It's two years since I last

wrote about casting in this magazine. My technique and understanding have been refined since then, and I'm more convinced than ever that every surfcaster should learn the so-called BRIGHTON CAST. I discovered lately that many people overseas prefer to call it the EASY CAST. That seems a logical name. It is a fair description and doesn't involve any arguments about where it originated. The EASY CAST produces better distance than the overhead thump and it is easy—easy to learn and easy on the body. You may be concerned that an off-the-ground cast will pull the wires of a grip sinker. Don't be, because this particular variation will pluck your sinker cleanly from sand, shingle or goolies—after a small amount of practice. Photograph 1: The setup of the easy cast is butt high, tip low and sinker in the so-calledinside-layout position—this causes the rod tip to load quickly. The drop length is typically five feet, but that will depend on the nature of the rod and weight of the sinker. You will have to experiment. Note the open stance. Imagine you are standing on a clock face and your target is in the direction of 12 o'clock. Your left foot is placed at 10.30 and your right foot at 4.30. You may step into position with your left leg to initiate the cast, but the foot must be planted before you apply power. My demonstrator is left-handed, so the position of his feet are not those just described. You'll work it out. Photograph 2: You hit the EASY CAST from the word go. No fancy timing—it's easy. The cast is around the body, not over the top. This lengthens the arc and increases the power. See how effectively the sinker has been plucked from its start position on the beach.  Photograph 3: The sinker swings wide of the rod tip and generates centrifugal speed. Sinker speed is what counts, not how fast you move the rod. The cast may be easy, but breaking old habits is not. Overhead thumper have little trouble setting up correctly, but things tend to go wrong as soon as they move. Some lift the rod tip off the ground before applying any power, most forget to look high, and most revert to an overhead thump halfway through the cast—this causes the rod to twist and the sinker to veer off its perfect curve. A little thought and practice will correct these problems. A practice partner will spot your mistakes better than you can, and a video camera is a useful tool.

Surfcasting Tactics by Mark Roberts

Understand that YOU MUST APPLY POWER FROM THE OUTSET. Even a teens y lift at the start will much reduce the effectiveness of the EASY CAST. Casting Dynamics

The South African cast is the traditional off-the-ground style that employs a long drop (typically eight feet) and maximum body rotation. My best distance over grass with this style is 197 metres, and I've cast several times over the 190. When I do these respectable distances, some people comment that I don't hit the rod very hard. That's because it is physically difficult to do so with an eight-foot drop. Even if a South African cast appears to be somewhat 'underthrashed', the sinker on the end of a long drop will swing wide and reach high speed at release. That is the critical dynamic, although one that's not easy to appreciate with the human eye. An easy cast with a five-foot drop can be hit with more ferocity, although sinker speed at release will not quite match that of the South African cast. Because the overhead thump employs an even shorter drop, you can thrash the daylights out of it and it all looks very macho and impressive. However, the speed the sinker attains will be limited, and I'm sure the rod accelerates once the sinker has leapt forth on its highly unpredictable trajectory. The action is difficult to analyse with the human eye—it's all a blur—but what I'm suggesting is that much of the apparent power of an overhead thump is applied to thin air. Men who thrash at sinkers and thin air often complain of sore shoulders after a session of sustained casting. I never have that problem, because the power of any off-the-ground cast that involves body rotation comes from the legs and torso and that power is channelled into a proper loading of the rod. There is one problem with this concept: most men over the age of thirty are averse to bending legs or twisting bodies. Far better to wreck your shoulder joints. That's what real men do.

