Hunting Report
Fishing Report
 

A REEL WOMAN

Seadrift's Gray has made fishing more than a hobby

Fathers and sons have often used fishing as a way to bond.

Zimmer started taking Gray fishing when she was 3 or 4 years old.

"She took to it real well - I loved to fish and so did she," Zimmer said, adding she inherited her love of fishing from her father.

Gray's lifelong love of fishing has turned into a profession with many rewards, including having a fishing rod named after her, being on the water five days a week, and being named team of the year in a fishing series of the year with her husband and business partner, Gary Gray.

Gray, 35, is a professional fishing guide with Bay Ray Guide Service in Seadrift.

Women searching for a rod specifically geared for them can purchase one from the Shellie Gray Signature Series line of rods from American Rodsmiths.

The rods range in length from 6 feet, 5 inches to 6 feet, 9 inches. Three of the rods - Wader Medium Light, Wader Medium and Tops N Tails - have 7 1/2 handles. The other rod, a Trout Special Spinning, has a 12 1/4-inch handle. The rods, which are for inshore saltwater fishing, sell for $179.99.

"Even though (my rod) is a pretty color (magenta), I do have a lot of men that have purchased the rod and are pleased with it because they have small hands as well, or maybe they're not quite as tall enough to use the other rods," said Gray, a Port Lavaca native who moved to Victoria when she was 15.

But the female rods are still "great action rods" and American Rodsmiths didn't skimp on any of the materials, Gray said. The series' production launched last summer, and some tackle stores started receiving them in January.

Gray, one of four female fishing guides from Port O'Connor to Port Mansfield in South Texas, and she has been fishing guide for five years. Her husband has been a fishing guide for 21 years.

She approached American Rodsmiths with the idea for a rod for females, with a goal in mind of getting companies to produce something for female anglers. When she started professionally, had only a few clothes to choose from - the colors were "awful" to boot, she said - and not many fishing gear and tackle companies took the female market into consideration.

But companies are finding out there's a market for women, and she thinks American Rodsmiths respected her accomplishments and thought that she could be a role model for other women in the sport.

"They considered me a great ambassador to back the rod," she said, referring to American Rodsmiths. "My husband and I compete in many tournaments, and I'm out there usually four to five days a week on the water. I think they also wanted to encourage more women that are out there wanting to fish but are a little worried about not competing against men, per se, but being the minority. This is one of their ways of encouraging people, saying 'Look, this is what she's done - you can do it, too.' "

Garret Scherer, promotional manager for American Rodsmiths in Houston, said his company responds to the female market. His company produced its first rod a couple of years ago.

His company decided to work with Shellie because of her longtime presence as a fishing guide on the coast.

"She has a good reputation and she knows what she's doing," he said.

"He had a lot of overflow, and he also was having to turn away a bunch of his repeat customers and he hated doing that," she said. "Since I've been fishing since I was a little girl, I was his deckhand for a little while, and then I got my license and starting picking up his overflow."

Shellie and Gary were named 2006 Team of the Year in the Texas Redfish Series in September. There were 151 teams.

"It was about consistency in those tournaments, because it is a series," she said. "There are different venues along the Texas coast, ranging from Galveston down to Corpus Christi. ...We were very proud to be consistent, because that is what it takes to win tournaments."

She said she and Gary winning the series as a husband/wife team was "just icing on the cake."

When asked why she doesn't choose a woman as her fishing partner, she said she doesn't view the matter from a gender standpoint. Instead, she said she wants to be the best, and her husband is an excellent angler, and "I don't think I could do better fishing with anybody else."

Gary Gray, 44, said his wife's fishing talent is "as good as any guy I know" and he knows many men who use Shellie's rods. He thinks fishing gear companies will respond to the female market because women are buying boats and going fishing without "waiting for their husbands to take them out."

Fishing guides' days begin around 3:30 to 4 a.m. and usually don't end until after dark, so many women would be concerned about both child care and time spent away from home, she said.

"It is a tough job," she said of the fishing guide service. "Of course, it's mental, but it's also very physical and it's long hours. A lot of women may not want to be exposed to the elements of the weather. And you know, growing up, I think some girls are taught to shop, and then there are some that are taught to be outdoors people. Like I tell a lot of lady anglers that are curious about fishing and buying their own boats, I just remind them that men started off somewhere, too. You guys weren't born knowing how to drive a boat. Men make the same mistakes as women do."

The Grays can be reached at bayrat.com or 361-785-6708

Captain's Gary and Shellie Gray - 361.785.6708

P.O. Box 626 Seadrift, Texas 77983