The measure tape doesn't lie

10-20-30-40 meters? 30-60-90-120 feet? How long can you cast with a one hand rod? And how long does and average fly-angler actually cast?

By Martin Joergensen

	In the water  Martin Joergensen

There seems to be an eternal strive amongst fly-anglers to cast further. Only a few anglers do actually cast really far, and the fish don’t necessarily bite on the fly, which is cast the longest distance. A lot of casting discussions are about casting distance in spite of this fact.

Casting lies
It is probably mainly saltwater anglers who have introduced this strive for length. Let there be no doubt that casting distance can be an advantage in saltwater as well as on other waters. That has led to a natural development towards equipment that yields some extra yards in the cast. Fast rods, complex tapers, slick coatings, smooth shooting lines, clips, baskets, lubricants and what-have-you has been brought to market to satisfy the urge for distance.
Saltwater fishers are not the only ones to blame for this fight for distance. Stream anglers are welcome to join in. Why is it that the best fish always seem to be under the far bank, when it appears to be a spitting image of the near one? There are plenty good arguments to fish the opposite bank rather than your own.

	Loading the rod  Martin Joergensen

Well then. How far is far? And how far can an angler actually cast when push comes to shove?

The famous 60 meters cast
When I talk casting with my fishing friends, we often mention an angler, whom we all know, and who consistently claims to be able to cast 60 meters or about 180 feet under good conditions. Few casters are that optimistic, but the number 40 meters or around 120 feet is often heard as a bid for the distance of a really good cast.
I also read an entry in a Danish discussion forum, written by a distraught angler who was depressed because he could “only cast 24 meters”. That’s “only 72 feet”.
60... 40... 24... what is good and what bad?
That question plus my own impression of myself as a mediocre fly caster made me curious.

I wanted to find out how far a fly-angler can cast.

Real casting distance
I started looking for information on real casting distances for ordinary anglers and for anglers who are known to be able to cast really far.

	Sepp Fuchs  Martin Joergensen	A casting pool  Martin Joergensen
	Hywell Morgan in action  Martin Joergensen	Hywell power  Martin Joergensen

And let me make one thing certain right away: very few fly anglers cast further than 238 feet or about 72 meters and 50 centimeters with a one-hand rod. Because that is the official world record in fly casting set by the American caster Steve Rajeff.
He has cast 248 feet (75,6 m) in Pretoria, South Africa in 1997, but that record was not oficially registered due to too much wind. Casters who on occasion cast up towards 80 meters or 260 feet have been reported, like the Welsh casting demon Hywell Morgan. But the official record stands and belongs to Rajeff.

Casts like Rajeff’s and Morgan’s are only done under special circumstances and with special gear. We mortals cannot expect to come near that, even when casting on a lawn, and much less when casting on water.

How far is far?
In a moment I will list the US casting instructor Jim C. Chapralis’ bids on casting lengths for different types of anglers.
Record casts are done with special rods and lines, which adhere to the official rules for casting tournaments.
A one-hand set-up consists of a rod, which is shorter or equal to 9’9”. The AFTM class is optional, but somewhere between 10 and 13 is common.
The shooting head length is limited to 49’3” or just above 15 meters, which weighs less than 650 grains or some 42 grams.
The leader is more than 6 and less that 12 feet or 2-4 meters.
There’s a fly on the leader and the cast is measured to where this fly lands.
The choice of shooting line is free, but thin monofilament is usually the order of the day.

Grass and power
Tournament casts are performed standing on grass, and are usually done with elaborate casting movements and lots of power combined with a very well developed technique. Not to mention preparation, mainly consisting in laying out the shooting line in large coils on the ground.
Chapralis’ list is based on gear of a more common character, namely a sturdy 9’ rod for a 9 or 10 weight loaded with a 300 grains shooting head and a stiff and smooth, easy-handling shooting line.
In other words fairly heavy equipment, but certainly something that can be used for fishing. It’s still a far cry from the average angler's 4-7 weight rod loaded with a weight forward line.

• Casts shorter than 90 feet or 30 meters do not impress Chaprelis. Most of us are in that end of the scale. And ordinary WF-line is 85-90 feet or some 27 meters long. Only the minority of fly anglers can cast out a whole line.
• Casts longer than 160 feet or 50 meters are for the super elite in casting, and nothing that anybody will obtain under normal fishing conditions.
• Casts longer than 190 feet or 60 meters are very rare. Even with specially tuned casting gear.

