Back to the Past to Become a Fishing King-Chapter 565 - 324: Showing Off (Part 2)

In the fishing world, we call it a competitive rod holder. Depending on the design, it can be further divided into ram's horn, butterfly head, or automatic rebound styles.

This type of competitive rod holder doesn't have a rear support. The fishing rod is placed on it, and your hand cannot let go of the rod handle, or else the rod will tilt forward out of the angler's control.

Such a competitive rod holder is used in high-stress fishing competition situations. Your hand stays on the handle and your eyes on the bobber so as not to miss any subtle changes, thus maximizing competition scores.

But now, Xiaobao has put up a 2.1-meter rod holder with a rear support, falling short in equipment choice.

"Take off the rear support of the rod holder and retract the 2.1-meter rod all the way!" Zhang Yang ordered.

"No rear support? What if I catch a fish? There's nowhere to put the rod..."

Xiaobao instinctively glanced at Liu Zi and asked with a bit of apprehension.

"Just do what I say first, ask questions later if you have any!"

"Alright then!"

Xiaobao nodded, reluctantly removing the rear support, reducing the rod down to just over a meter.

"With a competitive rod holder, you need to hold onto the rod for efficiency. If you put it down when tired, time goes by unnoticed!

From the beginning of learning to fish, you can't afford to develop a lazy attitude, understood?

The rod is your weapon; holding it means entering battle. You must always be vigilant!

This issue with the rod holder is both a misunderstanding of equipment use and reflects a change in mindset. This is the first point I emphasized before today's official class, got it?"

"Got it!" Xiaobao dared not talk back and obediently nodded.

"Now that the rod holder is adjusted, let's proceed to the normal casting techniques!

Normally, competitive fishing casts are divided into side casts, straight casts, and also whip casts!

Each method has different application scenarios and detail differences, which I'll explain to you slowly, one by one!

Let's start with the side cast, which is my most used casting method. When casting, the arm moves the wrist, and the line goes out horizontally! Adjust the bait's landing position using technique!

This casting method requires less movement and energy, but the downside is it's hard to control the horizontal landing point of the line set, and beginners tend to cast off-target!

With practice and experience, even with external conditions like strong winds, as long as you account for them in advance, you can still cast to the desired landing spot.

The second method is the straight cast, which entails raising the rod to cast the line directly upwards.

This casting method is easier to grasp but offers poorer control and fine-tuning of the fishing setup!

When casting fully, it's easy to fix the point with good accuracy. But in windy weather, it's hard to cast accurately.

The last method is the whip cast.

You heard right, the whip cast!

Here, let me show you!"

With that, Zhang Yang pinched the leader line with his left hand and dragged it across the baiting plate, instantly forming two full bait balls, then controlling the rod with his right hand, applying vertical force from top to bottom.

Swish! The fishing setup slammed into the water with incredible speed.

"The whip cast is the fastest casting method in competitive casting!

But its downside is evident as well: it's basically a max cast. While it's fine for small fish, it's very easy to cut the line during mixed-species fishing.

Also, why am I not letting you practice this? Many formal competitive fishing competitions are already banning this casting method!

So, you might go through all the effort to master it, only to find it's not allowed in the competition!

Taking these points into account, start with the side cast. With enough practice, you can cast wherever you want freely!

Strong fundamentals ensure you won't falter when executing tactical strategies; it's complementary!

Otherwise, no matter how fast your reactions or accurate your fishing judgments, without basic skills, it won't help!

Alright, I've finished. If you have any questions, ask now!"

"Boss, with enough practice, can I really cast wherever I want? It seems a bit surreal! We're not machines; can we really do what you said?" Xiaobao skeptically asked.

"Of course! I can demonstrate it to you on the spot! Here, watch this!"

Zhang Yang picked up a plastic bottle cap with his fingers and flicked it, sending it flying to land a few meters away in the water.

From the fishing spot to the bottle cap, the straight distance is less than three meters, and a 3.6-meter fishing rod would normally drop it at least two meters ahead of the cap.

So, to hit the bottle cap with the cast means casting with only half or six-tenths the effort, which an ordinary angler would find awkward.

While ordinary anglers would find this difficult, Zhang Yang was completely unfazed.

Smiling, he asked, "For this cast, should we hit the bottle cap with bait or with the lead sinker?"

"Uh, let's go with bait!"

Without understanding the subtle difference between the two choices, Xiaobao casually chose one.

"Alright, watch closely!" Zhang Yang aimed at the bottle cap's position in the water, flicked his wrist, and the line set flew as if guided, landing the bait precisely on the cap.

The bottle cap, already unstable floating on the water, flipped over when hit by the bait, quickly losing balance and sinking.

"Whoa! You really hit it! How did you do that?"

Seeing this incredible casting technique from Zhang Yang, Xiaobao's eyes widened in amazement, feeling flabbergasted.

How to describe that feeling?

It's like someone claiming to eat stones instead of rice, proving it by gnawing on and swallowing rocks right before your eyes.

Perceptions shattered, mind a blank.

"How did I do it? With enough foundational practice, it comes naturally! Work hard, and you can do it too! Do you need a demonstration on hitting a target with a lead sinker?"

"Please, show me more! You're amazing!"

"Alright, I'll humor you! After you see this cast, it'll be your turn!

We'll proceed with the designated training plan; we've been delayed quite a bit! Find another floating target!"

Scanning around, Xiaobao failed to spot a suitable object, so he quickly grabbed a water bottle and ran left for about six or seven meters. Instead of tossing it into the water, he placed it on the shore.

If the float is thrown into the water, with a water depth of 1.8 meters, the bobber's landing might only be over five meters from the shore.

However, now Xiaobao placed it on land, and the total length of the rod and line amounted to 7.2 meters.

Over two meters away, making the difficulty significantly greater.

Yet Zhang Yang remained unfazed, throwing a few trial casts to get a feel for it, then turned and using the same flicking motion.

Clang! The lead sinker hit the bottle's mouth spot on, scoring a bullseye.

100 points!

"It... it went in! Oh, damn!"

Seeing the lead sinker still nudging inside the bottle, Xiaobao stuttered.

His original aim was for the lead sinker to just hit the side of the bottle, ending the challenge.

Instead, Zhang Yang upped the ante with a high-level challenge.

The bottle mouth was mere centimeters wide, insignificantly small compared to the bottle body!

From such a distance, let alone casting into it, some anglers with slightly poorer vision might not even see it clearly!

If the previous non-max cast to hit the bottle cap rated 90 points, then Zhang Yang's latest move deserved a perfect 100.

Throughout, Zhang Yang exuded confidence, with his prowess ensuring ease and precision.

"Alright, just a simple trick! Stop standing around! Take the rod and start practicing! I'll only mention an issue once; repeat it, and don't blame me for using the Dragon-Subduing Wood!"

As he spoke, Zhang Yang suddenly brandished a finger-thick bamboo stick.

Goodness, Zhang Yang was prepared, ready to whip out the switch at a moment's notice!