Posts
Orvis, Old Mill team up for fly-fishing course
By Andrew Moore / The Bulletin
Published: September 03. 2008 4:00AM PST
Orvis and The Old Mill District are teaming up to create what they believe will be a first in the nation: an 18-station fly-casting course.
Set to open in mid-October, the proposed Orvis Old Mill Casting Park will challenge fly fishermen to accurately land a fly under various conditions, many modeled after local fishing areas, said Rob Tibbett, the Denver-based Western outdoor district manager for Orvis. It will begin and end with stations just outside the Orvis store in The Old Mill District and wind around both shores of the Deschutes River.
“Each station will be named after some local situation and have some unique challenge,” Tibbett said.
For example, the course’s Wickiup Station will reflect fly-fishing on Wickiup Reservoir, with multiple targets to simulate casting to multiple fish, Tibbett explained. Some stations will call for technical casts, such as roll casts or tension casts, and some stations will present obstacles, such as trees and rocks, to cast around. Accuracy and distance will be two measures for many of the stations.
Like golf, each station on the course will have a par score. Depending on the station, experts will be able to hit par in one to two casts, intermediates in three to four casts and beginners in five to six casts.
Scorecards will be distributed at the store, and those with the best scores will have their names affixed to a store plaque, Tibbett said.
The course will be free and open to the public. It is being developed in partnership with The Old Mill District.
“Really, the whole fly-fishing business is abuzz about it because it could be the start of a whole new thing,” Tibbett said. “It’s been talked about, apart from grass-roots events where you throw a Hula-Hoop on the lawn, but it’s never been taken to this level. The Old Mill (District) really has gone out of its way to make this happen.”
The Old Mill District is providing access to the land the course will use, said Noelle Fredland, marketing manager for The Old Mill District. A tentative layout of the course will have users walking the shores of the Deschutes River between the Columbia Street and Colorado Avenue bridges.
Generating interest
Tibbett, who ranks Bend as one of the top 10 fly-fishing towns in the country, said customers will be able to use the course to try fly rods they’re interested in purchasing as well as bring their own equipment. Testing rods on water — the course will have two stations on the river as well as several stations on the Old Mill District ponds in the area — is much more appealing than in a parking lot, he said. The rest of the stations will be on land.
But the course’s main purpose is to drive interest in the sport, Tibbett said.
“We’re excited to be in this industry and to be a part of this lifestyle, and this is part of that,” Tibbett said. “It’s about educating people and getting them interested in the sport and keeping them interested.”
Tibbett said fly-fishing has grown in popularity over the years, especially with young people, and is no longer seen as a “gentleman’s sport.” He credits much of that growth to the recent development of fly-fishing films — what he calls “trout porn” — similar to ski movies that have brought new levels of excitement to downhill skiing.
Reactions
Other fly-fishing professionals in the area had mixed reactions to the course.
In Bend, Fly and Field Outfitters co-owner Glenn Cook said the course will provide an excellent opportunity for his customers to try fly-fishing rods and practice their casting. Cook, whose recently built store on Century Drive includes a small casting pond, doesn’t see the course as a competitive threat.
“We’re looking forward to (it) because … anything we can do like that to stimulate interest, and to be able to have something to take somebody out and actually work with them, sounds like a great idea,” Cook said.
Yancy Lind, the president of the Central Oregon Flyfishers club, worries the course could put some smaller fly-fishing stores out of business. But Lind thinks the casting park is a “neat idea” that will help people find the right fly rod.
“I could be missing something here — the new sport of 18-hole fly-casting may be about to begin — but the point of casting is to catch a fish, not to cast for accuracy or to a target,” Lind said. “Certainly a lot of people put emphasis on accurate casting, but you’re not going to catch a fish on this course. But it would be excellent way to feel out a rod.”
Paul Hansen, the owner of The Riffle Shop, thinks the course will be great for educating some fly fisherman, but he wonders how many serious fly fisherman will use it because fly-fishing is not a competitive sport.
“People that typically fly-fish like to get away from competition,” Hansen said.
Orvis, an outdoors retailer based in Vermont, last month opened its first Oregon store in The Old Mill District. The company is known for its fly-fishing gear as well as fly-fishing trips, classes and guiding services. It also sells sport and leisure clothing, gifts and pet accessories.
Later this fall, Tibbett said the store — at 320 S.W. Powerhouse Drive — will open a store-within-a-store that will sell Beretta shotguns and other accessories for upland game hunting.
Andrew Moore can be reached at 541-617-7820 or amoore@bendbulletin.com.
