December to March!

What do anglers do during the cool winter months in California while dreaming of spring fishing and the Long Beach Fred Hall Show? Holiday celebrations with family and friends to be sure, but after the Christmas Tree is down and the decorations are stored, what then? Reorganizing tackle would be good but the cold rainy weather just doesn’t inspire one to play with tackle. Besides it will be months before one can use it again.

As for me, cooking is always part of winter (actually all seasons) and I returned to my embroidery machine and the embroidery software. I decided it was time to learn how to digitize. It wasn’t enough for me to buy fishing designs, cut and paste them together (by computer) then stitch them out on my machine. I wanted to create new designs which meant I had to learn how to digitize. What is machine digitizing? Machine embroidery digitizing is an art form. An embroidery digitizer transforms an image or art work to stitches (using digitizing software) and creates an image in a file format an embroidery machine can read.

I decided to tackle digitizing a boat first – the Excel. I spent forty hours glued to a digitizing manual and the computer. The first 10 hours were spent cleaning up my hand drawn outline of the Excel using the module of the digitizing software that works similar to Paint or Photoshop. Then I decided on the order of stitching, selected stitch types and color and started adding stitches to the sections of my boat drawing. Lastly I added the outline and details of the boat. Finally I produced a design and stitched it out. Next I tackled digitizing the tuna lined stern of the Excel and finally a yellowtail. Armed with new fishing designs, I spent hours embroidering designs on sweatshirts, jeans, vests, a jean jacket, patches, basically anything I could get my hands on.

Around the end of February the sun finally came out and I caught spring fever. I was off to Home Depot and within days weeds were pulled, plants pruned, tomatoes and flowers were planted, the fruit trees were fertilized and then it was time for the Long Beach Fred Hall Tackle Show. http://www.fredhall.com/

The Long Beach Tackle Show is a great time to start gearing up for the year’s fishing season. It’s a big reunion for fishing friends and a great place to learn what’s new. I worked the Braid booth where we previewed the new Sea Fox and Thumper Squid jigs and the Power Play Jig Heads. http://www.braidproducts.com/newproducts/

Pete Haynes and the Knotty Ladies (Jenny Armstrong, Kathy Rounds and I) were back doing Knot Tying Seminars for Shimano. Berkley had their big saltwater tank right across from the Braid booth providing us a great view of the bass chasing bait and gulp. It was the kayak booth that got to me again this year. I’ve been considering buying a kayak for a couple years now but was afraid that I couldn’t lift it upon my truck by myself. I also had to decide where to store it. I mentally decided on the Hobie Sport Fish weighing only 48 pounds but I still hadn’t answered the key questions of transport and storage of a kayak. I took the Hobie Catalog from Dana Point Jet Ski and Kayak Center and decide to visit their shop later.

Our L. A. Rod and Reel Club (LARRC) Pacific Dawn trip out of Ventura on March 15th got blown out so we had to reschedule. Winter weather continued. The next weekend was Easter with more family celebrations and the following week we had the Del Mar show.

Jim Carlisle and I went down to the Del Mar Fred Hall Tackle Show on Saturday and visited the kayak booth again. I was expecting to see Tim Boyer owner of the Dana Point shop but he wasn’t there. Another vendor represented Hobie Kayaks. I was able to test drive the Hobie Sport Fish Kayak in a pool at the show. It definitely was the kayak I wanted but I still needed to figure a way to transport the kayak and store it. I was offered a very good show special on the kayak I wanted but felt I owed it to my local dealer to buy from him especially since I had been talking to him at the Long Beach Show for the last two years.

The next day I ran down to the Dana Point Kayak shop and talked to Tim Boyer. He showed me how I could put the kayak on my truck by myself by installing the Thuele rack that pulls out to assist loading. He also has kayak storage facilities available that provide a convenient launch ramp close to the mouth of the harbor all for a reasonable price. Now my questions had been answered favorably. Tim even offered to honor his tackle show price. Needless to say I bought a Hobie Sport Fish Kayak in Ivory Dune color from Tim.
http://www.hobiecat.com/kayaking/models_sport.html I was anxious to test drive my kayak but the weather turned cool again so I just dropped it in the pool for a christening.

April 4th found the LARRC hosting handicapped kids to a day of fishing at Hansen Dam in Lakeview Terrace. What a great day for everyone. These young kids actually were better at catching fish than the helpers like me.

Now that’s how I spent my winter months waiting for spring fishing.