Casting with free-spool reels

I 'm one of those rare people in New Zealand who goes surfcasting with a free-spool reel. Free-spools are the first choice for surfcasters in America, Europe and South Africa, while the fixed-spool reel (eggbeater) dominates the scene in New Zealand. The reasons for the poor uptake of free-spools for surfcasting in New Zealand are probably these: it is not necessary to cast a long way on our beaches to catch fish, and the fish we catch are rarely powerful enough to destroy a fixed-spool. Having said that, use a cheap fixed-spool as a winch, as so many people do, and even a kahawai can strip its gears. A free-spool will cast slightly further than a fixed-spool, but out-and-out distance is not where its advantage lies. If you need to cast moderately long distances all day, its smooth operation will allow you to do that. If you cast hard with a fixed-spool for too long, the brutality of the process will tire you out mentally if not physically. Also, the risk of disaster increases dramatically when you cast at full power with a fixed-spool, whereas a free-spool will take everything you can throw at it apart from shoddy technique. I'll concede that it isn't easy to learn good technique with a free -spool, but the end result is worth the effort. Making the transition to free-spool reels in New Zealand presents problems aside from learning to cast a different way. You have to contend with the poor choice of reels, the lack of knowledge of many people in the retail sector, and the total unavailability of purpose-built rods. There is some choice of suitable reels because the salmon anglers in the South Island want them. Salmon anglers cast many times in a day, need to retrieve lures with a bit of finesse and need a reel that will control a powerful fish in a current. Most people know that free-spool reels can overrun and create a horrendous tangle of nylon that only a pair of scissors can deal with. An overrun occurs when the spool rotates faster than it sheds line. Modern reels, however, are designed to prevent this happening. The lighter the spool, the less prone it will be to overrun, because less weight means less flywheel effect. Free-spool reels designed for ultimate distance are small and have aluminium spools. If you want a reel with a big spool that can take heavier line, the measures to reduce the flywheel effect will have to be greater. These measures reduce casting distance, but for circumstances in which such line weights are required, out-and -out distance is seldom an issue. The manufacturers incorporate either centrifugal brake blocks or magnetic controls in free-spools designed for casting. These limit the speed at which the spool can spin. Magnets are adjusted externally on the side plate of the reel, whereas to change the size of centrifugal brakes you must remove the side plate. A second way to reduce spool speed is to increase the viscosity of oil in the bearings on which the spool rotates. The oil supplied with a casting reel may be too light or too heavy for ideal performance, depending on the characteristics of the reel and its intended purpose. Some free-spoolers, especially those involved in tournament casting, like to play around with combinations of oil and brake settings. The last but not least way to control a free-spool reel is to adjust line diameter and line level. Free -spools are less likely to overrun if the line diameter is 0.33mm (about 6kg) or greater. I prefer 0.36mm or greater. An overrun typically occurs one to two seconds into the cast. If by that time the line level has reduced because it started low or because the line is of relatively high diameter, there is an automatic dampening effect. The cast is approaching a point where spool speed will be slower than optimal rather than too fast. Incidentally, I never thumb a reel. It is easy to thumb a free-spool after a gentle lob, but doing so a split second into a South African or pendulum cast is very tricky procedure indeed. Tournament casters never attempt it. If the reels just described are properly tuned, thumbing will not be necessary.

Free-spool reels for surfcasting

This is not a complete list, but it covers

the best options. Penn Mag 525: The Penn Mag 525 comes in two variants. The 525 Tournamag or 'knobby' is shown here. This top-of-the-range version was designed for tournament casting. A single magnet (under the black knob) can be wound out after the cast is made, thus reducing drag on the sinker as it nears the end of its flight. The spool has in-board bearings and rotates on a shaft. The Tournamag failed to gain wide acceptance as a tournament casting reel, but has a strong following for beach fishing. The magnet can be finely adjusted to suit any situation from casting big baits into a headwind to casting small baits with a tailwind. The fishing version has a sliding mechanism fitted with magnets. The latest version called the XTRA can accommodate additional magnets to give finer control. Daiwa 7HT Millionaire Tournament: The 7HT has been around for at least fifteen years. This slightly battered one has been in use for about eight years. The spool is light and easily controlled by its centrifugal brakes. Retrieve speed is low, but its a superb longrange reel for use on clean beaches. The 7HT was sold in New Zealand, but is apparently no longer available. A new 'Turbo' version has been released overseas. The spool of the 'Turbo' has in-board bearings and rotates on a shaft, whereas the spool of the original 7HT is fixed to a shaft. The 'Turbo' runs faster and has the potential to cast further, although the advantage of that for practical fishing may be limited. Daiwa SL20SH and SL30SH: The so-called 'SLOSH' reels are ideal for short to medium range casting on clean beaches, or for fishing from rocks where heavier line and faster retrieves are required. The SL20SH, shown here, is used by salmon anglers in the South island. They would appreciate its robust construction. Despite having relatively heavy spools compared to the 7HT, the centrifugal brakes in these reels maintain good control. Daiwa SL20SHV and SL30SHV: These reels incorporate Daiwa's Speed shaft System, which allows the spool to run more freely. Greater distance is possible compared to the 'SLOSH' reels, but the risk of an overrun is also greater. The instructions recommend that you prevent an overrun by increasing spool tension—by turning the gold knob on the right side plate. That would be fine for a short lob from a boat, but surfcasters want distance. Why have a free-running spool and then squeeze it so it's not free anymore? The bearings of this new SL30SHV have been infused with slightly heavier oil. I can cast it with full power and trust it not to overrun.