TRAJECTORY

Starting fly casters are taught to false cast on grass, and the casts will naturally be parallel to the ground. But, casting parallel to the ground when fishing is an unforced error. When casting straight, the line and the leader will turn over several feet above the surface. It will take the fly time to drop to the water (approximately 33’/sec2), giving the wind time to mess with the presentation. I noticed at a club meeting when we were doing accuracy that the back casts usually weren‘t high enough. This decreases the accuracy of your presentation.

When you aim at a spot on the water's surface, the trajectory will become downward towards that spot. Because the back cast needs to be 180 degrees opposite to the forward cast for an efficient straight cast, it follows that the back cast must be upwards.

Therefore, the whole trajectory must be straight (180-degree rule obeyed). So, now the cast must look like this.

So, pick a spot on the water where you intend to place your fly. Now, drive the fly line straight to that point and try to straighten your fly line and leader just inches above that point. Now, the wind has much less room to screw up your cast, and the accuracy of your presentation is improved. The trajectory flattens as your point recedes and gets steeper as it moves closer. When you have mastered this you have also learned how to cast into the wind (wind casts will be covered soon).