50 States – 50 Posters Photo Contest
Posted on February 1, 2012
Jump over to the Howler Bros Facebook page and get involved in our 50 States photo contest!
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BTT Membership Giveaway
Posted on January 23, 2012
We’re proud to be helping out our friends at the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust (www.tarbone.org) with their ongoing membership campaign. For those not familiar with the BTT, we encourage you to visit their website and learn about their work which focuses on the conservation and enhancement of global bonefish, permit and tarpon fisheries. They are leading the way on providing research funding on flats ecology, spawning patterns and life cycles for these species. If you’ve ever caught – or tried to catch – one of these species, you should join the BTT and give a little back. And, as if that wasn’t reason enough, if you join the BTT at any level in January or February, you will be instantly entered to win awesome prizes from Howler (and even some trips to Mexico and elsewhere). Go to http://www.tarbone.org/2012-giveaways.html for details.
Meet Oliver White- Howler Tribe Ambassador
Posted on November 14, 2011
Oliver White lives a tough life. He spends most of his time in the Bahamas surrounded by waves and fish and boats and ice cold beer with his uber dog, Bono, eternally by his side while he guides and runs the show at Abaco Lodge. When the season is over, he crisscrosses the globe fishing, getting his picture taken and gracing the cover of mags like Fly Fishing in Salt Waters. He’s also a super solid dude and, even though all of us here at Howler HQ went to Virginia, he’s a Carolina Tarheel we’re proud to call a Howler Tribe member. We caught up with Oliver to pick his brain a bit about bonefishing, basketball and other things. Here goes. . .
First, we hear you were a financial analyst on Wall Street for a few years. We’re interested in your perspective on the spreading contagion of the Greek sovereign debt crisis and its long term impact on both the European Union and the Euro. Thoughts?
We’re kidding, of course. Let’s get down to business.
We’re dying to get over to Abaco and throw a line around with you. Tell us the best part about your gig over there? Is it the actual fishing or meeting all the good folks that come through your door? I live less than 20’ from one of the most prolific fisheries in our hemisphere and get a constant flow of interesting dynamic people in and out of the lodge. The combination of the two feeds a lifestyle that is pretty hard to beat.
What do you feel is the biggest threat to the fishery around Abaco? As with most parts of the world it is all about habitat destruction. Luckily Abaco is ahead of the curve in protecting the resource.
If you did not set up shop in Abaco, you would have done it in… Tough call – I love the adventure and remoteness of far off places but Abaco was a perfect balance of quality of life and ease of access and an incredible fishery, once I found that I didn’t consider much else. If you really twisted my arm it would probably be southern Mexico or Belize –with some quality permit fishing and a few tarpon.
If you could only have one fly with you the rest of your years on Abaco it would be a… Hands down the Puglisi spawning shrimp. Best commercial bonefish fly on the market everywhere I have fished.
What in the hell is “jumping” a sea turtle? The island equivalent of cow tipping -you can chase a turtle in the flats boat until he has to come up for a breath and then you get a split second where he is paused on the surface catching a breath where a well placed dive and quick hands gives you a chance to swim with him before letting him go.
So, we hear your dog is a total bad ass and that you’ve somehow learned to trick the TSA so he can ride right next to you on commercial airplanes. Fact or fiction… Fact –Bono get’s special privileges and is a well-traveled dog.
Who is your favorite baller to ever wear the Carolina blue? Is there anyone greater than Jordan? I was in school for the days of Vince Carter so that’s a close second.
By the same token, who do you think is the most annoying player to ever play at Duke? They seem to find a new one every year, not sure how they do it.
Insert shameless plug for Howler Bros here…
Great gear, great people, great ethos –keep it up and keep the new stuff rolling out!
