Our Club: Past & Present

                 The High Plains Drifters (HPD), affiliate of the Federation of Flyfishers (FFF) was formed by a few dedicated fly fishing enthusiasts just 17 years ago.   The Charter and original by-laws were signed in March of 1991.  There were less than a dozen founding members.  The very first discussions were held at the residence of Frank and Mickey Miller.  The original group recognized the importance of affiliation with the Federation of Flyfishers (FFF)—a national organization committed to the sport of flyfishing—and chartered the 100% FFF membership requirement we have today.   In fact, the original requirements of GPD membership were: 1) be a member in good standing of FFF and 2) attend at least two HPD meetings per year.  The original charter was specific that there were no annual club dues!  Such noble principle was short lived; however, as the club dues replaced attendance taken in the second year. 

            The goals set forth in the GPD Charter are (paraphrasing) to:  promote flyfishing, promote friendliness & fellowship among fellow flyfishers, promote catch & release, and support the goals of the Federation of Flyfishers (FFF).   The founders stressed the point that the club was to be long on fellowship, camaraderie, and enjoyment of the sport and short on fund raising for political causes.  Such was not to minimize the importance of political case: in fact, concurrent membership in organizations that do so is encouraged.   The principle of HDP was that it was to be a flyfishing club—dedicated to the activity of flyfishing & the accompanying fellowship. 

            The first president was a very outreaching and visionary man, Mr. John Swenson.  In his quiet, soft spoken manner, “Reverend John” stepped forward to guide the club through its early years of existence.   In the first two years, the membership grew from the original 8 or 10 it its peak of over 70 in 1992.   Such rapid growth presented the new club with many challenges.  Yes it was Rev. John’s bunch that abandoned the original Principle and resorted to annual dues to defray mounting administrative costs—mainly newsletter expenses! &%#<&*! 

            Following is the list of our presidents:

              John Swensen – 1991 & 1992                        *Dale Anderson - 1999

              Randy Urlik – 1993                                        *Greg Palcanis -2000

            *John Ehrhardt – 1994                                     *Mason Howell - 2001

            *Steven Cole – 1995 * 1996                            *Terry Weverstad – 2002 & 2003

             Walter Dudley – 1997                                       Keith Burrett and *Virgil Kelleigh - 2004

            *Gregory Palcanis – 1998 & 2007                     Brian Cummings – 2005 & 2006

             *Bob Appenzeller - 2008                                  *current members

            After peaking in the first 2 years the membership leveled off at around 65 and has remained at that average number until the last few years.   Our present membership in 2008 is 54.  As the group grew, finding a suitable meeting place became an ongoing challenge.   But then flyfishers are always on the move, right?  The following list of meeting places reflect that notion.   The various places where we’ve met, and left, --or been thrown out of – is listed below.   Tracking them all is difficult as there were some “one nighters” along the way.   The places are listed more or less in chronological order.

                        Patsy’s (36^th & Navajo, 1991)

                        Fiore’s (S. Holley, 1991-92)

                        Old Morrison Inn (Morrison, 1992)

                        Jackson’s Hole (104^th and 1-25, 1993-94)

                        Jackson’s Hole (6^th & Kipling, 1994)

                        Piccolo’s (I-25 & Hampton, 1995-96)

                        Grand Slam Sports Café (East Arapahoe Rd, 1997)

                        Grand Slam Sports Café (Wadsworth, near Villa Italia, 1997 – 99)

                        Draft Sports Grill (SW Plaza  1999-2000)

                        Cappucino’s Italian Restaurant (S Wadsworth 2000-02)

                        R.T.O. Q’s Pub (Kipling & Chatfield 2002-05)

                        Red & Jerrys (S. Santa Fe & Oxford 2005-present) 

            As you can see, our club is always changing.  We strive to get new members on the board of directors early in the process.    Some old and some new gives balance to our leadership.  With new members come new ideas.  With new ideas comes change.   The changes are intended to improve our club.   Some work; some don’t.   The key is to evaluate and recognize what didn’t work—and then change.   Hopefully our changes reflect the goals our charter members set forth in the Miller’s living room some 17 years ago:  To promote flyfishing;  friendliness and fellowship; and the basics of FFF.

A special thanks to John Swenson, Randy Urlik, and Dan Turner for their help in putting this piece together--however inconsistent their collective memory tends to be on past events!   And thanks to George Torrison for updating this piece in 2008.