One more exercise about using your wrist. About not using your wrist, rather. When I got the idea for this exercise, I thought, "Boy, am I sharp!" What magnificent ideas I get! Then I heard Aitor—I think it was Aitor—mention it and I thought, "Shit. Guess I'm not so original."
So it's clear this isn't a 100% new exercise. I think it's very practical and revealing though. So I'm including it in our collection. It's clearly better than sticking the rod butt under your shirt cuff and is more manageable than one of those special wristbands they sell for this purpose. Cheaper too.
Equipment
A 12-inch strip of Velcro, the strip with the hooks. The strip with the loops, though, could be a little shorter.
Procedure
- Wrap the strip with the loops around your wrist and staple it (better ask for help at this stage of the exercise).
- Wrap the other strip around the rod butt.
- Grip the rod. Stick the two parts together. Cast.
Tips
Experiment with this “new” way of casting. Feel, adjust movements, observe the loop, keep experiencing new sensations. Observe your backcast. The idea is to feel and observe.
Routinely include this in some phases of your training sessions. After a while, take the strip off your wrist and go on casting. Feel again.
Harder yet
- You can control the angle between your wrist and the rod butt. Just adjust the strip around your wrist so it's tighter or looser. Marvelous.
- In a single session, proceed from a 0º angle (experiment, feel) to 30º or 40º. Observe the difference and the adjustments you have to make to keep the loops of your backcasts right.