Howler Sticker Photo Contest
Posted on November 6, 2011
Alright brethren- it’s time for the November Howler Bros photo contest. We want to see the best shot of your Howler stickers in the wild. The photo with the most votes wins a Howler Bros Yeti Cooler stuffed with all kinds of Howler goodness. If you’re not familiar with Yeti, you’ve probably been sleeping for about the last 6 years. They are the baddest coolers in the land and will keep a bag of ice frozen for 2 days while sitting on the surface of the sun. We’re giving one away right now so you can keep your jello molds and Christmas turkey chill this holiday season. We’ll take photo submissions until November 30th and open the contest to public vote from December 1st-7th. Photo with the most votes at the end will win! Winner will be announced on December 8th! Start snapping pics. Heed the call. P.S. It’s not too late to grab a few free Howler Brothers stickers, just send us an email with your address to contest@howlerbros.com.
Enter to win on Facebook and keep the photos coming!
Howler Dispatch: Chesapeake Watershed Ride
Posted on October 10, 2011
Some friends of ours at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation recently completed an extended cycling expedition in the name of some very worthy causes. John Rodenhausen and Beth McGee spent 3 weeks in the saddle, biking nearly 1300 miles around the entire watershed of the Chesapeake Bay in an effort to raise money for CBF as well as child cancer treatment and the American Diabetes Association. They pedaled through all 6 states that drain into the Bay (MD, PA, NY, VA, WVA, DE) and raised over $21,000 for their causes in the process.
We are not sure why they chose August for such a grueling ride, but we are proud to say that our Loggerhead Longsleeve shirt helped keep them cool along the way. Says John, “The loggerhead shirt was my favorite because it was as cool as (if not cooler than) a short sleeve but gave me all the sun protection I needed while riding 6-12 hours a day. Had laundry machines been more available I would have worn it every day!”
We have got some exciting stuff in the works, partnering with CBF on a number of projects. Look for their education staff to be outfitted in some Howler gear in 2012. Congratulations John and Beth!!!
Howler Dispatch: Airborne in Argentina
Posted on October 5, 2011
Check out Howler founder Andy Stepanian’s article Going Dukes of Hazzard in Argentina in the current issue (Volume 3, Issue 1) of The Fly Fish Journal. The article documents Andy and his brother’s grizzly car accident in Argentina back in January.
Meet Conway Bowman- Howler Tribe Ambassador
Posted on September 29, 2011
Howler Brand Ambassador Conway Bowman is a regular Thomas Jefferson of the aquatic life. He’s a fly fishing guide, surfer, television host, author, father, brand rep and conservationist. Conway makes his home in San Diego and runs Bowman Bluewater, a charter fishing service specializing in targeting Mako sharks with fly rods. He has hosted ESPN shows like “In Search of Flywater” and is a noted pioneer and advocate of catch and release fishing. Cats like Conway fully embody what we love here at Howler Brothers so we’re pumped to have him on the team. We caught up with him at the recent International Fly Tackle Dealers show in New Orleans and picked his brain on a few topics. Check them out below:
You find yourself in Baja and you know that Cabo Polmo is firing, head high and clean. But roosterfish are swarming the beaches as well. You only have two hours, do you surf or fish? That’s a tough one….let’s see. If it is over head and top to bottom tube I’d have to say “surf while I can get it” but, if the roosters are thick, chasing mullet on the beach and the conditions are right (not over head surf) I’m on the roosters all day long.
Why do you think a culture similar to surf and skate culture is emerging in fly fishing? Both sports and the guys a gals who participate in them are into the adventure of getting away from the day to day grind and finding adventure. Both sports parallel fly fishing because fly fishing is a soulful trip where ever you choose to do it. Currently, there is a noticeable shift away from the status trip in fly fishing with the elite crowd and movement towards the more adventure/soul crowd. It’s refreshing to see some dude in surf trunks, Converse high tops and an old vintage 70′s Fenwick fiberglass 12 wt casting to tarpon and out fishing the in crowd! I love that. That’s cool stuff.
No kidding, what’s the highest you’ve seen one of those Makos jump when hooked up to a fly rod? I’ve see a Mako clear the water twenty feet straight up as it was cartwheeling across the bow of my boat. No joke, the Mako is an unreal fish to catch on the fly and they jump higher and are faster then any other fish in the ocean!
