December 2023 - 22

Linder prepares to cast under a bridge along the Little Laramie River last summer. Fly-fishing is one of his favorite activities. (Photo by Robert Gagliardi/WGFD)
" I've been fortunate to be around
the right people, and to be around
people that understand you can be
a really successful college coach and
still understand the importance of
your family. " - Jeff Linder
COACHING AND FISHING
Linder said the first time he touched a basketball
was when he was 4 or 5, and played
every day since he was 8 or 9. Linder realized
in high school that coaching basketball was
something he would pursue as a career.
His coaching career started as a volunteer
coach at the University of Colorado in 2000,
and there were stops at six other schools before
he landed the job at UW in 2020 - just prior
to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
" I've been fortunate to be around the right
people, and to be around people that understand
you can be a really successful college
coach and still understand the importance
of your family, " Linder said.
Linder and his wife, Kelli, have four kids
between the ages of 8 and 18. As Linder's
family grew and his career progressed, there
wasn't a lot of time for things like fly-fishing.
However, some of Linder's coworkers and
job locations in Utah, Idaho and Colorado
allowed him opportunities to get on the river.
Laramie may be small and isolated in the
world of college athletics, but it has its perks
for those who enjoy fishing. Being the head
22 | December 2023
coach at UW adds a couple of other perks.
" One of the nice things is you get access
to some private water most people don't have
access to, but at the very least I'm not having
to fight crowds, " Linder said. " It's a bonus for
me to have the ability to drive 20 or 30 minutes
to be on a river, or go up to the Snowy
Range and fish some of the small creeks and
be two hours away from different spots on the
North Platte River where there's world-class,
trophy-sized trout.
" I'm not sure where would be a better spot
to have access to such good water. "
Linder said he's also fished the Laramie and
Encampment rivers in southeast Wyoming,
the Bighorn River near Thermopolis and the
Salt River in western Wyoming. Linder hopes
to try streams and rivers in the west and northwest
parts of the state soon.
Linder credits his wife to allow him those
opportunities to fish when they arise. He said
his kids like to fish, but none of them have
mastered the patience to fly-fish yet.
" They'd rather catch than fish, but there's a
big difference between fishing and catching, "
he said with a wry smile.

December 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of December 2023

December 2023 - 1
December 2023 - 2
December 2023 - 3
December 2023 - 4
December 2023 - 5
December 2023 - 6
December 2023 - 7
December 2023 - 8
December 2023 - 9
December 2023 - 10
December 2023 - 11
December 2023 - 12
December 2023 - 13
December 2023 - 14
December 2023 - 15
December 2023 - 16
December 2023 - 17
December 2023 - 18
December 2023 - 19
December 2023 - 20
December 2023 - 21
December 2023 - 22
December 2023 - 23
December 2023 - 24
December 2023 - 25
December 2023 - 26
December 2023 - 27
December 2023 - 28
December 2023 - 29
December 2023 - 30
December 2023 - 31
December 2023 - 32
December 2023 - 33
December 2023 - 34
December 2023 - 35
December 2023 - 36
December 2023 - 37
December 2023 - 38
December 2023 - 39
December 2023 - 40
December 2023 - 41
December 2023 - 42
December 2023 - 43
December 2023 - 44
December 2023 - 45
December 2023 - 46
December 2023 - 47
December 2023 - 48
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