fishermen from applying S.U.R.E!, the Skeptical and Unbelieving Reduction Equation. This equation says that the actual size of the fish will be overestimated by the angler progressively by the following number of factors: 1) experience level of the angler, or at least frequency with which he/she claims to catch fish of that size. 2) number of observers who actually witnessed the fish in question. 3) whether the fish was actually landed. Multiply by an additional .3 if the fish was lost from a distance 4) size of the water, smaller water=more exaggeration 5) size of the fly, same principle 6) size of tippet used, same principle 7) number of miles hiked or driven to reach the water fished. 8) number of inches angler height below 5'8" 9) ?size of one's, um, sexual....(Oh, forget it.) One can either calculate the actual expansion factor during a conversation, or one can simply assume the all purpose round-off factor that all fish stories, lengths, pounds, or numbers, are exaggerated by 20% plus or minus 5%. And rounded off to the next highest whole, if not even, or even prime, number. All of which creates a real dilemma for every truly honest fisherman in conversation. Does one state the "estimated and inflated" size, knowing that the listener will automatically reduce it to actual size, or does one state the actual size and try to convince the listener that this time you are being really accurate. There was, for example, a large brown I caught on the Bighorn river that I initially estimated as 25-26 inches long. When I actually measured it, it was only 22 plus, say 23. Now when I tell the story of this fish, which length do I use. If I try to tell someone about this huge 22 inch fish (because real 22 inch fish are really huge), they will think I caught a 19 inch dink and I would have to be stupid and inexperienced to get excited about a fish that small on the Bighorn. It gets real confusing. Just for the record, the most honest statement and estimate of the size of Deschutes fish was given to me by John Soreng on the morning I first met him many years ago. That a man who made his living at that time by manufacturing minute electronic parts down to tolerances of 1/10,000ths of an inch could get this right might not be surprising to some people, but remember that John is also a fisherman, so all bets
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