RE: Casting was: [VFB] Fishing report

[mark romero]

Wes, i'll co-sign what you say in a heart beat. I've been fortunate to get 
to watch Lefty do his thing many times at shows and he's simply amazing. The 
thing about him is, he's doesn't have the most picture perfect stroke or 
technique, but he gets the most consistant results. Personally i'll never be 
able to shine his shoes as a caster. But i don't put in the time it would 
take to do so. As long as i can get the fly to the fish without drag, and 
with drag when i need it, then i'm happy. I think casting is something you 
should have fun with and that's about it. Competition, wheather in casting 
or fishing is a bore to me. It's not about that for me. For some it is 
though, and i respect that. There's always the showoffs who like to be the 
best at anything. Hey, more power to them. Lefty isn't like that. He's 
simply in love with the sport and someone who likes to teach and help 
others. mark

From: Wes Wada <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: <vfb@troutnet.com>
To: <vfb@troutnet.com>
Subject: Casting  was: [VFB] Fishing report
Date: Wed, 8 Jun 2005 19:41:32 -0700
Tony Spezio wrote:
The client could not cast to save his life

Great post, Tony.  I really felt I was right there looking over your 
shoulder.

On the other note above, a few comments:

I am not a great caster, but I can pop a good one fairly consistently. I 
think the sea change for me was seeing a demo by Lefty Kreh, then reading 
his casting book.  I am saving up for his DVD.  As Lefty would say, "It's 
all about the physics." Your tippet size may vary.

I am in a situation where I regularly run into other anglers visiting the 
northern California pay fishery Sugar Creek Ranch.  I get to know, for a 
very brief period, anglers who are staying in the lodge for a night or two, 
or in other times, anglers who are attending a fly fishing clinic.

It happens more in the clinics, you see guys with great gear who can't cast 
(as the saying goes) to save their lives.  Just being able to cast 30 feet 
will double your opportunities at the Ranch, and these guys can't even do 
that consistently.  Think of this:  if you have a 9-ft. rod and a 9-ft. 
leader, and just lay the rod and line out horizontally, you can make as 
much as an 18-ft. cast.  I've seen guys who can't even do that, albeit, 
trying to cast a weighted streamer.

We often get into friendly chats, and the topic of casting does come up.  
(People get frustrated with their casting, and lack of basic skill sure 
gets in the way of catching fish.)

I refer people to Lefty's demo, book and DVD, and encourage them to invest 
in a casting lesson.  For MANY anglers, just doing that much will far 
outweigh any benefit they might get by buying a more expensive rod, reel, 
line, leader, etc.  Learning how to cast so that it becomes more second 
nature will do more to enhance an angler's enjoyment of the act of fly 
fishing than just about anything.

Wes Wada
Bend, Oregon

"Writing and fishing are my passions. Like all passions, they're great when 
they're going well, and awful when they're not. Like anything, the more you 
do it, the better you get. They keep drawing you out. You never get 
perfect."
~  John Gierach