I was born near the river Allier centrally located in France. In the past, this river was very rich in salmon and other kind of fish and was a paradise for fisherman. However with political indifference and misguided hands of human nature, man has ruined this river.
My first fishing endeavor, when I was a lad of 5 years old, was with my father who had a real passion for fishing. In this era, fly fishing was very elitist and very secretive. These elitist now realize that they were doing more harm than good to their fellow fisherman.
My father was a baker in a small village of L’Allier and his working hours were not conducive to fishing. His favorite time to fish was from mid-July to mid-August. During this brief period of fishing he pursued small bait fish that were plentiful in the river L’Allier. To pursue these bait fish we used mayfly nymphs, which we would gather in the river bed. Unfortunately, because of agricultural pollution in the past 10 years, these nymphs no longer exist in the river. I practiced this type of fishing until I was 15 years old.
A friend called one night a few years later and said he had purchased a fly rod and gear that went with it. The next day my friend and I tried to figure out how all this equipment worked. After one hour of frustration, we were both discouraged and my friend was starting to regret his investment. We were on a beautiful stretch of water that was very favorable for fly fishing. By chance mayflies were starting to hatch all around us on the water. As luck would have it, one of my casts was miraculously gobbled up by a big fish. From that moment on, like a bolt of lightning, I was hooked forever into this sickness called fly fishing.
The following week after breaking my piggy bank, I too was well equipped with all the necessary gear to be the perfect fly angler. Within 3 days I had mastered the forward cast enough to be successful in catching fish to keep me motivated. In the river L’Allier, I was catching the resident white fish and small bait fish that are still abundant in our river. All my success happened just as the trout season was ending and it was with impatience and anticipation that I was waiting for the next trout season.
I am a self taught fly angler and fly tier. As much as I tried to ask for help and to learn all these secrets, it seems that everyone was very secretive of what they knew and would not help me. I got my revenge a few years later. I was so hurt by this stupid behavior that I went out of my way to help newcomers and anyone else who needed my help. I would have no secrets.
I have seen at fly tying shows, tiers that were hiding their work and only showing the finished products. My pleasure was to show all the secrets and intricacies of fly tying. Accomplished fly tiers would throw their flies at me, dare me to reproduce the same fly, and I would do it correctly and swiftly. All of this silliness ended when I started winning several national fly tying competitions.
Of course I was always lacking quality materials. It was a common sight in the village to see me chasing after roosters with a fishing net. I raided all the local chicken coops but it was not always appreciated by my countrymen.
I joined the Ragot Company in April 1996 and heading up their fly fishing division. This company was established in 1933 and as of 1991 is owned by Rapala Group. The co-founder of this company Andre Ragot was a passionate fly fisherman and started his company with 6 fly patterns. In the beginning, he was assisted by a seamstress. The success of these flies were so great that he had to hire a dozen fly tiers to keep up with demands. All these fly tiers tied these flies without the aid of a vice, using only threads, scissors and hackle pliers. Now this division employs approximately 75 people and flies are only a small portion of the overall sales. My administrative responsibilities includes buying, sorting, packaging and distribution. Due to my job, I have been able to accumulate most of my needed materials and meet other people in the industry.
Jean-Paul's web site can be found here.