Welcome to the Laughing Grizzly's first newsletter. The first order of business is to say thank you to all of you who have welcomed us to Longmont. You've gotten us off to a great start, and we look forward to seeing you on a regular basis as the months go by. Many of our customers are folks we remember from past days, but many of you are new to us, and we're happy to have all of you as customers.

We've been asked a lot about the name of the shop. The idea behind it is that while we struggle to catch that big fish with our cool equipment, the bear (grizzly or not) is standing right there behind us, laughing, knowing that it only takes him a single swipe of a paw to snag that fish. Anybody who has fished for salmon in Alaska knows what were talking about.

We've had a great summer of fishing, and we're looking forward to a nice long Indian Summer with more of the same. Check our online Fishing Report for current conditions. All of our local waters fished well this year, and there is still sufficient flow, even in the smallest streams, for lots more fishing. Fishing in the Park was spectacular with reports of 50+ fish days. The Big Thompson yielded its usual bounty of browns and Rainbows, and the Poudre came around nicely after an early season of above normal flows. The Colorado, Yampa, Roaring Fork and Fryingpan provided dyamite fishing all season. Locally, the St. Vrain provided close-to-home venues. There's still plenty of time to get out and catch some fish.

Winter means fly tying for many of us. To that end, we'll be ofering monthly fly tying classes. We'll also have a variety of tying demos and clinics conducted by local tyers and fishermen through the winter months. For those of you who fish through the winter or who don't tie, don't forget to pick up those special winter patterns.

Last week's national US Fly Fishing Championships garnered plenty of attention and spectators. Our own Dick Shinton served as a controller for the three day event and reports that the US was well represented by some very impressive men and women competitors. The Laughing Grizzly sponsored a five-person team and provided them with cool logo shirts. You can purchase one of these great 100% cotton Simms shirts for only $59.95.

We offer guide services in Rocky Mountain National Park, and are negotiating with other local entities to guide on other local waters as well. Our guide staff of Mike Kruise, Frank Drummond and Dick Shinton are ready to put you into some spunky fish. Mike Kruise and Scott Bley, co-owners of the Laughing Grizzly, are also experienced guides waters across the West, and can set you up for a trip to the Reef, the Green, the San Juan or other hotspots. Just ask! In addition to guided trips, we offer on-stream casting instruction and learn-to-fly fish classes for individuals or small groups. We especially like introducing kids (boys AND girls) to fly fishing. Got a friend you'd like to get into fly fishing? This is your chance to get them started! How about a gift certificate for a birthday or other special occasion?

We are open Tuesday through Thursday 8:00-6:00, Friday and Saturday 6:00-6:00, and Sunday mornings 6:00-Noon. Winter ours will begin November 1. We'll be open Tuesday through Saturday 9:00-6:00, and 9:00 -1:00 on Sunday. We will continue to be closed on Monday.

Rods	Reels	Gear and Clothing	Lines and Leaders
Sage R. L. Winston St Croix Bamboo Rods by Frank Drummond	Sage Ross Galvan	Sage Simms Fishpond Wind River	Sage Rio Scientific Anglers Frog Hair
Tying Tools	Tying Materials	Hooks	Miscellaneous
Tiemco Terra Dr. Slick Metz	Metz Whiting Hareline Metz	Tiemco Dai-Riki Daiichi	Smith Optics Loon Products C+F Fly Boxes