When you think of fly fishing, what do you think of? Flies? Gear? The big one that got away? Gorgeous women? OK, beautiful women don’t often come to mind, unless you have a Women in Waders calendar. Twelve stunning ladies in ideal settings fill the pages of the tastefully photographed, collector quality calendar. Just imagine walking down to the bank of a river and finding, a scantily clad, beautiful woman in waders instead of a crowd of hairy knuckled fishermen. I realize that you may never actually run across women dressed like this in your favorite stream, but with the Women in Waders calendar on your wall, you can dream about it everyday.
In 2001, Reel Fish Calendar Productions (RFCP) of Eugene, Oregon created the first Women in Waders calendar. As you can probably guess, these calendars consist of photos of gorgeous, bikini clad, women wearing waders. These women are usually standing in a stream or lake holding their fish or fishing gear… but who notices that? Right?
What started as a just for fun project has transformed into a lucrative endeavor. Melinda Hoeye of RFCP says, “sales grow greatly every year. It started as a side project, just for fun, and grew in to our full time business.” RFCP started with the Women in Waders calendar. That has now expanded to a total of four similar calendars which consists of Women in Chaps, Beauty and the Bass, Babes and Billiards and Guns and Camo.
So… where do they get these beautiful babes? “Models apply online, find us at sportsmen’s shows, or hear about us from other models” says Melinda. Their number one requirement is that the models have a great attitude. I’m sure having a killer body helps as well.
OK guys, wouldn’t you like to attend a photo shoot? It shouldn’t be hard to do since RFCP conducts 50 photo shoots throughout the year for the four calendars. I’m sure you’d have a little trouble getting past the security guards though. The photo shoots are very entertaining. RFCP is planning to add behind the scenes video clips to their website soon. That way the public can share in the fun of the shoot. Melinda mentioned a humorous situation that took place at one recent shoot. She tells us “We recently took our accountant with us on a fishing trip. At the end of the day we had a model meet us at a river for a shoot. We had our accountant run the behind the scenes video camera. He was so excited he talked non stop through the whole thing. It was like he thought he had to be the narrator. We had to remove the sound from the entire video. We should really let him out of the office more often!”
You can even book a date with the calendar girls. No, this is not exactly what you may be thinking… sorry guys. The calendar girls can act as official hostesses, help with raffles and drawings, be a part of fashion shows and entertainment, and assist with promotional photos and press interviews. What a great idea for fly fishing clubs, conventions, and seminars.
Melinda says, “We would like to thank our loyal fans that continue to collect and spread the word about the Women in Waders calendars.” She also adds, “Do you have your calendar yet? Do your friends? Calendars make a great gift for your buddy, your relative, and yourself.”
What great work they’re doing at RFCP. They offer a refreshing change to old photos of you standing in a stream holding your catch of the day.