The recent episode (#27) of the Fly Fisherman Loop to Loop podcast features an entertaining and enlightening conversation with new Scott Fly Rods Vice President Shawn Combs, an aerospace industry mechanical engineer turned fly rod and gear designer who recently moved to the Montrose, Colorado based company after an impressive stint at fly fishing legacy company, Orvis. Combs grew up on Louisville, Kentucky, the child of parents who owned and ran a specialty outdoor retailer that had some fly fishing gear. "Think archery, deer and turkey, some fishing, predominantly fly fishing, but very much like, 'You're going on your western big-game hunt and here's a 3-weight fly rod to catch some trout in the stream near your camp,' that sort of fly fishing. And my dad taught me how to cast a fly rod. When I was 11, I got my first fly rod – this was an Eagle Claw 3-weight – and I fished bass ponds with poppers for bluegills and bass. When I was old enough to drive, I went to the fly shop in town, Adventure Anglers, back then it was part of Quest Outdoors, and a guy named Dick Haas sold me a Scott SAS, 9' 5-weight. And, I remember coming back and my dad was confused, because I could have had any fly rod from the shop, but I wanted a Scott rod, and that's what started it," Combs concluded.
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Smitten somewhat by Scott's marketing, as well as by the enhanced experience of fishing with that quality Scott rod, Combs was inspired, as a 16-year-old, to seek out certain Kentucky tailwaters in search of his first trout. Combs admitted that he developed a lot of Scott brand loyalty as a young kid and became a "Scott Fanatic," and he continued to fly fish, as well as mountain bike and snow ski throughout college at the University of Louisville. After graduation, Combs thought he'd work for a ski company, but he ended up working at ExxonMobil. Later, he moved back to Kentucky and worked for a small engineering company that designed vapor vacuum cleaners. Then he made a career move to the Northeast, where he worked at a Lockheed Martin lab that was responsible for the US Navy's submarine and aircraft carrier nuclear propulsion. "The theme through all this," Combs explained, "was that I still had those three seasons – mountain biking, snow skiing, fly fishing, repeat." Upon returning to New York from a fishing trip in Utah, Combs happened to sit next to the divisional merchandise manager for Orvis, and in the course of the trip they ended up exchanging business cards. Three months later, Combs received a job inquiry from Orvis via email, and the rest is history.
While Combs has received tremendous accolades for his design work and overall career at Orvis, he had the following to say, "Let me tell you, that was really Orvis, and the team at Orvis was positioned for what was to come in such a fantastic way. Helios, you know, Helios Gen 1, then Gen 2, and by the time we got to Helios Gen 3, I feel like it was just a really nice calling card for the community to take a second look at Orvis and to understand their stance on conservation, you know, the Fly Fishing 101 courses and bringing people into the sport, the stewardship there. I really think it all starts with product, and great product solves problems, and people will acknowledge and see that, and I think that it was the perfect kind of, 'Orvis was this great heritage company that had done so much but maybe had veered of the road a little bit, but through some great product launches and some focus on product quality and innovation, that started to bring the eyeballs back around and then people rediscovered Orvis, some people for the first time, some for the second or third time.' …Well, it takes a village, and props to that whole team that made it possible," Combs finished.
When asked about making the move from Orvis to Scott, Combs noted that it was a very difficult decision. "Orvis is a great brand, great people, and great product," he said. "Leaving Orvis was more about running to an opportunity." Combs had been friends for some time with Jim Bartschi, who is president of Scott Fly Rods and directed the brand for over two decades.
"The beauty of Scott Fly Rods is there really isn't anything broken," said Combs "…This was more about taking the opportunity to come in and support the brand, understand who Scott Fly Rods is and support that. Sure, there will be opportunities for Jim and myself to design new processes or new fly rods or something like that, but it wasn't the hiring of a change agent. And from my standpoint, this is more of being part of the support team that comes in and says, 'Here's this great brand, making great products handcrafted and handmade in Colorado, and we're not looking to disturb that, we're looking to support it and carry it forward for the next 50 years.' And that put me in a pretty comfortable place."
"I really appreciated the opportunity to visit with Shawn Combs at the Scott Fly Rods' shop in Montrose, Colorado," said Fly Fisherman's Purnell, "especially considering he's only a few months into his new VP role. He fielded every question I had for him – and admittedly, some of them were pretty tough – but he was a wonderful host and tour guide, and I think listeners are really going to enjoy his honesty, his comments regarding Orvis and his legendary design work there, and his decision to move from one incredible dream job to another in Southwest Colorado. I also had the opportunity to tease him a bit more about his secret carp spot on the Hudson River in New York…"
Available on Apple Podcast, YouTube, Spotify, and at FlyFisherman.com the latest episode of Fly Fisherman Loop to Loop podcast is a must-listen for fly fishing enthusiasts of all levels who want to stay informed.
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