Jo Meder, based in NZ, emailed me offering to write up some book reviews. I'm like, "sure, ok, if it's good enough". What I didn't expect was a thoroughly comprehensive and well written review, which just goes to show something - but what that is exactly I have absolutely no idea...

I ordered Nymph Fly-Tying Techniques only because it mentioned a few things in the contents that I was interested in, and hadn't seen covered in other places I'd looked. I wasn't really expecting to get too much more out of it than that, but it was pretty inexpensive so I didn't mind. What I got was a book absolutely chock full of useful information.

Nymph Fly-Tying Techniques won't tell you how to wind a dry style hackle, tie a parachute hackle or up-wings. It also doesn't cover tube flies or articulated flies. Emergers aren't really touched on. Apart from that, it really is a comprehensive manual of fly tying techniques.

Here's a message from one of our sponsors...

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Thinking about where to go next for a flyfishing adventure? Considering a casting lesson? Looking for some new tackle?

It's ALL in our Directory!

An article by one of our bearded Imaginary Saltwater Flyfishing Gurus. As well as a comprehensive flytying sequence this article also features an angler fishing in what can only be his pyjamas.

Fly tying is an illusionary skill; we're out to create an illusion of life. But illusion can extend beyond just the appearance of life in a fly. The fly pattern demonstrated here has become a great favourite and is a perfect example of creating the illusion of bulk without actually having weight to match that bulk. Fly tyers and fly fishers need to take notice of the shape of baitfish and look to re-create the profiles we find in nature, as well as the details of shade and colouring. Baitfish come in three fundamental shapes; the broad flat profile of a sardine or herring; the fat round shape of a hardyhead, small mackerel, pilchard, garfish, or mullet; and the slender profile of an anchovy. Fine tuning

details such as colour, flash, movement, eyes and red gill flashes all keep us, the tyers and the fly fishers, happy and confident. This state of happiness should not to be underestimated, but the silhouette a fly casts should not be neglected either. Most predators strike from below and this highlights the fly against a bright sky. This silhouetting effect results in shape having far more prominence than individual detail.

OK they're obviously not as good as RIO, because after all RIO advertise with us and SA don't (because we're too sexy), but that doesn't prevent us from running reviews - after all most of us here at Sexyloops are angels in disguise - Magnus for example, he's wearing one hell of a disguise.

I was nowhere within a thousand miles of anything remotely like a tarpon, and the Australian 'baby' tarpon aren't really what this line was designed for anyway, but for the work I was doing it seemed like the ideal ''heavy' flats line. I was up to my belt buckle in saltwater and working hard to punch a 1/0 Clouser into a stiff 25 knot southerly. The amazing thing to me was that it was working.

Phew, this is taking some time. I wonder how it looks so far? Anyway here we have an article from Lars on Way Yin's casting video. Way moderates our DH forum of course, so Lars wasn't allowed to write any bad shit.

Anyway, you can buy this GREAT! video from Sexyloops, and if you're lucky/unlucky you may even receive a signed copy. You can buy your copy H ERE in our store.

Way Yin kicks off the movie with a chapter on what flycasting really is - tight loops/wide loops, tailing loops, appropriate application of power, SLP, timing, casting plane, acceleration, hauling, stroke and more are explained in a simple and clear way!

Way then moves on to explain the transition from overhead to speycasting, putting strong emphasis that the same mechanics still govern the cast and that the principles for speycasting and overheadcasting are the same. Moving onto the anchor, the importance of the 180 degree principle is emphasized.All through the movie, these principles are in focus, and I feel that the movie gives a very good understanding of the differences between Spey casting, Underhand casting and Skagit casting, and maybe even more, gives an even better understanding of the similarities betweeen the different casts.

For quite a few years I lived with a bug tank in my bedroom. I've watched buzzers hatch, studied the hectic lives of corixae and stared for hours at the home-building caddis. A fascinating underworld. Here Eric reviews a revealing video...

From below the mirror an angler passes. His wading boots slosh by ignorant of the world beneath the water. Bugs swim and crawl fighting the currents going about their lives far removed from that of the land mammals toting their fly rods who so rely upon these tiny insects.

This latest release by Ralph and Lisa is short and sweet. The underwater video is clear and sharp and wholly focused on exposing the aquatic and elegant lives of the Bugs of the Underworld. In Ralph's words, it's about "Benthic Macro Invertibrates. They live in water. They're big enough to see with the naked eye, and they have no backbone. BMI's for short; I'll just call them bugs."

If you haven't checked out Matt's Corner in a while, do so! He's been busy and has even nailed a few Steelhead. His string leeches are awesome and his legs are hairy.

Fish of the Month was in fact this Asp that Paul caught. So well done Paul!

Now you may be wondering about the history of the Snapcast and why we've chosen to give our Newsletter this name. Well here is why:

The name "Snapcast" comes I believe from Jason Borger, who's good at naming stuff. The cast itself is older. Claims to have invented it come from Austria, but these are refuted by casting clubs in the States, not that it actually matters, because the Aerial Snapcast, which is far sexier, was invented by me. Of course someone else may have invented that one too, you know, before me - but they forgot to tell anyone. Me, I've been telling everyone about it and in particular one version which I call "The 69" - because that's both how it looks and feels. (The original 69, by the way, was invented in Austria - and by two nuns in a Yodelling competition - they were French however).

The physics behind the Snapcast is quite interesting and was figured out on the Board by our engineers, with assistance by Newton. The flyline mass is moved, giving it momentum, a Snap is duly performed which has the effect of removing a large amount of mass from this moving line, the remaining line accelerates due, mainly, to the removal of this large amount of mass and the Momentum Conservation Principle is applied. If it was to happen in a Vaccuum the caster would die - obviously.

Back in the days before I knew Jason, and had thrown snowballs at him, I'd called the Snapcast the "Flickcast" and you can learn about it here in the Manual.

And then in Jan 1976, following a gruelling sex session with two lesbian firefighters, I took my flyrod out into the deep snow. Inspired by the antics of the last sixteen hours I started playing with different Snap applications, and then a Thunderbolt of Lightning struck down from Heaven (it was Sunday) and the Aerial Snapcast was born. And from that point onward, flyfishermen everywhere have Iearned to Strut.

And that's why we call our newsletter "Snapcast".

I have absolutely no idea - but it's going to be great. We're considering launching the long- awaited "Flycasting for Nuns" section as well as of course an interview of The Queen Mother by Six-pound Sean in a jacuzzi. Worth tuning in for that one. That's all for this issue!

Cheers
Brother Paul