TULSA — One of the great things about attending the Bassmaster Classic is you never know who you’ll meet.

Entering the Bassmaster Outdoor Expo on Friday at the Tulsa Convention Center, the first person I saw was Gary Loomis. Yep, that Gary Loomis, arguably the world’s most famous fishing rod maker. The loquacious Loomis was in an expansive mood as he recalled how his brand was born.

Several manufacturers had tried and failed to make strong, durable fishing rods out of carbon and graphite, Loomis said. It was a good idea, he added, but their formulations were faulty. The rods were too brittle. Loomis perfected the mix and developed a rod that was light and flexible, with phenomenal breaking strength.

Unfortunately for Loomis, the fishing industry and its customers were not interested. Their previous experiences with inferior products soured them on this new use of technology.

Loomis rented a booth at a major show. He attached the tip of a new rod to a big lead weight that was hidden inside a box. If you correctly guessed the weight of the load, you’d win a selection of new rods. The promotion was wildly successful. Hundreds of people put their names in the hat, doubtless impressed with a fishing rod that could hoist such a heavy load with such limberness and sensitivity.

Then came the cranky old man who sniffed dismissively at the rod. He wouldn’t even touch it.

“He looked and sounded familiar, but I didn’t put two and two together right away,” Loomis said.

“Sonny, if Fenwick couldn’t do it, you can’t do it either!” the old man told Loomis.

Loomis told him that this rod could withstand 8 pounds of vertical pressure. The crank told him he was full of it. He said it wouldn’t even withstand 1 pound of vertical pressure. An argument ensued, and the crank got ugly.

“Sonny boy, do you know which direction vertical is?” he asked, caustically.

“I’ll bet you a hundred dollars it will!” Loomis challenged.

“I’ll bet you three hundred it won’t!” the crank countered.

“I’ll bet you five hundred it will!”

Loomis was mad.

“I kind of let my alligator mouth get away from me,” he said. “So I said, ‘Hey, old man, if you can’t lift it, I can help you, if that’s your problem!’ ”

That’s when Loomis realized his contretemps was Ted Williams.

Yep, that Ted Williams, the Boston Red Sox legend. He was also a fishing legend. Sears Roebuck Co., even named an entire line of fishing equipment after him in the 1970s.

The irrepressible Loomis earned Williams’ respect with that exchange, but more important, so did his fishing rods. He became one of Loomis’ most loyal customers, and his support was instrumental in earning the fishing public’s trust.

ALABAMA HUMOR

While Mike Iaconelli, Kevin VanDam and Cliff Pace wowed the crowed at the BOK Center with their impressive catches Friday, Matt Lee had the best line of the night.

Lee, a student at Auburn, qualified for the Classic by winning the Bassmaster collegiate national championship last summer at Beaverfork Lake near Conway. He caught just two bass weighing a total of 4 pounds, 15 ounces in the first round to tie for 48th place.

Talking with Bassmaster emcee Dave Mercer onstage during the weigh-in, Lee said he actually caught a limit of big largemouths on an Alabama Rig, a device that allows you to present multiple lures at once. It is illegal in Bassmaster tournaments.

“I had to throw ’em all back,” Lee deadpanned.

The crowd got very quiet, and Lee said nothing more about it.

He told me later he was only joking, trying to lighten the moment.

JAW-BREAKING COLD

The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation has a prominent presence at the Classic.

Nels Rodefeld, chief of the ODWC’s information and education division, spent Friday as an observer with Boyd Duckett, winner of the 2007 Classic.

The temperature was 22 degrees at takeoff. Rodefeld said he couldn’t feel his fingers, and his face was numb from the cold.

“At lunchtime, I tried to eat that sandwich that they gave us,” Rodefeld said. “I thought I was going to chip my teeth on it.”

Rodefeld said he learned quickly that Duckett does not waste time. When he says it’s time to go, you’d better be in your seat with your life jacket on, Rodefeld said.

The ODWC’s I&E division made an excellent promotional video about the Classic.

It can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/user/outdooroklahoma.

Sports, Pages 30 on 02/24/2013