Casting fast v. slow rods

I had asked, last week, for some of you to come up with descriptions of the things you would do differently when going from casting a fast (stiff) rod to a slow (limber) one. I got a couple of responses, but will hold off sending these until I hear from more of you.

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I have been listening to you Gurus and I suggest to every beginning student for trout fishing to learn and fish with a medium action rod. Once they have built up casting strength and skill I point out that as they gain knowledge and experience then they can decide what is best for them. So my question is how do you advise a beginning student regarding rod and line selection assuming that they have not already made a purchase? Jerry

I feel that in most cases Jerry is on point here, though there are some people who just have a faster stroke (even beginners) and you have to try to be aware of this. What I find (at least where I live) is that as soon as the student walks into the local fly shop all they hear is “faster is better”. At least up here, the goal is not the customer’s best interest, it is the bottom lines best interest. The sales clerk tries to steer them to the fast/expensive rods as being the “best".

In my case I also have the problem of not having as much credibility, with some students, as one of the kids in the fly shop because I don’t work in a fly shop.

FFF Master Certified Casting Instructor

Moderator FFFCCI Yahoo Group

www.castflys.com

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Guy..... Same thing all over the country, I guess. Seems as though the sales clerk in the fly shop becomes an erzatz GURU !

Since the high end super modulus rods bring in the dollars, I don't think this will change. Three things prevail: 1. "Stiffer is better" and, 2. "If it is very expensive, it has to be better", 3. "Any new model rod must be better than last year's rods." The shop owner or his employee may be very good distance casters. They sometimes take the customer outside to demonstrate the latest and most expensive high modulus rod and belt a cast out into the next zip code to, "prove it's best".

Then there is the HYPE .... Terms like, "zero gravity" , analogies to things like a nuclear sub, diagrams of cork grips with blue damping material between the cork and the blank, ads showing a fly fisherman hooking a jet skiier and plucking him aloft , "Z-axis", "G - 1000 technology", "Titanium", etc., etc. It is endless.

Up to us as instructors to educate otherwise. In doing this, we need to teach the doctrine of relative rod stiffness according to the fishing / casting situation for the more advanced casters, and that the early caster should start with a medium flex rod. I start all early casters with a WF floating line matched to the rod rating. While teaching, I often have a student make some casts with one of my rods rigged up with a line 2 designations greater than the rod to give him/her the, "feel" of loading. I like Tom White's method of rigging up a rod with mono and a head for that purpose, too.

A refreshingly brief note on this subject by Buzz bryson and Paul Guernsey appears under, "ASK FR&R" , IS YOUR FLY ROD TOO FAST ? in the Mar. '07 issue of Fly Rod & Reel.

Gordy

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