Poudre River Canyon

On Sunday we went to the Poudre River in search of fish that that are willing to bite on a hook with some feather, fuzz, and thread attached. It was a gorgeous day, with the exception of the wind, which made casting a bit rough. I had heard that the fish were feeding on the Baetis pretty regularly and the various BWO patterns were doing well. Unfortunately, they call it fishing instead of catching for a reason. By definition a day on a river is a good day. What seemed like a couple of hours turned out to be 4.5 hours by time we got back to the car.

For those of you who haven't been, the Poudre River is phenomenally beautiful.

While going to the woods and catching no fish is not a disaster, let's face it, the point of fishing is to catch fish. Going to try a couple of more local spots on the St. Vrain and the Big T. on Friday and Saturday. Hopefully, I'll have some better luck.

Below there are are a few pics my wife took from the road.

Poudre Canyon

Fly of the day: The Beer Baetis , courtesy of Rocky Mountain Fly




Tight Lines,

Dave

Douchebag Extraordinaire

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The contest to see who is the biggest Douchebag in the world is over. There is a Honduran "artist" named Guillermo Vargas, a.k.a. Habacuc, who found inspiration in the notion of starving a dog for public display.



Long story short, this walking piece of excrement tied a dog to a short leash without food or water for 6 days so that people could watch it die. I understand that there are cultural differences in how people treat animals, however, this particular episode crosses any lines of cultural acceptance.

I certainly hope this guy makes the mistake of coming to the US. I'd rather not have to run into the challenge of getting myself extracted from Central America after putting the boots to some weanie artist wannabe.

There will be no fly of the day on this post. I will add one to my post about the fruitless journey to the amazingly beautiful Poudre Canyon.

Tight Lines,

Dave

Chi Chi Chi, Le Le Le, Viva Chile

I've been meaning to put together a post about the Boulder Old Boys Rugby tour to Chile. Long story short, it was flippin' awesome. I'm not sure that I would go to Chile again, only because there are a long list of places that I also want to go, but I'm sure glad I went. The Chilean people are fantastic. The Chilean food and sites are well worth the trip, and the dollar still goes a pretty good way, as long as you stay out of the hotel bars.

Food:
One thing I will say about Chile is that the food, without exception is fan-freakin-tabulous. The fish, beef, and pork dishes are awesome. Don't expect the food to resemble any of the Mexican dishes you get either here in the states or in Mexico itself. While there is a lot of flavor, there is not a lot of spice. The salsa would typically rank among the bland, compared to the burrito shops on B Street in San Mateo.

Fish dishes are plentiful. Lots of salmon, shell fish, and white fish. Be somewhat careful of the translations. At one restaurant a friend was told that he was ordering abalone. I think what he actually meant was albacore, as in chicken of the sea. Abalone is a fairly rare shell fish that can be caught in the shallow waters along the coast of California and other places. It is a family favorite in the Ferro house, and this certainly was not abalone.

Steak dishes. If you like a good rib eye, Chile is the place for you. I had some unbelievable cuts of meat while down there. The best I would have to say was at a place called the Gaucho in Vina del Mar.

Rice: Other than on a few business trips to Japan, I can't say that I remember the rice being anything to speak of. The type of rice they have in Chile is awesome.

Pisco, Pisco, Pisco:
The national drink of the Chileans is the Pisco Sour. Pisco is made by distilling fermented grapes. It's about 70 proof, and packs quite a wallop. They will mix it most often with sour mix, yielding something akin to a margarita. Personally, I preferred the Mango Sour, which oddly enough doesn't actually have any sour mix in it. It is just Pisco and mango. I also don't recommend having more than two of any drink including pisco. While it is theoretically just booze, it seems to have some form of evening accelerant included as well.

Beer:
Ah yes, a necessary part of any rugby tour. We were quite pleased with the beer selection. Cristal, Royal, and Escudo are the primary low level beers. All were very cheap, and pretty darn good. Budweiser, Heineken, Guinness, and other imports were also available, but at a hefty premium, as I recall.

