Last week, we ran a post congratulating our own Whitney Gould as she won the women’s division of this year’s Spey-O-Rama world spey casting competition.. again! Whitney won her fourth Spey-O-Rama title placing in six years after taking last year off to fish in Montana (the test of a true fish bum). We’re super proud of her and stoked to have her as part of our team!
We thought we’d come at you with another post as part of our ‘expert rig series,’ where we highlight the setups used by expert anglers around the world. Today, we put a little spin on it, however – a competition rig! Here’s Whitney’s rig of choice to cast like a champ.
The Summary
- Gaelforce Equalizer 15 Foot #12, designed by James Chalmers.
- Gaelforce Equalizer Extreme distance 80ft (24.38 m) head cut to preferred length.
- Loop Opti Megaloop
The Detail
- 30 Pound dacron backing, attached to the spool with an arbor knot
- 30 pound Varivas Airs shooting line attached to the backing with a double nail knot. “I like Varivas because of its hollow core construction, and because it floats.”
- Gaelforce Equalizer Extreme Distance 80 ft. head attached to shooting line by splicing together using a needle, coated with crazy glue.
- 12 Feet of 20 pound Maxima attached to head with a nail knot. “I don’t use any loop to loop connections for my competition setup – they cause wind friction.”
The Commentary
- “What makes a great competition rig? A balanced set up which is easy to cast, smart practice, patience with one’s self, and a bit of superstition!”
- “During competition, my goals are simple – consistently make the four required casts, not to freak out, and cast to my fullest potential.”
- “I choose Gaelforce because James Chalmers is a bad ass line and rod designer. It’s been proven over multiple years of success not only in the competition arena but also in the fishing world. Mike and I love this guy!”
- “To find any of the items in the setup, check out the Red Shed Fly Shop is the US or Gaelforce Fly Fishing in the UK.”
More Expert Spey Rigs
Thanks for the Info on Competition casting gear. For me it is instructive and interesting to learn about the extreme ends of the sport, even if I don’t enter the world of completion casting.