Joined
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5,375 Posts
A general note to my fellow Canadians:
offline I get dozens and dozens of requests about spey schools, yet when we set things up it is like pulling teeth to get people to pay for them. We rarely have to cancel, but so often it is not until the last minute that people confirm their attendance by paying the sponsoring shop. This has not only been my experience but also the experience of other casting instructors. This is unfair to shops and also to people like me who commit their time and refine their skills so that quality casting instruction is available at an affordable price (compare what we would be paying if we factored in the exchange rate and travelled south for casting instruction).
If you want world class instruction and spey schools in Canada you need to support them. Am I and other Canadian instructors doomed to suffer the same fate as so many other Canadians in that we have to be recognized outside the country in order to get any recognition and support at home? It is truly an honor that the good people at Kaufmann's have asked me to participate at their Spey Days next month and to deliver the keynote address and provide instruction alongside such great casters as Goran Andersson, Andy Murray, Tim Rajeff, Steve Choate, Way Yin, George Cook, Scott O'Donnell and Mike McCune, but a little embarrassing that spey casters on my side of the border are unwilling to support my efforts at home. Despite my hard work that brings you the resources you see on the Spey Pages and speyclave (stuff you get for free), my willingness to answer countless email questions for you about rods and lines etc etc (again, for free), the 100% positve reviews I get from people who have attended my schools, and the thanks that I occasionally get from appreciative people who frequent this site, I have to admit sometimes to feeling a little like Rodney Dangerfield. Have I done something wrong?
Keep in mind also that much of what I make at my schools goes into supporting this site, so in attending my spey schools you also allow the Forum, Speyclave and Spey Pages to survive.
I have 3 schools planned for this spring and early summer with three different shops in three different locations.
I hope we can count on your support!
offline I get dozens and dozens of requests about spey schools, yet when we set things up it is like pulling teeth to get people to pay for them. We rarely have to cancel, but so often it is not until the last minute that people confirm their attendance by paying the sponsoring shop. This has not only been my experience but also the experience of other casting instructors. This is unfair to shops and also to people like me who commit their time and refine their skills so that quality casting instruction is available at an affordable price (compare what we would be paying if we factored in the exchange rate and travelled south for casting instruction).
If you want world class instruction and spey schools in Canada you need to support them. Am I and other Canadian instructors doomed to suffer the same fate as so many other Canadians in that we have to be recognized outside the country in order to get any recognition and support at home? It is truly an honor that the good people at Kaufmann's have asked me to participate at their Spey Days next month and to deliver the keynote address and provide instruction alongside such great casters as Goran Andersson, Andy Murray, Tim Rajeff, Steve Choate, Way Yin, George Cook, Scott O'Donnell and Mike McCune, but a little embarrassing that spey casters on my side of the border are unwilling to support my efforts at home. Despite my hard work that brings you the resources you see on the Spey Pages and speyclave (stuff you get for free), my willingness to answer countless email questions for you about rods and lines etc etc (again, for free), the 100% positve reviews I get from people who have attended my schools, and the thanks that I occasionally get from appreciative people who frequent this site, I have to admit sometimes to feeling a little like Rodney Dangerfield. Have I done something wrong?
Keep in mind also that much of what I make at my schools goes into supporting this site, so in attending my spey schools you also allow the Forum, Speyclave and Spey Pages to survive.
I have 3 schools planned for this spring and early summer with three different shops in three different locations.
I hope we can count on your support!