David Siskind | Sunday, 2 March 2025
Back from the Bahamas, I’m looking to patch a hole in my skills. I want to eradicate my preference for forehand casts. I went on a search for wind on my right shoulder. The beaches near me and the LA River both get some in the afternoon. I usually fish in the morning. The beaches right now are relatively uncrowded. There have been a couple of rain events (that’s what we call rainy days in LA) which, early in the season, wash relatively stagnant water stewing in the street drainage system into the sea. This usually sends out a slug of bacteria laden water. Warnings are posted but the beaches don’t close as there are many walkers, runners, volleyball players, etc. who use them on a daily basis. Surfers ignore the signs but still there’s more room to fish.
Thirty years ago I participated in a water treatment project for the city of Santa Monica labeled DWRRF (Dry Weather Runoff Reclamation Facility) and then more sensitively renamed SMURRF (Santa Monica Urban Runoff Reclamation Facility). A sand berm on the beach was built in front of the outfall to prevent the street runoff from flowing to the ocean. This water was pumped from an underground sump behind the berm to the head of the treatment plant and through a series of devices before discharge - a debris screen, dissolved air flotation, ultrafiltration, and UV disinfection. The treatment was only applied on the rare rain events during the dry season when bacteria and toxic chemical concentrations were high. The first big winter rains would blow out the berm and the sump would remain empty until the berm was rebuilt in the spring. The same early rains cleaned up the streets making treatment unnecessary. I supplied and constructed the dissolved air flotation system. It was a fun project. Every device was painted different bright colors. There were various architectural elements and walkways with interpretive plaques for public viewing. Very cool. It has since fallen into disrepair. The last time I walked through, there were unhoused folks living on the walkways and garbage everywhere. Too bad. For everyone.
Wednesday was a river day. I took my new HT4 out for a backhand outing. After alienating all the carp I found, I practiced my backhand. It went well. I cast to rocks and pockets at various distances and began to better get the feel of letting my forearm flop to full extension in line with my shoulders. I also worked on ways of applying a little tension to the rod leg with stopless stroke and while shooting. There’s something useful here. I can feel it.
Yesterday was a beach day. This session didn’t go as well. For some reason my backhand stroke bent the rod all the way into the butt. This did not occur on the forehand backcast, nor when the wind died down a bit. Maybe it was wind related. Maybe not. It was very difficult to make an overhead cast. Side arm casts were much easier. I’m not sure what’s going on here, there are a lot of variables, but I believe I can sort it out. I’ve got this month and next before I spend a month fishing for trout which won’t call for too many backhands. June is another matter - some fishing in Chesapeake Bay and Sarasota will again test my abilities. Hope I can achieve something.
And that presser with Vance, Trump, and Zelenskyy. Oh dear. Dangerous and embarrassing.
David Siskind