Blue Water Fishing Seminar / Reel Repair Clinic - Saturday!

Just a quick reminder - we know a bunch of people have been awaiting Saturday, July 16 - it's time for our annual "Blue Water" Long-Range Fishing Clinic and we are also hosting the Alan Tani "Hands-On" Reel Repair Clinic.

It will be a great day for learning about the electrifying fishing down in San Diego (and more about our 5 day trip this September), as well as an opportunity for you to get down and dirty - digging into your conventional fishing reels and learning how to clean and maintain them under the tutelage of reel repair icon Alan Tani.

The "Hands-On" Reel Repair Clinic begins at 10 am. You will need to bring in a conventional or spinning reel to work on. Alan will supply basic maintenance items and tools for working on the reel. The goal is to get you familiar with your equipment, teaching you to take it apart, clean out the innards, and get it ready to catch some fish.

*Please note - to make sure everyone who shows up gets a chance to work with Alan, we may limit the time at the work table or the number of reels which can be worked on at any one time.

At 1 pm, Shogun Trip Chartermaster Richard Birnbaum will lead a seminar on the ins and outs of long-range fishing - what types of fish you can expect, basic and advanced techniques on how to hook up and land them and how a multi-day trip operates.

There is no charge for either of these seminars - so get your chores done early and come down to the Shop - 902 Third Street in San Rafael.

Turkey Seminar Tomorrow - 3/12/11

Another reminder to get down to the store by 10 am on Saturday for our FREE Turkey calling and techniques seminar this Saturday - Tony Giorgi will be on hand starting at 10 am, and will be available through 1 pm. Don't miss this informative (and FREE) event.

Representatives from the National Wild Turkey Foundation (NWTF) will also be on hand with membership information. This is a great opportunity to support the organization which supports turkey habitat and access.

For those of you who have not met Tony, he runs Bass 'n Boars, a guide service located in Sonoma county. He's been successfully hunting the wiley gobblers longer than he cares to remember.

So, head on down to the store and get ready for Spring Turkey Season!

San Diego / Long-Range Fishing Seminar Set - 6/26!

If you have ever wondered about the crazed, big-fish action that takes place on our September Shogun 5-Day trip out of San Diego, don't miss our San Diego/Long-Range seminar which takes place at the San Rafael store on Saturday, June 26th!



This free seminar features sessions on the various tackle and techniques used on the boat, as well as an overview of this wide-open fishing style. Learn from the experts and bring all of your questions along.

Look for an update with more information before the event, or call Richard at our San Rafael stores (on Tuesdays and Wednesdays) - 415-456-5454. Just make sure you mark your calendar for the 26th.

Alan Tani Reel Repair Seminar - Saturday April 11th

When do you want to service your fishing reel? Well, before it starts growing green fur like this one did...

We were extremely lucky to have fishing reel tuning & repair expert Alan Tani in our San Rafael store for another of his free "Hands-On Reel Repair Clinics".

This is for all the anglers who want to learn some basic maintanence techniques and don't mind getting down dirty.

All you need some reels in need of cleaning (Conventional only - sorry - spinning reels are not invited!) and a willingness to learn.

Alan will be on hand to walk you through the steps of breaking down your reel, analyzing the things which need to be fixed, and getting everything back together (hopefully with no parts left over!) and running smoother than you can remember!

Please note - this class is limited in size, and attendees may be asked to limit the number of reels they work on to allow others the opportunity to learn. So, mark your calender for Saturday, April 11th at the San Rafael store - work starts at 10 am and we'll kick you all out at 4:00 sharp!

Talking Turkey One More Time!

Last weekend was another great clinic for Spring Turkey Hunters! Turkeys -- watch out... Season Opens on March 28th!

Curt Wilson from Zink's Calls gave an "All Star" clinic covering the behavior of the Boss Tom, with special attention on how he keeps an eye on the hens.

A good group of hunters in the clinic had good questions and gave great feedback. Thanks again Curt! - We all have learned a lot in each of the seminars, but no one has had the detail about these stages. (And if you want to hear the short version, drop by the San Rafael store and speak with me - I'll be happy to give you more details.)

We first brought in the Zink calls back during duck season, and we'd heard very good things about their turkey slates and diaphragm calls. We had a chance to demo a number of them, and they have grown to be one of our favorite calls - as an added bonus, the slates come with the Zink Turkey Hunting DVD!

Next and final preseason clinic for the 2009 Turkey Season is at our Santa Rosa store on March 14. Tory Giorgi of Bass 'N Boars is the guest speaker. He has a great sense of the local areas and gives excellent advice. To reserve a spot, call 707-542-4432 - this is the last prep clinic before the spring turkey hunting season opens!

Turkey Seminars - Reserve Your Spot!

Big Thanks go out to Tony Giorgi of BASS' N BOAR Guide Service. Tony gave Saturday's A to Z on Spring Turkey Hunting clinic up at the Santa Rosa store. He covered a wide range of necessary tips and special tricks to a good group of interested customers. We learned a lot as well - it's great to get practical feedback from another person who is as crazy about spring birds as we are.

There is hope for those of you who missed that clinic - Tony will be back at the Santa Rosa store for another A to Z on Spring Turkey Hunting presentation on Saturday March 14 at 10AM.

But, don't volunteer to do all your Saturday chores the week before, because the San Rafael store will be hosting Curt Wilson of Zink calls this Saturday, March 7th at 10 am. Curt is one of the most successful hunters we know, with excellent calling techniques.

There is no charge for either of these seminars, but the way they are starting to fill up, there may not be room for everyone - best to call the store to reserve your spot. (And, hey, it's ok if you want to go to both!)

Get your calls out there's only 27 days left till the opener. Have you patterned your chokes this season. Lots of new ammo out there this year.