The weekly news letter from FlyFish USA addresses why we should have a relaxed grip.
http://www.flyfishusa.com/newsletter/current/
Spey Casting Tip: The Relaxed Grip
One of the counter-intuitive things about spey casting is how you use your muscles. Here is a picture of Brian Silvey as he is getting acquainted with one of the new G.Loomis RoaringRiver spey rods. The light conditions were horrible, but I was able to get the shot with my Canon 10D digital camera. He was throwing such beautiful loops that I wanted to record the image. Frankly, this isn't one of his better loops, but it was what I could get in the pouring rain without drowning my camera. When I blew up this shot, what popped out of the image was Brian's upper hand. It appears to be totally relaxed. During a presentation at the Sandy River Spey Clave, Scott O'Donnell & Mike McCune emphasized the advantages of casting with your muscles totally relaxed. One of the major advantages in being relaxed is that you keep more energy in reserve, thereby increasing your stamina. Another advantage is that being relaxed increases your sensitivity, allowing you to feel the rod with more precision. During our time together Tuesday, Ed Ward explained to me his theory of continuous power flow throughout the cast. The perfect cast results from unbroken and continuous acceleration through a perfectly shaped arc to a perfectly sudden stop. This is accomplished while exactly the right amount of power and the right angle of trajectory are applied for the length and weight of the fly line. How much anchor point is on the water; where it is in relation to yourself and what direction it is pointing will also effect how much speed you will apply. Those are a lot of adjustments to be made in a short period of time. It is best to be relaxed. That is probably one of the reasons why it is harder to cast when you are chilled. Your body automatically tenses. Cold muscles increase tension to generate heat. The proper amount of insulation to retain body temperature can greatly effect your muscular performance. Having an audience can also increase the tension in your body. Throwing one bad cast in front of them can further increase that tension. Stop relax your mind. Put a few wraps of line back on the reel and take command. Try breathing exercises. If you get chilled get out of the water and go for a hike for a few minutes. Get warmed up. Let the tension go from your body and your mind. Get relaxed and let the force be with you
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I have stumbled into this realization recently after about an hour of casting. My grip weakens and doesn't strangle the cork handle. Also, I'm a little tired and not pushing the rod, fly and line as hard and fast. When this happens, I'm casting out as far if not farther with minimal strain on my hands, wrists, arms, shoulder and body.
So any practice time this week will be using these light grip techniques and focusing on better timing instead of pushing everything.