By Kirk Deeter

They must be. Because the last couple times I've checked a fly rod in my luggage, someone from the Transportation Security Administration has broken it.

A few days ago, I had a rod packed in the bottom of my fishpond luggage... in the special rod storage compartment where it belongs... wrapped in it's sock, and cushioned by soft clothes. When I unpacked after my flight, the rod was out of its sock... and the tip section was in two pieces.

By Kirk Deeter

Several months ago, I reported on a felt sole alternative for wading boots being offered by Korkers called "Svelte". I gave it a glowing review. After all, it was "grippy" on wet rocks. It had kind of a "pot scrubber" texture. It was eco-friendly, less apt to carry invasive species. All the right things...

My one caveat was that I was going to see how long they lasted before rendering a final verdict. Well, they didn't last too long. Not long enough to justify $50 a pair. I got about two months wear out of my test pair. Granted, I hike a lot in some rocky terrain, but two months wasn't a passing grade.

I was just about to write a nasty gram, when I bumped into the Korkers people at the International Fly Tackle Dealer show. It turns out they were one step ahead of me. To their credit, they realized the durability issue, and will soon come out with "Svelte 2." At first glance, one notices that "son of Svelte" is much thicker, akin to the thickness of the standard felt wading sole. I think the texture also seems a little more coarse, which is a good thing, in my opinion.

By Tim Romano

After five intense days of work at the International Fly Tackle Dealer show in New Orleans I get home exhausted to find this lovely email in my inbox from one of my best friends that reads:

I’m an idiot. I’m an a$$H*%#. And I feel absolutely terrible. I popped your boat yesterday while running the shuttle. The takeout was a total mess and I forgot to strap down your boat. It slid off the trailer while we were driving up and your boat popped. I owe you a new boat and I want to make this right as soon as possible. I can’t tell you how awful I feel... I barely slept last night.