Fly-fishing fashion: Streetwear goes streamside
Are kook fits in? Honestly, the only drip I know is when you're wading deep and you dunk your hat.
Every few years, a major hatch erupts across every river all at once: the sport enters the pop culture conversation and hot takes start popping off.
Old-timers in both age and outlook are rattled as they are forced to consider expanding their self-imposed sporting boundaries. There's some variation of hew and cry around how "our sport is elegant and sophisticated, and the new attention it is getting will spoil it, starting with its mores, and the places we love so much."
First, it was The Movie that drove interest in the sport into overdrive. Then, hairdressers began buying up all the saddle hackle. After that, Yellowstone drove a stake into the heart of the last best place. The C word is almost as scary as the W.
Of course I'm being hyperbolic. But some concerns are legit. We do, after all, participate in putting pressure on natural resources, no matter how lightly we tread and how few fish we catch (ahem). A thousand additional fly-fishers in a state will impact its watersheds, from trampling new stream-side trails and eroding banks, to wearing out the margins of parking areas and disturbing underwater ecosystems when as we wade carelessly. The constant sub-division of large wilderness tracts to create mini-ranches will further disrupt rural economies and drive dollars into speculative cul de sacs (culs de sac?).
I'm not here to chide, though. I'm largely ambivalent to these fad moments, because they fade quickly, and in some ways, they refresh the sport. They both help us insiders see how others perceive our subculture, and they open the door for new folks to join the party, and help shape the future.
Drake and Nocta: Are they like us?
The latest third rail item comes courtesy Nike, Abel reels, and Nocta, a lifestyle clothing brand collaboration between Nike and Drake, (Canadian actor-turned-rapper Aubrey Graham, mostly in the news this year as Kendrick Lamar's punching bag).
The Drake (unrelated; this one's the current best fly-fishing periodical) put the Drake on its cover, albeit in a strange creeping-mid-river portrait that doesn't quite scream original editorial content or actual fishing. The goal, seemingly, was to help herald the collaboration around a forthcoming line of "fly-fishing inspired urban wear” and generate sales of a limited run of 100 custom Abel Vaya reels and nippers (2500 yankee dollars for the set), flinging wide the wallets of both anglers and Drake fans.
(Not to dwell overmuch on the beefing but if I were the subject of repeated, intense, impossible-to-come-back-from rap battle destruction I would not publicize my participation in what is, pretty much, a very nerdy sport. But that's just me.)
Drake, apparently, was introduced to fly-fishing via his business partner, and actually does it. Of course, as one does, Nike held an exclusive launch party New York City (Drake not in attendance), featuring a fly-fishing comedian and a casting contest. I'll let Fly Fisherman set the scene (its Instagram reel (ha!) is worth a click for some zingers in the comments):
The company rented an entire parking lot at 88 Madison Street—just one block outside of the Chinatown neighborhood—and built a temporary forest refuge surrounded by trees and centered by an outdoor casting pond with a massive digital scoreboard. The event had a light show akin to a NYC night club or a hip hop concert event; a live DJ spinning hits from Drake, Nicki Minaj, and others; open bars on both sides of the casting pond, and a casting competition where a live scoreboard tallied accuracy in hitting large 1-pount hoops and small 3-point hoops. Almost everyone who participated in the contest had never held a fly-fishing rod but were exuberantly cheered and applauded by the throng of hyped-up spectators. The “host” of the casting competition portion of the event was Eeland Stribling who is a fly-fishing guide and stand-up comedian from Denver Colorado. The event was open to the public, but the casting event was by invitation only.
In addition to expensive reels, Abel is known for its extensive color customization options and brand licensing deals (Coors Banquet, the Grateful Dead). If you're an angler who's really into accessorizing your gear ensemble and aesthetics, as opposed to hard-working patina (no judgement!) you may be interested in Abels. Abel is less known for its connection to Andy and Mark Madoff, sons of the notorious Ponzi scammer, former owners of the company who at one time also had ownership interest in NYC's glitzy fly shop, the Urban Angler, to give you a sense the brand's 1% heritage.
