THE PREPARATION
A well-used phrase is “failing to prepare is preparing to fail” and this is as true for making sure you are casting at your best. Before making each cast, Didier performs the same casting ritual.
1
The first thing he does is to make sure the drop between the rod tip and the weight is correct. The drop should be slightly longer than the rig you are casting – in a practice cast with no rig, around five or six feet of drop. This should mean that when you are positioned to cast, the lead weight should be just off the ground.
2
Before getting ready to hold the rod, Didier cranks up the drag knob on the reel to the maximum. If it is not fully tight, the line will slip off the spool when you compress the rod, shredding any casting glove and, consequently, your fingers.
3
Picking up the rod in his right hand, he places his right index finger on the line, and brings the line from the reel to the reel seat so that it forms a 90 degree angle, the line should come straight off the spool to the reel seat.
He then uses his left hand to grasp the butt grip. This is gripped exactly in the front of the right-hand side of the chest. The reason for this is that a good cast depends on the left hand hitting the arm pit of the caster.
This gives the rod the leverage to fully load. By setting up this way, Didier ensures that his body will place his left hand into his left arm pit on each cast.
4
Finally, he adjusts his feet, Didier is right-handed so his left foot points in the casting direction, which is 12 o’clock, his right foot is angled at the two o’clock position. For a left-hander, the right foot would point to 12 with the left foot pointing to 10.