"Side-to-side movement is pretty intoxicating for any predatory fish."
So says Charlie Bisharat, inventor of one of the
most revolutionary flies in recent memory, the Pole Dancer.
Leland on the Pole Dancer Striped Bass Fly
Born of
Charlie's love for topwater stripers, the Pole Dancer was designed to imitate the action of
conventional lures like the Zara Spook and the Lunker Plunker. As experienced bass and striper anglers know,
this zig-zag, 'walk-the-dog' action mimics the movement of a
wounded baitfish, and is far more enticing to big-shouldered fish than any ordinary in-line retrieve.
The Pole Dancer fly achieves this unique action in large part thanks to its
conical molded foam head, which builds water pressure on one side of the fly when retrieved with sharp stripping motions and causes the fly to
veer from left to right and back again.
For the Pole Dancer to achieve this action, everything about the fly
must be in balance. To ensure this, the
head is held neutral by weight
placed toward the back of the shank, and tail materials are kept evenly
distributed by a
beefy monofilament anti-fouling guard.
Beyond these functional design attributes, the Pole Dancer has a few
nice touches that are characteristic of almost any fly that's
successful with predatory fish:
big eyes and a red 'bleeding' gill slit
add a level of realism that help seal the deal.
Specifications:
- This fly was developed by Charlie Bisharat while fishing the fertile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
- A defining characteristic is the conical molded foam head, which has a recessed concave cup on the underside
- Suggests any wounded baitfish on which an opportunistic predator might feed
- Ideal for pursuing stripers, largemouth, or any ambush predator: pike, muskie, snook, baby tarpon, peacocks, etc
- Pair with a heavy short-headed line to achieve positive turnover
Though it was first developed for stripers on the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Delta system, the Pole Dancer fly has done very well in
tropical settings, particularly in Baja, for roosterfish and sierra
mackerel. Just like Mr. Bisharat's other pattern, Charlie's Airhead,
the Pole dancer makes an outstanding go-to topwater fly in any scenario.
Having fished the Pole Dancer firsthand on the Delta with Charlie
himself, the Leland Team can only guess at all the applications and
venues where this fly will prove invaluable. As you might imagine,
Leland is thrilled to be one of the first shops to bring the Pole
Dancer to the West Coast striper and bass community.
Leland on Umpqua
In
1972 a man named Dennis Black and his fly tying skills found themselves
in high demand. Mr. Black, then a professional production fly tyer, was
famous in the industry for his unsurpassed skill and speed with
whipping up tremendously beautiful and precisely constructed flies. It
wasn’t long until this young fly tying superstar realized that he ought
to take his consistent approach to quality to the next level. Shortly
after this realization, a small army of fly tyers had banded together
to support Mr. Black’s vision. With the likes of Dave Whitlock, Jack
Dennis, and Andy Puyans, Mr. Black was officially in business.
Dennis
Black’s new company Umpqua Feather Merchants quickly extended its reach
and fly production capabilities with expansion into India, Sri Lanka,
and Thailand, where the world’s first and full blown “fly tying
factories” were built. Since those early days, only the highest
standard of excellence has marked Umpqua and this commitment to quality
and efficiency continues to spur the company forward. Dennis Black’s
innovative vision for “fly production” has truly revolutionized how the
fly industry operates and has ultimately made the majority of
production flies better. From the first “royalty system” for rewarding
the most creative professional fly tyers to streamlining production
systems and offering a range of other products, Umpqua Feather
Merchants just seems to “do it all.”
Today, Umpqua Feather Merchants
is without a doubt the world’s best and most prolific supplier of hand
tied fly fishing flies as well as fly tying hooks and materials, and
they recently got better! Umpqua’s brand new, state of the art
headquarters in Louisville, Colorado marks another paradigm shift in
the way fly tying business is done. From its vast warehouse to its
specially designed inventory management and tracking system, Umpqua is
poised to continue its energetic trajectory and lead the way for the
next generation of flies and fly tiers.
Umpqua on Umpqua
"As
you may or may not know, we're the largest producer of quality
hand-tied flies in the world. We also make available through your local
fly shop a wide array of the finest fly-tying hackle and Tiemco hooks.
At
Umpqua we offer everything the angler needs to a have a first class
fishing experience. (Everything that is, but the water and the fish.)"