Author Topic: "Time Savers" (Read 411 times)

Dejon Hamann · « **on:** August 11, 2010, 10:19:59 PM »

We all know that 1 single minute can mean the difference between winning and losing in Competitive fly Fishing. With this in mind - what are some of your "time saving" techniques on rivers and lakes that give you the advantage?

Here are a couple of mine (not secrets by any means).

"Arm Length Droppers" - Before competitive fly fishing I used to take my time measuring tippet. I'd kind of draw it out, look at it, make it a bit shorter, look at it, etc. Now I have a very distinct motion that measures tippet for droppers. I grab it on my tippet keeper which is located on my the left side of my Confluence pack and rip it off up into the air as far as my right arm will allow. It's always on the money and saves tons of time.

"Practicing Knots" - You only need a 2 or 3. But practicing knots in front of the television with some throwaway tippet saves you precious 10s of minutes in a beat.

"Simplifying Fly Selection" - The first few beats I went in with a HUGE palette of flies!! I was nervous and didn't want to be left without something important. Problem is I wasted so much time cyclying through those flies. Now I do my research, I pre-fish hard, and I head into battle with a very select number of flies.

"Dozens" - Unless I'm just tying a fly for "research" I always tie all my flies in dozens. Usually 1 to 2 dozen at a sitting.

Kalvin Kaloz · « **Reply #1 on:** August 11, 2010, 10:54:31 PM »

I throw in 2 on the rookie side of things but really saved me time and I know in the end of just a practice session helped me land a few more!

"Snags" - Just break it and retie. DONT spook the fish...No fly is worth the chance at even just 1 more fish!

"Tangles" - inevitably you set the hook, hesitate 1 sec too long and right back at you! Now you have a mess. Admittedly I try to save down to the sighter if its not terribly bad...then its 2-3 nips (flies and sighter), 3 arm lengths of 5X and you are back in it in much less time that trying to salvage the nest. "I know how long it will take me to retie my rig, I have no idea how long it will take to untangle that mess and what shape it will be in when I am done"

John Killinger · « **Reply #2 on:** August 13, 2010, 06:30:45 PM »

"Snags" - Just break it and retie. DONT spook the fish...No fly is worth the chance at even just 1 more fish!

I hate to do that with a fly that takes 15 minutes to tie, I'd get pissed, then cry, even worse if it's tied on a expensive ass hook and tungsten bead!. I guess that's why you don't use a fly that is that involved to tie. However it the fly is working well, then you come up with all kinds of new words that haven't been discovered.

Shane Ohara · « **Reply #3 on:** September 02, 2010, 02:34:55 PM »

Wear a vest, chest pack or some type of pack to have tools IE nippers, forceps, and tippet spools available at all times. Can't believe how many people I see wasting their time on water rooting through a backpack for the above items.

Chris Smorul · « **Reply #4 on:** September 03, 2010, 04:51:06 PM »

Quote from: Shane Ohara on September 02, 2010, 02:34:55 PM

Wear a vest, chest pack or some type of pack to have tools IE nippers, forceps, and tippet spools available at all times. Can't believe how many people I see wasting their time on water rooting through a backpack for the above items.

I use a chest ppack but instead of keeping my nippers, scissors, etc. inside the pack i made a cheap lanyard out of a leather eyeglass lanyard and some large snap swivels. It keeps all my tools right there where I need them.

Paul Bourcq · « **Reply #5 on:** September 04, 2010, 09:21:37 PM »

Put your flies back where they go. Too often i stash them wherever i can in a comp. When I go looking for them they arent there.

The last comp i fished I noticed bugging edges wasnt working. Saw some nice splashy emerger action going on. I was looking for a nice baetis pattern I had and it wasnt where it was supposed to be. I put on something similar and had a few takers. When I finally found the fly it caught alot more fish. If i would have looked harder, put it back up in the right place and didnt "settle" on th other fly it would have worked out alot better.

ask your judge to stick with you. Just pretend like thats what he is supposed to do and expect him too. Much easier to score fish than the guy that is screwing off downriver.

Trust your gut.....if you are in good water and your not producing but you think your not deep enough. Get it deeper or whatever the case may be. Dont question your instinct. Slow down, look around and be reasonable. Better than burning through good water with no confidence in your setup. Then you have to go through it again.

I also hate walking when im out the water, i try to move when flies arent getting wet.

Loren Williams · « **Reply #6 on:** September 04, 2010, 10:22:54 PM »

Practice casting efficiently (no/minimal false casting) and effectively (hitting the target first shot). A fly in the air (or tree, or back, or around your rod tip) is not going to catch squat. The best comp. anglers I know do not f-around with wasted casts. Also--in areas that can be effectively fished in one drift--makes the first cast to the top and not the middle. In the end you will be fishing more of your session and allowing yourself to fish more of your beat.

Matt Rich · « **Reply #7 on:** June 02, 2011, 06:23:08 AM »

Dry/store your wet/used flies on the underside of you peak cap, If you look up you can automaticly see where the fly that you want is, you never have to take you hat off - has an added bonus of hiding flies from competitors.

Learn the Davy Knot.

Have spare leaders tied and rolled up on used tippet rolls (start with the thinnest side). Just attach the butt end to the fly line and rip it out. Works really well in stillwaters too.