The Bonefish Flat: Nicole Ralston on the Costa 2-Fly

Welcome to The Bonefish Flat

There's a stiff wind in your face as you squint in the sun trying to see what the guide sees. "Bonefish at 12 o'clock about 90 feet, do you see it, mon?" You don't and keep squinting, your hat pulled low to keep the sun out of your eyes. "Bonefish at 11 o'clock 70 feet out. Come on man, do you see it?" As the guide is calmly shifting the skiff into position, this time you spot the fish, "I got, it," you reply.

"OK, Mon, Bonefish 50 feet at 10 o'clock. Cast when you're ready."

Cast when you're ready. And with that you drop your fly, roll out a cast, false cast once, and then...

Welcome to the bonefish flat.

Monday, May 24, 2010

Nicole Ralston on the Costa 2-Fly

Before I headed out fishing, I had a chance to talk to Nicole Ralston of Costa Del Mar about Costa Del Mar’s 2-Fly tournament. The event is part of the 2010 Teva Mountain Games and will be held on Saturday and Sunday June 5 and 6 in Vail, Colorado and sounds like a fantastic time.

The event is open to 80 anglers. Saturday morning will consist of a skills competition focused on accuracy and target casting. Saturday afternoon will be more casting competition to narrow the field down to the top 8 men and 2 women.

On Sunday, the finalists will compete for a grand prize of $1,000. According to Costa, “The Finals will consist of a timed float trip on a yet-to-be-named river with two competitors per boat, five boats total. Anglers will be able to use two fly patterns and winners will be awarded based on quantity or size of their catch. The location will be determined based on river conditions and announced the morning of the competition.”

Besides the 2-fly event, the Teva Mountain games will feature live music from Julian Marley and a film festival featuring, among others, the very cool film Currents of Belize.

Nicole also said that Abbie Mairin and Lincoln Westby, both featured in the Currents of Belize film, are slated to compete in the competition this year. This should be an interesting competition for them since they are used to fly fishing in the salt waters of Belize.

Unfortunately I’m tied-up with a work commitment during this weekend, but it’s definitely worth a trip to Colorado for this event if you can make.