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BIO-
Tony was and will always be mesmerized by
water. From an early age he passed many
days walking in creeks, turning rocks and
enjoying the energy that only running water
can offer. Like the rest of the TCO family,
Trout was the primary target, but after
exploring the Bahamas, Florida Keys and
other tropical destinations, Bonefish, Tarpon
& Permit quickly became the main focus.
Tony can found in just about any of the
stores as he travels to each location weekly
to oversee the operations although, his
main focus is on the internet business within
TCO.
Tony started this company in 1990 with a
750 square foot storefront and has now grown
to 5 retails locations and over 25 different
fly fishing related websites.
Tony will never loose the passion for fly
fishing or the anticipation that lies in
the next cool location to explore! |
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QUESTIONS
WITH TONY
When and why did you start fly
fishing?
I started fishing at an early age. My Grandfather
would take my brother, sister and me to
the Pocono lakes to fish in his VW Bus.
I was young… about 2 or 3 and was
more interested in trying to pelt the stocked
trout with rocks than I was to force feed
them with worms. I started fly fishing when
I was in 8th grade… my best friend
and I just “got into it”. In
between other sports we played, we always
seemed to make time to fly fish. The cool
thing is that we are still great friends
to this day… fly fishing seems to
create lasting bonds among people. There
is just something magnetic in fly fishing
that drives you to the serenity of water…
to remove yourself from whatever is on your
mind at the time and absorb that which is
around you in nature. I can’t image
a time when I won’t be able to enjoy
this.
What is your favorite type of
fly fishing? (i.e. fresh, salt, nymph, dry
etc…)
Most of my fly fishing life has been spent
casting to trout… over the last 15
years has been consumed with the driving
passion for Caribbean salt! Bahamas, Belize,
Florida Keys, Mexico… any area close
to the Equator is where you will find me
stalking tailing fish. Bonefish was the
first fish to capture my attention…
that has now shifted to Permit… This
is the ultimate quest on fly!
What are your favorite waters
to fish?
Other than Salt (as explained above) Colorado
is my favorite Western state for trout…
although I challenge you to explore the
waters of Central PA, mainly in and around
State College. These streams and the wild
trout in them rival most anything of the
west… and they are fishable 12 months
a year!
When you’re not fishing,
what are you doing? Past times, Hobbies
etc…
Before my twins were born (13 years ago)
I played 5 rounds of golf per week, road
my mountain bike, played guitar and enjoyed
my free time. Not that I would ever trade
having kids, but my time is now consumed
with their sports and other activities.
There is nothing more satisfying that watching
your kids grow and become the people that
you would hope for. Since there are 24 hours
in a day, and I felt the need to use them
all, we recently added a black lab puppy
to our family. I now get 5 miles of walking
in before I start my day at the shop!
What are your plans for the
future within TCO, what projects are you
working on and when can we expect to see
them come to fruition?
Even after 20 years, we are still coming
up with new and exciting concepts for TCO
Fly Shop! One of our most exciting projects
is the expansion of our talented team across
our 3 stores. In the coming months you will
see more videos and tying demos from our
staff on the various techniques that make
our staff so diverse. I take great pride
in the fact that our team is among the best
in the industry! |
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Tony's
Fly Fishing Gear
Rods:
Scott
G2 7’ 7” 3wt
Winston
BIIIX 8’ 6” 4wt
Sage
ONE 9’ 8wt
Winston
BIIIX 9’ 10wt
Reels:
Lamson ULA Force 2 SL
Waterworks
Vanquish 8
Hatch
5
Waders/Boots:
Simms
G3 Guide Pants
Simms
Guide Boot
Simms
Flats Sneaker
Simms
Streamtread Sandal
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| Tony's
Photo Gallery: |
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