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Dutch Fly Fair 1996The following report was sent to the flyfishing mailing lists - FlyFish@ and Euro-Flyfish@ - after my return from a most enjoyable Fly Fair in Holland May 1996.
X-Sender: martinj@login.dknet.dk
Fly Fair '96 - Ahhhh... What can I say? A lot, some of my friends will
answer ;-) And they're probably right.
Let me sketch the scene for those of you unfamiliar with the settings. Fly
Fair is Europe's largest outdoors Fly show and takes place every second year
in Holland. It's set up in a huge tent on the banks of the river IJssel near
the town of Zwolle. The show features tyers, casters, exhibitors and audience
from all over the world and is very well visited. The tent, the tying area
and the surroundings are constantly buzzing with activity for the two days of
the show and several days both before and after.
This was my first Fly Fair, but certainly not my last. I do not intend to
miss another one. I was lucky enough to be invited to tie there, and that
made the experience so much the better.
For the participants the show offers a unique chance to meet old and new
friends, and the audience have the option to choose from a program featuring
the cream of the crop of tyers, casters, shops and products. There are many
commercial booths at Fly Fair, and the weak of heart better leave the credit
card in the car.
For me the highlight of the Fair was definitely the tyers. I can only touch
on a few of them, as I didn't have a chance to see them all tie. The tyers
list has some 70-80 prominent tyers, and as half of them are tying at any
time, being in the tyers area is like being a kid in a candy store.
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