Do You Watch Your Back Cast?

[Fish Gazer]

I am sure at least one person is laughing at me asking this question, but when fishing I find it particularly hard to take my eyes off the fish...hence Gazer. However I recently found in windy conditions it was almost impossible to make a decent cast with out turning. I wonder what most instructors teach on the back cast?


Thanks Jeff :)

[SlckTrck]

I almost always watch my back cast. Especially when in tight cover. I will usually watch it until I get into a groove on a particular hole/run and have figured out the right way to cast into it.

[BrandonT]

I might watch a backcast if I'm fishing a small stream, but that's about it. If it's been a while since I've fished a certain rod, it might take 5 minutes or so to get the timing back. Personally, I don't like fast action rods. Fishing a slower action rod allows for more feel when the rod loads.

[GUTHOOKED]

I never watch my backcast....and I try not to watch the forward cast either. Its just too painful. :eek:

[Gray ghost]

I watch my backcast when Im throwing heavey streamers any distance. Also when there is a little traffic on the water. I have come real close to smacking to many kayakers and other anglers that slip up right behind me on the river.

[Speck]

I'm at best a novice with the fly rod, but I did pick up a huge tip from the morning I spent with Scott at Atlanta Fly Fishing School.

Scott told me that if I could improve my back cast, it would in turn improve my forward cast. His tip was to think about not only drawing the rod back, but about literally casting it backward.

At first, that didn't help much, but as I thought about it, it reminded me of pitching a spinning lure backward when fishing for bass. So I incorporated a little of that same motion in the backcast, and there you go. Nice, smooth backcast, and a much better forward cast.

Don't know if this helps, but it can't hurt!

[Jojadog]

"I have come real close to smacking to many kayakers and other anglers that slip up right behind me on the river."

Someday when your aim gets a little better you'll get em.
Keep practicing.

Pete

[Tom Rice]

I never watch my backcast....and I try not to watch the forward cast either. Its just too painful. :eek:

I'm right here with ya brutha!!

You almost made my coffee spew outa my nose with that comment!

[pschlemm]

I usually don't watch my back cast because I invariably end up looking at a tree or bush which typically ends up with my fly in said tree or bush.

[Robert Hafner]

Remember, when you turn your head to watch your back cast, your body will usually follow your head and in turn the rod stroke will curve in toward your body instead of being in a straight line path. Once in a while it doesn't hurt to look at your back cast, but try not to make it a habit. It's better to have someone watch your back cast or even better, have someone video your cast. When casting in tight quarters, I would definately watch my back cast. Thats when the Galway or Steeple cast, would be definately be the casts to use.

[runner]

I watch my back cast to determine what type of knot I am tying in my tippet so I can remember how to untangle everything.

[Windknot]

Windknot slowly enters the Casting forum!

Robert and others have clearly identified fishing in tight confines as a really good time to be aware of your backcast, but I think Robert may have come closest to addressing your real question.

The best time to be concerned about your backcast is during lawn practice. Short of attending a casting class or clinic, the use of a video camera will show you exactly what you are doing. If you have a basic understanding of the mechanics of casting, you can diagnose your problems and solve them. Of course, you won't learn new techniques from the camera, but for debugging your casting, I think it is second only to professional instruction. YMMV

And yes, this is coming from the short, fat, bald guy you'll find draped in 20 yards of colorful flyline when the DH trout are hitting like kamikazes. :o Fishing ain't casting practice!
Don

[Fish Gazer]

I also think it really is situational. But one thing I know for sure is fishing in a big wind from behind, and trying to cast 50 -60 foot didnt work well for me until I started watching to make sure my line was fully extended. Kent also taught me the Galway cast, which Robert talked about, and that was even better for the situation. I just never have paid that much attention, when fishing, to my back cast unless I catch a tree. Seems to me it would be smarter to look first. :) My point is there are all these little things going on, that add up to big things when you are trying to catch fish. I love fly fishing because I love casting, and because there is so much to learn and then apply.


Jeff

[BrandonT]

In addition, during windy conditions, I will often use a side-arm cast for the back cast and an overhead cast for the forward cast. It also helps to slow down your rhythm a little to ensure the line rolls over sufficiently.

[Kent]

I know the spot that Jeff (Fish Gazer) is referring to here. It was one of those situations that we often encounter when fishing - if you can make the cast, you'll catch fish; if not, then it's just tough luck.

We were anchored up at the top of a hard current rip just above and to the right side of an island. The stripers were stacked where the current bounced off the island, slamming shad like there was no tomorrow. The fish-catching cast was about a 50' just above the top of the island, an immediate hard mend, and a "drift " right down the island's edge. Being right-handed, Jeff needed to cast from the rear deck to get the drift.