	20 meters or 60 feet  Martin Joergensen
	In real life  Martin Joergensen
	On the lawn  Martin Joergensen

• local Danish angler, FFF casting instructor Lars Christian Bentsen
• Swiss Günther Feuerstein leader of FFF’s European casting program
• Henrik Mortensen, reknown Danish salmon angler, casting instructor and developer for Danish Scierra

	Who needs long casts?  Martin Joergensen

1. Technique is number one, and here I am first and foremost referring to a basic cast with a WF line. Timing has to be perfect and a double haul is a natural part of a good distance cast.
2. Practise is number two. Without practise you won’t learn it. In other words: spend a lot of time with the fly rod, cast under difficult circumstances, train the strokes and cast on grass to keep the skills alive and tune the details in the cast when you can’t go fishing.
3. Trim the gear as the third issue. Make sure rod and line are well matched to each other and your casting style. Underlining is a common problem for the unexperienced. Most rods handle heavier lines than specified and will load with less line out when the line is a bit on the heavy side. Also consider the leader. A good leader will stretch well and help making a short cast longer.
4. Self criticism and other caster’s comments is number four. Look at yourself, film yourself on video, cast on grass together with others and comment each other’s casting.

Günter Feurstein  Martin Joergensen	Lars Christian Bentsen  Martin Joergensen	Henrik Mortensen  Martin Joergensen
Günter Feuerstein - 35 meters is a long cast! That’s what Swiss Günter Feuerstein says about a 105 feet cast. Günter is a well known caster with a lot of experience and routine as an instructor. He is the leader of Federation of FlyFisher’s European casting program. - Good casters will cast 30-32 meters or up to 90 feet and a bit, he says - And that’s on grass, mind you. Under practical fishing the casts are a lot shorter. On a question about his own longest casts he answers: - about 35-40 meters/100-120 feet I’d guess. But it doesn’t matter. Fly casting is aesthetics and elegance—not power and distance! Power casters who can toss out 80 meters of line with 12 weight rods don’t enjoy his deepest respect. He emphasizes the understanding of the mechanics of the cast, the rod and the body, and he keeps on returning to the message of learning the basics first. Then you can increase casting distance step by step if you want. As he says: - There is rarely a reason for long casts during normal fishing.	Lars Christian Bentsen - I know exactly how far I can cast, says Lars Christian Bentsen. - 36 meters or 98 feet with a shooting head and a monofilament shooting line on an 8-weight rod. The reason Lars knows it so precisely is that he measured his cast just a few days before we speak. He can call himself FFF European Fly Casting Instructor and belongs in the high end of the scale when we’re talking fly-casting. - When fishing I’m probably closer to 27-28-29 meters or up towards 95 feet when I manage a good cast, he continues. - My average is lower than that. He tells that he often asks the participants on his courses whether they can cast a whole WF line. - If ten says they can, there is usually just one who actually does it when we measure it on a lawn afterwards. And a WF line is typically 27 meters or less than 90 feet, he explains. Lars stresses the timing, the well-performed double haul and narrow arcs. - That’s the way to obtain longer casts. And don’t start using a shooting head before you can cast, he stresses.	Henrik Mortensen - I have no idea how far I can cast! And that you can quote me on... That is Henrik Mortensen’s prompt answer the the question about casting length. - I can cast to where I want to fish, he emphasizes And that is obviously far enough, because Henrik catches more fish than most people and is well known as a guide, casting instructor and designer of rods and lines. - Most fish are caught within a range of 15 meters or 45 feet, so the ability to cast further doesn’t always matter, as he says. He is convinced that striving for longer casts often leads to worse casts. - The essence is to get the leader stretched and the fly to fish. In order to obtain that, the gear has to be trimmed. He works with a philosophy, which is more about line lengths, tapers, friction and decent leaders than about AFTM weights and casting lengths. He thinks that the primitive cutting down of lines to adapt them to a rod doesn’t work. Heavy shooting heads and super smooth shooting lines is not his recipe for a good cast. As he puts it with a simple phrase: - Shooting heads are generally very misunderstood. He adds: - If you are in the game for distance, you should take up casting, not fishing.

