How instructors function / Spey misnomer / Books

Hoping for a speed recovery!

I practise on the set of drills I use for teaching, most of them are focused along the side cast and casting in different planes. Then I play around some with presentation and accuracy, but most of the time I do full throttle distance casting with longbelly lines. That is mainly pick-up-lay-downs with long line, carrying long lines, tracking straigth during a long carry and delivering for maximal distance. I have found that this gives me the most of line control and efficiency for any cast, being it short or long. It´s a strange thing, but for every feet further I can cast the better I can do all of the short range work?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stefan .... Not surprising to me. I think that may well be because of the fact that as you perfect your distance casts you are improving many skills at the same time including loop control, timing, and proper application of power. These are all things which help with various shorter casts as well. Bottom line is, CONTROL !

All good instructors have some sort of practice routine .... if not a strict routine, then the setting aside time for their own practice.

Bruce Richards has said that he keeps a rod strung up all the time in order to practice whenever time permits.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From John MacDiarmid :

Gordy, Thank you so much for sharing your teaching principals in this email. You , Al and many others have helped us so much; in the same spirit, I am gladly teaching in the summer, every wed. evening for free in the city park.

John MacDiarmid

Central Point, OR

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John... Al and I (and you) do this because we love the sport of fly casting and fly fishing and have a burning desire to help others. Fortunately, there are many in this sport just like us.

At the same time, I respect the instructors who make part or all of their income from teaching flycasting. They may well have no less love for what we do.

Gordy

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From Mark Sedotti :

Hi Gordy

Mostly, the casting (I do) itself teaches me so much more than any person has or does. Especially in recent years, the last fifteen years or so. I'm always learning from it. Always. It always reveals something new. Some new perception.

One thing I do learn from others, though, is different casts. I'm taught these just about everywhere I go.

This all helps me instruct others much better too.

Of course, nothing beats "doing it". So teaching people leads you to teach people better.

How does an instructor practice?

First of all, I practice, and practice, and practice. Have year round for the last twenty six years. Many times I've had to consciously curb my habit, and cut a session short because if I didn't I would cast to injury. I'm driven that much. Could you say I like to practice?

I primarily work on my unloading. Getting the rod to unroll efficiently on the unload. To do it just the way a tapered leader "unrolls", and do it super well. I do this on the forward cast and on the backcast. This makes you a great caster.

Got to say, besides this I just work on basic casting. Making things super efficient.

Then I work on what I'm going to do, or what I might want to do in the future, in my casting demonstrations. This is where I work on new stuff, and make stuff up. I put A LOT of time into this. I want to do great demonstrations. For years I've casted with rod tips, and one quarter of the rod, some stuff like casting behind my back and casting between my legs, whatever. Things that come to mind. Side casting at great distances. Done and tried lots of stuff.

In recent years I've been working on being extremely accurate at great distances. Like casting into (putting your casting loop through) casting rings held vertically at 80. 90, 100, 110 feet. Or throwing giant flies through these rings too with shooting heads, or just putting that giant fly into that two foot ring lying on the ground at 130 or 150 feet away. I found that you can be unbelievably accurate, even with hi density shooting heads at these distances. Just had to do it.

Sometimes, but not much, I'll work on casting just as far as I can with a floating line or with a shooting head. Often with a SH with giant fly attached. You know, push the distance. Go for a personal record. I often push myself.

By the way, do you think this helps my teaching? You bet it does.

I'm always happy and very relaxed when I'm casting, especialy when I'm practicing. I go into the alpha brain wave state. I'm in ecstasy really.

Best Regards,
Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From Ally Gowans:

Rotate the false casts from a completely closed stance (casting behind the shoulder line) to a completely open stance and repeat the previous two exercises as far as possible.

Then repeat for the other hand.

Repeat for both hands whilst double hauling.

You will probably not do all the combinations at any one time but this exercise certainly improves flexibility and timing.

For Roll and Spey type casts the main thing to practice is making the smallest and least disturbing anchors in the intended place and keeping tension in the D loops.

Most of my practice is done for a few minutes only, usually after I?ve been teaching and since I teach most days when I?m not fishing or doing demonstrations at shows. If I intend to cast with an unusual prop I certainly do some practice and rehearsals before I?m in from of an audience.

To fail to prepare is to prepare to fail!

