Montana Felt Sole Ban proposition

[John Rhoades]

And expand that law to include kayaks, drift boats, canoes, pontoon boats, float tubes, rafts, regular old boats, boat trailers, boat anchors, boat engines, trolling motors, depth finder transponders, flippers, wet suits or other neoprene gear, wading staff shock cord, and any other thing that holds or absorbs water and is transferred from watershed to watershed without drying out completely for several days.

It really is comical and naive to believe that any of these bans will make a drop of difference when other recreational users of the watersheds will NEVER do effective disinfection on their gear.

As for me, I'll use what ever gives me the best grip and NOT fish where I know for a fact hitchhikers are present. THAT's the best solution but of course nobody is willing to ban fishing, it's too inconvenient!!

Lasr summer I registered my drift boat for use in Yellowstone National Park. Before the license was issued, I was told that a ranger would normally need to inspect my boat to make sure it was clean. However, after I was asked where I had used my boat before the Park, I was told the ranger who did the inspections was busy doing something else so the gave me the license without doing an inspection.

Well so much for regulations! I also wondered what all this was really worth since I could later transport my boat from watershed to watershed and the YNP boat registration was good for the entire season.

[John Rhoades]

I guess we didn't see this coming?? LOL It seems like someone is trying to corner the market on a specific rubber product, that's supposed to be "as good as" felt. Seems like Korkers may be the way to go if traveling from place to place, since you can change the type of sole of your boot. The funny thing about these "aquatic hitch hikers" is that they don't just stick to felt as many of you know. You got to scrub your boats, waders, take the laces out of your boots and bleach them pink. Another option is to freeze all your equipment after use since most of these little suckers die off below the freezing point.

I thought I also heard that government officials (fish and game, ect.) and rescue personal are allowed to use felt soles so they won't slip while they rescue people forced to wear the alternative. It's kinda like the cell phone law here in Oregon, it's OK for some but not for the rest. Not that I condone cell use while driving, just a comparison. I guess you can only claim ignorance to a certain point. Might as well velcro felt to the sides of your boots, and like Cold you can find other Loopholes.

Here's what Simms says about their rubber soles:

"In the biggest breakthrough in years, we?ve teamed with Vibram? to give you easy to clean, great-gripping rubber compound treads on our wading boots and river footwear. The G4 Guide?, Guide, Rivershed?, Headwaters? and Freestone? boots feature the Simms StreamTread? sole to keep you upright in wet, mossy wading environments."

Simms makes no unreal claims that their rubber is as good as felt. It will only "keep you upright in wet, mossy wading environments". I can assure you it won't keep you upright when wading on a rocky river botttom, which is where I'm normally wading.

But seriously, how many fisherman really just want a " great-gripping rubber compound" " to keep you upright in wet, mossy wading environments"?

[Bamboozle]

I also wondered what all this was really worth since I could later transport my boat from watershed to watershed and the YNP boat registration was good for the entire season.

Exactly! Many boaters often do that, sometimes hitting a few places in a day or weekend. I am guilty of putting my fabric covered float tube in as many as 4 different lakes in a weekend without disinfecting.

Call me lazy, ignorant or unconcerned but I doubt I am the only one that finds it impractical to effectively comply when it comes to watercraft.

[Silver Creek]

Here's what Simms says about their rubber soles:

"In the biggest breakthrough in years, we?ve teamed with Vibram? to give you easy to clean, great-gripping rubber compound treads on our wading boots and river footwear. The G4 Guide?, Guide, Rivershed?, Headwaters? and Freestone? boots feature the Simms StreamTread? sole to keep you upright in wet, mossy wading environments."

Simms makes no unreal claims that their rubber is as good as felt. It will only "keep you upright in wet, mossy wading environments". I can assure you it won't keep you upright when wading on a rocky river botttom, which is where I'm normally wading.

But seriously, how many fisherman really just want a " great-gripping rubber compound" " to keep you upright in wet, mossy wading environments"?

Simms has made the claim that their rubber soles are as "good as felt". I've heard Simms reps say this on two podcasts. Here is one example from the Fly Fishing Retailer Show on Sept 8, 2008. Diane Bristol of Simms makes the claim at about 3:10 into the program. "as good as if not better than felt". Of course time has shown that that is not true.

http://www.itinerantangler.com/podcasts/podcast48.mp3

[Grizzly Wulff]

Legislating rubber soles will not reduce the transportation of invasive species from one location to another. Anyone who believes that they only travel on the soles of our wading boots is living in a dream world. The only solution is to completely disinfect your boots and waders (yes, the little buggers get into your wader seams and gravel guards) after every trip to the water, and the likely hood of the average fly fisherman doing that is about the same as the likely hood of finding intelligent life on earth (almost zero).

This is what I call "feel good" legislation; the people who pass it can point to it and declare that they "really, really care" about the environment. Manufacturers can spout about how environmentally friendly their products are, and the people who fall for the line of male cow byproducts can feel good about all they're doing to protect the environment. Again, if you want to protect the environment then disinfect after every time you're on the water!

[Silver Creek]

I have separate boots for Montana and my home waters that I keep in Montana. I then carry another set of boots with me just in case I go to Idaho or another Montana river other than the Madison. Then I have another set of boots for my home waters in Wisconsin. All are studded felts. I know most can't afford that but I got my boots free.

[Lotech]

I have the cure! Everybody wade naked!

Eric,
We want to catch the fish, not scare them to death.

[John Rhoades]

Simms has made the claim that their rubber soles are as "good as felt". I've heard Simms reps say this on two podcasts. Here is one example from the Fly Fishing Retailer Show on Sept 8, 2008. Diane Bristol of Simms makes the claim at about 3:10 into the program. "as good as if not better than felt". Of course time has shown that that is not true.

http://www.itinerantangler.com/podcasts/podcast48.mp3

Yep, "as good as, or better than, felt was her claim.

Last August, I friend and I stopped at Simms headquarters in Bozeman to get a replacement for his Simms wading staff, and I got into a discussion with an (unnamed) Simms employee regarding their rubber soles. When I told this person about my troubles wading with these boots (sans cleats) in the Yellowstone River, the employee said I was the first person who had told them that.

While I have no doubt that the rubber is easier to clean than felt, at least today Simm's website make no blatently untrue claim that their rubber soles are as good as felt (where one would assume they meant better for wading, rather than better for cleaning).

[kglissmeyer]

I wear the Simms Guide boots with the Streamtread sole, without cleats. 60 + days on the water last year and no mishaps. I like them a lot. They have traction, grip on moss-covered rocks and do the job for me. They are more comfortable to walk in and in the winter they don't build up a dangerous mound of snow on the sole as felts do. I'm not here to argue with anyone, but I'm an advocate for the new rubber soles, they have won me over by their performance on the water.

Kelly.

[ScottP]

Lasr summer I registered my drift boat for use in Yellowstone National Park. Before the license was issued, I was told that a ranger would normally need to inspect my boat to make sure it was clean. However, after I was asked where I had used my boat before the Park, I was told the ranger who did the inspections was busy doing something else so the gave me the license without doing an inspection.

Well so much for regulations! I also wondered what all this was really worth since I could later transport my boat from watershed to watershed and the YNP boat registration was good for the entire season.

John,

Just curious where you used your drift boat in YNP; I'm assuming either Yellowstone or Lewis Lake? Must be a booger to move in it when the wind kicks up.

Regards,
Scott