I still remember the sinking feeling at baggage claim in Bozeman. My brand new 4-piece fly rod had survived the trip from Dallas in what I thought was a "protective" soft case, but the tip section came out looking like a pretzel. That was the moment I learned the difference between a generic rod sock […]

Last summer I watched a friend pull a $700 travel rod out of a soft bag with a snapped tip and a guide hanging by a thread. He had just flown home from a bonefish trip, and the airline handlers had not been gentle. That image is exactly why I started testing the best hard […]