I first saw this hat in a fly shop across the street from my hotel in Missoula, Montana in 2015. I’m not much of a fly fisherman – in fact, I’d just caught my first fly rod trout a few days earlier on the Bitterroot – so I don’t know if Nautilus is a quality product. Based on their website, and their pricing, it appears that the Miami-based company does make good gear.
Despite my attraction to the hat, I would’ve felt like a fraud wearing it around town or on the river. Someone might’ve asked me, “Which Nautilus products do you prefer?” and I would have had to respond, “Um…I kinda just have the hat.” Therefore, I didn’t buy it, but the slogan stuck with me.
So many fishing manufacturers make bland gear with either company names or bland logos representing the brand. There’s nothing wrong with that – and in my opinion it’s better than some of the gaudy crap that goes to the other extreme. Nevertheless, this slogan threads the needle perfectly, causing you to run the slogan through your head and then laugh a little. You might even piss a few humorless people off. There should be more hats like this one.
Old Mark Zuckerberg apparently knows what he is doing, because one of my targeted ads last year hit me square between the temples and lured me in: Sportyfish shirts from Singapore. Their catalog reads like a “who’s who” of my bucket list fish – peacock bass, giant trevally, yellowfin tuna, sailfish and others.
I am not a fan of the necktie in any form – conventional, bowtie, ascot or otherwise. I feel that it’s an antiquated social signifier that has outlived its usefulness, but as I’ve written previously, “if you’re going to wear a tie it might as well be a fun one.” Nothing’s more fun than tuna.
We’ve already told you how to spruce up your look with billfish-themed shirts, shorts and neckties. Now we’ll help you complete the look with matching socks.
I’ve repeatedly made it clear that fishing the flats for giant trevally with big poppers is at the top of the top of my list of bucket list experiences. Until then (or perhaps never) I will not be getting a GT tattoo, nor will I be spending a thousand bucks apiece on high-quality popping rods and reels – but a hat might be a more reasonable expenditure.
I’ve worn a tie for more hours than many of you have been alive. I’m neither proud nor ashamed of that fact – it’s the price I’ve paid to earn certain things I want, like Japanese crankbaits and trips to the Amazon.
I’d never heard of Jessie Jessup Apparel company of Florida until I came across their peacock bass t-shirt. If I haven’t already made it clear, I’m obsessed with peacocks and can’t wait to head back to the Amazon – ideally this December, if the damn virus gets out of the way.
I caught several roosterfish in Costa Rica’s Gulf of Papagayo in August of 1995, and haven’t had a chance to catch any more since then. That’s not to say that roosters haven’t been a part of my life since then – I married a chicken-obsessed redhead, so we have a kitchen full of rooster figurines, and somehow ended up naming our hyper Australian Shepherd “Rooster,” too.
I don’t remember how I stumbled upon the shirts from online retailer Slackertide, but as an obsessive consumer of popular culture who also happens to fish, it was a godsend. Whether you want Willie Nelson, the Golden Girls, Jonah Hill, Rick James, Magnum PI or Cheech and Chong to accompany you on your next trip to the pond, they’ve gotcha covered.
The musky dudes are a different breed. I say that out of respect and a bit of worry for their sanity. I’ve only chased those figure-eightable bastards a handful of times at Lake St. Clair, and have managed to get some of their slime on my clothing, but the whole experience left me questioning why grown men would devote their lives to chasing such evil fish – and that’s on a place where they actually catch ‘em. Woe be to him who spends countless hours on a musky fishery far less fertile.
We’re always on the lookout for gear celebrating our favorite species and lately tuna have been on the top of the list. If you’re looking for a hat to celebrate thm, check out two new ones. We think you’d look good in either of them. In fact, we’re so confident of that fact that the next new client to book a trip to Panama or Guatemala will get the hat of their choice.