FINDING A NEW PASSION IN FLY FISHING – AN INTERVIEW WITH ROCHELLE
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I’ve got something a little different on the blog today – an interview! My niece Rochelle recently became the first female member of the Canadian Youth Fly Fishing Team and I couldn’t be more proud of her.
Rochelle started out on her high school’s fly-fishing team, the Carihi Cutties, and earned a spot on the national youth team after placing third at the Canadian Youth Nationals competition in April of this year. She now has the chance to compete at various levels against other fly-fisher-peoples across Canada and even internationally.
I love the fact that she tried something new, discovered a passion, and allowed it to take her to new places – that’s what this blog is about, after all – so I thought it would be fun to share her thoughts and experiences here.
Read on to learn more about the competitive fly fishing world, how Rochelle got where she is, and what’s next for her…
How did you get into fly fishing?
I got into Fly Fishing through a course at my school. I just went into it for fun and wanted to try something new with my friend Anika. Sadly, Anika moved away but I decided to stay in the class anyways.
You recently placed bronze at the Canadian Youth Fly Fishing Championship and earned yourself a spot on the National Team – can you talk a bit about that competition and what it was like to be the first female to make the national team?
I never thought the competition would go that way. I didn’t think of the competition as a real competition because it would just make me nervous. So instead I decided to just have fun and fish like I do.
I took lots of notes and tips from everyone at the comp and just tried my best to learn more. After the first day my coach showed me the placements and I was completely shocked that so far, I was in 3rd place. Then the next day at the awards ceremony it was time to announce the final placements. When my name was called for 3rd, I was blown away and so so thankful. I couldn’t stop smiling, it felt like I was in a dream.
I felt a lot of love and support from everyone there, they were happy and proud that a female made it on the podium and the national team. It was definitely one of the best weekends of my life.
Tell us about the competitive fly-fishing world.
There are many different competitions, both river and lake. Most take place on the mainland of British Columbia. How the Fish Points System for Rivers works is all eligible fish will be scored as 500 Point, which will completely eliminate the need to handle the fish and ensure a quick release for every fish caught. And for lakes the leader board’s fish point system that is used is all eligible fish will be measured in water troughs and scored as 100 points per fish, and 20 points per centimeter.
What does being on the national team involve? What competitions do you have coming up?
Being on the national team involves working hard to improve my knowledge and skills of fly fishing. I have the opportunity to compete against other teams at the regional, provincial, and national levels, with the possibility of competing at the international level alongside the National Team members from Eastern Canada. I have a river competition on August 25 in Chilliwack and a Lake comp on November 3rd in Abbotsford.
What are your future plans with fly fishing?
My plans are to keep on having fun and enjoy the sport. I don’t want to become so serious about the comps that they start to feel like real nerve-racking competitions, I want to continue to learn from them and grow as a fly fisher. It doesn’t matter where I place as long as I’m having a good time.
What’s your favorite thing about fishing?
I have two favorite parts of fly fishing. The first is being out in nature, enjoying the outdoors. When I’m fly fishing I can focus on growing and trying new things, not on whatever is stressing me out in life. Its a way to have a break from stress and enjoy my time outside. My other favorite part is the adrenaline rush that I always feel when I get a fish on. I immediately feel a flow of energy run through my body when I feel a bite. It’s amazing.
What advice would you give someone who’s thinking about joining their school’s fly fishing team or wanting to try fly fishing for the first time?
If you have the opportunity to try something new just do it. You never know what doors you may be opening. It won’t hurt to try, and if you don’t enjoy it then that’s fine, you can always try something different. You never know what’s going to happen in life, so just go with the flow.
Anything else you’d like to add?
I would have never predicted that this is where that first fly fishing class would have taken me, but I will be forever grateful for my teacher Mr. Pisterzi for offering this class and putting so much effort and dedication into the class and team. Without him, I would not be where I am today.
If you’d like to follow along with Rochelle’s fly-fishing adventures, you can find her on her website Rock the Fly Fisher, on Facebook, and on Instagram.
