On Saturday, February 7, 2026, the Crowley Fish Foundation (CFF) honorably joined forces with Southwest Council of Fly Fishers International (SWCFFI) in the first annual Junior Bugs Sling Off. SWC President Leigh Ann Swanson and Youth Program Director Carl Crawford approached CFF Board Secretary Chris Leonard with the idea to help SWCFFI with their first inaugural kids category educational event to be held in conjunction with the annual SWCFFI Trout Rodeo competition located in Bishop, California. The kids event was more focused on education than competition, the idea of this clinic being that more kids should get on the water. The next generation is the future of the sport, and this type of clinic aligns perfectly with the guiding principles of both CFF and SWCFFI.
Nine kids showed up at 9AM at the Tri-County Fairgrounds to learn about fly fishing. Very few of them have cast a fly rod before. The group ranged in ages from 9 to 18. The kids spent the morning at the Fairground facilities, where they worked in smaller groups at four different stations. There was a casting clinic station, an entomology station, a fly-tying station, and lastly one for knot tying. The kids learned all these comprehensive aspects of fly fishing from the adult volunteers.
After a lunch of chips and sandwiches, the kids headed off to the canal and river to test their new skills. A few fish were caught. Participants were accompanied by parents who were glad to see their kids off their screens and enjoying the great outdoors.
CFF and SWCFFI thank the following adult volunteers for their assistance at this wonderful event: Leigh Ann Swanson, Carl Crawford, Hodges Glass, Tom Paulson, Mark McKenzie, David Bird, Tom Smith, Damian Ross, and Andre Nersesian (who joined the group in the evening to represent CFF, and share the good work of the Foundation). Tom Paulson, who has won the Trout Rodeo competition all but one year, decided to step away from the adult competition and give back to the kids.
It was a great event, and the two organizations look forward to hosting it again as a part of the 2027 Trout Rodeo.
