The beginning of the year is often the toughest phase of the year for us lure anglers. Our beloved predators can enjoy their deserved rest and an alternative is often hard to find. For me, one way to avoid the closed season frustration is to go to a trout lake. When a big trout inhales the spoon just below the surface and then leaps out of the water with an impressive jump, zander, perch and pike are for a moment forgotten.
At the same time, however, I am reluctant to get my own rod for the fishing with spoons and softlures. I use this technique far too little to get myself a special rod and reel combo. At the beginning of the year, however, I came across the Freestyle FSi with a casting weight of 0.5-4gr. A rod that is actually intended for light wobblers and small softlures. After the first test, I ordered it as a UL all-rounder. Paired with the 1000 Freestyle Skillz, the combo should easily take part in every area of the UL fishing discipline.
About the rod: The FSi is definitely a bit stiffer than most of the rods that I have otherwise seen on the trout lake. I also have to emphasize that it is of course still a rod with a casting weight of 4gr. Spoons of 1-3gr can easily be cast a very good distance and even smaller trout put a bend in the rod.
It is particularly important for me to choose the right line. I fished with the 0.08 Freestyle Ballast Braid. This line is insanely fine and any lure flies away like a rocket. At the same time, a fine line also means that it needs to be handled with more care. The action of the FSi ensures that the hardest head movements and strongest loads are cushioned by the rod and that we can optimally exploit the advantages of the thin line.
However, a thin line also means that it needs an absolutely reliable and jolt-free reel drag. I have that with the Freestyle Skillz 1000 and thus also the last link in the chain in complete. Finely adjusted, it slows down any run of even larger trout and ensures a sweat-free fight. So good that even as a slightly advanced beginner I could get first place in a Spoon event.
Now the time for fishing trout lakes is over for me and the domestic predator season is starting again. For the FSi, the break has definitely not come yet. Small wobblers like the Ikiru Crank or the Freestyle Hogs on the Twitching Weight can be fished with the same fun as the spoons on the trout lake. That was exactly the reason why I got it.
Florian Engelke
