Kiene's Expo !!

[David Lee]

What a day !!

If I'd have had any more fun .... I'd need sedation :nod:

Met fantastic people , got the MASTERCLASS in tying from Lee Haskins and Leo G. (Thanks , you two !) , chattered w/ all the usual suspects (Darian , Ken Hanley , Hairstacker , Chris V. , Nightgoat , GM , Wingman , Eugene .....) , and ... to top it all off , I WON A FLYLINE !!!!!!

Thanks to the Kienes and staff - just a really , really great time for me today !

Also - THANK YOU to whoever donated the Rio Selective Trout 5 wt. line


David :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

PS - we should do this every month ! :shock: :shock:

[Hewie]

I'll second that!

A buddy and I drug our kids (two 4 year olds and two 6 year olds) to the expo today to chat with the experts, friends, and check out the gear. On our way to the expo, I pointed to another fly shop and told my friend, "Kiene's is 15 minutes farther, but well worth it". You and your staff put you on top, but this event seals the deal.

We loaded the kids up with hot dogs and kept them entertained collecting stickers as we learned what we could. The kids even got talked into trying their hand at the casting contest. What a hoot. I told them they'd all win stickers, and you sent them home with prizes making us dads green with envy.

Kiene's, you are amazing!

Thanks again,
Dave

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Everyone who was there is what makes it all happen, so thanks to all.

Many of the local fly clubs were represented well.

Our factory reps did a fine job educating everyone on the finer points of all their products.

We had some really top fly tiers this year who add another dimension to the sport.

We had some great raffle prizes donated this year so we had some excited people who won them.

We had lots of great volunteers who worked on it all day long.

It seems to have become a good friendly tradition being the weekend before the general trout stream opener which is kind of the kick off to much of our local fisheries.

It should be warmer from here on out so we can get out there and thrash the water again. Says it will be 85 degrees next Saturday.

Lastly our loyal customers and new ones made a great showing too.

The think our little BB was represented pretty well too.

David Lee and I were discussing briefly an outing on a week night to Cameron Park Lake with a little barbecue too. It is a great place to bring the family with really nice grassy area on the north end of the lake.

[k.hanley]

Say Hey Bill and crew,
Thanks again for having me as part of your event. I always enjoy this day. You guys are talking about having a triple B outing (bass, BS'n, and BBQ!).....heck count me in if I can swing the date.
Cheers, Ken

[Jay Murakoshi]

Hey Bill, Marilyn and crew,

I really enjoyed my stay in the Sacramento area this past weekend.
Actually, I'm still here but on my laptop this evening.
This year, I actually got up and took a break, walked around outside, visited with alot of people I know in the industry and some new people and faces. Finally, we went through the whole day without a drop of rain.
A little breezy but we can live with that.

I talked to Bill at the end of the day and he was dragging. He said that he's not use to getting up at 5:30am. Bill's crew did an excellent job of setting out tables, hanging signs and getting everyone lined up.

Today, I spent the day with some of the members up at the Granite Bay club house going over their upcoming baja trip. Thought about driving home but decided to spend the evening living out of the suitcase for one more day. I also spent a few hours talking to Keith Kaneko about his trips he promotes - sounds interesting, I will be checking into it alittle further.

I loved talking and tying flies for all of those who stopped by. I had alot of interest in the rainbow sea habit. As a matter of fact, I have 12 emails wanting to order a bunch for the up coming striper season. Kiene's will eventually have them on the shelf.

Once again - thanks to Bill, Marilyn and the crew and to those who attended the Fly Fair...............

See ya next year.

Jay

A special thanks to Andy for helping me shoot my shots for an upcoming article in Fly Fishing in Salt Water magazine

[Hairstacker]

Yep, I had a blast! Great time chatting up with some of the fellas and checking out all the gear on display. You can read all you want about reels you’re interested in but nothing beats turning the handle and popping off the spool to look inside. I’m starting to see one of those Redington Brakewaters in my future. 8)

Got a chance to sit in front of a few fly tyers I’ve never watched before. Never fails I learn a bunch from every fly tyer I sit down in front of. All of 'em were so nice and even though they've probably tied hundreds of thousands of flies each, they still talk about catching fish with the excitement of a little kid. :)

Got to see Lee Haskins tie up one of his new, innovative neutral buoyancy flies. Now, instead of just floating and sinking flies, we have a 3rd category of flies that will suspend in the water column. I can definitely envision these flies being very effective in the Delta during the coldwater season, when I want my fly underwater but fished very slowly at times without worrying about it sinking into a bed of weeds. If you plan to tie these, you should contact him to get a copy of his formula sheet he’s worked out for the correct amount of materials to achieve neutral buoyancy.

Got to gab some with Jay Fair who, in my opinion, has some of the best fly tying materials on the market. (In fact, I had bought some in Kiene’s store earlier before I noticed Jay in attendance.) Jay told me he plans to pare down some of his product lines, but retaining all the best stuff, so he can spend more time fishing. He showed me some of the Wiggle Tails he personally fishes with – they had longer, 2 ½” tails, which he says are more effective than what most folks are using.

Got to watch Leo Gutterres carve up some of his balsa wood poppers which are so nice I personally regard them as collectibles. The man is an artist. I learned some invaluable tips for getting these right and improving their appearance. I love the way he uses mesh to paint the effect of scales on a baitfish popper. Very cool.

Just flat out ran out of time before I had a chance to sit in front of the rest of the tyers. :( I’ve seen them before, though, and they’re ALL truly great tyers, just world-class level talent in my opinion. All in all, it was just like I anticipated – a not-to-be missed event. Thank you very much Bill and everyone who made this happen! Will definitely be back next year.

[Bob Scheidt]

I too had a great time. This really was a special day. I had lots of interest in the different flies and variety I brought with me. I had alot of fun asking the flyfishers their opinions. The all agreed, Bill and staff are tops, not just patronizing here, that is what they said.
Bob