Monday Morning and The Club Life
The Pros and Cons of Fly Fishing Clubs in 2024
It is common for those little calendar reminders to pop up on my desktop at the beginning of the month, reminding me of fly fishing club meetings across the huge State of Texas.
I think it is amazing just how many fly fishing clubs there are in a state hardly known for its fly fishing opportunities. Truth in club advertising is – a lot of these clubs prefer gatherings outside Texas. For many clubs and their members, leaving Texas generates the most enthusiasm and member participation in any given year – if we’re totally honest about it.
Also, in the interest of transparency, many clubs and their members continue aging at a rapid pace, and some clubs have almost aged out of relevance and toward extinction. Change to club’s outreach and how they conduct meetings was something I began preaching more than a decade ago. But resistance to change, and the pandemic’s devastating impact on club gatherings – has pretty much relegated the majority of Texas fly fishing clubs to an afterthought for the young and beginner fly fisher living here in Texas. Adapting and improvising was not on many club agendas. So I pretty much walked away. Sisyphus I am not in this instance!
But for me, hope springs eternal. Clubs do offer some benefits for the new fly fisher, or those who are not just alone, but lonely in this fly fishing society of Texas. One reason I continue to write and talk about Texas fly fishing is because of my early club experiences. My experience was that the clubs I mingled with seemed to have a “closed loop” where sharing current information about anything – required a secret handshake, or was password protected. Things like casting a fly rod could only be learned by being taught by a CCI – Certified Casting Instructor, for example. Total baloney. The early club experience, for me, was an example of the remains, the bones, of elitism (tweed-ism) that once dominated the sport and kept it (I’ll just say it) caucasian male – for way too long. I understand, though I do not agree.
DOING A CLUB FRAME-OFF FULL MONTY
If I started a club today, my first Roberts Rule of Order would be, “FIRST – Do No Harm.” That alone would winnow the joiners down by at least half, in my estimation. Rather than start a radical fly fishing club-organization, based on Love of The Sport, I have another suggestion that would be much less difficult, and show positive results more quickly than building a club from scratch.
I want to encourage those who are “young” and “new” to the sport of fly fishing, encourage you to JOIN these organizations and CHANGE them from within. Once you take power, there are some things you can do to become more inclusive immediately.
1 – Get rid of the name “club” in all ways. The word “club” can have a negative meaning, and isn’t exactly inclusive in the 21st. Century fly fishing social dynamic. I suggest “Cult” as a replacement …. heheheh.
2 – Live stream all meetings. Save the recordings! Good information comes from guests and meetings occasionally! Reality meet clubs, clubs meet reality. Join the future.
3 – Leverage Social Media – not Facebook!
4 – Have regularly scheduled membership drives, that include live demonstrations and target youth, women and minorities.
5 – Highlight TEXAS fly fishing opportunities – that normal people can identify with, go to and repeat on their own time.
6 – Integrate socially with fly fishing businesses – the small ones – that actually have the group’s interests and success as a priority.
Okay, there’s my start at how you can infiltrate and reform a TEXAS fly fishing club. Simple right? Start by changing the name, and up from there. In the automotive business, it’s called a, “frame-off” rebuild. In the Airstream building business, it’s called doing the “The Full Monty.”
THE GOOD SIDE of CLUBS
A coin still has two sides. Make no mistake, there are good people doing good things in Texas Fly Fishing Clubs, and being critical in one area does not condemn an entire organization. There are club people who are not into micro-dosing prestige, power or control. They want to show and share the love you have for fly fishing. No secret handshakes, no holding back of information, and unbridled passion can be found. Respect for those with graceful age, and the knowledge that goes with it can be found. Friends can be found. But, you might have to look a little bit, and be willing to try more than one club. Yes, I talk about the driving we do in Texas in the video above. Do these things have value to the younger generations looking for a club? Yes, to some degree, but forward facing sonar has value to them too!
Thanks for reading this Monday Morning! I will be on the road to the Double-Five this week. For those of you who take the time to watch my Texas Reports, you know where that is!! If not, please watch soon!
The Silver Tongued Devil
We lost a great one Saturday. The passing of Kris Kristofferson is especially heavy here. As you recall, the Monday Morning Sidewalk column title was a direct take on “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” My first encounter with a Kristofferson album (vinyl) was delivered to me by my Dad in about 1973. It was just one of the albums (he drove into town with in his ’63 Chevy) that shouted in my ears, “there’s more to life, more out there than you know about,” and I listened. This leaves only ONE of the Highwaymen left. AND let’s not forget, Kris Kristofferson was born in the Borderlands – Brownsville, Texas.
Category: Life Observed, Texas Fly Fishing Club
