S8, Ep 3: Fishing Adventures and Fly Innovations: A New Year with Blane Chocklett

Hey, folks, it's Marvin Cash, the host of The Articulate Fly.And we're back with the first Chocklett Factory of 2026 with the man himself, Blane Chocklett. Blane, how are you?

I'm doing well, man. How about yourself?

Just trying to stay out of trouble. Happy to. To catch you when you're back in Roanoke for 48 hours.

Yeah, that's the truth. Definitely hit the new year running.You know, I had that Mad River Musky School that we did from Saturday to Wednesday and then got up at 3:30 in the morning and on Thursday and flew up to Boston, you know, and just had a great event up there. And we could talk about that a little bit here, but it's been busy as always.

Yeah, and throw Cuba before the New Year on the other side of that and I don't know, you put a few thousand miles up in the air, right?

Oh, yeah, yeah. And that Cuba trip, that. That was a trip of a lifetime with Brian.And, you know, being there and just having Flip's memories and, you know, everybody was there for Flip and when he passed, I was asked to go in his stead and it was. You could feel Flip there with us and, you know, we. We definitely talked a lot about him and you could just feel his spirit there and cool.A cool thing is, first morning on the ship, we kind of go up to the top and it's before sun rising and there's one frigate flying over our ship and hung out there just flying around the ship for probably 15 to 20 minutes. So tell me, that's not a sign that flips their spirit, right?

Yeah, absolutely. Hopefully somebody had a ball of rum and you guys had a quick drink, right?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, we did. We definitely had one for him for sure. But it was, you know, one of those experiences that I'll never forget.And we had, we just had a great time, you know, just laughing and storytelling and, you know, obviously fishing and all that kind of stuff.But it's more than anything, it was just great being around really good friends Jason and Brian and Rob and met some super cool people and just form new friendships, man, and just shared, like I said, a trip of a lifetime with great people.

Yeah, Very, very neat. It's kind of funny too, because I, you know, went to the mailbox last week and you got another Fly Fisherman cover, right?

Yeah. Yep, yep. Super excited about that. And you know, Ross and they were. They've been, you know, amazing to work with.You know, I introduced Ross to the Jerk Changer about a year or so ago. For smallmouth.And he caught his personal best smallmouth with me that day and we caught quite a few really big trophy size smallmouth and he became a believer in that fly. And you know, just that kind of escalated throughout the year.We had a meeting about it, you know, it was like, I'd like to share the story of the Jerk Changer because it is different than the regular game changer platform. And you know, I ended up catching two giant bucket list record size fish last year on it.And we highlight that in the, in the article and got some great shots and spending time with good buddies and just captured the moment of it all. And you know, it was great because I was testing out the new TFO Moment. So it was kind of like having, having these amazing life moments with a rod.That's called the moment. You know, it was kind of, it's kind of, it was kind of a really cool 2025, man. It's been fantastic.And for them to let me share that story with in the article and maybe share it for people that's not seen it or heard about it, to me it's a big deal to continue, you know, moving forward and trying new things and you know, adding different triggers in the flies that haven't traditionally been there in the fly world. So I think those people haven't seen or heard about the Jerk Changer.They get to be a fly that would 100% work for just about every predatory fish out there, you know, and just look forward to always getting that opportunity to put that fly in front of big fish. And the, the results have been amazing over, over the years.And that, that article pretty much tells that story of how I designed it, why I designed it and all the great fish species caught on it. So for those of you that are interested in it, it's on the newsstands now.And my good friends at Fly Fishermen gave me that opportunity to share that story. So there we are.

Yeah. And I, there's a great video interview too, which I'll drop in the show notes.

Oh yeah, I appreciate that. Yep. Went up there to, to talk about it with Ross and Jay and I went out and did some quick how to videos.It has a QR code in the, in the article where you can go view those quick tips and tricks and see the difference in the swims and all that stuff. So it's, it's been a really, really great production and promotion from fly fishermen helping me out and just getting, getting my story out there.