Dogs:
One of the things that is truly amazing about Chile is the number of stray dogs that populate the streets of Chile, and how well they are integrated into society. People will feed them, pet them, or walk right by them without noticing that they are there. The dogs don't bark, beg, or approach people, but when greeted, they are completely friendly. They even have mastered the skill of looking both ways before crossing the street. As owners of 4 high maintenance dogs, it took us a little while to figure it out, but whatever system has been developed down there certainly seems to have worked itself out. The only time I saw any aggression from any dog was when a pack of 4 were all trying to mate a female in heat. Nothing like a woman in heat to cause an uproar.

Santiago:
Santiago is the capital city of Chile. I got different numbers, but about 5.5 million people live in Santiago. I would recommend spending a day or maybe two in Santiago. After that, you are just in another big freakin city, where you don't speak the language. It's got some beautiful buildings and parks. There is also a huge amount of development going on in Santiago. The skyline is littered with cranes that are helping replace short buildings with taller ones.

We played a round robin against three clubs from Santiago, and one from Mendosa, Argentina. The rugby in Santiago was probably the worst day of rugby that I have ever participated in. They play the game with uncontested scrums. For the uninitiated, that's like having a jump ball where the ref just hands the ball to the team that he wants to have it. Because we were winning, the ref seemed to consistently blow the whistle in our opposition's favor. At one point, one of the wives was laughing at my displeasure over the referee situation. She asked me what I expected to happen, we were in South America afterall. Solid point. We won 3 and tied one match, so on the overall, I'd say it worked out. Oh, and they had beer too, so all is good.

La Serena:
La Serena is a sleepy little beach town after about a 7 hour bus ride from Santiago. It was my favorite stop on the tour. Mining and Fishing are the two major industries there. Though the Wynn Corporation is building a casino along the beach, so I would imagine that tourism is becoming more of the focus.

We arrived about 2-3 weeks after their version of Labor Day, when all the tourists go home. So for us, we more or less had the town to ourselves, which is probably a good thing. One evening when a handful of us went to dinner, our departure from the restaurant was applauded by a table of women who might have thought that we were a bit too loud. These things will happen on tour.

About 2 hours due east of La Serena is Pisco country. It's kind of like Sonoma or Napa before all the McMansions started popping up. Miles and miles of grape. The Pisco industry must be doing quite well. They are excavating and planting grape on hillsides that you would think impossible to grow or maintain vines on. Picking the grape on these hillsides must be an adventure of its own.

Between relaxing by the beach, playing rugby against a great club, and the phenomenally beautiful countryside just east of the coast, La Serena is a place that I would highly recommend to anyone going to Chile.

We played the La Serena Rugby Club on a foggy afternoon in La Serena. Earlier in the day, a bunch of the Boulder OB hosted a rugby clinic for the kids at the local school. What a great experience that was. The kids were so happy to have us come and teach the game, it was just awesome. Our arrival was apparently quite the big deal in town. Many people showed up to watch the game and we made the local paper. The match against the La Serena club was a good fun match. Both teams played hard, we won, and a good time was had after the match. They hosted a dinner, and some of the kids from the school performed a dance in traditional attire, pictures can be seen below.

Top to bottom, La Serena was the highlight of our trip.

Vina del Mar:
Large city along the water. Chile's version of Miami beach I would imagine. 40-50 story shoebox condominiums everywhere. Buildings that block the sun. Great food, very modern, yet no reason to go to South America to see another big city by the beach.

The Boulder OB lost their first match on foreign soil on April 29, 2008. We were pretty worn out by the tour at this point, and we ran into a club that came to play. They beat us 4 tries to 1. They outplayed us in every facet of the game. You hate to lose, but when you do, you want it to be to a solid club. The Sporting Rugby Club of Vina del Mar are a great bunch of guys, who play solid rugby, and have perfected the art of the maul. Rugby is big down there. We played on the infield of the horse track. They have 4 regulation pitches in that infield. When we arrived, a couple of youth teams were being taught the technique of the maul. No wonder these guys we played knew what they were doing.

Alas, it came time to head back to the states. Note to travelers, for long trips, those pillows that support your head are worth every freakin penny. We arrived safely, and with the exception of needing to help pull the limo driver out of the ditch, all was smooth.

