Fisherman’s Bible

FOREWORD

Sportfishing is many things to many people. It’s a pastime, a hobby, a culture, and—at least in name—it is also a sport (although I’ve often wondered if something you can do while seated, at the same time you’re eating a sandwich, actually really should be called a “sport”).

One thing cannot be argued, and that is that sportfishing also supports a very large, sustained industry. By most recent estimates, there are nearly 40 million licensed anglers in the United States alone, accounting for over $40 billion in retail product sales. The larger impact of fishing on the American economy is projected at $115 billion, and well over 800,000 people depend on the sportfishing industry for employment. Anglers also are the stewards of the world’s natural waters. License fees, as well as taxes paid on sportfishing products, are used to conserve, protect, and restore the oceans, lakes, rivers, and streams that support sportfishing (and various other forms of recreation), not only in the United States but around the planet.

The important thing to note, in this context, is that this entire world revolves on an axis of product.

When you boil it all down, anglers are obsessed with three concerns—where to go, what to use, and how to use it. The “what to use” part supports the “where to go.” And without the “what to use,” there wouldn’t be a whole lot to talk about on the “how to use it” side at all, would there?

KIRK DEETER WITH A LINEUP OF NEW RODS, READY FOR TESTING. © TIM ROMANO

From rods and reels to lines, lures, flies, and myriad other things that go into the angler’s “arsenal,” it’s hard to imagine a realm where innovation is more delicately balanced with tradition than recreational fishing. The “fair chase” ethic is the root of sportfishing (and hence, the real meaning of “sport”), and yet anglers are also consumed and captivated by performance.

To cast farther . . . to fight stronger . . . to tease and trick the most fickle quarry . . . those are the things that keep us interested, right? It might all have started with a simple tug you felt while fishing a worm and bobber with your granddad. But it’s the continuous puzzle solving—and, by connection, the tools we use to get those puzzles solved—that keeps us hooked for years. That’s why grown men and women still melt like little kids at the sight of a shiny new fishing rod propped in the window display of their favorite tackle shop.

There has never been a more exciting time to follow and understand products made for recreational fishing than right now. The technologies have never been better: aerospace graphites and resins now used to make lighter, faster rods; composite materials used in the brakes of Formula 1 racing cars being designed into the disc drags of fly-fishing reels; medical grade materials used to make lines and lures; laser-sharpened hooks; and on, and on, and on. . . .

And yet, if you are a cane-pole “purist” or a “minimalist,” you haven’t been forgotten. The beauty of the current array of fishing products is that there are more choices to fit more personal interests than ever before. What fits your interests and how you choose to use it is up to you.

There’s never been a wider array of product specifically designed for different fish species than there is right now. Yes indeed, most of the ink and attention in the fishing world has traditionally revolved around largemouth bass, and striped bass, and billfish, and trout, and pike, and walleyes, and (overseas at least) carp. But now you see more tackle for sharks, and fly rigs for panfish, and so on. I’ll concede that a lot of product is designed to catch anglers as much as it is really designed to catch fish. And a classic Panther Martin lure or a black woolly bugger fly, in the right angler’s hands, can catch many different things. But you have more choices now. How you make them is up to you.

A NORTHERN PIKE TAKEN ON A CRANKBAIT, READY FOR RELEASE. © TIM ROMANO

There’s now more product specifically designed for women anglers than there ever has been before. And by “designed for women," I do not mean “painted pink.” There should be more of this, and there inevitably will be. But there are more choices available. How you make them is up to you.

THE RING OF THE RISE: WHAT DID THAT TROUT JUST EAT?

There are more products specifically designed for youth than there have been in the past. Again, this is an important focus. I learned to fish with my grandfather’s rod, and there’s no doubt that many youngsters are doing the same (learning with “adult” tackle) now. At least I hope so. But there are more options and choices available. How you make these choices is up to you.

And lastly, there are more affordable fishing products these days than there ever have been. Granted, this is largely the result of many tackle companies moving manufacturing operations offshore. One can argue against imports and question their effect on the fishing economy in America. But there is no denying that this phenomenon is yielding lower-price-point products that eventually wind up in the hands of many aspiring anglers. And there will always, in my mind, be some level of value associated with classic “made in America” tackle for certain anglers. How you feel in this regard, and the choices you make, well, those things are up to you.

CATCH AND RELEASE ENSURES THAT OTHER ANGLERS MAY ALSO ENJOY GOOD FISHING.

The purpose of this book is, quite simply, to get a handle on many of the options that are out there now, so that you can be better informed to make the choices that are completely up to you. Whether you are in the market, or simply want to behold an incredible array of fishing product, there’s never been anything this comprehensive or detailed to help anglers, and there’s never been a time when a resource like this has been more relevant.

Enjoy it. I hope it answers your questions. I hope it prompts you to ask more. Most important I hope it prompts you to expand your own fishing horizons.

Kirk Deeter

Editor, Trout Magazine

Editor, Angling Trade News

Editor-at-Large, Field & Stream