Don’t miss this legendary event
By Topf Wells

The Meicher Madness Auction was one of SWTU’s most popular and profitable events for many years. Stopped by COVID, it returns at our Tuesday, September 10 meeting at Schwoegler’s on Grand Canyon Drive. (nevermind one reference to a different month at the end of a prior message)

Good to get there early
You can order food and drinks at the Schwoegler’s main bar it will be delivered to your table. We’re hoping for and expecting a bigger crowd for the auction. If you plan on dinner, PLEASE arrive between 5:30 and 6 p.m. If the auction is your main interest, be there before 7 to peruse the items. If you’re bringing items to donate, please also try to get there early so they can be set out and people have the chance to look everything over.

Amazing items already on hand and more to come
As noted below (“no junk”) the chapter regularly receives donations of quality (sometimes extreme quality) items from generous donors and estates. This includes flies, rods, reels, fly tying material and even a large kit of spin casting lures. Fellow members will also show up with gear to donate to the auction … one of the most popular being hand-tied fly patterns for our local waters. Also books, art, camping stuff and other quality outdoor-themed gear.

Wait, there’s more! Win a hand-built rod just for showing up!!
From all attendees, we will do a drawing for a fly rod.

Here are some needs and changes for this year’s auction:

Volunteer help. We need about a dozen folks to help at he auction itself: cashiers, folks to check in all the bidders, organizers of all the gear, and runners to make sure the bidders get the stuff they win. Contact Topf Wells at topfwells@gmail.com if you can lend a hand. It’s not hard work, but more helpers makes it easier for everyone and the event can move along better … volunteers may of course also pause to bid on items they want.

Bring the good stuff; No Junk. We’d love to auction off quality fishing and outdoor-related items you can part with (to make room for new stuff, of course). Traditionally members have brought in just about any gear (leaky waders, run down gear, etc.) they no longer had a use for. That was sort of fun. But not this year, please.

The reason is in the five years since the auction was last held we have had a mountain of really good gear donated to the Chapter. Much of it from the families of deceased members or those who cannot fish anymore. This auction will be focused on selling those excellent rods, reels and other gear. We just won’t have the time this year to deal with junk.

Buyers. With all this gear, we need buyers who want or need fishing stuff. For those of our 800 members and friends who might be new to fishing, trout fishing or still gearing up, this auction is a golden opportunity to get some top notch fishing stuff at extremely reasonable prices. This will be a great meeting to invite a new member of the Chapter or a new angler.

TLDR*: SWTU’s Tuesday, September 10, meeting at Schwoegler’s Lanes is a fun auction fundraiser of fantastic outdoorsy goods, some of which the chapter has already and some of which members (maybe you?) will bring to donate. The auction starts at 7, but arrive early for food, conversation and to scope out goods to bid on. If you need another reason to be there, we’ll be drawing for a wonderful rod.

Schwoegler’s Lanes, 444 Grand Canyon Dr., Madison, WI 53719

* Too Long Didn’t Read