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Hi Grampa Dave. I'm glad you are the spotlightee today. I believe that you embody the spirit of Free Republic as much or more than most of us. Your work standing up to the enviro wackos is heroic. I've had the privilege of helping out with one of the projects. I got a lot of signatures for the farmers in the Klamath Basin. I took the petition to the county fair last year and hit all the farmers. I always read your threads too. You are indeed one of Free Republic's Finest.

Nan thanks for all your hard work and support for our battle against the Evil/Vile Watermelons.

Thanks for the flyfishing gif. I lost a similar one when my old computer went away in May. I'm saving this one for my files.

A year ago on the Yuba River, with my new Spey Rod, I actually had two fish in one day do that. They jumped in air caught the fly.

When the first one did, I was so stunned, I just stood there until he started to run away with the fly and the line. Then I woke up. I got him back in to release him. It was a riot for me and a stunner for him. He struck the fly as it bounced on the water about 60 feet out from me.

The other one should have been on Candid Camera. Spey Rods are very long rods and you have to do several moves with your rod to get to the point of the cast with your line, leader and flying moving around and in the water in front of you at an increasing rate of speed with each part of the cast. I was doing all of these moves and suddenly a very large trout or steelhead came up and grabbed my fly as it was flying across the water just as I was starting the forward Double Spey cast, final cast move.

With these long rods and the different movements you build up incredible line speeds which pull the fly along on top of the water. Just as I started the final move and the fly was scooting along and started to do its little top water dance before streaking out 60 to 70 feet. A hugh trout/steelhead struck my fly just as this process happened.

At first I thought that someone had thrown a rock in the water as water was all up in the air and over me. Next I had about 50 foot of fly line wrapped around my arms, my neck and my new and very expensive Spey Rod.

Then I saw this huge trout float up the top with my fly in its mouth. I had knocked it out with the line velocity that hit it, the moment the fish hooked itself on my fly.

I came to me senses and got the line off of my neck and arms first. You don't want fly lines around any part of your body if a big fish decides to take off.

Next I got the line unwrapped from my rod and from around my reel. In the meantime the poor fish was floating downstream. I got the line in tight and ran down and got him. I took the hook out.

Then, it took about 5 minutes to revive it so that it could swim away. It was a beautiful native rainbow or a steelhead, and I never kill native fish.

A guide and his two clients were watching and came down stream in the guides drift boat. The guide was grinning and laughing. He congratulated me for a great comic performance. His two clients wanted to know where they could buy one of these Spey Rods. They had seen me catch a couple of fish before my Klown in the River act.

Billei, aquamarine, dansangel, thank you so much for this great honor today. The Freeper Family is such a wonderful and incredible family of talented and great people. I happy to be a Grampa for so many!

I'm off to go fly fishing. However,I promise to answer every great reply tomorrow.

Jim Rob, thank you for your gift to conservatives across America and into other lands.

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Thank you for this great gif, WVNan!

Hello, AuntB - nice to see you here today giving our FReeper of the Day more kudos!

Nan, love the fly fishing graphic! Betcha Dave will, too!