There's actual evidence of real people buying these reels at a reputable fly shop (even though the press releases and angling trade re-hashes of press releases all stress they're meant to be sold exclusively through Abel.) Are these buyers Swoosh fans? Or Drake fans? Both? Unclear. I'm pretty sure this program was cooked up by someone inside Nike HQ who has a soft spot for fancy tackle, though. Kudos to you, sir or madam, the research trips must have been extraordinary, and you're set for life on shiny reels. The reaction from Hypebeast, blog-cum-arbiter-of-streetwear-cool, certainly seems lukewarm.
Streetwear and GORPcore brands wet a line, or Set my burning bier adrift on Hypebeast stream
Nike, sadly, isn't a fast-mover here. It may still do these sorts of things the biggest, with a launch party, but no longer the first or best.
Pop culture has become incredibly voracious at the edges, and companies are eager to capitalize on any fandom, to leverage any kind of committed audience. Fashion and apparel brands will leave no turn unstoned in a search for any entry-point to a subculture. And here I am, adding to the hype, albeit in this quiet back eddy. But fly-fishing has been in casting range of streetwear for a while now.
Sports aren't just sports anymore, but unwitting trends for new styles — the nicher the better. Whether it's all-white tennis looks, cycling shorts, or (the less desirable) Canadian double-denim closing ceremony fits for the 2021 Olympics. The latest sport to be co-opted by fashion is fly-fishing via Supreme, but actually, this is one of its strongest collections we've seen in a while.
adidas and END., Columbia PFG and Kith, Supreme and SOUTH2 WEST8 are just a few brand collabos that have done some fly-by strip-mining of fishing for "fashion" that has already become predictable and same-sy (organic prints, vests, everything with tons of pockets, distressed materials, bug netting, technical / boxy silhouettes, oh, and bucket hats).
Huh, weird, it all looks the same.
Yokogao, with a bit more reporting, places the Japanese introduction to fly-fishing as an influence at the preppy outdoor workwear "Heavy Duty Ivy" look dating from the '80s.
Who cares?
Great question. I'm pretty much in the No harm, no foul camp when it comes to fly-fishing fashion. Wear whatever you want. Bright green rod, bright green reel, bright green whatever: cool.
I don't think anyone who's spending a lot of money to look distinctive or express their identity is going to be doing it under the false impression these apparel choices are going to make durable fishing gear, or be somehow technically superior, other than ample pockets.
And I don't think any new angler is going to somehow arrive at the Kith capsule collection website and mistakenly believe it's standard kit. Even figuring out how to buy emerging fashion stuff requires being an insider.
Most anglers, myself included, prize function above all else when it comes to apparel. And, I know just as many who fetishize all sorts of other meaningless-in-the-grand-scheme stuff. Don't ask how much extra that old click-and-pawl reel cost because it's got the finger-wear patina of hundreds of Atlantic salmon around the spool.
Putting boundaries on how folks enjoy their hobbies, whether those hobbies stay in their lane or drift into other areas, seems to mostly come from a place of insecurity, lacking imagination. And structurally, there are so many other, bigger things to worry about to keep the sport vital. I don't even need to list them, you can think for five seconds and make a list.
So if you've found your way into fly-fishing via fashion, that's great. Welcome. If you're going to stick around, spend some time learning how to be a good steward. Drake, if you're reading, let's work on your game face and get you to certified fisherboy.
Fashion statements in fly-fishing have been going on as long as we've been electing to fish with zany patterns made of all sorts of materials under the sun to attract fish. And that goes for apparel, too.
I leave you with Whitefish Ed, a longtime local on the Henry's Fork in Idaho. Ed's an incredibly fishy angler, and is known for success on one of the hardest stretches of one of the world's spookiest spring creeks. An experts-only fishery. And he does it in style.
So, find yours, and flex it, whatever it may be.
Ed images courtesy TroutHunter / Fly Fisherman
Jim Dean
