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Interview with Derek Rust

Derek Rust is a guy I’ve actually fished with, which isn’t a common theme in terms of interviews I’ve done. Derek and I fished for surf perch and were largely unsuccessful in doing so. Derek is pretty big in social media, which is how I got to know him in the first place. He picked up and moved from the mountains of Northern CA to the flats of Southern Florida. It is a move I think many of us have at least toyed with in some fantasy world. Derek actually did it. That got me thinking that he might make a pretty interesting interview.

You moved from Tahoe to the flats of Florida… a big move. What was the pull?

The pull….Permit,Tarpon and Bonefish! It was an easy decision. I was lucky enough to get an opportunity of a lifetime to work in the Keys as a guide, and since I was spending all of my free time and $ to go to the Keys to fish, it was a no brainer. I love Tahoe, but guiding there was part time at best. Florida offered a year round job on the water, and the opportunity to fish all I want on my days off 🙂

Nice bonefish there Derek

I think a lot of folks have part of them with a bit of a dream to go be a flats guide. What is one of the highlights and lowlights from your journey?

I guess some of the highlights so far would be catching my first Permit and first double digit Bone on fly, guiding people into the fish of a lifetime, meeting new people, exploring new water all over Southern Florida, and getting to fish just about every day! I am lucky to say that the highlights are still coming. The lowlights…..hmm. I guess the biggest one was leaving Tahoe itself and all of the incredible people I spent so much time with. I miss the guys I use to guide with out there, and I also miss the beautiful Northern Sierras, the pristine water, the evening Caddis hatches and Steelhead, and summer time sight fishing for Carp.

I’ve heard a lot about how rough the guide culture in Florida can be. What’s your experience with that?

The guide culture in FL….wow. That is a tough one. It can be extremely rough down here fitting in. I am the new guy in a place that is full of guides. Newcomers are not always welcome. I have taken a few licks from some of the older salty Captains down here,but, it is all part of being accepted. I never knew that fishing had so much politics! Tarpon season is the worst. Learning what is acceptable, and what is not takes a bit of time. But, it seems like courtesy will get you a long way down here.

Poonage... nice.

Favorite rod and reel?

My favorite rod and reel down here would have to go to my Scott S4S 9 wt with a Galvan Torque T-10 on it. It is a versatile rod and can get the job done.

Have you hopped over to the Bahamas? Some cheap flights that way.

I can sadly say that I have not made it to the Bahamas yet. Hopefully I can get over there really soon. BUt, you know how it is, too many fish to chase, too little time and $ to do it.

What advice would you give to an angler heading to Florida for the first time?

My best advice I can give to someone heading down here for the first time is practice your casting. Accuracy is key on the flats. A guy who can cast 100 feet of line and is wild as hell will not do as good as a guy who can only cast 50 feet and can put it on a dinner plate almost all of the time. It is almost always windy down here, so you MUST learn to cast into the wind. It can make or break a day on the water. Learn to cast straight into the wind, with the wind over each of your shoulders, with it at your back and from left to right. If you can do this it will greatly improve your odds of hooking up. Another thing to practice is shooting line. Minimalizing false casts is crucial. The water is clear down here, and waving a fly line around 25 times to deliver is cast of 40 feet is no good and will scare the hell out of these fish. Learn to shoot line on your backcast as well as your forward cast will give you better shots and getting a spooky fish to eat a fly. And lastly, I would highly recommend learning how to backcast, and, learning how to do it with accuracy. Not every shot down here is head on, and these fish can appear out of nowhere sometimes making turning the boat impossible. You will get more shots if you can backcast because frequently you just don’t have time to adjust the skiff for a perfect shot every time.

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16
Jul 11

Bonefish for Breakfast

well… sort of…

Yummers.

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06
Jul 11

The Humble Jack

Jacks often are looked down upon. I’m not sure why that is. I think they are kind of awesome. They pull HARD. They can be taken on poppers and plugs and clousers and pretty much anything else that gets in their way. My biggest saltwater fish to-date is a Jack and I enjoyed every minute of that fish, including several before it was hooked and a great number of minutes after.

These are some of the reasons I’m happy to see the good folks over at Skinny Water Culture devote a shirt to the good fish… we’ll see how long they sell it before the C&D letter arrives. My suggestion would be to order soon.

Cool.

I really like Jack’s.

Beeg. Caught out of El Pescador in Belize.

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05
Jul 11

Bonefish mating still secretive – MiamiHerald.com

Corbinian Bonefish

Good looking bit of paint on canvas. $200 bones gets you as many bones as you can count in this painting. You might have to look closely to see them, which is kind of how that works anyway. The artist is Peter Corbin. Great looking canvas.

