead and night sky like I’ve never seen will stick with me for a while and I plan to have more of those experiences in the Pacific Northwest and the states like the Dakotas.