Go to article start ^ User comments

From: Richard Fischer · rfdick1941·at·msn.com Submitted April 6th 2007 Could you tell me who the champ is in casting with a bait casting reel? Salt water.....I heard it was quit a long distance.......I don't want to say what it was because I'm doubtfull From: John (in Boise) · jjmrwood·at·msn.com Submitted March 5th 2007 For a great story of an incredible cast (er), read Frank Woolner's introduction to "Fly Fishing In Salt Water" by Lefty Kreh. From: carl zarelli · carlzarelli·at·comcast.net Submitted August 26th 2006 I have cast short for some species, and long for (some ) tropical species. I rarely cast more than 80 feet in the tropics. I spend a good deal of time working on long casting but I do it more for the differing conditions like the effects of winds on my cast than for the distance . I agree that the ability to cast distance may come in handy in a small percentange of the actual time you fish but the distance thing is a little over rated . Carl Zarelli CCI From: Bob Koch · kochbob·at·hotmail.com Submitted June 17th 2006 Totally agree. Its what you want to do. Fishing or Casting. While fishing 45 to 50 feet casts do the trick 95% of the time. Precision and presentation of the fly is the answer. Always cast to a target, even when nymphing or fishing wet flies. Bob Koch CCI, Atlanta Ga. USA From: Jim Chapralis · jchapralis·at·ameritech.net Submitted June 14th 2006 I just happen to come across this page. Very well done article. Now while I have cast more than 150 feet with the special equipment in National tournaments (I enjoy this and it is darn good exercise for a 74-year-old angler) it is also true that I seldom make a cast of more than10 meters (30+ feet) when I'm brown trout fishing in Midwest streams. Tis better to creep up on the fish. Yes, there are times, when fishing bigger waters (e.g., lakes, flats, big rivers, when you simply can't wade close enough) and making a long cast can be helpful, and very ego satisfying...but setting hook with all that line out can be a problem. From: Jon Morris · jonmorris·at·webspeed.dk Submitted April 17th 2006 I agree entirely with Henrik Mortensens final comment. I cast to fish that I know I can reach with comparitive ease...15-20 metres. At that distance under good conditions my fly usually lands close to the goal, reasonably neatly. Only very occasionally have I had the backing come through the rings on the final forward cast where the fly lands furthest away from the rod tip! Having reached the wrong side of 55 years old, I have NO intention of standing on the local rugby field, attempting to increase that distance...the time, I feel, is much better spent by the water pursuing my favourite sport! Some of the most satisfying casts have been excecuted whilst laid on my stomach by the river with only a couple of metres of fly line in the air, and without the brownie on the near bank I was after, detecting my presence... or 10 metres of line slipping neatly between two overhanging trees behind me to fall on the graylings nose on the forward cast...and on one very memorable occasion, rollcasting around a bush to a rise I couldn't even see the epicentre of. This is angling to me, always has been and will always remain so. Tight lines...Moggy From: Mike Zelman · mrzelman·at·eastlink.ca Submitted April 5th 2006 Love this article - I know that I can very occasionally cast 35 yards or about 32 metres (about ten times in thrity years) as that is the length of the line that I use and I have managed to hit the backing a couple of times. That being said if I try for big distance I usually end up wearing the line and fly around my neck or attached to some other part of my body or twenty five feet up a tree on the back cast. I have even managed to catch a fish at this distance. Typically however my suggestion is to get a pair of waders that go right up to your armpits - it's generally easier to walk toward that fish under the far bank than to try to put your fly on his ose with a herculean cast. From: Ripley Davenport · admin·at·distantstreams.com Submitted April 1st 2006 What a fantastic article. I always hear the gossip and get sucked into conversation about casting distance (which bores me silly), but now-a-days - I hear less about the actual fishing experiences. I personally don't care for distance or what someone has said he has managed to reach. Most of my fish are caught within 15m or so. In my experience, the further the cast - if your presentation is that good after it - that's more line to lift out of the water. Good old fashioned stalking right up to the fishes doorstep and "hey-presto"! Great article Martin...just maybe...and that's a big maybe...we'll hear more about fishing facts than a few extra metres! Ripley Davenport

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