Yeah, absolutely.And it's kind of funny because even though you've been traveling like crazy, it doesn't mean that you don't have new products coming out at The Chocklett Factory.

Yep yep. Always have new stuff.Like I said, you know, as you know, been setting on a lot of things over the years and having the ability to, to put new stuff out there and just making fly tying better and, and designing new flies that go along with these products. You know, you know how much it.I enjoy the top water game and been doing that for years with you know, smallmouth and all, all types of saltwater species.And you know, we're going to be launching our, our new popper and slider heads and we have a couple variations of that and we, not only with that we have these finishing heads which, which I, which I mean by that is we have different shape heads for, for streamer patterns that will give your flies different actions in the water. Shovel heads which are super popular in the streamer world and these kind of realistic heads that just divert water that are lighter, more castable.And of course all the different bug heads were.And a lot of the new terrestrial and aquatic insect imitations, they're articulated stone flies and just different types of critters that we're going to be launching here over the next month or so.And you know, along with the collaboration with the AHREX with the, the game changer hooks which been super excited about, we've just got just keep dropping new stuff and we're going to continue to do that. There's a lot of things in on the horizon that can't talk about yet, but it's, it's coming down the pipe.

Yeah, absolutely. And I imagine, you know, there's probably going to be some new stuff you're going to be showing folks here in a few weeks at Bobbin the Hood, right?

Oh yeah, yep. Yeah. Just like I think we talked about it last time.I mean I have some new fly lines that we're kind of getting dialed in with sa that kind of getting the final stages of all that and the whole, the whole bobbin in the hood thing is going to be a great platform to launch some of these new products that we're going to be doing in 2026 and that's going to start highlighting that with like some of the new oval support discs that we have out there.But we have these more realistic body parts that will help shape your fly to the exact profile of certain bait fish, whether it be a shad or bunker or glass minnow or chub or whatever it is. We're creating these forms that will just give it the exact shape of that bait that you're trying to emulate.

Yeah, very, very cool. So you know, for kind of run a show, right? We'll have the Friday night of Bobbin will be the party at the shop.You know, you'll be you know in the freight house all day Saturday. You know, tying and talking to folks and you know what are your classes that you're teaching there on Sunday?

Yep. So we're a lot of what I just talked about, some of the new bug parts and bug heads and some of the top water.It's going to be more of a top water style Sunday for, for the. The people that are taking my class and I'm excited to show them a lot of the stuff because we have.We're gonna have finished heads that are molded but also part of the products.And, and as a, as a fly tier we wanted to have these kits designed where they can make them themselves if they don't want pre molded heads just to be able to stay in that. You know I made this from scratch kind of a. Kind of a deal. So I'm excited to show em all that kind of stuff.So we'll kind of go over a little bit everything on that in. In those classes.But yeah, we're gonna be going up to the shop up in Ohio to dial in some of these to just get em done and get em in production so they're ready for Schultzy's Bobbin in the Hood.

Very, very cool. And I know you come back from that and I'm sure there's something going on until I don't know the third week of March.But I think the next kind of big thing on your dance card is Lefty Kreh's Tie Fest are gonna do that again down in Vero Beach, right?

Oh yeah, yeah. Always always excited to. To do that and just you know, celebrate conservation.But celebrate those people like Lefty and Popovics and Whitlock and Flip now and all these great mentors and friends of mine that's helped me out. We want to honor them. Right.And you know re that was the reason that we brought it back last year and just want to keep doing it because you never know.You know, tomorrow's not given and we wanna, I wanna personally make sure that the people we still have around that we you know, we let them know we appreciate them and, and just share all that with. With people that love the sport. You know, like minded people and you know all the brands like S Scientific Anglers, Yeti, Costa, you name it all.A lot of the brands I work with help support it and you know, a lot of the other companies like Turtle Box, I mean, a lot of these decked, they all stepped up last year and I'm looking forward to seeing everybody again because I feel like this one's going to be even better.And Carter Andrews allowing us to have his place for the, for the day and welcome, welcoming everybody there and just, you know, it's just great thing for a great cause with great people, you know.

Yeah. And so I think I'll try to remember to drop a link.I know that the ticket sales are up on the ASGA website, but it's the third weekend in March and you know, run of event is about the same, although there's no movie. Right. On Friday. So it's, you know, show during the day, Saturday day with the, with the benefit dinner in the auction Saturday night. Right?

Yes. Yeah. I mean, and as you know, going last year, it's, it's, it's a different style of show. It's more of a laid back, everybody hanging out.You know, we have booth spaces and stuff where people can come by and watch people tie and see products and, and all that. But I mean, it's more of a hang, right.We have instructional stuff, but just being able to see these legends, talk to them, have that roundtable where you hear stories about their lives, but how Lefty touched them, how Flip may have touched them, you know, all these things which is very unique. And it's just a hang, you know, music, drinks, great food, you know, Yeti just goes all in all the time.And it's just phenomenal how, how all this just comes together and you know, in a short time and you know, it's, it's something that is really good for our sport because we're able to be there as one and, and not feel the pressure that you feel on a normal show or you feeling like you just need to make money and to help help your business. It's just more of sharing our love for the sport and educating people.And it's more of a celebration and a party more than it is a show and you know, and then of course the auction dinner that night for ASGA and for us to get help, raise money to help protect these fish that we love so much, you know, and you know, that takes a lot of time, money and effort and you know, this, this is a great way for ASGA to be able to, you know, keep pushing and keep protecting and you Know, the, the industry and all the friends and customers of the sport, they really stepped up last year, and I'm just looking forward to getting back down there and just doing good things for, for conservation and just hanging out and just having a good time and celebrating what we all love.

Yeah.And I think, you know, obviously the, the fundraising aspect is super important, but I mean, to your point, I mean, this is an event that's intimate, like Bobbin and is. Intimate. Right.And so, you know, to be able to hang out with luminaries in the saltwater space, you know, at Tie Fest, is way different than running into him at iCast.

Oh, yeah, a hundred percent. Like I said, it's more of a social gathering than it is like a, a hard show. Right. It's just.It's just chill, you know, and, and, and that's what our sport is. Right. And.And that's the, that's the feeling that you get, you know, music and just a big party and it's just, you know, sharing knowledge and sharing stories and just seeing people and, you know, catching up and, and that, that was, that was the way we always wanted it to be and that's the way we kind of run it. So it's. It's a great time. It will be a great time for. So for anybody that's interested in coming.You know, it was like you said, you can get on ASGA's website and sign up and be there. I think it's March 21st is the day of the show, so I can't wait for that.Last year just meant a lot to me and just the support we got from the community was just amazing.

Yeah, absolutely.And so I would say, folks, if you're kind of in the upper Midwest, there might be a few general admission tickets left for Bobbin there might be some class spaces on Sunday, but if you're in the area, even if you can't get into the freight house, there are going to be demos at Schultzy's all day on Saturday. Great event, Great time to kind of swing by, see folks, catch up with Blane, you know, same thing.You got a little bit more time for lead time for Tie Fest. You find your way down to Florida that third week in March. It's not getting too hot down there yet, so it ought to be good.But yeah, man, I appreciate you making the time and I will see you here and I guess about two weeks, right?

Yeah, man. Yep. I'm looking forward to it. Bobbin's always a great time. Love catching up with everybody and seeing.And sheltze and the crew and all the other great tires out there that always come, It's. Again, that's more party atmosphere and just celebration and fly tying. So those that haven't tried that or been there, it's.It's definitely something to go check out for. Sure.

Absolutely. Well, listen, tight lines, Blane. Tight lines, everybody.

Thanks, man. You too.