...the only attorney who's web site has a "The Lawyer's Fishing Page"
Love it.
I'm Tom. I am a life-long resident of Rochester, Minnesota. Most of my life has been spent as a carpenter, but after 30 years the body said enough of this. Arthritis has taken a toll on some of my carcass but not the hands or legs yet. I'm semi-retired but don't think I'll ever really quit working. Crappies are the name of my game. I also enjoy a week in the woods each fall looking for a deer.
As a youth in the 7th grade I got my hands on a Herters catalog that was worn thin and discarded. A neighbor gave it to me. I had a paper route, so I took some of my money and got a new catalog. That led to me buying a fly tying kit. Along about the eighth grade a phy-ed teacher showed me some flies that he was looking for. I took one home on a Friday and on Monday handed him a pile of about thirty different colors all based on the same pattern in a size 16....just like he wanted. Thus my involvement with the fishing world got a toe-hold.
I have my own website, Crappietomtackle.com, where I sell some crappie jigs and a couple bucktail walleye jigs that are unique. My focus has been on head color. My selling point is the head colors that I have created. The crappietom logo came from an internet nickname given to me by a friend. I trademarked the name to use on my tackle site. I stopped tying flies in the 9th grade when I started to make jigs using an oak mold to put out 1/16 [or thereabouts] jigs. I still have that mold. I quit using minnows about 20 years ago when I found out that plastic has different rules and generally makes things more productive while in the boat. Or from shore, or on a dock.
Crappies have been "my" fish for thirty years now, however I do chase walleye and sauger during the fall, winter and spring. My boat is water ready all year, inspite of living where winter really is winter. I don't ice fish unless I can walk out somewhere [or drive] and fish on open ice. Pools 4,5 and 5A of the Mississippi River are my usual haunts and a nuclear reactor found on lower pool 3 of the river helps to keep the river free of ice on pool 4 so if I want walleyes and sauger I just pull the boat up and enjoy the open air. Things can be pretty comfortable on the water down to about 20 degrees. Basically I prefer open water and I have areas where certain lakes' ice will open up early and I'll be found standing on the ice next to the open water with a long rod in hand, fishing crappies with plastics.
Currently I am on Culprit Tackle's Pro Staff [10 years now], and have working relationships at a staff level with both JBLures and Today's Tackle....both Minnesota based tackle companies....and serve as Pro Staff at Thorne Bros Tackle in Blaine, Minnesota. I have had involvement with Lindy tackle before that last change of ownership and have been on staff with Mepps/MisterTwister.
In the last couple years I took a serious interest in steering myself away from the plastic tackle found at package stores and that tackle which has become so standardized by the name-brand companies. The internet has helped out in this quest. I have been in heaven at Microspoons, where Keith has done a great job of doing what I needed. Now I just need to do this for myself. I have a local market in the north here and will have what I decide to make for sale on my website on a custom order basis. As I create color schemes and patterns I will show them and let people decide for themselves what they'd like. I have no intention of doing this full-time because I enjoy being with the wife traveling and shopping just as much as I enjoy fishing and working in this field. I should mention that Carole [wife]and I have an antique shop in Red Wing, Minnesota and that also keeps us entertained.
This is a nice site and I think I'll enjoy it here. I will just thank everyone who offered help a big thank you again.
