Dave Sumner, Flirty GirtyTM
 Founder & Owner

Meet Dave

Everyone I know says that I’m a little bit crazy; after all, I named my first fishing lure “The Flirty GirtyTM.” Though fishing in the summer is always great, ice fishing is what really gets me going. I enjoy the camaraderie shared between ice fishers, and I love exchanging hunting and fishing stories while on the ice … though I do relish the solitude that unfolds whenever I am the only person on an ice-encrusted lake. These are feelings that prompt me to log between 70 and 75 days on the ice each year. Whether freezing in a shack at 40 below, or basking in a 40 degree sunny day, every day spent fishing is worthwhile to me. I enjoy trying new technologies while fishing, as well as experimenting with different lures, colors, and presentations. It seems to me that fish caught through the ice taste just a little more savory. I release the majority of my catch, but always manage to keep a few; for it’s hard to resist a freshly prepared fish on a cold winter’s evening. I have been called nuts for fishing during sub-zero winters, though I’d rather freeze than be forced to stop fishing!

Who Is Clarence?

Everyone asks me about Clarence, the man on the front of every Flirty Girty package. I met Clarence for the first time at a Muskie Club meeting in the early 1970’s. We soon became best friends and spent hundreds of hours fishing together … until the sad day that he passed away. Although Clarence’s real passion was muskie fishing, I managed to bring him ice fishing a few times each year. When ice fishing, Clarence frequently used one of my home-made fishing lures to great success; it soon became his favorite. When a local sportshop requested some of these lures, I attached some of them to a card-and slapped his picture on each one! Clarence got a huge kick out of this; as it was my way of saying that he would always be my favorite fishing buddy. Though he has passed on, Clarence will always be with me anytime I fish. Though good fishing partners are sometimes hard to come by, Clarence was always “The One.”