I received my 6 weight Hot Torpedo (No. 2) just about five years ago, in the middle of the winter, a month before my job was to be terminated in the spring of 2013. My heart was broken, my life turned upside-down, but I had a wonderful wife and I had fish.
Of course, upon hearing that news, I went fishing.
I brought the Sexyloops Hot Torpedo to Mexico for bonefish, ladyfish, and snappers on the flats, I lost a permit with it. It came as a lightweight rod to Cuba.The rod came north with me to Baffin Island, three times now, in search of land locked Arctic Char. The rod has been the first out of the truck on rivers in Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. It has stalked trout, and grayling, and pike, and carp, and bass. It has also sat on the bank or stayed in the truck during naps on the river, but always ready to cast.
I cringe when dumbbell eyes hit the blank on a bad cast. I have tossed the rod up on the bank as I fell into the water. I have forgot it at home and missed it during three hours of driving without fishing. It has made time more enjoyable on many waterbodies, and I am thankful that it is part of an excuse to get out. If objects can hold memories, the rod has a fair share.
For me, the rod is more than a just a tool. I have other rods that I enjoy to cast – slow rods, large rods, long rods, even a rod without a reel. I fish in places where the 6 weight is not the most appropriate tool.
But for what it’s worth, I received the Hot Torpedo during one of the most unstable times in my life. To me, it symbolizes more than just a piece of graphite. It is an escape, forever tied to being able to find a small piece of enjoyment and solitude during dark days. While things haven’t stabilized in my life, I know that tomorrow or next week, or maybe sometime next month, I can grab a box of flies and the Hot Torpedo, and head down to the river as a tonic for my soul.
Thank you for the rod and the memories, Paul!
