One thing that I share with the BFC is my age. We both celebrated our 35th birthday this past year and it all seems like a blur, especially the last 10 years.As I look forward to my mid-life crisis and wonder how I made it this far, I think of the BFC and its tumultuous existence. I have read newsletters dating back to mid-80's but it wasn't until recently that I was given a history lesson into the early days of the BFC.
I received a call earlier this summer from a gentleman that introduced himself as Bill Codding. Immediately I realized that this was the son of George Codding, a long time member of the Boulder Flycasters that had passed away several months earlier. I met George at one of the general meetings held at the University Club a few years back. We swapped a few fish stories and shared a beer or two but I never knew George was a BFC member for over 30 years. Bill explained that he was in the midst of sorting through his father's house and came upon an archive of Boulder Flycaster newsletters and fishing magazines. He asked if these would be useful to the club and if I would be interested in accepting the collection. I humbly accepted the generous offer and we set a time to meet and exchange this sentimental collection. I thanked Bill again after he dropped off boxes and envelopes filled with BFC newsletters, documents, and fishing literature.
The newsletters sat in my office for a month before I had a chance to view the contents. When I opened the first manila folder to begin investigating, a patch fell out onto my desk. Although there was no date embroidered onto the patch, there was a tag pinned to the top stating "ORIGINAL BOULDER FLYCASTER'S PATCH FROM 1960's-70's." It was the first of many items George had saved over the years.
Skimming through the pile of newsletters, I found an impressive collection dating back to 1969. Most of the early newsletters were a single page discussing upcoming events and news from TU and FFF. An occasional list of directors showed a who's who of the original members of the BFC. Members like Don Hitchcock, Lou Guillot, Don Glinsky, Bill Bower, Ron DeRamus, Bob Bjorklund, Joe Kopina, Hank Roberts, Cliff McDaniel, Larry Holland, Roger Chrisman, Steve Holloway, Harry Searls, Jack Little, George Anderson, and John Alevras were very active in the late 60's. The cost of mailing single sheet newsletter in 1969 was $.06 and all the address' were hand written. I was amazed at the fly recipes and the detailed illustrations that I found throughout the material. I studied step by step diagrams of different flies and even a 3-D drawing of a rod wrapping tool complete with a parts list! Minutes turned to hours as I read through newsletters from the 70's and into the 80's. I was particularly drawn to columns such as "The Fly of the Month" and "The Tip of the Month" and articles from TU and FFF. The locations of meetings included The Lamp Post, National Bureau of Standards, Roman Arches, The Boulder Country Club, and even a member's house from time to time. One newsletter in 1971 showed the BFC to have 127 members and National TU to have a total of 12,794 members. Page after page was an absolute treasure trove of information.
Our club membership is now almost 600 and TU reached a record membership high of 127,000 members in 2001. Much has changed in 35 years and there is no doubt the club has seen its share of good times and bad times but the ideals and soul of the BFC remains intact. The old newsletters and pamphlets carry the same messages we live upon today. Protect and conserve our fisheries. I'm sure George and our founding members are proud that the BFC continues the tasks that they set forth 35 years ago.
Happy birthday BFC and thank you George.