Pictures of the trip can be found at:

Chi Chi Chi Le Le Le

Fly of the day:

The Blue Winged Olive Hair Stacker - Courtesy of Fly Anglers Online




Tight Lines,

Dave

Claudia Picolo Glassman

When I left for the tour to Chile, I figured I would blog about various occurrences that took place during the trip, post a few pics, etc. On the first Saturday of the tour, I was reminded of what is really important in this world.

Claudia Picolo Glassman passed away after a 6 month battle with cancer. The only good thing to be taken from this is that she was able to have her family and friends with her as she went through the fight. She is survived by her children Nick and Emily, grandsons Jonas and Gavin (who she was able to meet upon his arrival to this world a month ago), partner Karen, and countless friends, family, and admirers.

I will always remember Claudia for giving me a turn or phrase that I have and will use in the future: "... then you are either a liar or an idiot, and I'm not going to deal with you any longer."

There's and old blues tune with the lyric, "Heaven done called another blues singer back home." Well, G*d called in an ace from the bullpen. Must have needed something straightened out up there...

There will be no fly of the day for this post.

Tight lines,

Dave

Burgers, Babes, and Rugby

I didn't make it up.

On the RugbyFanz site, I saw a Burger King TV commercial created for southern hemisphere television that would certainly earn the ire of many in the US. Though similar content could be found on daytime television, it would probably be too much for some to take. The piker no-fun patrol at USA Rugby would also probably frown on such frivolity. Thank G*d for the Internet.

Click here to see the commercial

Enjoy

Today's fly:
The Patagonian Runner (Courtesy of the really great people that run Fly Anglers Online.)




Tight Lines,

Dave

9 Days to Santiago

"The best thing about Old Boys rugby is that it is 90% of the fun and 10% of the bullsh*t."
- Rich Frankendon'tforgettogivemeattributionheimer

In 9 days, Boulder Rugby's Olde Boys will be boarding planes to Santiago, Chile for a 10 day tour. There is a pool as to who will be the first player to interact with the local authorities and a few other items that should stay within the confines of the tour. Amidst all the revelry, we'll actually be mixing in some rugby. On the 22nd, we are scheduled to play in a round robin with a couple of clubs from Santiago, and possibly one from Argentina. On the 26th, we have a match against the La Serena Old Boys, closing out the tour with a match in Vina del Mare on the 29th. (Special shout out goes to our own Julie McCoy - Rich Etzkorn - who has navigated through the compulsory mountain of cr*p, laziness, and general abuse that go with organizing any event for a rugby club, particularly the Old Boys.)

One of the great things about rugby is its inclusiveness. Ruggers are an inbred society of folks who are always looking for an excuse to play the game, have a few grogs in celebration of the event, and regale each other with somewhat inflated stories of accomplishments that took place both off and on the pitch. Many clubs set up tours to domestic and international destinations solely for the purpose of playing a few matches. A club that is traveling through any place where rugby is played can almost always get a match arranged with a phone call or an email. Similarly, any player who just shows up to a training or match with a pair of boots and shorts is welcomed to the fray.

About a year ago, we started throwing around ideas for the next tour destination. Someone suggested Chile, because they had heard of another club going down there and having a great time. Piece by piece the tour started coming together. Judging by the photos on the web sites of our hotels, we will be traveling, or at least lodging in style. Spending a few days by the beach and getting my salt water fix will do this kid from California some good. There have been several emails going around the club list, discussing training, pre-tour matches, lodging, flights, kit, and all that good organizational stuff. I can almost guarantee that almost no actual training has taken place. In the spirit of fair play, that only seems right. Training is cheating, or at least it should be, in OB rugby.

It is guaranteed to be quite the adventure. I will post some updates when I get the chance, and possibly a photo or two that are fit for public consumption. Similar to the ad slogan of Vegas, what goes on tour, is supposed to stay on tour.

