Hedge fund guys go wild -- for a cause

What do Clint Eastwood, former Kidder Peabody CEO Max Chapman and hedge fund supremos Paul Tudor Jones and Louis Bacon have in common? They'll all be wearing blue jeans and casting flies on Randall's Island in New York on September 22, at a high-powered dinner to benefit the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Produced in conjunction with cable TV show ESPN Outdoors, the bash is geared to the sensibilities of tough-guy traders: Activities include fly-fishing, logrolling, pole climbing, wood chopping and various other means of proving one's manliness. Chapman, an outdoor enthusiast who now runs Gardner Capital Management in New York, will chair the event along with Jones, founder of Tudor Investment Corp., and Moore Capital Management founder Bacon.

"All I want is for it to ultimately be as successful as Robin Hood," says Chapman, referring to the annual black-tie gala given by the Robin Hood Foundation, a nonprofit group founded by Jones to help fight poverty in New York. That event has become a very popular social occasion for hedge fund types. Wildlife foundation chairman Chapman is optimistic that vice chairman Jones can attract a similarly wealthy crowd to a far more relaxed gathering. "We're going to have a good barbecue and a good band," he says. "People can come in blue jeans, bring their kids, and have fun, instead of being in a tuxedo at the Waldorf-Astoria." Items to be auctioned at the dinner include a deepwater fishing trip to the Bahamas and a signed Lance Armstrong jersey from the 2003 Tour de France.

Eastwood, the patron saint of flinty-eyed alpha males, will receive an award for his efforts as a longtime advocate for land conservation. With the Hollywood legend and hedge fund barons in attendance, the wildlife foundation is hoping to come away with more than just a fistful of dollars.