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Casting?

1K views 17 replies 13 participants last post by  Dylan D 
#1 ·
As most of you know, I am new to fly fishing. I have talked to basically two different people on casting and they whipped out the trusty old rod and showed me how it was done. The first told me, in short, to hold my arm at 2 'o clock (he wasn't specific on whether it was a.m. or p.m.) and flick my wrist at 10 and 2 keeping my arm in place until the lay down. The other had me using my arm for casting at 10 and 2. Just because I don't want to develop any silly habbits, I would like to have some help with this.

I also would like to surround myself with some fly fishing friends so if anybody wants to get together and harrass the H2O a bit that would be killer.

Sean
 
#2 ·
Not to sound like a heathen, here, but ive broken all the rules more consistently than not over the years. Beautiful picture, there you are in your appropriate flygear on a photo opportunity of a bend in the river (lots of backcast room, plenty of fish) doing the ten to two number and just killing them......... heee heee.

What i recall is plenty of brush, solid walls of trees, impossible slots in chest deep water - of course most of my time as a bankie: boat fishers probably have it easier - but to me the only rule to flycasting is there is no rule except delivering the fly where you think it ought to go and then mending it from there on its way downstream. Never did figure out what time of day my arm was at: it was sidearm fishing parallel and 18" over the water either because a.) the wind was way up or b.) the trees were too low. This isn't intended to discourage but to encourage you to fish in a way that matches the situation.

Be flexible.

Otter
 
#3 ·
Although I'm not as experienced as most of the guys on this forum, I think the most important thing for me when learning how to cast was to watch the line straighten out fully on the back cast in order to avoid whipping the fly. That alone made the most dramatic effect on my distance.
~my two cents
PS) Alcohol also helps too
Good luck!
 
#4 ·
caidz said:
Although I'm not as experienced as most of the guys on this forum, I think the most important thing for me when learning how to cast was to watch the line straighten out fully on the back cast in order to avoid whipping the fly. That alone made the most dramatic effect on my distance.
~my two cents
PS) Alcohol also helps too
Good luck!
Caidz -

All right - insanity test here - but it did more for me than anything else. Cast backwards. Yup, i said cast backwards. Learned this with heavy banks of willow & trees on the backcast. So I cast FORWARD to the bank and the brush, so as not to tangle my fly, and BACK to the river. Totally counterintuitive. And totally cool, in terms of being able to flycast. Because when you get out of the mindset of the "back cast", you're into casting, which is a two way street, no matter which end of the street you deliver your fly.

I know, I'm nuts.

Otter
 
#5 ·
I cast backwards at times, too. Especially in windy situations where the wind is coming from the right side as I face the water. I am right handed, and the wind would blow my line right into me if I cast "normal", so I turn around and cast backwards, the line is then blown away from me.
 
#6 ·
Sean,

There are differing schools of thought about fly casting, so I'll mention some things from the fellow who taught me. First, your fly casting shift from 10 to 2 is about an hour too long. Fly casting can be about less work and more pleasure. I do that by using a casting stroke from 10 to 1, and get off an hour early for my fishing time. I say this only partly in jest. A real common problem with fly casting students is that they cast far too wide an arc, often 9 to 3 or 4 O'clock. I used to try to put casting students in front of a fence or some bar such that if their backcast stroke extends much past 1 O'clock, their rod would whack it. I had one guy who really couldn't get it, and I thought he might actually succeed in chopping a tree limb in two with his fiberglass Fenwick rod - if the rod didn't eventually break first.

A useful concept to keep in mind is that a good forecast begins with a good backcast. How do you know if your backcast is any good? Well, my experience is that 90% of fly casting students WILL NOT, no matter how often they are told to, but they ought to turn their neck and LOOK at their backcast. A student who looks at his/her backcast can usually tell right away if it's any good or not. The biggest problem I've experienced with casting students is getting them to watch their backcast. Think of it as useful neck exercise. It's not fun to instruct by having to grab a student's head and swivel it forward and back with every cast for them because they can't seem to translate the statement, "watch your backcast" into turning their head and watching their backcast.

If you've mastered the backcast, then focus on your forward cast. That is, that 10 O'clock stroke (it's AM by the way, we don't cast in the dark as a rule) should develop a sense of direction, combined with abrupt deceleration. Then lay the rod down to 9 O'clock as your line falls right on target.

Practicing 15 minutes 4 times a week is more productive than practicing 4 hours once a week. In a couple months you can become proficient and have also learned to single and double haul.

Fly casting is really easy by following the simplest basic concepts. I know. It ruined my life. I had a brilliant future in math and science. Instead I became a fly fisherman.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.
 
G
#7 ·
I'm with Salmo on this one. The 10 - 2 rule is not set in stone. IMHO you should use the feel of the rod to determine your start/stops/throws. Every rod/Line/Leader/Tippett/Fly loads up differrent hence every cast is different. When you feel the rod fully load on your back cast. Stop. When you feel it fully load on your forward cast. throw. If it's 10:00 great, if it's not who cares if your putting the fly where you want to. Practice every chance you get. Preferrably on the water. If not get a paper plate, put it on the lawn and try and hit it.

This is an awesome site for learning different casting styles(that I am in no way affiliated with). I had no Idea that some of the stuff I picked up naturally just by fishing were actually named techniques and stuff. :cool:

http://www.sexyloops.com/flycasting/tbasic1.shtml
 
#10 ·
I know that not everyone has the extra cash to do it, but when you pay for casting lessons or to hire a guide it goes an enormous way towards advancing you on the learning curve. I muddled around for a few years as a teenager and did alright on little streams in the Northeast, but when it came time to go Bonefishing or to run the Deschutes in Oregon, I learned an incredible amount from the pros that I probably wouldn't have learned on my own. So, if you can get a casting instructor or attend a casting clinic it'll probably save you a lot of time, not to mention probably correct any bad habits you may be developing.
 
#11 ·
I've been working with several complete newbies recently and all of them suffer from wimpy backcasts at first.

A wimpy back cast can result in that whip cracking effect and or your foward cast collapsing well short of your target.

Watching it straighten out behind helps, but you have to have the power in that stroke to ever get to that point. Then there still has to be enough power and momentum in that back cast to "load the road" as you begin the forward stroke.

Getting used to picking the line up off the water (or grass) is one of the tricky parts. Start out with only a short amount of line out and get used to the mechanics of it before tackling the longer casts. You'll start to get a feel for how much line you can hanldle on the initial lift and cast.


Think of that fly rod as a spring that needs to be loaded in order to launch all that line forward. If you don't wait long enough for that spring to load, you lose the natuaral power you could have applied to the foward stroke. If you wait too long, the power you built up in that spring will quickly drain.

If you are relying on your arm strength, you are working too hard, will tire out, and won't be casting well. Let the rod and line work together.
 
#12 ·
Everyone has their own story to tell so here goes mine. I was introduced to fly fishing when I was a kid so you would think I had a leg up on the situation.
Not true. I knew to pause on the back cast and wait for the line to straighten out. But that was about it. Also, I grew up in the midwest. Fly fishing was about warmwater, bass, and poppers. Then there was a 15 or 20 year period when there were other more interesting pursuits.:p

To make a long story short, it is much easier to learn with a light weight trout outfit than a heavyweight steelhead/salmon or bass bug outfit. Take my word for it on that. Been there, done that.

Small stream fishing allows for standing in the middle of the stream, away from the trees and bushes. Casts do not need to be long.

Find poeple who know what it's all about. And can teach you. I joined a club. They gave free casting lessons every year. They had a casting pond at a park. And there was always someone around who could help you.

When there are sports shows in you area, attend. Hang around the fly casting pond and watch the demonstrations. Pay attention to those guys. Especially if his name is Mel Kreigor.:ray1:
 
#13 ·
Fishful Thinking said:
I know that not everyone has the extra cash to do it, but when you pay for casting lessons or to hire a guide it goes an enormous way towards advancing you on the learning curve. I muddled around for a few years as a teenager and did alright on little streams in the Northeast, but when it came time to go Bonefishing or to run the Deschutes in Oregon, I learned an incredible amount from the pros that I probably wouldn't have learned on my own. So, if you can get a casting instructor or attend a casting clinic it'll probably save you a lot of time, not to mention probably correct any bad habits you may be developing.
Well said. Casting lessons from a certified casting instructor are very reasonable, and you can pick up a ton in few 1/2 to 1 hour sessions.

