"Wayne Knight" wrote in message
oups.com...

riverman wrote:

Your thoughts, Master?


I think:

1. You should pay more attention to what Charlie is saying, I think you
misunderstand the dyanmics of the cast. Charilie is right about the tip
direction.

I never doubted him. It was a level of casting analysis I hadn't done, and
it was a good discussion. I merely told him what my misconceptions were, and
he set me straight, in his inimitable way. g

2. Next time you are in civilization, you need to take your rods to a
well stocked fly shop and try some different lines, including maybe one
weight up or down, your rods should load *as well* at the 12:00
position, 11:00 position, or the 9:00 position.

Hmm, good idea. I think my rods load at all positions, depending on how tidy
my retrieve is. What I need is more practice with different style casts, I
believe. Watching some folks model them would likely help.


3. Both Kreh and Jaworski have stated longer casts benefit from longer
strokes so your rationale that you cast farther using a 9:00 stop
versus an 11:00 stop makes sense.


Ahh, a lucky hit! :-) But I'm confused about the 9:00 vs 11:00 thing....I
stop my casts at 11:00 instead of *2:00* ("think UP, not back..."). Oh
wait!! I cast with my right hand....are we getting our clocks reversed? Is
there any standardization to this?

4. If after doing #2, you don't find improvement, I would be looking at
the rods and trying different models and makers to find the one that
*fits* you. This of course involves spending money you may or may not
have but may help you in the long run. Most folks know that I love
Winston rods generically speaking. But what most people don't know is
that I found the Winston LT five weight to be one of the worse rods
ever made because how I cast and how that rod cast could not mesh. Most
folks I know fishing the LT love them.

Ahh, now THATs an idea I like! I think some rod swapping at different claves
might be in the making, also. Is that done?

5. Practice change of direction casts, practice using your backcast as
your forward cast. They are ackward, but things that can make your
success rate better. One of the hardest things for me to learn was to
do what jarmo was talking about casting parallel to the river then
changing direction perpendicular. Try moving your rod tip to the left
and righ as you practice your final forward cast and watch how the fly
line moves in relationship to the tippet end.

These are things I regularly do. I picked up a book ("The basics of Fly
Fishing" by someoneorother) that showed how to cast in a crowded wood: face
the trees, cast *into* an open space in the trees, and let the backcast be
your delivery cast. I also do this sometimes in windy conditions when I'm on
the wrong side of a river: turn around and cast the wrong way, letting the
backcast be the delivery.

I've gotten pretty dependable with casting parallel to the river, then
delivering the fly _across_ the river. That works well in crowded growth
situations. But I never really analyzed what my hands or rod were doing; I
just 'do it' and it works out well.


6. Pay more attention to what Charlie stated. You want your fly to go
in a certain direction, then you gots to point the rod tip in the right
place.

OK.

And Grasshopper, I am no master, if you want a master ask Mike or post
this on the Fly Fisherman website, at least three masters post there
regularly.


I had several nice days of casting practice with Mike, both at the Denmark
Clave and again at his house the next year. Again, it was less emphasis on
the _mechanics_ of what happens, and more on just 'doing it'. I never
pretend to be an advanced caster: I think I might score a C- or D+ on the
casting scale. Roger and Mike, on the other hand, amaze me.

--riverman