The first time I heard about Sexyloops was from my casting mentor Dron Lee. I was preparing for my CCI exams and Dron had very generously agreed to mentor me for the exam. He looked at my casting and said I need a better rod to use for the exam. I saw he was using a white rod, very sleek and sexy looking.
I asked him what rod it was. “Sexyloops #6 Instructor Rod,” he answered casually, “it’s only for instructors.” My eyes opened wide with excitement but I tried to hide it. I wanted very much to hold it and admire its beauty. I was only a novice, not worthy of such a beauty.
After months of hard practice and as the the exam date loomed closer, my casting was not showing any signs of major improvements. Dron looked at me and finally said, “Use this rod for your exam. Practise with it.” My heart skipped a beat. “No, I can’t use that,” but my heart screamed, “You are coming home with me!”. Dron insisted and I agreed. My heart was bursting with excitement.
Casting practice became a breeze and more enjoyable. I finally began to believe that I may just be able to pass the CI exam. Pick up and lay down, roll cast, 6 false cast, distance casting, accuracy casting and all the other tasks became easier with each practice and my confident grew.
May 11 was my big day. It was hard not to be nervous. Everything happened so quickly for me, but it must be a long day for my examiners. I couldn’t really remember what happened during the exam but in the end, the examiners went away to discuss my performance and it finally sank it what was happening. Minutes seemed like hours and I could see the examiners were in serious discussion. I looked at the Sexyloops Instructor Rod in my hands and whispered to it, “If I pass, I’ll get one of your friends to come home with me.
The examiners walked back towards me, looking very serious and solemn. My heart sank. Without saying a word, my Examiner, Mr. Shaun Ash MCI, handed me a CI patch. I looked at him in disbelief. I passed!
A few days later, I ordered my very own Sexyloops Instructor Rod. Now it sits on a special place in my fly fishing shelf. But it is not just for display and instructing. It is my go to fishing rod too. Many fish have been defeated by this beauty.