Best wishes,

Ally Gowans

See my web sites http://www.letsflyfish.com and http://www.flyfish-scotland.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From Rich Knoles :

Great points Guy.

Gordy I don't understand why you seem to have lumped Single Spey without a change of direction with the Switch Cast?

In my note from yesterday, I called attention to the term, "FORWARD SPEY". I noted that some casters use this as a synonym for "SWITCH CAST". There is no change of direction.

Then, below, I stated that I have used the terms "FORWARD Spey" (not single Spey) and "Switch Cast" as synonyms.

Guy Manning said, " What you are describing is a single Spey without a change of direction, commonly known as a Switch Cast. This shouldn't be called a roll cast."

Guy, I think, is absolutely correct. As I understand it, most if not all Spey experts would not use the term "single Spey" if there is no change of direction.

Some take the position that Spey casts belong in the family of eliptical casts. Some also opine that they belong in the roll cast family.

Now let's see if there is a difference between a roll cast with a dynamic D-loop (no stop prior to the forward stroke) and a switch cast made with a lift and anchor placement followed by a dynamic D-loop and then, with no stop, a forward stroke.

Whatever we elect to call these two casts, I submit they are not really the same.

Would it be reasonable to call the first one a roll cast with a dynamic D-loop and the other a true switch cast.... ?????????

Reminds me of Tom White who often would say, "I don't care what you call it, just do it."

If you noted in one of my messages that I used the term SINGLE SPEY to mean a cast with no change of direction, then that would have been my error and I'll stand to be corrected.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

From Lefty Kreh ....

Gordy--I certainly am not going to get into a fuss with the rules

committee. But I find on a long switch cast I PREFER that the end of

the line be even with our better--a little behind me when it kisses

the water. What has been your experience with the switch cast? I am

not sure what is the logic as stated in the requirements.

Lefty

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lefty ...

Glad you brought that up.

Frankly, it works best for me that way too. Unlike the standard roll cast where you stop before making the forward stroke..... expecially when done on water. With the standard roll cast, one gains more rod load, I think, from the "stick" provided by the anchor being held by surface tension on the fly/leader/ and a little line out in front.

With a dynamic back cast D-loop and no stop, I feel that I'm gaining a lot more load from that moving back cast D-loop than I do from the "line stick" in front.

When doing the roll cast with a stop and a long narrow loop of line behind me on the grass, almost all of the load comes from that loop behind me. Tom White, using that method, was able to routinely make 100' roll casts even on grass. We've pointed out that this maneuver has very limited application and that is why it isn't an expectation on the exam.

Many if not most look at roll casts and switch casts as having the fly at least a little distance in front of the caster.... otherwise perhaps they'd name it something different (????????) Doesn't mean it works better, but by having this in the description or "definition" it would put folks more or less on the same page..... perhaps for consistency.

As you know better than I, in the Real World of fly fishing, there are many casts and maneuvers which get the fly to where it needs to be and catch fish ........ but have no names (and perhaps need none.) As we travel around the World and see how others (sometimes natives of third World countries) do it, we see a lot of things which work fine that we'd never seen before. Things like a purposely made out of plane tailing loop to flip a fly way back under branches .... or the "skip cast" which you have described and named ...... many others.

One of the things which our Master Testing Committee is trying to do, is to get casters and the examiners on the same page to make the tests more standardized in the interest of being as fair as possible.

Gordy

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From Sheila Hassan :

Gordy,

Regarding fly casting study books available:

George Roberts books: Master the Cast is available in paperback.

I have 3 copies left if anyone is interested. (14.95 + S&H)

Sheila

Sheila M Hassan

617-759-8627

Sheila@xxxxxxxxxx

www.Cast90.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From Bob Rumpf :

Hi Gordy & Group,

Just to make sure we are comparing apples to apples, I wanted to weigh in with the fact that the books now available from the American Casting Association are re-prints. The books I have are the 1981 & 1983 original 1st editions that are priced at anywhere from $125.00 to $200.00 on all the books searches. I purchased these two copies from an estate for only $25.00 apiece and that is what I am asking for them.

Regards,

Bob Rumpf

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bob ... Floyd Franke once gave me both of these for which I'm deeply grateful. If not now, they will someday be collectors items, I think. (I'll bet he got them from you ! )

Gordy

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~