Stan Fagerstrom
07-12-2002, 11:41 AM
Lightweight Raingear Developed For
Golfers Also Great For Fishermen
By Stan Fagerstrom
I’ve hung my fishing hat in the Pacific Northwest almost all of my adult life. When I say it rains a tad along the western slope of the Cascades in Washington and Oregon, believe me because I know what I’m talking about.
Did I hear somebody snort and say it never does anything else? Well, that’s not true. The Evergreen and Beaver States do have their share of nice weather, but the western sides of the both states get more than their share of the soggy stuff. Wet weather, of course, isn’t restricted to just the Pacific Northwest.
Lots of folks head for Mexico in the winter to find the sun and warm temperatures. You can count on doing that most of the time, but not always. When I was in Mexico last December I encountered weather that made me feel right at home. I was there on a bass fishing adventure. The first day on the water we had more than two inches of rain.
I was prepared for that sort of thing. Not everyone in our party was. There were a couple of unfortunate souls who hadn’t brought raingear along because they were so sure all they would encounter south of the border was warm Mexican sunshine.
I didn’t have that problem and I’m not going to wherever my travels take me. How can I be so sure? Because one of the first thing that goes into my bag regardless of my destination is a suit of lightweight raingear called Frogg Toggs. This excellent raingear is still relatively new. If it will likely be of special interest to you wherever you hang your own fishing hat.
I don’t care where you fish, sooner or later you’re a cinch to encounter wet weather. It might not really be very cold, but the darn rain just won’t quit. Every now and then the sun comes out, but by the time you get yourself out of the miserably heavy raingear you put on an hour before the drops are certain to start falling again. You’ll likely wind up sweating like an overcooked clam and wishing you could toss your heavy raingear overboard.
That’s no longer necessary. Lots of fishermen around the country have discovered a new type of lightweight raingear that’s made-to-order for the kind of day I just described. These new waterproof but lightweight rain suits are the Frog Toggs I mentioned. If you find yourself in a situation where the weather is relatively warm but wet, exactly what I ran into on that recent Mexican trip, they are hard to beat.
http://www.ifish.net/sftred.jpg
This suit of Frogg Toggs raingear weighs only 14 ounces.
It cuts the wind while it keeps you dry.
Originally designed for golfers, the new raingear is finding increasing favor among the nation's anglers.
These suits offer a couple of additional benefits besides keeping you from getting your tail feathers wet. One is that in addition to being waterproof they are also windproof. That, as anybody who has ever had to run across a sizeable lake or up a big river in an open boat well knows, can be a bone-chilling experience even in fairly mild temperatures.
The second thing, and this is something fishermen everywhere have got to love, is their lightness. A suit of Frogg Toggs weighs next door to nothing. You’ll hardly know you have them on. I suppose I’ve used two dozen different rain outfits of one kind or another over the past half century of fishing and writing about it. Some of them I’d just as soon forget. That applies especially to those cumbersome and heavy outfits that did a good enough job of keeping me dry, but made it difficult to cast or move around in the boat without risking the danger of falling overboard because the darn things made me so clumsy.
Actually, it wasn’t fishermen Frogg Toggs were designed for when they first came to market. They were introduced as raingear for golfers. That figures because garment lightness is essential if a divot digger is to be able to make anything resembling a conventional swing. You, like me, have probably used clothing items in your fishing that were first marketed to skiers. It didn’t take the country’s anglers long to realize that the new lightweight Frogg Toggs worked every bit as good for fishing as they did for golf when conditions were right.
http://www.ifish.net/sfparka.jpg
The Frogg Toggs parka is large enough to fit over your fishing cap or hat.
My guess is some prospective rain gear purchasers might be turned off by the very lightness that makes these suits, under some circumstances, so desirable. While still dry, a complete suit of Frogg Toggs weighs in at just 14 ounces. You can wear it four days in succession without feeling like you’ve been packing a sack full of sand.
