North 40 Fly Shop eMagazine October 2016 | Page 31
I
will admit it. I have broken many fly rods.
I’ve crushed tips with power windows and
ceiling fans. I’ve slammed rods into doors.
I’ve tumbled down steep banks with bad
results to the rods and my body. I’ve broken
them against fish, snags and all manner of
obstruction. I’ve double hauled them into 5
pieces. However, one thing I’ve learned from
all these bad examples is that it’s always
been my fault.
I hear it time and time again. “I was casting
and it just broke.” Or, “I hooked a fish and it
just broke.”
Generally speaking, fly rods don’t just
break. There is an event leading to the
breakage.
Often the event is a severe shock to the
rod. This can come from pulling on a snag
incorrectly, slapping the rod against an
object while casting, smacking the rod
with the fly or line while casting or severely
bending the rod against a fish. Often times,
the event leading to the break happens
before the break occurs. When the breakage
actually occurs, the angler does not always
correlate the previous transgression to the
present moment of dysfunction.
Dealing with a Snag
When pulling on a snag, anglers frequently
jerk violently against the rod. This serves
little purpose other than to stress the rod.
Just ask my wife. Stress is bad. A few tugs
or better yet, a roll cast applied to push the
line in the opposite direction of the snag is
the best way to start. Then a static pull on
the line with the rod pointed directly at the
snag is the final step. Put all the stress on the
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