Even a beginner can make roll casts by following the precepts of the Foundation Casting Stroke coupled with pantomime practice methods. The two keys to roll casting are proper timing and controlled application of energy.

The foundation casting stroke makes a solid starting point for the roll cast. It makes learning simple and uses your strong shoulder muscles, allowing maximum energy to be applied. In addition, once the foundation motion has become ingrained, it is an easy proposition to modify it to achieve whatever goals you need the roll cast to meet.

To make a roll cast, begin with the rod tip parallel to the water's surface. Lift your arm slowly and smoothly in a back-and-up direction until your hand is next to your face, allowing your wrist to tip back until the rod is at the one o'clock position (just like an overhead cast). It is critical that the line not be aerialized--it must slide smoothly across the water's surface until it hangs by your side. To prevent tangling the line on the rod, tip your rod arm slightly away from your body (just a few degrees). Once the line has stopped sliding toward you, make a karate-chop forward stroke to roll the line out in front of you (see animation above).

Because the line is held by water tension, extra down-and-forward acceleration will be needed in comparison to a standard overhead cast to achieve the same distance. That does not mean slapping the rod tip onto the water in a wild attempt to break surface tension. Rather, it means adding speed during the acceleration phase of the cast. Everything else remains the same.

The forward portion of the cast can be rolled into the air or across the water depending upon the rod tip's stopping position. Stop higher and you'll get an air-carried roll. Stop lower and you'll be rolling in a more water-based manner. A forward cast that is jerked forward or looped around in a non-committal arcing motion will result in line piling in front of you. I usually prefer to aerialize the forward porition of the roll cast as much as possible. This allows me to modify the cast (with a puddle, reach, hump, or other mend) as needed.

Shooting line with a roll cast is very similar to shooting line with an overhead cast. On the forward cast, line is shot immediately after the rod has stopped. Stopping the rod high (and thus aerializing the roll) will facilitate easier shooting. Allowing some line to slip through the guides as the rod is being raised on the "backcast" is an additional way to shoot line without having to rely completely on the aerialized forward cast.

It is also possible to haul on the forward cast portion of the roll, which results in greater distance and line speed than is achievable with normal methods. As with an overhead cast, the peak of the haul should come just as maximum energy is being transferred from rod to line (as close to the "stop" as possible).

In addition to shooting and hauling, the roll cast can also be drifted. By slightly accelerating the backcast portion of the roll, the belly of the line will move more swiftly up and back, traveling past you. As the line comes past, you simply continue to reach up and back (the drift). Make the forward cast before the line falls completely to the ground or water. This modification not only "cleans" more line off of the water, but allows for a longer acceleration phase on the forward cast, adding more energy to the line. Coupling this with a haul and/or shoot can allow you to fire off impressive rolls.

An even more exaggerated form of this technique uses a thrusted backcast, resulting in all but a few feet of line being aerialized. This is really just a variation of a Forward Spey, and when combined with forward haul-and-shoot, you have the potential to roll cast an entire fly line.

The roll cast is not limited to simply presenting the fly. One of its most common uses is the roll cast pick-up. This technique is used when excessive slack or a full-sink or sinking-tip line makes pick-up difficult. A quick roll cast will straighten a pile of slack and help lift submerged line to the surface, allowing you to then make a normal aerialized pick-up (or a second roll cast) to present the fly.

The roll cast also comes into play when casting up-current to spooky fish that won't tolerate line spray or false-casting. Rather than casting at and over the fish, you feed line down-current until the length needed for reaching the fish is achieved (or enough line is out to comfortably shoot the rest). At that point, you make a down-current roll cast, stopping high to aerialize the line. As soon as the roll is complete (but before the line falls back to the water), you turn and make one precise up-current cast to the fish. This tactic reduces line spray over the fish, and allows for only a single cast to be made.

The roll cast is truly a "must-have" technique. It not only is the key to unlocking many difficult situations, but its versatility extends beyond simply presenting the fly. Learn to use the many facets of this technique and you'll soon be rolling on your way to more fly fishing success.

Jason Borger is a Virtual Flyshop Contributing Editor. Visit his web site for more information.