Current Fly Rod Making Instructor at Haywood Community College
Fly Fishing and Fly Tying Instructor – Haywood County Recreation Department
Owner Thomas Custom Rods – Bamboo Fly Rod Restoration
I have been restoring and building bamboo fly rods for over 35 years

Taught fly fishing by these legends of the sport: Lefty Krea, Bob Clouser, Tom Baltz

Learned fly tying from: Frank Thompson, Tom Rosenbauer, Dave Rothrock, Charlie Most,
Don Bastian, Enrico Puglisi

Favorite stream: West Fork of the Pigeon River

Started fly fishing: Yellow Breeches Creek, Pennsylvania and now have fished in every state on the east coast and several western states.

Most entertaining fly fishing: the flats in the Gulf of Mexico off Longboat Key near Sarasota, Florida

Current President of the Cataloochee Chapter of Trout Unlimited, Past President of the National Chapter of Trout Unlimited, Past Member of The Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum in Livingston Manor, NY, Have Bamboo Rods on display in restaurants and inns such as Tower Oaks Lodge in Washington, DC