By Andrew Moore / The Bulletin
Published: September 03. 2008 4:00AM PST
Orvis and The Old Mill District are teaming up to create what they believe will be a first in the nation: an 18-station fly-casting course.
Set to open in mid-October, the proposed Orvis Old Mill Casting Park will challenge fly fishermen to accurately land a fly under various conditions, many modeled after local fishing areas, said Rob Tibbett, the Denver-based Western outdoor district manager for Orvis. It will begin and end with stations just outside the Orvis store in The Old Mill District and wind around both shores of the Deschutes River.
“Each station will be named after some local situation and have some unique challenge,” Tibbett said.
For example, the course’s Wickiup Station will reflect fly-fishing on Wickiup Reservoir, with multiple targets to simulate casting to multiple fish, Tibbett explained. Some stations will call for technical casts, such as roll casts or tension casts, and some stations will present obstacles, such as trees and rocks, to cast around. Accuracy and distance will be two measures for many of the stations.
Like golf, each station on the course will have a par score. Depending on the station, experts will be able to hit par in one to two casts, intermediates in three to four casts and beginners in five to six casts.
Scorecards will be distributed at the store, and those with the best scores will have their names affixed to a store plaque, Tibbett said.
The course will be free and open to the public. It is being developed in partnership with The Old Mill District.
“Really, the whole fly-fishing business is abuzz about it because it could be the start of a whole new thing,” Tibbett said. “It’s been talked about, apart from grass-roots events where you throw a Hula-Hoop on the lawn, but it’s never been taken to this level. The Old Mill (District) really has gone out of its way to make this happen.”
The Old Mill District is providing access to the land the course will use, said Noelle Fredland, marketing manager for The Old Mill District. A tentative layout of the course will have users walking the shores of the Deschutes River between the Columbia Street and Colorado Avenue bridges.
Generating interest
Tibbett, who ranks Bend as one of the top 10 fly-fishing towns in the country, said customers will be able to use the course to try fly rods they’re interested in purchasing as well as bring their own equipment. Testing rods on water — the course will have two stations on the river as well as several stations on the Old Mill District ponds in the area — is much more appealing than in a parking lot, he said. The rest of the stations will be on land.
But the course’s main purpose is to drive interest in the sport, Tibbett said.
“We’re excited to be in this industry and to be a part of this lifestyle, and this is part of that,” Tibbett said. “It’s about educating people and getting them interested in the sport and keeping them interested.”
Tibbett said fly-fishing has grown in popularity over the years, especially with young people, and is no longer seen as a “gentleman’s sport.” He credits much of that growth to the recent development of fly-fishing films — what he calls “trout porn” — similar to ski movies that have brought new levels of excitement to downhill skiing.
Reactions
Other fly-fishing professionals in the area had mixed reactions to the course.
In Bend, Fly and Field Outfitters co-owner Glenn Cook said the course will provide an excellent opportunity for his customers to try fly-fishing rods and practice their casting. Cook, whose recently built store on Century Drive includes a small casting pond, doesn’t see the course as a competitive threat.
“We’re looking forward to (it) because … anything we can do like that to stimulate interest, and to be able to have something to take somebody out and actually work with them, sounds like a great idea,” Cook said.
Yancy Lind, the president of the Central Oregon Flyfishers club, worries the course could put some smaller fly-fishing stores out of business. But Lind thinks the casting park is a “neat idea” that will help people find the right fly rod.
“I could be missing something here — the new sport of 18-hole fly-casting may be about to begin — but the point of casting is to catch a fish, not to cast for accuracy or to a target,” Lind said. “Certainly a lot of people put emphasis on accurate casting, but you’re not going to catch a fish on this course. But it would be excellent way to feel out a rod.”
Paul Hansen, the owner of The Riffle Shop, thinks the course will be great for educating some fly fisherman, but he wonders how many serious fly fisherman will use it because fly-fishing is not a competitive sport.
“People that typically fly-fish like to get away from competition,” Hansen said.
Orvis, an outdoors retailer based in Vermont, last month opened its first Oregon store in The Old Mill District. The company is known for its fly-fishing gear as well as fly-fishing trips, classes and guiding services. It also sells sport and leisure clothing, gifts and pet accessories.
Later this fall, Tibbett said the store — at 320 S.W. Powerhouse Drive — will open a store-within-a-store that will sell Beretta shotguns and other accessories for upland game hunting.
Andrew Moore can be reached at 541-617-7820 or amoore@bendbulletin.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment