The Underground Plays Bike Wrangler: Rutter Fly Fishes for Tarpon

On Sunday, 700 cyclists pedaled their butts off around Mt. Shasta, 3/4 of them completing the Shasta Summit Century’s 100 and 135 mile rides.

It was my job to see they were fed, watered, and stayed on course, and if you’ve ever directed a big event, then you know how The Day After feels; you’re a zombie, staggering around the house, scratching yourself and trying to remember your name.

Sure, I paint an un-pretty picture, but life’s often unpretty. For example, Ian & Charity Rutter posted news of their Tarpon trip to Florida, and because the weather didn’t cooperate at all, Ian accused me of transferring my bad trip karma to him.

I laughed at him in a bitter, cynical fashion; if he’d really experienced the Dreaded Chandler Trip Karma, he’d have been caught out on the flats in a thunderstorm, hit by lightning, and catapulted off the boat into a school of mutant psychotic sharks recently escaped from a secret government genetics lab.

Then he’d really know what it’s like to be me.

Instead, he’s “trapped” in sub-optimal fishing conditions on a boat with Charity Rutter, which — if you get my drift — is not exactly the heaviest of burdens.

Charity Rutter: Tarponless in Florida (R&R Fly Fishing photo)

Still, Ian’s young. He’ll learn. In the meantime, I’m behind on my daily words, but plan to catch up enough to fish a couple times this week. Plus our Wild Maine Giveaway of immensely valuable prizes (look for it tomorrow).

You see, no more trips or events stand in the way, so some regular old fly fishing looms. It’s a good time to be an Undergrounder. A good time.

See you on the river, Tom Chandler

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