Fly Fishing Book Review by Bob Triggs - Little Stone Flyfisher : Guide

The Orvis Fly Casting Guide By Tom Deck with Foreword by Tom Rosenbauer Illustration art by Bob White Publisher: Lyons Press 2003 (avail through White Fish Studio) 246 pages, Hardbound $39.95 ISBN 1-59228-008-0

 I cant think of a more important task for any fly angler than learning how to cast effectively from the very beginning of the game. Teaching fly casting is in it's self an art; the specific language and sequence of skills demonstration, the building of basic mechanics- one upon another- the gradual development and presentation of the many aspects of what is a fundamentally fluid and dynamic process, into an understandable whole. It is a challenge. The instructor must understand the language of teaching and learning, how to pace the lessons to the student's ability to achieve the skills, and when to step back and recover a step. Good teaching takes many years of practice and conscious study. And for a casting instructor to be truly exceptional, they also need to be an exceptional caster themself. Tom Deck is all of that with his many years as an expert instructor of the Orvis Schools Progressive Casting Method. having taught many thousands of students himself, and all the while honing his own technique both as a teacher and a student of the cast. Every good teacher knows that one never truly "arrives"; it is always the process of growth, learning and improving. The great ones never stop practising and learning.

 Tom's encouraging writing style helps take some of the hesitation out of casting. He uses the language clearly and simply; building from the very basics of stance, grip, stroke control, and progressing along from a simple pick-up and put down cast, on to the most complex presentations, with a logical sequence of accessibly concise connections- one step to another. The book is a gem of simplicity and also a work of great depth. few teachers capture the steps of the casting process quite as well in person, let alone in written words. I found Tom's ability to clearly relate all of the steps of the casts, and especially to illustrate the importance of each aspect of the process to actual fishing situations, most encouraging.

 Additional chapters on saltwater casting, spey casting for single and double handed rods and presentation of the fly, all bring a most generous approach to the single important physical aspect of fly fishing- casting . Beginning and intermediate fly anglers will especially benefit from the guidence on casting in the wind, casting from boats, troubleshooting the cast, and a very solid stepwise approach to hauling. Pacific Northwest winter anglers in particular will gain skill from the sections regarding casting weighted lines and heads and heavier flies, and Tom's views on Spey casting. His Downeaster' style regarding dry fly work is a classic representation with some new age twists. Tom is a real fisherman too.

 This is a book any fly angler will be able to work with and appreciate throughout their fly casting career. The layout is efficient and takes the casting student through three stages of development with it's three major sections; "Fly casting Fundamentals", "Refining Your casting Stroke", "Presentation Fly casting". The steps throughout are presented in a way that is devoid of verbosity. Yet the more one studies this book the more it's real depth and richness is revealed. I just can't say enough for how helpful this book will be to anyone sincerely working at learning , improving or troubleshooting their fly casting technique.

 Fly casting instructors too will benefit from studying Tom Deck's plain and simple teaching style and language. While he is surprisingly not stylisticly divergent, (there is barely a hint of ego anywhere in this book), he manages to make one of the clearest presentations on the basic mechanics of the cast that I have ever studied. And yet he is widely recognized as an extroadinarily good fly caster.

 Another great aspect to this book is the use of many color photographs to show the elemental steps through each casting move being presented. It seems like just the right number of shots; all with the good contrast, depth and focus needed to show the relationship between stance, grip, hand position, rod angle, line position etc, all with respect to the water and the actual presentations. This is a book for real fishing fly casters. All of it leads you to the water and the fishing. It all makes sense.

 The book is also brilliantly illuminated with well known artist angler Bob White's many fine illustrations. Bob draws on a lifetime of outdoorsmanship and some several decades as an Alaska and South America fishing guide, to bring a kind of richness and depth to all of his works. I have tried for a few years to find a word to best describe Bob White's work- his fine watercolors and drawings of fish and wildlife and the outdoors life- but especially the fish and the bright waters we love. I found that word: "Humanity". How can that be? I dont know. But it's true. You will have to see that for yourself. Each Bob White drawing in this book will have the reader steeped in the nostalgia, warmth and art of fly fishing. And every step of the cast will become so simply clear that you will read this book with a rod in your other hand. For the artwork in this book alone I will keep it out on my table, within easy reach, for near daily enjoyment. You will too.

 

Article	093
Created	9-17-2005
Modified	10-4-2005
Author	Bob Triggs
Rating	(None)