An oval (Belgian) cast would have sent the fly right over my head and I was having too much fun watching to be hiding in the bottom of the boat. Plus the oval cast works best when the wind is from your casting side - here it was directly behind us at about 12 mph.

Jeff tried laying down and fishing his backcast. That worked OK some of the time, but it is hard to be accurate on the backcast and it leaves you in a poor position to make an hard, quick mend.

Some of you may be thinking that the wind from behind would aid the cast. That is partially true but with a 9-wgt sink tip and a 5" weighted 3/0 deceiver, but you'd better be straightening the backcast unless you want some new body jewelry.

The Galway cast was perfect for the problem. Basically, with the Galway, you rotate body from the waist and make a forward cast in both directions. In this instance Jeff was facing downstream, rotating his trunk and hand to backcast with a forward casting motion. Then as the line straightened on the backcast, he turned his hand over and made the accurate forward presentation cast (slightly across the body with the hand behind the rod). This enabled him to make a hard powered backcast into the gusting wind, make sure that it straightend, then aim the forward cast. An additional benefit was that the rod finished the cast to the left of his body - well-positioned for a hard upstream mend to the right. I won't tell you how many fish he caught here, but let's just say his Galway did the job!

When should you look at the backcast? Whenever you need to.... The major downside is that if you look away from your target, especially if it's a moving fish, you may not be able to re-acquire it when you look back for the forward cast. And as Robert mentioned, the turning of the head (and body) to watch cany rotate the rod-tip. Another possible danger is that you may grow dependent on watching the backcast.

But sometimes we need to look. Because of obstructions, wind, new rod, new fly, or such. And especially when practicing - as Speck said, a good back cast can make all the difference in the world on a forward cast. Many times we look for the problem in our forward cast when in fact the real problem is on the preceding back cast.

BTW Jeff, it's 5:30 am & West Point is started running water again last nite (and the wind is supposed to blow 12mph). I'm headed to the river and Galway island in about 15 minutes.

[Fish Gazer]

Thanks for rubbing it in......... :) Did your day start out looking like this?

Please click on my little friend there. :)

[Josh Barnett]

It seems like with every fly fishing trip in my early days I glanced back at my backcast less and less. Now, I hardly ever turn to look at it. With more advanced casting techniques, it is very possible to glance quickly at the surrounding area behind you and determine the cast that you need.

My best advice is to cast in your yard, long and hard. Find an area where trees, brush and/or tall grass is prominent and turn your back to it. Stand 20 feet away. Look back once, determine the situation and begin your cast. One of my best tips is to look for a "hole" in all of the brush. And, that's typically where your back cast needs to straighten out. By doing this, even in unfavorable conditions, you can supply yourself with a proper forward cast-- no matter what the situation may be.

The more you continue to look over your shoulder at your cast the more it will become a habit. Like Kent E. said, when you look back at your backcast you are risking the chance of losing your concentration-- whether it be on a fish, or a particular run and where your fly needs to land.

Plus, you are risking a fault in your cast. Often times, because your body is at a different angle when you look back your cast ends up "curving" in the air and landing in a somewhat odd position on the water. By keeping your eye on the fly when you're in forward cast "mode" you can promise yourself that you can put your fly where the fish are.

I hope this helps. If there is anything else I can help you with, let me know.

Joshua Barnett

[bbqman]

I never watch my backcast....and I try not to watch the forward cast either. Its just too painful. :eek:

I'm in there with ya man! Its got to get better soon...... I hope!

[BG]

It's hard enough to force myself to watch my forward cast, much less the one behind me! :D

All seriousness aside, I find that turning to watch the back cast tends to screw up my presentation, so I don't usually do it unless I'm trying to keep from getting hung up in the trees, brush, grass, my buddy's face, etc. ... Looking back does tend to make you lose your focus, and that critical moment re-acquireing your target can be just the difference between a good presentation and a bad one.

The longer I've been fishing the more I've become able to feel the rod load and just know when to begin my forward cast. This is where the more sensitive rods, either fast or slow, really come into their own. At least that's how I justify buying Winstons and Sage LL's.... :rolleyes:

And if I'm really trying to make a backcast close into the brush, I'll turn around and face that direction, making a forward cast into the obstruction and then presenting the fly on the backcast. Sounds bass-ackwards, but with a little practice you can make it work well. Just remember, the fly goes in the direction of the speedup-and-stop.

It's like most of the hand-eye things, just keep it up long enough and pay attention to your form and it'll come to 'ya.

Bill