Left-handed fishing has been a point of contention, debate, and discord for centuries. Left-handedness, for that matter, has been grounds for ostracization from just about all aspects of civilized life. To date, people of the left-handed persona are still significantly limited in their options for tools, equipment, and everyday supplies. Left-handed anglers often find it difficult to find left-handed reels for this very same reason. In the spirit of normalcy and unification, it may be beneficial to consider some different options and opportunities.
Learning to fish
There is a growing philosophy that right-hand dominant anglers should learn to fish with left hand retrieve fishing reels. Why?
- Typically your dominant hand casts the lure
- Casting with your dominant hand will afford you more accuracy
- Your weaker or less coordinated hand would only be required to spin the handle
- A strong pull from a sneaky fish and your dominant hand will be more likely to keep control of the rod than your non-dominant hand
- Many people who are right-handed will cast with their right then switch the rod to their left hand, but using a left-handed reel would eliminate this unnecessary step.
The pros over at Bass Master have compiled an entire list of advantages to left-handed fishing.
Based on these circumstances the theory could be made that a left-handed angler should use a right-handed reel. This way, they will be casting with their left hand, their dominant hand, and reeling with their weaker hand. Many of the professional anglers have learned the advantages of this theory accidentally.
Traditionally, people are taught to fish with a very staunch regimen of steps:
- As a child, the budding angler will be given a children’s (spincast) pushbutton combo. The reel will, notoriously, be right-handed.
- Should the mechanical demands of spinning the handle with the right hand become too frustrating, the child may give up on fishing altogether or at least lose interest in the activity until later in life.
- If the child can adapt to the process of using a right-handed reel, she will progress up the line of gear until she reaches an “adult” reel. At this point, she will have the choice of a right or left reel.
Our experiences with these traditions and systems were as diverse as the options available to anglers and have lead to the questions we are presenting here, to you.
AJ is Left-Handed
Fishing styles of the time resulted in her learning to fish in a more traditionally right-handed fishing format. Being taught by right-handed anglers, she learned to cast with her right hand then switch the rod to her left hand to reel. This is a very common style of fishing that you will see among most professional and videoed anglers. Try as she might, AJ has never been able to relearn to cast in order to use her dominant hand. It is a common phenomenon with most kids that, should they learn this type of skill using a specific hand it will be exceptionally difficult if not impossible for them to learn to switch later in adulthood.
Kat is a bit less consistent
I, on the other hand, have a completely different combination of quarks. I did not learn to fish as a kid so I was left to a more open field of options when I actually started fishing. AJ tried to start me with a pushbutton combo…keyword being tried…Have you ever seen someone that can get a bird’s nest every cast with a pushbutton reel? AJ has…I was a natural! So I tried right-handed baitcasters. It was not as much of a catastrophe as the pushbutton fiasco. It was definitely not a success, though. My saving grace was when I discovered spinning reels.
My first spinning reel was a rather cheap combo we picked up at the local sports store. It was set up for right-handed retrieve and neither of us thought anything of it. After about an hour of fighting with the reel, getting some decent casts then struggling with trying to retrieve smoothly and accurately AJ let me in on a miracle. “You know you can switch the handle to the other side, right?”
Well, that was all it took. I found the key to fishing for me: Right-handed cast, left-handed retrieve. It’s like I talk about in “The Golden Rule of Fishing.” Once I was willing to experiment and search for the method that would work for me, I was able to find my system. Baby steps though. It was another year before I gave in to the notion that I could change up my methods with baitcasters. Once I finally got my first left-handed reel I discovered that I could actually fish about as well with a baitcaster as I do with a spinning reel.
Why is this significant?
We want you to learn from our experiences. It is our hope that you can experience our mistakes without having to actually go through these headaches yourself. From there you will, hopefully, be able to develop your own ideas and try your own experiments to find a system that works for you.
A system that works for you
This isn’t where you follow the status quo. You don’t have to do X-Y-Z because that’s what dad or husband does. We don’t expect or even want, you to simply follow our style because that’s what we’re telling you we do. What we want is for you to take all these options and make a system for yourself.
- Maybe you need to cast right-handed and retrieve left-handed
- It might be better for you to cast left-handed and retrieve right-handed
- Then again, you could be an angler that needs to cast right-handed, switch hands, then retrieve right-handed
- But, just for good measure, give another option a try. Cast left-handed, switch hands and retrieve left-handed.
Have you heard the saying “Left is right and right is wrong?” It is a theory among some anglers these days.
Three of these four methods will feel like you’re handling a jello-covered alien wiggling out of your grip to get back to a spaceship that you can’t see. One method will feel as if you are going to bat at the world series about to hit your 90th winning grand slam. Whichever method works for you is what you should do.
Choose wisely isn’t always the same as choosing what is socially considered “right”
The need to experiment is why we tell you to start with the less expensive options. Check out “A Woman’s Guide to Picking the Right Fishing Rod” and “Know Your Fishing Gear, Know Your Fishing Reel” to get a better understanding of what we mean when giving yourself room to experiment with these setups. I wouldn’t recommend making the same mistake I did. When I was starting out, everyone I saw fishing (TV, YouTube, and real-life) used a right-handed baitcaster so I got right-handed baitcasters. As I’ve mentioned, it took me a solid year or so to discover that all I had to do was switch to a left-handed reel to become successful at my chosen pastime. All told, I probably went through 5 different right-handed reels before I discovered all I needed to do was change hands.
Here’s the big point: AJ is left-handed, but she fishes a traditionally right-handed style. It’s what works for her. In sports, I am more commonly right-handed than left, but I flop around more than a striped bass on the bank unless I fish in a traditionally left-handed style. You will find what works for you if you are willing to let yourself experiment and try new things. Get set in your ways, or should I say traditional ways, and you will be more frustrated than happy.
