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GAPEN’S
The Key to Casting Performance
(continued)
Five minutes into our adventure the husband hooked and lost a very large pike.
Excited by the act Rhoda excitedly reacted with a strong swing of her rod beginning back
behind her without looking back.
You guessed it, I was in the way. Rhoda was sitting a mere three feet in front of me on
a wooden orange crate which acted as a seat in the canoe.
There was a loud 'crack' one, which I didn't feel but only heard, then a forward thrust
of the rod which slipped out of Rhoda's hand and fell overboard.
Finally, Rhoda looked behind her, shreaked loudly and promptly fainted dead away.
I'd been struck in the face so hard that it numbed my entire face and failed to alert me to
what was happening.
There I was, with a lady slumped over the canoe thwart and in front of her, a husband
who now was yelling, "what did you do to my bride," and an overboard casting rod and
reel hooked to my face by a very large spoon.
We were two miles from the landing and I had a need to provide calm in my watercraft.
Fortunately, Rhoda had backlashed the reel so badly I was able to easily retrieve it
from its watery grave, cut the heavy black line in front of the spoon and clamp it between
my teeth.
With the husband attempting to get back to his now moaning wife, which nearly
swamped us, I managed to get the 4-horse Champion motor started and head back to the
landing. I'd felt the impact area and knew there wasn't an easy solution to getting the
heavy treble hook out of my cheek. It was buried deep and would require surgery.
By the time we reached the car and drove to town with the 6 inch spoon still between
my teeth, my head was throbbing in pulsating drumbeats.
Once at Doctor Jeffery's office the lady remained a bit hysterical and weepy but was
soon reassured as Doc performed the cut.
"Lady, don't worry, Dan has been hooked all over and I get them out. He's tough! You
should've seen the time he wore a 10 inch Pike Minnow as a halo on his head. The middle
treble had to be taken out of the skull bone," old Doc commented as the Eppinger
Dardevle was ripped from my cheek.
Correct
w w w. g a p e n . c o m
In the end I received a large tip, an apology, and a hug from the
lovely young lady. I also gave her a lesson on how to cast, using her
thumb properly before going out the next
day. I'm not sure the husband was too
thrilled about the lesson but who cared?
After all, self-protection was at stake.
Correct
Proper thumb placement on a casting
reel (see photos at left)
First – turn your reel handles up as shown
in the photo.
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F i s h G a p e n ’ s
GAPEN’S
The Key to Casting Performance
(continued)
Incorrect
w w w. g a p e n . c o m
Next – point your thumb at the target and allow it to gently rest on
the side of the spool where metal and line meet.
Such acts lock the thumb tendon which runs to your shoulder in
such a manner that it will be impossible to cast in a 'Round-House'
motion.
Casting thrust of the rod will have to go up over your head and
shoulder properly. You now are no longer a threat to others around
you. You've become a proper angler!
Such positioning of the hand on your casting outfit does several
things.
One – It points your thumb at the targeted area you seek and sees your accuracy
improve.
Two – You're able to feather your spool better and prevent what the Pros nowadays
call 'professional overrun'. As a kid I called it a damn backlash.
Three – You will cast further by at least 15%.
Four – Casting, long term, will lessen fatigue on
your arm, thus your arm and shoulder
won't fail at day's end.
Yup, your thumb is the best piece of fishing gear
you own and you didn't have to pay for it. It came free
from Momma!
Good Luck
Dan Gapen, Sr.
Never step
behind a fly
caster when
they’re false
casting!
Dan’s ex-wife, Patty, shows us here
the results she attained after ignoring her husbands advice
NOT TO STEP BEHIND HIM
while he was fly casting.
In the end the muddler fly’s barb was cut off
and the embedded hook was removed.
maybe this is why she is an ex-wife!
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F i s h G a p e n ’ s