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23
Jun 11

Reasons Work is Better than Bonefishing

Um… wait… hold it… I’ll think of a reason…

I was reading something that talked about how great it would be if you could make your job like your hobby. Imagine if you could talk about it with as much passion… if you could look forward to it as much as that hobby. It would be a good trick, wouldn’t it?

I’m trying to look at this new job in that light. It is interesting work. The startup culture allows you to help really build something. Your input can actually make it into the final product.

It isn’t the same as bonefishing… but think about how far you could go if you fixed that same steely gaze on Alpha Launches, demo videos and content for the website.

Eye on the prize.

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22
Jun 11

Game Dynamics & Fly Fishing, Part 2

So, I recently did a post about how fly fishing has innate game dynamics and I thought I’d expand on that theme.

One of the most common game dynamics is… (via TechCrunch)

1. Achievement

Definition: A virtual or physical representation of having accomplished something. These are often viewed as rewards in and of themselves.

Example: a badge, a level, a reward, points, really anything defined as a reward can be a reward.

and another is…

31. Pride

Definition: the feeling of ownership and joy at an accomplishment

Example: I have ten badges. I own them. They are mine. There are many like them, but these are mine. Hooray.

Now, we don’t get an actual badge for our milestones, but I’d bet most anglers have a pretty good list of them in their heads.

A first 20 fish day. A 40 fish day. A fish caught on your own fly. A species list. A location list (states or countries). Number of rods. Number of reels. Number of waders you’ve worn through. Our pictures are our badges. The wear and tear on our boots are our badges. The space our rods take up in the garage are badges.

These are our trophies. They clutter up our mental trophy cases and depending on how humble you are, you might dust them off and put them on display… maybe overtly, maybe in more subtle ways.

Someone who has a conversation where they mention… “When I was fishing in Belize…” and then “The thing with Russian Atlantic Salmon…” and then “Of the twelve Able reels I’ve owned, I always felt that the main strength was…” That person is showing off their trophy case, or their foursquare badges.

If it is too explicit we, as anglers, tend to get a little bit upset. I don’t know exactly why. We don’t like braggarts much, while we probably are ourselves braggarts without meaning to be.

It is a driver… it is human nature. If the fly fishing industry had figured this out and really managed to put it implicitly into the sport in a way that wouldn’t make us barf, the industry would probably be in a much stronger position (even if it might have different people in it).

So… those are just some thoughts.

By the way… did I ever tell you about the time I fished in BC and caught an 18 pound buck steelhead on a skating dry fly?

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20
Jun 11

Need a new t-shirt

Check this one out from Black Fly Outfitter…

I like it.

Oh Kalik, I could never be mad at you.

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19
Jun 11

Happy Father’s Day

I’m lucky. My dad was/is pretty fantastic. When I look back at my childhood, I can only think of one time that I really felt let down by my dad.

I played lots of sports in high school. I hadn’t found fly fishing yet and there wasn’t much else to do in Dunsmuir. I was asked to play tennis by the tennis coach, who noticed I wasn’t playing baseball and I was tall and athletic. I played. I wasn’t good, but I played.

We were at a tournament in the small town of Etna and I was playing men’s doubles. My dad was in the stands (really, it was just one little stand). I was at the net. A ball was coming high, I jumped to try and smash it… my timing was off. The ball left the court… over the fence. It was not my finest moment.

“Home run!” I heard from the stands. It was my dad. I was pissed. I hardly talked to him the whole ride home.

Funny thing… I can now see that I would probably be the dad to say “Home Run!” He was trying to be funny, as I often try to diffuse tense situations with humor.

My dad was there just about every game I ever played. He missed 2 basketball games from the time I was in the 8th grade until my senior year in High School. Home games. Away games, some 3 hours away. He was there. My mom was usually there too, but this is Father’s Day. It is kind of amazing that he went to all those games for all those years.

He also taught me to fish. I had a rod in my hand at age 4 and he got me my first day of fly fishing guiding on the McCloud.

On the fishing trips we’ve had we’ve talked about deep subjects… God, life, love. Good, good times.

My dad has turned into a great grandfather too, which shouldn’t have come as a surprise, but it still amazes me how much he loves his little granddaughter.

So… here’s to Dad. I hope you all either had one just as fantastic, or are working hard to be that kind of dad yourselves… I know I am.

Dad

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18
Jun 11

Andros Dreams

Yeah… so… this likely wouldn’t suck too bad either…

Little place on North Andros for $325,000. Kind of makes you think, doesn’t it?

Andros Island Bahamas property for sale..

: I could do that…

You could dock your skiff right over across the street…

Bonefish on the Brain Bonefish and all that relates (maybe a bit about tarpon too).