I know I am late, but I would like to take this opportunity to thank several people from our wonderful weekend at the ICRBE. First and foremost, a round of applause goes to the brains and organizer behind the entire show, Tom Kirkman. Without his commitment to excellence and ability to coordinate location, lodging, media and vendors, there would not be a show at all. Tom, many thanks to you and we can’t wait until 2012!

Secondly, a big “Thank You” goes out to one of the sweetest people at the show, Mrs. Karen Hapka, who I had the pleasure of working with again this year. I have learned a lot about the quality components that she carries from our many friends at Batson, Fuji, North Fork, St. Croix, and Pac Bay. Also, thank you to John Bial of North Fork Composites for all of his help with the new blanks that they brought along and for helping Gary find time in his schedule to attend the show.

One of the highlights of our weekend was an event created by John Bial and Karen Hapka. We were able to spend a wonderful evening having dinner with Gary! It was an honor to listen to the personal accounts of Gary’s passion for building high quality rods and to be challenged to become active in preserving our natural resources for the generations to come. Gary’s life story is an inspiration to all of us because it demonstrates that anyone who is passionate about what they do can become a guide for others to follow. Thank you Gary for a magical evening!

Last but not least I would like to thank our friends from Seeker, Rod Maker and Trondak, who we had dinner with on Sunday night. I can’t wait for next year and will do my best to keep in touch.