Distance

[Fishtales]

I know I can cast 25', the rod is 10 + 15 for the cast and leader.

I know I can cast 55', the above + 30 for the belly of the WF line.

I think I can cast 70', the above plus shooting 15' of running line.

I think I can get farther than that but as I have never measured it then it is only guess work.

Most of the time, wind permitting, I can lay the fly where I want it at these distances.

At the extreme distances, as far as I can cast, the fly will land in the approximate area of the fish I am covering.

I have to admit though, there is nothing elegant about my casting

All of the above will be dependant on wind speed and direction. I hate right to left winds, I am right handed, I prefer to fish with the wind behind or to the left of me, if I have to I would rather cast straight into a strong wind coming from the right than across it as I find it easier to cast, but distance and turnover suffers.

As far as I can tell I adjust my casting automatically, or subconsciously, for the conditions at that time. I don't think about casting unless I am in practice mode, which isn't often, I am there to fish not to cast My main concern, when it arises, is the back cast and if it is high enough to miss the rising hill or long vegetation. Once that is sorted, in a few casts, I don't think about it again I just look behind me each time I move to see what dangers there are and adjust the cast accordingly.

Perhaps it is just that once learning to cast and doing it often enough it all becomes instinctive and you adapt to situations as they occur and use what you have learned without actually realising it.

[Fishtales]

Alan

It may well do, when I lift some running line and belly of the WF to change direction to cover a rising fish. Not an easy cast that one

[Malcolm]

Sandy,

You cast nothing like that. Your casting on that windy day on the hill lochs of Argyll was about the same level same as mine; i.e that of an experienced fisherman. It's sufficient.

Malcolm  

[scotty9]

Sandy, if your back cast looks like this..........



Scott, whats this tracking breakthrough?

Nothing spectacular, more just a breakthrough in the sense I finally got it to work! I can get a stroke with full rotation straight over my shoulder - something I previously couldn't do. Anytime I tried it in the past I could only get a lesser rotation, after a careful wee bit of study of someone elses stroke I got it   Haul timing is really critical and I still need to work on trajectory, not all are going high enough at the moment, but the loops are pretty amazing. Will get a video up shortly, it's pretty crappy but you kinda get the idea...

[scotty9]

Tell me about it.... there seems to be infinite timings of the haul, none of them are quite right yet  :lol: Drives me mental!

Re the release, best results have come from an immediate release actually. Back at the club last winter, I remember talking about this and I said I wondered if hanging onto it would help with the loop formation/propagation (don't like to use that word but can't think of a better!) Now I'm convinced otherwise in that hanging onto it only slows your shoot. The loop seems to be totally dependent on the stroke obviously - tracking straight and no dip in the slp and the haul timing. It's really hard to get it late enough but when you do the loop is perfect the whole way out, when you get it slightly too soon it dies. And tracking, well when it's off by an inch the cast goes nowhere.

The video is uploading to youtube just now, it's just a clip of backcast loops. Can see from it that the trajectory is too low, again a product of haul timing as the haul releases it on the full rotation stroke. And I'm pausing too long before coming forward, the line is straightening and dropping a bit too much. Can see the leader ticking the grass on quite a few occasions and the resulting effect that has on the line. If you watch the end of the line can also see the effects of having a straight piece of thin tippet as opposed to a thick butt of a tapered leader... Video arrives in 30mins  :

Ok it'll be a bit longer, one of  my fltmates is on skype, can't skype and upload to youtube at the same time on our 'broadband'. Man i can't wait to get back to cable broadband!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ixh-3oH2dg

Probably best in full screen. And Alan, no comments on the messy first pickup from grass  :lol:

[scotty9]

 :lol: