Distance line / SHORT ANSWERS / FFF website

Let's have you folks who came up with the descriptions of the distance lines, take a few moments to review what you sent and condense to short answers.

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Charlie's answer (a good reference) is certainly one way to go, but NOT on an actual MCCI exam. Here, it is best to carefully avoid quoting authors and/or our "casting guru's" unless directly asked to do so. On this subject, a while back, Floyd Franke told a group of candidates, "If you quote Joan Wulff on your exam, you had better be right."

His second comment speaks to the choice of fly line for a particular caster and his rod. What will work best for one caster for distance may not be ideal for another.

My idea, however, was to come up with a set of parameters for a distance line for general use.

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Gordy,

I realize you're already gone, but I wanted to comment on your response to Peter Morse. My understanding is that the SA Expert Distance line has a continuous taper of the running line. This is one of the primary changes from the XXD to the ED. The taper helps to remove the hinging effect when carrying a very long line.

The way I see it there's two ways to design a distance line: the first is simply to make a pseudo-shooting head, making a heavy weight forward with a thin running line, something like the Rio Outbound. The other way is to make a line that handles well with lots of line in the air. I think the latter is more in the spirit of your question.

I think my ultimate distance line would be very much like the Expert Distance taper, but with a longer belly and longer rear taper. For a 10wt I'd like to see at least a 100ft belly, followed by the continuously tapered running line. I've spliced lines into the Expert Distance before (in other weights of course) and have been quite satisfied with the preliminary results.

Assuming we're casting in controlled conditions, I think it would be beneficial to have the line weighted under the AFTMA standard for greater line carry. The surface of the line would be like the Sharkskin configuration, allowing for less friction during the shoot. Finally, the line would need to be of sufficient length for long casts.

Cheers,

Chase