Teaching Spey

[Lasse Karlsson]

Hi Bernd

In spey o rama (that they tend to call the world championships too...) there is indeed a snake and a single spey. I do think that to use the snapZ you have to use a skagit head there? Been ages since I read the rules and they might have changed

I haven't really had anyone so far with a fear of hitting the rod, more fear of using their twohanded gear in brackish water as it might dissolve

And yeah, rare to see a snake roll in the wild, and since the SS or UH/AC cast have been the thing for the last 30 years, it's the most used. Quite often though, it's more of 2-3-4-5 tries at a spey, and then a delivery switch one sees Thing are getting better though, people are using shorter lines, that sometimes can just be rolled out with a angled rollcast, and shot the neeeded distance.

And a comfortable stance for practice, often it won't be for fishing

Cheers
Lasse

[Bernd Ziesche]

people are using shorter lines, that sometimes can just be rolled out with a angled rollcast, and shot the neeeded distance.

Hi Lasse,
I indeed see that a lot in your country. Some heads are just 5 to 6m long and they don't even need a proper D anymore.
Cheers
B

[Morsie]

I indeed see that a lot in your country. Some heads are just 5 to 6m long and they don't even need a proper D anymore.

That's your proper "brick on a string".

[Lasse Karlsson]

Na, thats your proper tool for the job of fishing...

[Lee Cummings]

If you were asked to single out one move, which part of the many Spey moves do you find those who are new to this branch of fly fishing struggle with the most, and how do you teach them that particular move?

The curved / climbing sweep into the casting stroke that forms the d loop is the most problematic manoeuvre for most clients.

[Morsie]

The curved / climbing sweep into the casting stroke that forms the d loop is the most problematic manoeuvre for most clients.

Thanks Lee. Yeah, the instinct to go into an overhead style back cast once the rod gets in front of us seems almost incurable. Understanding of those two words "Circle" and "Up" seems to vanish. Peter Hayes asked Travis Johnson what he thought the most difficult part of a Spey cast to get correct was and that's exactly it, once the set up is completed, from the water to the key position, to get the rod tip moving in a climbing curve into the D formation.

Morsie

[ChrisK]

Interesting topic, I haven't done a whole lot instructing the TH but when I do we're typically using shorter heads, less than 35', often under 20', as this is what folks in our area fish. If making a sustained anchor cast, the heads are so short that it seems to me you can have a poor lift and still place things where you need. Where I see the most struggle is on the sweep where anchors are often blown or tension lost.