BEGINNERS FLY TYING CLASS BY JOHN BERRY

Here at Blue Ribbon Fly Shop we have been getting a lot of requests from our customers to have a beginner’s fly tying class. My assistant manager, Henry Seay, and I are avid fly tyers, although I think Henry is more involved in fly tying than I am. Whenever he is working in the shop, he is at the fly tying desk, unless he is waiting on a customer. We are also both supporters of Trout Unlimited White River Chapter #698. Therefore, we decided to hold a beginner’s fly tying class and donate the proceeds from the class to Trout Unlimited. 

We decided that Henry would teach the class. He has been fly fishing for over sixty five years and has been tying flies for over twenty. After retiring from the Sony Corporation, he owned and operated the OK Angler fly shop in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for several years. He then moved to Phoenix, Arizona where he honed his midging skills at Lee’s Ferry and the San Juan River. Since moving here eleven years ago, Henry has been a fly fishing guide, a commercial fly tyer and has worked in several local fly shops. He has more experience in running a fly shop than I have but now wants to spend more time on stream fishing. He has also served as the Youth Educational Director for the White River chapter of Trout Unlimited #698. Bob Krause, a local commercial fly tyer, will assist.

The class will be held on Thursday July 7, 14, 21 and 28, 2016 at Blue Ribbon Fly Shop (1343 East 9^th Street Mountain Home, Arkansas) from 6:00 PM until 7:30 PM. The cost is a $35.00 donation to Trout Unlimited, a 501 C3 not for profit organization (therefore tax deductible). The class is designed with the neophyte tyer with no experience whatsoever in mind. You need to bring a fly tying vise, a bobbin, a spool of fly tying thread and a pair of fly tying scissors. We have some loaner equipment available and the shop will be open during the class in case you need to buy something.

The class will cover the fundamentals of fly tying like putting the hook in the vise, starting the thread, tying in materials, the soft loop and making a whip finish. We also teach you how to select materials. Many of the flies that you will learn to tie are original patterns that Henry developed to fish our local streams. They will be presented in a sequence that allows you to learn new techniques with each new fly that you tie.

To register, just call (870) 425-0447 during normal business hours (8:00 AM till 5:00 PM Monday through Saturday) or stop by the shop and talk to me or Henry.

If you have always wanted to take up fly tying, this is the perfect opportunity to do so.

John Berry is a fly fishing guide with Blue Ribbon Guides in Cotter, Arkansas and has fished our local streams for over thirty years.