Mar 15, 2014

George Cook - Spey Day on the Sandy River

Spey Day: Opportunity to cast an entire series of Sage and Redington rods!

Once a year and always seemingly the wettest day possible, George Cook (Northwest Representative for Sage, Redington and Rio) organizes a one day event set aside just for dealers to come and cast the entire arsenal of two hand equipment. Sort of a mini spey clave. The idea evolves around getting the rods in the hands of the guys that actually sell the equipment and taking them for a test drive. It also allows us to test the different lines available from Rio.



Sweet Reels!
I can't begin to describe how educational this event is to northwest dealers. While most of us that attend this event are proficient with two hand rods nowhere else can we go and have the opportunity to cast the entire series of Sage and Redington rods and do it on a real river setting...not a casting pool in a convention center.

John Garrett, Andrew Perrault and myself attended this year. We almost didn't make it! A storm in the Gorge had dumped about 8 inches of snow in Hood River, Oregon. Our drive in took a little longer than usual but it was the drive home that was real crazy...many miles of bumper to bumper traffic and slow go across chunky ice. The Sandy area was just rainy, wet and downright pouring at times.

Bring your Gore-Tex
We cast every rod George had from little switch rods suited for trout to full size 15' 10 weights with long belly lines. Too many good rods to describe them all but I'll try to highlight a few I remember. The Sage One 4116 is of course one of my favorites and I'm already well acquainted with this rod in my trout fishing adventures this winter. The Sage One 7116 really left an impression on me as a possible awesome summer steelhead dry line rod. Top Gun for a King Stick would have to go to the Sage One 10130 for its incredible ability to huck a skagit head and tip across the river but I also have to mention the Sage Method 9119 switch in this same sentence for its prowess as a possible Chinook stick. The Sage Method 6126 could be a new favorite versatile steelhead weapon. I liked it for the light in hand but powerful feel. For being an ultra-fast series of rods the Method's really impresses with the amount of feel and feedback they provide. Fast rods are not new to the scene, the former TCX is proof of that, but what is unique with the Method and the One is the advancement in the way they provide feel and feedback when loading. Technical fast yes, but easier than ever to learn and tune into. A real sleeper in the bunch is the Sage VXP and especially the 7133 for its smooth graceful skagit-ability. This could be your all around Northwest steelhead rod and it would not disappoint.

The Redington Dually series of spey and switch rods are quite impressive for the price. Light, responsive and not overly fast make them a joy to cast. The smaller switch sizes will delight trout anglers. Also from Redington are the Prospectors. The Prospectors cast smooth with a little faster feel than the Dually.


We stayed until all rods were cast. Only five of us remained including George and his wing-man Erik Johnson. Each of us grabbed a handful of rods to carry up the hill back to the truck. We spent some time cuttin' up while George and Erik sorted out the warehouse of goods. I almost forgot to mention the impressive array of fly fishing reels. A sampling of all Sage reels including a new Evoke. The Saracione stands out in a crowd. Also on board were several Tibor reels. I really like the Tibor Spey reels especially in black.

How many reels can you name?
A note to end on. I'd like to take this space and throw out a big "Thank You" to George and Erik for taking the time out of their busy lives and providing us with the opportunity to experience all of the Two-Hand arsenal coming from Bainbridge Island, Washington.

Gorge Fly Shop 
Internet Sales Manager | Product Specialist


"Fly Fish the World with Us"

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