the 2010 fred hall show, long beach california - 3/5/10

the 2010 fred hall show, long beach california - 3/5/10

i don't get out much and had still never gotten over the novelty of flying.  i had breakfast with my nephew and brother, then my brother dropped me off at san francisco international.  on the way down, we flew past the monterey peninsula and the big sur coastline.  it has some of the last decent rockfish spots left in northern california.



45 minutes later we were flying over southern california.  this is the long beach harbor, my destination. 



ah, disneyland.  i made a mental note to ask the kids what they wanted to do this summer.



bruce and manny picked me up.  manny had made sandwiches for us!  here's the start of the show.







crackerjack is the operation that i fished with my first time ever in alaska.  it was a great trip!



frontier charters was my third alaska trip.



dan glumace!



turner's!  lots of bargains.



us reels.  i don't know much about these guys.  a couple of years ago a guy from this company told me that greased carbon fiber drag washers were not needed.  so i took a quick photo and kept on walking.



random shots.







the yamada's!  they cater to a mostly hawaiian clientelle.  no problem getting rice with every meal here!



it's starting to fill up.



my friend pete klolekar's favorite resort.



elfin cove.  my cousin books with these guys every year.





here is steve's shop, and phil, the guy in the center, is another homie from fresno, just like me!





george, el jefe! from senor tuna.



johnson-hicks, from my neighborhood.  check out the flir camera when you go by!  it can tell you if you're wearing boxers or briefs!









pacific coast sportfishing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



aftco.



frank murata of daiwa. 



ben secrest, my buddy bruce, and doug nilsen (president of accurate).



bruce and manny were my bodyguards for the day. 



we have some candycatcher jigs up north. they make some nice stuff. 



richard hightower of newell.  the same basic reel for how many years now?



finnor!



quantum!



976-tuna.



the one true master, cal sheets!



izor!



my favorite, calstar!



another personal favorite, blackwater.





get your reel fixed at ken's tackle!!!!!!!!!!







i have a trip booked with these guys, from august 9-14.



the unibutter boys!





john bretza of okuma and the new cedros.



the topless makaira 20 II.











the unflappable steve carson of penn.





mark of charkbait!



bd!









ah, avet!



shimano!





one more loop around to say hi to andy!



and home.



had the pleasure of sitting next to barry and keith.  they were connecting on the redeye to washington, DC.  they kept the alcohol flowing. 



what a trip!  if you've never been you owe it to yourself to check it out.  i had four hours, but i could have spend 4 days there.  alan

Looks much bigger show than in North Cal!   Thanks for bring the show to us through your pictures Alan.

I just got home from the Fred Hall show in Long Beach -- it is huge.  I spent the majority of my time in the "kayak corner."  I talked with Mike Allen, a SoCal based guide, and with Bob McCray from Klamath. 

I'm saving for a Hobie Sport -- it will be my first boat.  I've demoed several different kayaks and even rented a Hobie Sport once down here and fished in it. (One of my only two posts to this board.)  I'm a furloughed state worker, fighting possible layoffs so I've not had enough to jump into a boat just yet.  Like everyone else, money has been tight this past year, but I've been saving my pennies in a special account and now I'm really really close.  I hope to have my Hobie by June.

I went to the Fred Hall show to talk to folks, learn more, and price shop for deals.  I think I'm gonna spring for a new one, not a used or demo boat.  I may get the larger rudder but have not made up my mind about the turbo fins.

The show is huge.   -

Dave -- the "newbie" SoCal Lurker who wants to retire in Arcata some day.

with this kind of coverage, it's like I was there (even down to the plane ride & the young drinker companions)
Very cool pictorial, thanks!

now that's COVERAGE!.....thanks Alan!!  i've never seen anything like it, EVER!

Like a Kid in a Candy Store.  Bet you had a lot of fun.