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The Art of the Cast

By Jim Crowley
Jim@hookandhunttv.com
www.HookAndHuntTV.com

In fishing there are so many variables that must line up in order to achieve success.

New lures are always hot, for a while. Color options are endless. So-called secret baits are talked about like covert cold war operations. Rods, reels lines and lures are evolving constantly. Boats, and motors are stronger, faster and somewhat more fuel-efficient. We now have global positioning systems that can pin point the spot on the spot. We even have certain clothes available so we blend in better with our environment to make us "stealthy". Which to me seems impossible in a 21-foot shiny metal-flaked fiberglass water rocket! However, after arming ourselves with all the gear for battle, there is one thing that rarely gets addressed. After location, the next area of concern in regard to successfully staying consistent and putting fish in the boat is presentation. The mechanics of casting is critical to your success. In a lot of cases bass anglers as well as other fisherman are shallow water fisherman. They are fishing for cover-orientated fish. Any lure can be rendered ineffective, if not presented effectively to fish.

Matching rod and reel to line and lure is as important as making sure a 4-wheel drive vehicle has, all four wheels! Working a promotion for Shakespeare and Pflueger this past season, I encountered numerous people who still are intimidated by bait casting reels. "I just can't cast the darn things. I just can't seem to get the hang of it," said one gentleman.

So I have started to ask everyone who tells me that, or asks me how to become a more proficient caster to, first off, take a look at the casting position of your wrist. With your hand on the reel, look to see if your thumb is lying horizontal in front of you on the reel so that the spool is facing up toward you, if so, you will continue to have problems. Turn your wrist so your thumb and spool are vertical between you and the floor. When your thumb is horizontal with the spool and you try to cast, you force the reel and rod forward, and are not using your forearm. By doing this, you are not letting the rod load for the cast. You are forcing, not casting. In a lot of cases, the lure shoots right towards the water and a bird nest an eagle would be proud of, is the result. Now try turning your wrist, with the reel so both thumb and spool are vertical toward the floor. Now just using your wrist move the rod and reel back in preparation to cast. If your arm is next to your body, you should notice that as your wrist tilts back, so does your forearm, and you should feel the lure load the rod tip, in anticipation of the cast. Now you will be casting with your wrist, not your arm, which loads the rod and sends the lure towards the target with an over hand cast.

Setting the selections on your reels is important and maximizes what you can do with the reel. For this example, I will use 2 different reels, the Pflueger Supreme and the Pflueger President. Both have star drags, tension control knobs and machined aluminum spools. The New Supreme also has a dial on the side that features UBS, or Ultimate Braking System. The star drags allow a hooked fish to take line off the spool while fighting the fish. Proper drag settings come with practice and should be adjusted so you maintain control but not enough to snap your line. The spool tension knob assists in preventing backlashes when the spool turns at slower speeds. With rod on reel, thread line through the guides and attach any lure. Hold the rod at a 45-degree angle and press the thumb bar while applying pressure to the spool. Loosen the tension knob by small adjustments until the lure slowly descends to the ground without any pressure from your thumb. When the lure touches the ground, the spool should not backlash. If it does, you will need to adjust the tension knob. With all bait casters, after the cast is made, the line is feather by your thumb to control the distance of your cast. The closer the lure reaches to the water, the more pressure you want to apply. As stated previously, the Pflueger Supreme comes with the added Ultimate Brake System. This dial is numbered one to ten on the side of the reel. When you first take the reel out of the box, turn the dial to zero. This turns off the brakes. These magnetic brakes are meant to slow the spool down near the end of the cast to prevent line overrun. After the other adjustments have been made, then turn the dial to five. This is halfway and the better you get at casting, you can dial it down. If its windy or you are still backlashing, turn the dial up for added spool control. Doing these adjustments will help you, and eventually aid you in endless possibilities of spool settings and in the control and perfection of your casting.

If you are a beginner or just want to get better with casting, I always suggest that one start out with a 6'6 medium action rod. This is a great length and action to practice casting with. Any longer or shorter, and/or slower or faster actions, and those are more suited for specialized techniques. Basic actions and techniques will always lead to advances in success. The Team All-Star TAS785C, which is a 6'6 medium action rod, is a light well-balanced rod with exceptional casting capability and loads easily for the beginner as well as the experienced angler. Many times it has been said we need to walk before we can run. The same goes with casting. The basic over hand cast, once learned is the basic cast. Once the mechanics are learned, we can then move on to pitching, flipping, roll and loop casts and so on. At first, distance and accuracy are NOT important. Learning the feel for the rod and reel and the muscle movement to complete the desired cast is! Do not force what time and practice will accomplish.

Once learned bait-casting reels offer considerably more leverage, adaptability, better control, and once mastered, amassing accuracy. The rod and reel has evolved into a precise piece of precision equipment. We to as anglers must continue to evolve and take advantage of opportunities to become better at what we love to do. If new advantages arise, we must pursue them and keep learning. To stop is to become stagnant. Education is the key to success. Educating one self in the art of the cast.