So how have the makers of Frogg Toggs managed to get by marketing a product that is waterproof and windproof but still so darn light? You’ve probably read about the miracle fibers that have been used in other types of outdoor clothing. Popular Gore-Tex garments are an example. They are built so perspiration can get out, but rain can’t get in. The new lightweight rain suits utilize the same approach.
It isn’t as easy to for a male angler to drain his carburetor while wearing these lightweight raingear trousers because there is no opening to accommodate the needs of a guy who has just gotta go. But what the heck, you’re probably not going to get much sympathy from the gals who fish. That’s a situation they’ve had to contend with since Day One.
I’ll tell you something else I like about these new rain suits. When I’m not fishing I have a daily walking routine. That walking program also keeps me out in a variety of weather. I use my Frogg Toggs all the time when it’s wet. It’s another place where the lightness of the suit really helps.
If you can’t find Frogg Toggs on the market locally, you can order from the company by calling the toll-free number 1 800 349-1835. All of the details on garment styles and prices are also available at the company’s Internet web site at www.froggtoggs.com. (http://www.froggtoggs.com.)
No one fishing rod is best for everything from bluegill to barracuda. It just doesn’t exist. And that’s how it is with raingear. Sure there are times, ice fishing or mid-winter steelheading when ice is freezing in your guides are examples, when you’re going to want an insulated rain suit. You’ll need it to keep warm and you’ll recognize going in that you’ll come home pooped just from lugging it up and down some brushy riverbank.
But not all days are like that. We have far more that are cool and wet than we do those that are teeth-chattering cold. And on many of those days, especially when it’s mild but wet, you’ll love Frogg Toggs.
I’m on my second set. Like I said before, they go where I go and it’s darn comforting to know they’re there regardless of whether or not they ever get worn.
http://www.ifish.net/SFmexbas.jpg
I wouldn't have caught this nice Mexican largemouth if I hadn't brought my lightweight Frogg Toggs raingear along.
This new raingear works especially well where the weather is wet but not especially cold.
Golfers Also Great For Fishermen
By Stan Fagerstrom
I’ve hung my fishing hat in the Pacific Northwest almost all of my adult life. When I say it rains a tad along the western slope of the Cascades in Washington and Oregon, believe me because I know what I’m talking about.
Did I hear somebody snort and say it never does anything else? Well, that’s not true. The Evergreen and Beaver States do have their share of nice weather, but the western sides of the both states get more than their share of the soggy stuff. Wet weather, of course, isn’t restricted to just the Pacific Northwest.
Lots of folks head for Mexico in the winter to find the sun and warm temperatures. You can count on doing that most of the time, but not always. When I was in Mexico last December I encountered weather that made me feel right at home. I was there on a bass fishing adventure. The first day on the water we had more than two inches of rain.
I was prepared for that sort of thing. Not everyone in our party was. There were a couple of unfortunate souls who hadn’t brought raingear along because they were so sure all they would encounter south of the border was warm Mexican sunshine.
I didn’t have that problem and I’m not going to wherever my travels take me. How can I be so sure? Because one of the first thing that goes into my bag regardless of my destination is a suit of lightweight raingear called Frogg Toggs. This excellent raingear is still relatively new. If it will likely be of special interest to you wherever you hang your own fishing hat.
I don’t care where you fish, sooner or later you’re a cinch to encounter wet weather. It might not really be very cold, but the darn rain just won’t quit. Every now and then the sun comes out, but by the time you get yourself out of the miserably heavy raingear you put on an hour before the drops are certain to start falling again. You’ll likely wind up sweating like an overcooked clam and wishing you could toss your heavy raingear overboard.
That’s no longer necessary. Lots of fishermen around the country have discovered a new type of lightweight raingear that’s made-to-order for the kind of day I just described. These new waterproof but lightweight rain suits are the Frog Toggs I mentioned. If you find yourself in a situation where the weather is relatively warm but wet, exactly what I ran into on that recent Mexican trip, they are hard to beat.
http://www.ifish.net/sftred.jpg
This suit of Frogg Toggs raingear weighs only 14 ounces.