Fly of the day:
The Stimulator



Tight lines:

Dave

Last of the Men's Hiko's

One day last fall, I decided that it was time to retire my rugby boots. I had been playing with a pair of the Hiko model, made by Canterbury, for the previous 4 years. Not a record, but certainly a solid stint for a pair of boots. (BTW: Rugby has it's own terminology, cleats are referred to as boots) Hence, I needed a new pair. It started as a simple search, like many searches I have made before for rugby gear and just about anything I have ever purchased online. I went to an online retailer for rugby gear, found the pair of boots that I wanted, selected my size, entered my shipping and credit card information and confirmed the purchase. Pretty straight forward to this point. I even received the usual email, stating that my order had been received, and that the item would ship in the next day or two. This is where the story turns south.

Two days later, I received a phone call from the retailer, telling me that they were out of the Hiko's in my size, and that they were not sure when they would get any more. They did however have a pair of the new and improved boot by Canterbury, the "Rampage". The sales guy assured me that they were a great boot and that he had received positive feedback about it. Going against my gut instinct, I told him to change the order, and that I would take a pair of the new boot. The boots came in a few days. What pieces of cr*p those turned out to be. After one training (rugbyspeak for practice) and a match, those boots have sat in my office at home awaiting the decision about their final destiny. The only thing for sure is that they will never be placed on my feet again.

For some reason, Canterbury has decided to put a 'hard' toe on the boot. After getting stepped on once, there is now a crease in the toe of the boot that rubs against the foot. Nice design. The boot is made of some form of synthetic leather garbage that just looks cheap, even though they charge the same amount. The fit of the boot is just terrible as well. The foot bed is probably just wide enough for a rhino, but I would say a little large for the human.

As the spring season approached, I thought I would search around for another pair of boots. I found several online outlets who carried the Hiko, but all of sizes for the basic midget, 8's, 9's, and 10's. It was pretty clear that Canterbury had decided to discontinue one of the better and more popular boots ever sold in the US. The next day, I was having a beer with some teammates after practice, and the coach of the women's team who works for USA Rugby. (Living in Boulder, we are both blessed and mostly cursed with the presence of the headquarters of the national governing body.) I then found out that the US rep from Canterbury was coming into town to meet with USA Rugby, and he would be coming to the bar later that night. When he arrived, after going through the usual pleasantries, and finding out that he in fact played with a teammate of mine from a previous club, I asked him what happened to the Hiko. I was less than impressed with the response. Essentially, the Hiko was canceled and that Canterbury was going away from the high/mid top boot because only dinosaurs like me actually wanted them. They came up with the Rampage as a middle of the road boot to satisfy old timers who still think rugby is a game that requires strength and leverage. Apparently I missed the memo where it became a finesse sport.

My response was that if you are a forward, which this guy clearly was not, you were going to want a boot with a little more support, because in the scrum you are basically in a press. He told me that the scrum only makes up 3.5 minutes of a given match. Which is true, but possession of the ball is also being contested during all of those 3.5 minutes and if you can't push, you lose the ball.

Anyway, I will go on a diatribe about the euro-wannabe, self-appointed stewards of the game, but that is another post. When I got home, I decided that if there was a Size 13 pair of Hikos to be found, I was going to find them. Well, I finally got to the point of where I should have started, Google. I Google'd Hiko Size 13. Amazon had a pair through Red Rhino. (I've worked with RR before and they kick ... um... butt) I decided to call Red Rhino and verify that they actually had the boots that I was looking for. In talking to the very friendly person who answered the phone, I told her what the Canterbury rep had to say. She laughed. She said that they get calls for the Hiko all the time, and that it is a very popular boot. They also have nothing but problems with the Rampage. She also said that I probably found the last pair in the US. Because I'm in Boulder, "Sweet" was all I could say. (Sweet is a key term in Boulder, not sure why it just is)

I have to ask who is doing the market analysis for Canterbury? Clearly it must be their solitary and 26 year old rep for the US. No wonder Canterbury no longer is the manufacturer for the New Zealand All Blacks, the most well known national side in the world.

Whatever the case, I've got a few more years with a good set of boots. Maybe Canterbury will come to their senses by the time I have to retire these.

Fly Pattern of the day:
Probably the most popular dry fly of all time - The elk hair caddis , invented by Al Troth.




Tight Lines,

Dave