A friend who attended the 1991 salmon-fly conference at West Yellowstone told me that the term "elitist" was used to describe some members of The Salmon Flyer. Nothing could be further from the truth. The dictionary defines elite as "the choice or most carefully selected part of a group, as of a society or profession." Do some members of The Salmon Flyer fit this definition like a glove? Read on – please.

The following is a brief history of the The Flyer taken from Wayne Luallen's article "The Group – Who, What and Why."

The first redd was perhaps dug in October, 1985 as ideas were exchanged between tiers. In the fall of 1986, a group of salmon-fly tiers got together in Portland, Oregon. They didn't want to be a formal organization, but wanted to exchange ideas as friends. This group decided to meet again at West Yellowstone in 1987. At that meeting the possibility of a bulletin was considered and seriously discussed for the first time. However, it was not until the 1988 meeting in Livingston, Montana, that The Group (the original name of The Salmon Flyer) really came into existence.

Now, just what are the requirements one has to meet to receive this "elite" publication? First of all, you have to meet the high financial burden of $5.00. This immediately eliminates most of the undesirables. Finally, in this long list of rules, The Salmon Flyer requires one written contribution of some sort per year. This is the nail in the coffin to assure the purity of our membership.

Question: Contributing to The Flyer once a year is vastly more difficult than paying the $5.00? True or false? Answer: False.

Does this surprise you? If it does, you have the wrong impression of what The Flyer is all about. How so, you ask? Let me explain.

First of all, what you contribute to The Salmon Flyer in written form only need deal with Atlantic salmon tying subjects (loosely interpreted). There are no requirements for length or originality. Your topic needn't be original to have a profound affect on salmon-fly tying for years to come.

There are a million stories out there just waiting to be published in The Flyer. So how do you find them? Sit! Sit at your tying desk and grab something off the desk. Now tell us what you don't know about it, then what you do know about it, and what might be the potential use of the object. There, now you have something for The Flyer, it's that simple.

I happen to have grabbed a pumice stone. My contribution to The Flyer on this pumice stone would tell you why I bought it (cost and where), application, durability, substitutes, recommendations, etc. Now, if I thought a pumice stone article was worthless, it just might have brought some other article to mind, such as fingernail filing boards, silk gloves, silk floss, rayon floss . . .

What if someone wrote something that gave you an idea? Fine, send it in even if it is similar or just shows an alternative. Did you see something in the paper, or an article, or a book you thought would interest other members? We'll never know unless you tell us. Feel free to write something outrageous, or controversial, or go spacey on us.

Don't worry about what those "elite" members are going to think, don't worry about them trashing you ideas. Take my word, it ain't gonna happen.

I'll take three minutes to come up with some article ideas: What is it like to be a beginner (helpless), sources I buy from, how to solve a problem of technique, guinea feathers, skin vs. neck vs. strung hackle, storage containers, whip finish vs. hand, my favorite fly (book, tier, source, etc.), most difficult fly to tie, McNeese, The Salmon Flyer--why it hasn't won a Pulitzer, tinsels, proportions, style, cements and thinners, Andy Rooney and the cost of materials, authentic vs. substitutes, take a gamble, learning from failure, threads, vises. Time! My three minutes are up.

Only one article per year is required, but go right ahead and submit as many as you would like. Too much copy is a problem we will just have to live with.

That's it. If The Flyer still sounds like an elite group to you, so be it. Like tying a Captain, I can eventually get use to the term.