I’ve been remiss in saying my thanks here (at least I tweeted about it). This year started off very lucky for me. Another activity I enjoy is hiking/backpacking and a big part of that for me is my hammock setup. I had the honor of winning close to $400 in gear at a hammock event in Feb. I wasn’t expecting anything big from this year’s Fly Fishing Film Tour. However, the raffle gods smiled upon me once again.

The Tour continues to get better. I think the consensus was that we enjoyed seeing a little more saltwater fishing. No offense, but trout after trout gets a little old when you can’t relate 100%. During intermission they held the raffle and I was just ready to ride it out. The first few items were raffled off and then they got to the golden prize (ok, it wasn’t the top prize but it was #2)…a gorgeous Sage Response 5-weight rod.

The guy doing the drawing said he was going to pull from the bottom. Hmm, I was on the bottom. Could it happen? A card was plucked from the Yeti cooler. He stared. No, it couldn’t be. He said my first name. I knew he was trying to figure out my last name so I said it for him. I WON!! I REALLY WON!! I can honestly say of the few things I’ve won over the years this has to be the coolest!

Now here’s the kicker. For months I’d been in the market for a 5-weight rod. I’ve been doing a lot of bluegill fishing with my son in the retention pond across the street and the 8-weight isn’t much fun. I also have a burning desire to head north for some trout fishing and thought a 5 would be perfect. And now I have one!

Of course the rod was only half the battle. This led me to continue supporting my local fly shop. I picked up a Scientific Angler line and a Ross reel to complete the package.

So thank you Sage, Fly Fishing Film Tour, and all the sponsors!