Tips to make you a better Fly Caster
By Jim Guida
1. Your grip should be firm, but not squeezing the life out of your rod, your thumb should be on top of the grip.
2. The line will follow the path of the rod so point the rod at the target and the line will follow.
3. The forward stroke and back cast should be 10 o’clock to 1 o’clock, I know most experts say 10 to 2, but I have found that most people get the 10 o’clock position, but on the back cast it's more like 3 or later. A trick I use when teaching is to have the student stand slightly turned to the side and watch his or her back cast to see what is going on so they can correct dropping the tip. I also tell the student to count to 1-1000 then start the rod forward this should help out with the timing.
4. Fly casting is timing not power!!!!! So let the rod do the work and just hang on for the ride.
5. When starting out it is essential not to false cast allot, one or two false casts and shoot the line.
6. Keep your rod tip moving in the same plane as your arms moves and don’t cross over in front of your body.
7. Your casting should be like a hammer stroke, come back with some force and swing forward with a little bit more
8. Once you have practiced the false casting it’s time to let some line out, every time to false cast let out a little more line on the forward stroke to give you more distance, but beware not to be hero and try to do too much too soon or it will be a recipe for disaster.
9. Try to keep your casts under 40' as this is most fishing conditions. For salt water and bigger rivers you will have to make longer casts, so practice for where you live.
10. Make your first cast count as you don’t get too many shots at fish when you flub the first cast.
Thanks Jim!
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