Opinion,    wally the wonderdog,    what is fly fishing,    Writing

Why I Don't Let Wally The Wonderdog Talk to Reporters (or, Define Fly Fishing In 10 Seconds or Less...)

By Tom Chandler 4/7/2011

How Do You Sell A Sport You Can't Define?


Earlier this week, a reporter called to write an article about the Trout Underground, and just as the conversation started, Wally the Wonderdog wandered slowly past my office window -- holding a stiffly frozen, snow-encrusted squirrel in his mouth.

I considered telling the reporter about the squirrel-cicle, but then realized it really wasn't that believable; the kind of thing a guy would make up to impress a reporter.

Moments like this force me to realize that much of the Underground's universe -- especially the bits concerning Wally the Wonderdog -- simply aren't fit for print.

Or maybe they're just not readily explainable.

And that was only the start of the interview. It wasn't long before he asked the inevitable, grind-my-brain-to-halt question:

"What is the Trout Underground?"
And, like every other time I've been asked, I had no answer -- at least nothing that glibly approaches a sound bite (outside of the ill-advised "I'm simply oversharing my mental illness").

Part of the problem lies with the sport itself; beyond the gear used (and that's up for grabs these days), fly fishing is pretty hard to define.

Even Gierach -- who writes far more gooder than I -- refuses to be cornered:



"Fly-fishing is solitary, contemplative, misanthropic, scientific in some hands, poetic in others, and laced with conflicting aesthetic considerations. It's not even clear if catching fish is actually the point."


It gets worse.

A quick survey of the Internet suggests catching fish actually is the point fly fishing, but for some (an awful lot, actually), it clearly isn't.

Others accumulate fly fishing gear and clearly think that's the point, while others embrace minimalism as the One True Path to Heaven.

For others, it's all about being miserable, and reminding everyone just how tough they are to withstand the suffering, or...

You get the picture.

Recruiting new people to the sport has never proved all that easy, with some quick to point to things like the high cost of equipment (ever compared the cost of a fly rod && reel to a bass boat?), the notorious stuffiness of the sport's practitioners, surly fly shop employees, the fussiness (and shrinking habitat) of trout, the technical demands of casting, etc.

Here's a thought; maybe it has nothing to do with any of the above.

Maybe it's hard to sell a sport that you can't really define.

Unlike tournament bass fishing (or golf, or whatever), fly fishing's goals are a little unclear, and for some of us, they shift over the course of a day.

Which is a long-winded way of making myself feel better about an inability to clearly define the blog I've been writing for better than 720,000 words, especially after the reporter asked me to pick a couple of highlights (posts) from the prior year.

I ended up picking three posts that felt like they represented the blog, then realized that one was definitely not about fly fishing, and two that were about fly fishing kinda dealt with it in the periphery (OK, they were all about Little M, though fly fishing featured heavily in this one and here).

A sport with shifting goals? Blogs with no visible point? An writer's inability to summarize 720,000 words of his own work?

Frankly, it's enough to make me want to wander off and find a beer.

Maybe watch Wally the Wonderdog eat his squirrel-cicle.

Right now, that makes perfect sense.

See you outside, Tom Chandler.

AuthorPicture

Tom Chandler

As the author of the decade leading fly fishing blog Trout Underground, Tom believes that fishing is not about measuring the experience but instead of about having fun. As a staunch environmentalist, he brings to the Yobi Community thought leadership on environmental and access issues facing us today.

25 comments
Redding paper. One of the next three Sundays or so.
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Huh. I call you about every three months, and yesterday when I called I didn't realize it was your b-day. Well, happy belated then. So...what publication was the reporter representing?
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JJP: And, you don't have to blow things up! I don't have to, but I'd sure like to try it...
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Happy Birthday! 21 again? Don't it just? Defining a sport/pass time related blog that has existentialist and Zen-like parts with the possibility of catching fish as a kicker just boggles. And, you don't have to blow things up! What a hoot!
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Gerry C: Wally gets a rodent Eskimo bar and you get nothing for your birthday? It's possible I did a little better than that, though I commend you for your imagery (I doubt the Eskimo Bar people are as thrilled).
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samistopdog: would love to see your face when Little M says “Happy b-Day Dad”. Wish I had video of her "missing a few words" version of the Happy Birthday song...
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JB: The idea was that it's easy to confuse process with product, and that focusing on the latter can kill off the desire or even the need to indulge in the former. Might be even more true depending on the society you live in. We're pretty goal-driven in the US, which is probably why every single activity becomes an organized competition.
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Too many "reply" options!
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And Little M.
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AZWanderings, And Little M.
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I fished as a kid because "what lies beneath" was more interesting than Atari. I fish as a 40 year old because, outside of my wife and kids, "what lies beneath" is still the most wondrous and fun thing I know. It's not easy to explain fantasy. I'm glad we don't have to. Same goes for monster trucks, right? What's THAT all about. Jonny
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Tom, I'm sure you're smarter and better looking than that brother all the time. Wally gets a rodent Eskimo bar and you get nothing for your birthday? Ain't Fair. Your worst fear might be Miss M saying "I love you daddy" while speaking to Wally...
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what they all said...it is late and I suppose all the cake is gone (thanks Walley). Great read today for a (how old are you again?)...never mind, makes no matter, would love to see your face when Little M says "Happy b-Day Dad".
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Oh, and Tom, Happy Birthday!
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The Harley Davidson crowd has a saying, "If I have to explain, you wouldn't understand". What it is really saying is that you cannot explain all the myriad reasons why people choose to ride Harley's. How can you explain all the myriad of reasons why people fly fish? To Quote: “Unlike tournament bass fishing (or golf, or whatever), fly fishing's goals are a little unclear, and for some of us, they ... more shift over the course of a day.” Same with the Harley thing, somtimes it is I just want to go for a ride solo, sometimes I want to go with my friends & have a beverage at a local watering hole. Is their a clear goal/reason for this? No, and say what you will about extensions of the unit, riding a Harley is a lot different from riding another motorcycle. Fly fishing is a lot different than slinging bait. Why? The reasons are as varied as the people who participate.
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Happy Birthday, Tom! The whole "why" thing is tough to pin down cause as you suggest, it does change. Echoing, or paraphrasing, what must be someone else's words, mostly I fly fish because trout and salmon and steelhead (and even Stripers) generally live in beautiful places. And then there's the gear, of course.
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And guess where the good looks came from? H B kid....
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Very well spoken, Tom! Waiting for the longer version... a few chapters should cover it.
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It IS his birthday! For today, and today only, you are smarter and better looking than me. Happy birthday!
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Hey Ain't it your birthday, come on down and I'll buy the beer. Myrna Rae
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"Unlike tournament bass fishing (or golf, or whatever), fly fishing's goals are a little unclear, and for some of us, they shift over the course of a day." Bit of free association, but this quote reminded me of an idea being kicked around on another wholly unrelated blog I read. The idea was that it's easy to confuse process with product, and that focusing on the latter can kill off the desire or ... more even the need to indulge in the former. Maybe something like that confusion is why it's often hard for me, at least, to define why fly fishing is important, or what it's "about". I think the "product vs. process" issue may explain some ambivalence toward the whole "fly fishing industry" bit too. JB
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My doctor said that beer is good.
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"Many men go fishing all their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after." ~Thoreau
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Tom, You don't need to explain it. We'll keep showing up and reading about the Wonderdog one way or the other... Ben
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Well said! My husband and I fish a lot together - both began fishing at different times in our lives - and for each of us, fly fishing represents so many different aspects of our emotional and physical well being. But in some weird way you begin to find a connection to all of the differences.
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