Frank Semthurst Flyfishing Guide
By Deb Dion
Although Frank Smethurst holds the title of national flyfishing champion, he's not your classic bad boy sports figure, full of swagger and arrogance. Handsome, humble and with a dry sense of humor, he concedes that his flyfishing prowess has a lot to do with the contemplative, quiet demeanor you would associate with the sport.
“I'm stealthy, more than anything,” he admits, which is no secret to viewers who have caught any of his television performances. He inadvertently earned his co-champion fishing partner Gifford Maytham a nickname when viewers nationwide heard him tease Maytham for tromping in the stream, calling him a “rhino.”
Smethurst's television and radio cameos are almost as prolific as his fishing career. He has appeared several times on ESPN and was featured in the 2003 and 2004 Outdoor Life Network coverage of the national flyfishing championships, in which he took third and first place respectively. Smethurst was the only 2003 contestant that qualified again in 2004. He stars in his own local television program, “Frank's Fishing Problem,” often with his younger brother and best friend, William. He has hosted both a local radio program called “Fishtalk” and a Clearchannel radio talk show in Boulder, Colorado. “It was kind of the 'Fishtalk' of the Front Range,” says Smethurst of the Boulder show. “We had people calling in from boats in Costa Rica and Baja. It was great.”
It wasn't the glitz or glamour that attracted Smethurst to fishing but a natural connection to water. Smethurst grew up on the Atlantic coast in Georgia and Maine and was swimming competently by the age of two. Today he sails, surfs and loves to cook fish. “Early on, my parents and babysitters realized that all they had to do to make Frank happy was to take him down to the dock and give him a line,” says Smethurst. “I just never stopped.”
Despite all of his fifteen-plus minutes of fame, make no mistake, when Smethurst hangs up the “Gone Fishin'” sign, he's actually working. He guides in Colorado and also owns his own guiding service, called Seeker Expeditions, in Baja, Mexico.
It's not all sun, salt and sand. He and Maytham were guest hosts on ESPN's “Flyfishing America” for a segment on winter fishing, which was filmed in Aspen in February. The pair narrated the experience of wading in the frigid water as the snow whipped sideways across their frozen faces and the television frame. “We were in ski goggles,” laughs Smethurst. “The guides [for the line on the rod] were icing up with every cast.”
Smethurst loves to share his knowledge of the sport. He says that women seem to have an affinity for flyfishing and are more apt to fish quietly and in close water where they can see the fish in front of them. Men, he says, tend to be louder and go for the long cast. “Guiding, women always catch more fish,” Smethurst says. When he's guided couples, he says, “It's made for some quiet lunches over the years.”
Even though he grew up mackerel fishing on the Atlantic, and despite favoring the rooster fish he plucks from the Pacific, Smethurst says he still owes his success to the San Miguel and the talents he cultivated with the complexities of trout fishing here. “It's like skiing the Stairs,” says Smethurst, comparing the level of fishing to one of the more steep and intimidating runs on Telluride's ski area. “It's challenging, diverse fishing here. I get skunked often. It's made me a better fisherman.”