I disagree with some of the folks here who say go find someone who knows what they're doing and have them show you. Just because someone is experienced doesn't make them a good caster and, more importantly, a good teacher.

I just talked with a friend who guided someone recently out on the Sound, beach fishing for resident coho and searun cutts. His client had fished all over the place for a bunch of different species, but my friend said the guy couldn't hardly cast past 30'. My friend was astounded given the client's years of fishing experience and waters fished.

So, get some casting lessons, and start off on the right foot. It's better to start correctly than learn some bad habits and later try to correct them. :thumb:
 
#14 ·
I'm pretty new myself, but between books and classes, I find the best thing for me is really 'feeling' it. After several weekends of 'cracking the whip' and losing flies, I got that part. Lost some flies, didn't get fish, whatever.

I'm left-handed and female, and whatever. Just get out there every other day and practice, and the world is your oyster. Who gives a ding dang if you don't catch jumbo fish right away anyway? When you get it right, you KNOW it. When I am on the water I spend an hour just casting for the fun of it.

PS. With wets it doesn't matter how you cast them anyway.
 
#16 ·
Allison said:
I'm pretty new myself, but between books and classes, I find the best thing for me is really 'feeling' it. After several weekends of 'cracking the whip' and losing flies, I got that part. Lost some flies, didn't get fish, whatever.

I'm left-handed and female, and whatever. Just get out there every other day and practice, and the world is your oyster. Who gives a ding dang if you don't catch jumbo fish right away anyway? When you get it right, you KNOW it. When I am on the water I spend an hour just casting for the fun of it.

PS. With wets it doesn't matter how you cast them anyway.
A huge part of improving is practice. That is super cool that you recognize you need to practice. And, you hit a big nail on the head about people finding their own 'touch' and 'feel'; part of learning is self-discovery and learning what works for you.

However, to really improve you should practice correctly (even if you're left-handed - grin!), and not practice bad habits or little casting quirks. And, you might not know or recognize some of those kinks or quirks unless someone else was there to note them.

When I'm fishing and the 'catching' is slow, like you I sometimes practice my casting. Heck, I've caught fish sometimes while I'm goofing off casting . . . When fishing from the beach, for example, and I'm trying to bust big casts and the day is identified by "I got two grabs today", I'll sometimes pay extra special and specific attention to my front and rear loops, timing, haul speed, rod turnover, etc. So, it's practicing distance casting while fishing. Bonus! But, not all fishing conditions might allow this luxury.

So, kinda like golf, a person should practice casting like going to the driving range, so they're ready and have the 'feel' (you're exactly right, by the way, it just becomes 'feel' and instinct after a while) when it's time for fishin' and catchin'.

And, I've seen many circumstances where being able to cast a certain distance or present a fly a certain way made all the difference in the world and enabled a particular fisherperson or persons to be more successful than others who were also there fishing. It's all about getting the bug TO the fish and presenting it properly, and if you can't get it there and show it correctly, well . . . it may be a day of casting practice.

Allison, I'm in the Seattle area, and if you ever want to practice some casting, let me know, and we can meet at the Green Lake casting pier. It doesn't take much coaxing or any reason to get me out to toss a cast or two . . . :) I admire and respect your interest in improving your casting, and maybe I could give you a pointer or two (or vice versa!). :thumb:
 
#17 ·
Richard,

Thanks for the offer. Once I am out of the cast on my arm, I'll take you up on that.

I forgot to mention that I also learn a lot through observation. There is a lot to be said for watching a good caster cast. For example, I learned through observation that there is more 'hang time' than I thought while the loops open up.
 
#18 ·
I recommend lessons; clinics, clubs, and casting instructors are good sources. Also, for self-instruction, casting DVD's (I recommend "Dynamics of Fly Casting" with Joan Wulff or one of several with Lefty Kreh) are really good. I'll watch a segment on one element of the cast, go outside and try it until I get the 'feel', then another.

Practicing on the grass is good, practicing on the water (without a fly) is better. The water will load your rod and help with the feel of the pick-up. I say 'without a fly' because determined as you may be, if there's a fish in them thar waters, it's a lot harder to be disciplined and work only on your cast.

Good luck.
 
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