Borrowing from Bass: Quick-Load Fly Rods

We had a chance to fish the Sage BASS series rods recently and were very impressed by how well they work in close-quarters casting of big flies in mangrove creeks. It’s something about the rod being shorter, or the custom-made line that comes with rod being very well matched, that makes tip control and fly delivery a lot more fun. In the Denver Post Charlie Meyers notes that both Sage and Scott are doing the short-rod/big-bug thing this year. “The notion of catching bass on the long rod is nothing new; savvy fly anglers have known the delights of catching bucketmouths for longer than anyone can recall. The novelty is that two prominent fly rod companies, Scott and Sage, now have produced tournament-legal products – rods less than 8 feet – with the specific intent to nudge the bass crowd, millions strong, into the fly market.”