It cuts the wind while it keeps you dry.
Originally designed for golfers, the new raingear is finding increasing favor among the nation's anglers.
These suits offer a couple of additional benefits besides keeping you from getting your tail feathers wet. One is that in addition to being waterproof they are also windproof. That, as anybody who has ever had to run across a sizeable lake or up a big river in an open boat well knows, can be a bone-chilling experience even in fairly mild temperatures.
The second thing, and this is something fishermen everywhere have got to love, is their lightness. A suit of Frogg Toggs weighs next door to nothing. You’ll hardly know you have them on. I suppose I’ve used two dozen different rain outfits of one kind or another over the past half century of fishing and writing about it. Some of them I’d just as soon forget. That applies especially to those cumbersome and heavy outfits that did a good enough job of keeping me dry, but made it difficult to cast or move around in the boat without risking the danger of falling overboard because the darn things made me so clumsy.
Actually, it wasn’t fishermen Frogg Toggs were designed for when they first came to market. They were introduced as raingear for golfers. That figures because garment lightness is essential if a divot digger is to be able to make anything resembling a conventional swing. You, like me, have probably used clothing items in your fishing that were first marketed to skiers. It didn’t take the country’s anglers long to realize that the new lightweight Frogg Toggs worked every bit as good for fishing as they did for golf when conditions were right.
http://www.ifish.net/sfparka.jpg
The Frogg Toggs parka is large enough to fit over your fishing cap or hat.
My guess is some prospective rain gear purchasers might be turned off by the very lightness that makes these suits, under some circumstances, so desirable. While still dry, a complete suit of Frogg Toggs weighs in at just 14 ounces. You can wear it four days in succession without feeling like you’ve been packing a sack full of sand.
So how have the makers of Frogg Toggs managed to get by marketing a product that is waterproof and windproof but still so darn light? You’ve probably read about the miracle fibers that have been used in other types of outdoor clothing. Popular Gore-Tex garments are an example. They are built so perspiration can get out, but rain can’t get in. The new lightweight rain suits utilize the same approach.
It isn’t as easy to for a male angler to drain his carburetor while wearing these lightweight raingear trousers because there is no opening to accommodate the needs of a guy who has just gotta go. But what the heck, you’re probably not going to get much sympathy from the gals who fish. That’s a situation they’ve had to contend with since Day One.
I’ll tell you something else I like about these new rain suits. When I’m not fishing I have a daily walking routine. That walking program also keeps me out in a variety of weather. I use my Frogg Toggs all the time when it’s wet. It’s another place where the lightness of the suit really helps.
If you can’t find Frogg Toggs on the market locally, you can order from the company by calling the toll-free number 1 800 349-1835. All of the details on garment styles and prices are also available at the company’s Internet web site at www.froggtoggs.com. (http://www.froggtoggs.com.)
No one fishing rod is best for everything from bluegill to barracuda. It just doesn’t exist. And that’s how it is with raingear. Sure there are times, ice fishing or mid-winter steelheading when ice is freezing in your guides are examples, when you’re going to want an insulated rain suit. You’ll need it to keep warm and you’ll recognize going in that you’ll come home pooped just from lugging it up and down some brushy riverbank.
But not all days are like that. We have far more that are cool and wet than we do those that are teeth-chattering cold. And on many of those days, especially when it’s mild but wet, you’ll love Frogg Toggs.
I’m on my second set. Like I said before, they go where I go and it’s darn comforting to know they’re there regardless of whether or not they ever get worn.
http://www.ifish.net/SFmexbas.jpg
I wouldn't have caught this nice Mexican largemouth if I hadn't brought my lightweight Frogg Toggs raingear along.
This new raingear works especially well where the weather is wet but not especially cold.