Because there are so many motions involving your two hands when double hauling, the technique is difficult to learn while casting. The method I have developed to the double haul allows the average person to learn the technique within 15 minutes; some students have learned it in five minutes.

The method is described in five steps, but here are a few additional tips. Practice on grass rather than pavement or to avoid damaging your fly line. Make side casts low to the ground, not vertically. Make sure that your line-hand follows your reel and that your two hands are no more than 12 inches apart.

Try not to haul more than about one inch. If you make the moves correctly, the line will zip back behind you. As the line falls to the grass behind you, your hands should remain within 12 inches of each other.

Analyze the backcast before making a forward cast. It is vital during this learning session that you move ever so slowly back and forth prior to making the haul and speed-up-and-stop.

Most people have trouble coordinating their forward cast with their haul, but if you stick with it, it will soon come. Continue this exercise until you are hauling correctly. Once you feel you have it, try false-casting and making a double haul. If you have problems, stop and do the exercise on the grass again.

To further improve your double haul, use just your rod tip. Working with a short rod magnifies any casting flaws. As you learn to make the brief speed stroke and haul simultaneously, you'll find your cast improving. Improving Your Double Haul Watch a hundred fly casters who use the double haul under different fishing conditions. Rarely will they change the speed of their line-hand on the haul. When you haul with the line-hand, you accelerate the rod tip. The faster the tip accelerates and stops, the farther the line can travel. Most fly fishers make all their hauls at the same speed.

To make longer casts, most casters put more force into their rod-hand instead of concentrating on increasing the speed of their hauls. Consider the double haul to be like a gear shift. When you need more speed, change gears and increase the speed with your haul. Don't increase the length of the haul, just its swiftness.