Thanks to Allan Bloch (Guideline) I had the – long waited – pleasure to test the new US made rods called REACTION from Guideline 2 weeks ago and truly a must have for a Salmon Junky. Its fast – relatively – and furious and a casting machine and makes long distance casting so easy even though I haven’t had a spey rod in my hands for 5 months. The rod feels so elegant to cast yet deep and powerful, precision or presentation its a chapter for itself, it shoots and turns over those Power Taper heads perfectly and get you exactly where you want to be.
My first reaction was that Lecie and Stinger just got married ! Both these rods have been my trusted followers for some years now. I was in Göteborg last Thursday where I met Leif Stävmo and I had to ask, Leif what have you done or what’s the secret behind this fantastic rod? “Well, Kåre; I think you kind of touched the essence of these rods in your header… You know I have been involved in our rod designs for so many years now and also had a small part in the development of the Stinger rods.
I figured that our incredibly popular LeCie rod actions and curves could be improved upon and given something extra if we got access to state of the art machinery, American rod building tradition and engineers willing to break new ground.
We have given these 4-piece rods a slightly deeper charge, making them react with a “slingshot” feeling from deep down, while maintaining stability and quick recovery in the tip half, enabling advanced Spey Casts of all kinds, while maintaining that very special “fishy” feeling.
“The Perfect Marriage” Guideline Reaction (a sneak preview)
These Reaction Rods have taken 2 years to complete and as it looks now, we will have the first rods on the market in May. The range is rather small and is made up from some of the most popular rod lengths and weight, but there are some absolute killers in the Series.. My personal favorites have to be the 13’7 #8/9 and the 14’8 #10/11. Those will make up the core of my salmon outfits for the coming seasons. I am sure others will find these and hopefully some of the others just as great for their fishing..”
My personal choice for this year salmon fishing will be the 13’7” #9/10 and perfect for my travel since it comes in 4 pieces. Recommended weight is from 33-37 grams, so I will most likely choose 33 grams. I always try to go as low as possible for optimal distance and presentation. The rod comes as both single and double handed rod, for me this years consideration will be the following:
13’7” | #7/8 | 4-pcs
13’7” | #9/10 | 4-pcs
14’8” | #9/10 | 4-pcs
14’8” | #10/11 | 4-pcs
GUIDELINE fly rods continues to surprise me and to prove themselves as innovative and in the outmost frontier of product development. Reaction will be in stores late April/May 2010.
Kåre Lundquist