The Ultimate Spey Head Set
Spey rods and spey lines are one of the fastest growing segments in fly fishing and there’s good reason for that—fishing spey revitalizes longtime single-hand anglers and it’s just downright fun.
In fact, trying to master a whole new skill-set, including dozens of casts off either shoulder, can take the emphasis off fish and and place it more on the cast. And that’s a good thing if you are fishing steelhead because they have been called “the fish of a thousand casts.”
I guess I’m enamored with spey fishing because it’s not natural for me yet. I have to think before each throw, concentrate like crazy and go through the motions. Sometimes I get brutally disgusted with myself and my physical ability. Other times, it all clicks and I’m throwing like a demon, launching rockets wherever I need the fly to be. I remember fishing at B.C. West on the Dean last summer and struggling with my cast for four days. Then, on the fifth day something happened. It was like getting into a rhythm while shooting free throws or something. One cast after the other reached across the Dean. I barely tried. Things just happened and it was like every cast was tearing up the net. In high school and college I used to shoot a hundred free throws and turn around and shoot another 100. I wanted to be good and I wanted my team to win, and I enjoyed the challenge. Same thing in spey. I don’t get tired of trying to be better.
However, part of the problem with spey—and you’ll be wrecked from the start if you can’t dial this in—is matching a shooting head to your rod. And how do you do that? Go out and buy a $50-to-$100 head only to find it doesn’t correctly load your rod? Do you just make do with the damn thing and hope for the best? That’s what I was wondering when someone showed me their entire Skagit Compact head system from Airflo. And I needed to own one.
What’s the system? Get this. If you by this collection you get 12 heads, plus a great case to organize and carry them in, and you get a card that corresponds to the colors on the lines to make identification simple. You also get suggested line ratings so that you can you can quickly grab a head, say, rated to 6 or 7 weight rods and give it a throw. If that doesn’t feel right you can grab another head rated to 6 or 7 weight. That doesn’t work? Try the 6/7 rating. Or the 7/8 rating. Sooner or later you are dialed in.
And I like the attitude from Airflo. Step #1 in using the system is this: Pop, crack, or twist open favorite beverage. Step #5 is: Celebratory swig. Don’t get any on your shirt. Step 6: Cast like you stole it.
Along with the heads you get a 20-pound Ridge running line and a 30-pound Ridge running line.
Get the system. Cool. Good to go. Take a rod to the river. Take your pack of Skagit Compact heads. Spend an hour trying different heads for each of your spey or switch rods. And have a blast.
I don’t think that Airflo even advertises this shooting head set. But you can get one for $450. I think it’s worth it. If you’re going to take up spey and stick with it you’ll use all of these.
Want more info? Check out Airflo at www.flyfishusa.com/lines/airflo/airflo-spey-lines.htm