Hello My Fellow Fiberglass Fly Rodders I hope this is the right place for this ,I wanted to be sure all of you had an opportunity to learn about this important new product!
I want to take this opportunity to endorse and review a revolutionary new concept in wadding safety the No-Float Stix.
This product was designed by my good friend Mr. Tom Toomey better known as T.T ...
Tom has worked over 10 years developing this wading staff; the product is second to none currently available in my opinion.
I was never one to use a wading staff until a few years back when I nearly drown in the Shetuckett River here in Connecticut after an unscheduled dam release.
I saw the light as they say and at that point I felt like a fool for never having or using a wading staff.
So I did what everyone else does I made a wading staff from and old hickory stick, well that was more trouble than it was worth all it did was float down current and get tangled in my line.
So being a penny pincher I went to an aluminum ski pole next that was a little better but still gave me problems getting tangled and after loosing a few really good fish only because my line was hung up in the staff. I couldn't get my line back on the reel to play the fish the ski pole literally got tossed on the bank.
Next as the progression goes I went to a collapsible staff that was cool and worked as long as it was extended, Then I realized that I wasn't actually using it only to get in and out of the water because it was also floating with the current or folded up to keep it from causing problems.
Next I took a bad fall and sure enough the collapsible staff did what it was designed to do it collapsed and in the drink I went and guess what it went the way of the ski pole as well.
At that point I had basically given up on wading staffs and it was really affecting my fishing. I was less prone to wade into difficult spots in fear of another fall or worse drowning.
Then Tom Toomey offered me one of his No-Float Stix, at first I refused and told Tom that I had given up on wading staffs and why, then Tom gave me the pitch and being stubborn I still refused his offer.
Soon after Tom and I went fishing together, Tom is a short guy like me and he was out in parts of the river fishing I wouldn't dare go and he had confidence no less.
To make it worse he was catching fish and I wasn't because I was afraid to get out into the main stream current to reach the fish feeding on the far bank.
So at lunch he offered for me again to try a No-Float Stix and gave me a lesson on how to use it.
This time I woke up and said yes why not.
Off I went and let me tell you it was the best thing I have done to improve my fishing in years.
The confidence I once had as a younger man was back I could navigate the rocky bottom and current nearly like I did my first 40 years of fishing and wading a stream. After an afternoon of fishing and wading with the staff that was it! I was convinced so much so I purchased one for my wife as well and needless to say she was glad to retire her old collapsible staff that she seldom used.
This wading staff is weighted and stays put so it does not float and get caught in your line.
The weight also keeps the staff grounded and makes for a more solid foundation while moving in heavy current and rocky, slimy bottoms. Generally I am not one to be easily impressed by new products but when it comes to my safety while wading, The No-Float Stix was easy for me to embrace I feel it important that I pass on my experience to my fellow fisherman. This product will save lives and be responsible for less wading spills/falls and injuries I am confident. The No-Float Stix is the result of over 10 years of working prototypes research and development the old way ever improving until the product was perfected by T.T ... Tom Toomey Makes them by his own hands in his small but capable shop right here in Connecticut one at a time. If you are interested in knowing more and there is much more to know please visit the No- Float Stix web site inserted here.
http://no-floatstix.com/contact.html You will be glad you did! Tight Lines and Safer Wading Loops. Andy M
PS Above you will see an Old Yankee exclusive photograph of T.T. with a small hand full of the prototypes. I was fortunate enough to be one of the chosen few to visit the inner No-Float Stix shop and be shown actually how the wading staffs progressed and how they are made.I can attest to the reports that they are all made here in Connecticut of the finest materials available one at a time by Tom Toomey.