BASIC FLY FISHING COURSE AT ASU
BY JOHN BERRY
My wife, Lori, and I are going to teach a basic fly fishing class at Arkansas State University, Mountain Home this spring. This class is designed for the complete novice. There will be an emphasis on casting instruction and the class size will be limited to twenty students so that everyone can receive plenty of personal attention. In case we have more than twenty students sign up for the course, we have made arrangements with the university to add an additional session. We will cover equipment, knots, entomology, fly selection, fishing strategies, water safety and ethics. Lori and I are going to keep everything simple so that the students don’t get overloaded with too much information.
This is not a onetime event. We have agreed with the university to hold the course every spring. In addition, we will develop new courses over time. We are currently working on an intermediate and an advanced course. Fly tying and a class for kids will follow.
Lori and I love to teach and we have been doing it for a long time. I have been teaching for twenty years. I began by teaching a basic fly fishing course when I was president of the Mid South Fly Fishers. Since then I have taught fly fishing for Shelby State Community College in Tennessee, Mississippi County Community College in Arkansas, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, Casting for Recovery, the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoor Festival, Becoming an Outdoor Woman and Bronson’s Sporting Goods. I have taught casting or held seminars for, the FFF National Conclave, the FFF Southern Conclave, the FFF South Eastern Conclave, Sowbug and the Home Waters Expo. I have guided for over eighteen years.
Lori has been teaching fly fishing for about ten years. She has taught fly fishing for Bronson’s Sporting goods, the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoor Festival and Becoming an Outdoor Woman. In addition, she taught casting or held seminars for the FFF Southern Conclave, Sowbug and the Home Waters Expo. Lori also has a substantial background in corporate training and has been a fly fishing guide for seven years.
The course will be held on the campus of ASU Mountain Home on Thursday nights from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM beginning on March 17, 2011 and continuing for four weeks and ending on April 7, 2011. I know that the starting date is Saint Patrick’s Day. I have a bit of Irish heritage myself. I will hold my celebration after the class. The cost is $75.00 per person. Bring your own rod and reel or use ours. We will provide all equipment needed for the class, if required.
For more information, please call 508-6106, email
[email protected] or stop by the ASUMH Continuing Education Office in First National Hall, Room F210, to enroll.
