BOZEMAN — It may be February, but this recent warm weather probably has you anglers getting excited—and I have some good news! You can go grab your waders out of the back of your closet and bring them to MAP Brewing Company this Sunday for its free wader repair workshop.
Watch the story here:
I asked Patrick Kainz, or PK, the founder of MAP Brewing, how long he's been fishing.
“Oh, since I was four. Yeah, once you’re hooked, you’re hooked," he says.
If you’ve lived in Bozeman long enough, you know fly fishing is a Montana pastime, even in the month of February.
“Well, seeing as it is going to be nice and warm here this weekend, I’m actually headed to the Missouri tomorrow. We like to get out and see if we can get some fish on the line,” says PK.
PK, like many Montanans, is a diehard fly fisherman. While PK is out on a river tying and flying this weekend, enjoying the outdoors, MAP will be hosting an indoor fly-fishing event.
“Part of the day is going to entail anybody being able to bring out their waders to MAP Brewing Company. Doesn’t matter who manufactured those waders. To see if they’ve got holes in them,” says PK.
In partnership with Patagonia, anyone is able to bring in one pair of clean, dry waders to be dipped in a dunk tank, analyzed, and repaired. For free!
But wader repairs aren’t the only thing you can get "tied up in" on Sunday.
Two local fly-fishing companies, Yellowdog and Troutfitters, are also going to be doing fly-tying events, showing people how to do different types of fly tying.
"So, it’s kind of a fishing-focused event as we gear towards the springtime,” PK tells me.
This wader repair event isn’t the first time MAP has partnered with Patagonia. You may recall a story we told you about, MAP’s Kernza Lager, which uses regenerative grains making it more environmentally friendly.
WATCH: MAP Brewing, Patagonia Provisions team up on environmentally friendly beer
“For every Kernza Lager we sell here that day, MAP Brewing Company is going to donate a dollar to the Yellowdog Community and Conservation Foundation. And at the same time, Patagonia will match another dollar on top of that,” says PK.
An event where you can tie flies, drink beer, and get your waders repaired for free? Sounds like an angler's dream, right? And all these events are helping to make a difference.
“As we know, we want to keep as much out of the landfills as possible. And the more we can reuse and repair, the better off it's going to be for the landfill. Plus, we want to keep people warm and dry on cold winter days when they want to go fishing,” PK says.
This event is at MAP Brewing Company this Sunday from 2-7 p.m. And if the fishing party wasn’t enough? You can also expect live music.