How in the hell did you get into fly fishing for Makos anyway? Living in San Diego the nearest trout stream to me is 6 hrs north. However the ocean has always been steps from where I live and grew up, so the salt water and Mako sharks were the closest fish I had to target with the fly.
My pops and I would spend our summers in Idaho, so that’s where I got into fly fishing at the age of 6. I was fishing Silver Creek and Henry’s Fork…back in the early to mid 70′s. That’s where I got my fly fishing chops down. Then we would return to San Diego in the winter (my dad was a school teacher) and I would then target bass and pan fish eventually moving to the saltwater with the fly and ultimately the Mako shark.
Fill in the blank. Sharks are misunderstood because…of the movie Jaws! Worst thing to happen to sharks.
You share a first name with 70’s country music icon, Conway Twitty (see above). Since we know you don’t wear your hair like him, do you take any other cues from him like wearing white sequined jump suits, sporting gold medallions on the outside of a turtle neck or singing songs full of sexual innuendo into long, skinny, “Price is Right” style microphones? Conway Twitty has been a big part of my life from the day I was born. In most cases by default. Throughout my life people ask my name and when they hear ” Conway” they say 99% of the time….”Conway Twitty”? But, to he honest that dude wrote/sang some cool tunes and his hair was insane- plus that Bob Barker microphone and crazy bling that cat wore was awesome. Now that’s coming from a guy (me) who is bald and does not wear any gold, but nonetheless his stuff was tight. I loved the hillbilly slide guitar stuff that ran through some of his tunes. I love the tune “Louisiana Woman” and “It’s Only Make Believe” those are great tunes that I think were #1′s on the charts. In fact, in college I played drums and filled in on some county gigs. And yes, we played lots of Conway Twitty.
Most saltwater guides feel the gravitational pull of Florida. You’re staying put in California because…the waves are bigger….
Insert shameless plug for Howler here…The coolest, hippest shit out there for the surf/fly fishing crowd. Howler totally gets “IT”! They capture the lifestyle of the next generation adventure!!
Howler Horizon: Bruja Boardshorts
Posted on September 7, 2011
Managed to sneak in a great morning session at New Smyrna Beach before heading over to Orlando for Surf Expo. Got some quality product testing done as well: the Bruja Boardshorts passed with high marks. Look for the retro styling of the Bruja’s later this fall. If you are going to be at the Expo this weekend be sure and drop by our booth (#839) and say hello to Mason and Chase.
Howler Spotting: Monkeys and Bears
Posted on August 25, 2011
We receive a lot of pictures in our inbox of folks in their Howler duds in various exotic locales all over the globe. We get everything from your basic “grip and grin” shots with fish to people proudly applying monkey stickers to street signs. Until now, we have not gotten anything like the one below from Howler customer Alex Wooley during his trip to Alaska. We do not encourage putting yourself in harm’s way to make this blog but, in any case, we felt like Alex deserved it. If he plays his cards right, he might even be able to land this picture on at least 3 other company’s blogs as Howler finds itself in fine company on Mr. Wooley’s person. We hope he’s still around to enjoy all the glory!
Howler Horizon: Howler Guayabera
Posted on August 12, 2011
The traditional guayabera has always been a shirt we love in form but felt it lagged behind in function. So, we made a bunch of upgrades to our version, the Howler Guayabera, including using quick dry poly-cotton and adding a subtle rear venting. To make sure all these bells and whistles work as planned, we sent one on a recent trip to the middle coast of Costa Rica’s Pacific side. We are super pleased with the results. The shirt endured the road trip heat between surf breaks like Quepos Harbor and Esterillos and kept us cool on a sojourn into the Carara National Park looking for scarlet macaws and trying to catch our dinner. It’s always hard to love one child more than another, but the Howler Guayabera might be our favorite item in the Howler pipeline. Keep an eye out for it this Fall.