Timing is Everything

Some one-on-one instruction on the river with Jonny Ray has helped me get to the root of a core fly fishing problem. For a while I've felt like my overhead casting skills weren't very good. I've always suspected it was related to my backcast, but now it's confirmed.

I suffer from two main challenges. The first is more occasional, and that's simply going too far back. But the second in a pretty regular problem. I don't pause long enough on the backcast to let the loop form and the rod load. The result? The puddle cast and an inability to hit what should be reasonable distances. So to compensate, I then push harder coming forward, which turns the whole mess into a complete sh!t show.

We identified this while throwing sink tips, but I was able to figure it out and get my timing on-track during the morning. I found that if I took the time to think, "Wait for it..." at the end of the backcast, that was about right. It's surprising, when you hit it right, you know it immediately.

After lunch we played around with some casting on standard floating lines. That's where my issues became readily apparent. Jon's a great teacher, and after watching me flounder (why do we suck so much more with a knowledgeable eye watching us?) he had some solid suggestions for my issues.

Now I need to book some practice time on the local field and also the river. My goal is to be able to cast reliably to a 1' square by the end of Summer. Seems like a good project.

-Sean-