Gorge Fly Shop Blog: OPST - Olympic Peninsula Skagit Tactics

Most of the Fly Fishing industry moves along day to day, year after year following a standardize path of success. Somewhat boring and true! There comes a time when every product starts to look the same and your vision gets blurred. Just when you're about to schedule an eye exam something new comes into focus and you reach a conclusion that a different way of thinking is all you needed to correct your vision.

To find a Different Way of Thinking all you have to do is look to the anglers who live their lives everyday doing what drives their passion. This is where you will find the latest franken flies, basement lines and a collaboration of out of the box thinking that happens with a drink in hand after long days on the river with like minded anglers forever reaching for the pursuit of perfection!

Ed Ward and Jerry French are exactly the kind of anglers to who are not afraid of a Different Way of Thinking and with that collaboration came OPST (Olympic Peninsula Skagit Tactics)

Two new OPST products got my attention real quick. Pure Skagit Commando Heads and Pure Skagit Lazer Line.

OPST Commando Heads -

OPST's Commando Heads represent the culmination of decades of innovation in Skagit casting by Ed Ward and Jerry French. Ed and Jerry were at the forefront of the "Skagit Revolution", and they have been refining skagit fishing techniques ever since. These are remarkably efficient, easily casts and enjoyable for the simple reason that they are specifically designed for SAS (Sustained Anchor Systemology). The philosophy behind SAS is simple: The Skagit cast is a water base cast with the rod load coming from the tension between the water surface and the line. As Such a sustained anchor cast where the fly remains stationary until the final power stroke is the most efficient form of casting. Our lines are shorter than traditional skagit lines and perform exceedingly well with a continuous "out and around" casting stroke. There is no pause before the final stroke and the cast is one continuous motion. Pure Skagit lines take beginning casters and make them effective. They take experienced casters to a whole new universe of casting pleasure. Our Commando heads excel on conventional two hand "Spey" rods but are optimized for shorter switch rods from 10 -12 foot.

But where these lines really get interesting is in single hand casting. We have taken two handed casting theory, traditionally associated with steelhead and salmon and applied it to the micro end of the spectrum. Now you can skagit cast and swing flies for everything from sea run cutthroat trout to smallmouth bass to panfish with rods as light as a 3 weight, and as short as 6 foot. The same principals of sustained anchor and water load apply. You can haul or not, back cast or not, roll cast, skagit cast, just about whatever you want to do, these lines will do it and they will fly off your rod tip.

Commando Head Specs -

SKU	Head Weight	Length	Color	Sink Rate
PS-150	150gr	12ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-175	175gr	12ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-200	200gr	13.5ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-225	225gr	13.5ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-250	250gr	13.5ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-275	275gr	13.5ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-300	300gr	15ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-325	325gr	15ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-350	350gr	15ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-375	375gr	15ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-400	400gr	16.5ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-425	425gr	16.5ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-450	450gr	18ft	Sauk Blue	Float
PS-475	475gr	18ft	Sauk Blue	Float

Lazer Line -

Olympic Peninsula Skagit Tactics Pure Skagit Lazer Line is the slickest running line out there. This is a line for those of us who love to launch a cast, sit back, maybe eat a sandwich while the line rushes out of the guides and pulls line off the reel as is comes tight. Lazer Line is hydrophobic, extremely durable, consistent over a broad range of temperatures and virtually impervious to memory. It features a slight, calculated stretch that allows for extremely sleek and strong knots. This stuff will rock with your Scandi head as well. We searched far and wide for the perfect running line and knew we could do better than what was on the current market. Pure Skagit Lazer Line is quickly becoming the favorite running line of fisherman all over the world...Find out why!

Features -

50 meters
Hydrophobic
Exceptional durability
Consistent performance in varying temperate conditions
No permanent Memory
High Visibility
Beautiful Knots
Calculated stretch

Specs -

SKU	Diameter	Line Size	Color	Total Length
RL-01	0.405mm	25lb	HiVis	50 meters
RL-02	0.435mm	30lb	HiVis	50 meters
RL-03	0.470mm	35lb	HiVis	50 meters
RL-04	0.520mm	40lb	HiVis	50 meters
RL-05	0.570mm	50lb	HiVis	50 meters

Check out this video for a great explanation of SAS

In conclusion if your skagit cast is getting a bit vision blurred before you call your optometrist set your sites on a Different Way of Thinking! It might just be what the doctored ordered...