I love surf fishing but dont do it often because of the lack of distance on my casts So i just fish the jetties instead.  I dont have any surf casting rods anymore but my dad recently gave me a new penn 706z and i started thinking about surf fishing again.

what can i do to get longer casts like 75-100 + yards.  When i used to to surf fish more often i used 12' beef sticks with daiwa df100a reels.  Or is getting a kayak inevitable?  By the way i fish at south padre island, Tx and most of the time i cast against the wind :(

What are you trying to cast?  Typically you gotta find that sweet spot for each rod.  Could be 1.5 oz, could be 4 oz.  Are you casting lead and bait or lures?  Stupid question, but do you know how to surf cast for distance?  Seems like there's a bit of an art to it (one that I haven't quite figured out myself).  What's your target species?  Being in Texas, it seems like a lot of people surf fish for sharks down there.  If that's the case, then a kayak is a great idea.  Much easier to yak out a fish head and some weight than to try to heave it.  Hell, you could always just swim it out  .  

I have a 12 ft rod for surf fishing.  Most of the time I use a 3 oz lead weight and it easily goes 75+ yards.  I also wade out to waist deep to throw so I don't hook beach walkers.  I use a Penn ssv7500 spinning reel with 30 lb test.

http://www.breakawayusa.com/

this...i use a 12' Shimano socorro

I have several rods. Harrington 11 and 12's, Fenwick, All-Star.
All of them between 10.5 - 12.  Both casting and spinning.
Reels - Penn Squidders, Jigmasters, Van Staal, Diawa, Shimano.
I now use braid. Power Pro 80#. It allows much more line capacity on the spool.
You'll need to use the line a lot before it loosens up and becomes soft.
Mono has a lot of spring in it.

you would be surprised at what is only 10 feet off the beach in like 3 feet of water

Very very true but each beach is different.. I use 12' all star rods with Penn squall15 reels. I can easily cast 150yards with 4oz rigs ok I got to pimp my new ride...

coworker who is HUGE into fishing and surf fishing would tell me tales of being at the beach and pulling a decent sized fish out and the other guys would say "where the hell did you get that???!?" and he would say " under your daughters feet"



 

100% this!!!!!!

youtube 'surfcasting' and 'pendulum'

it'll blow your mind...

I used to fish off the beach quite a bit. The pendulum cast is by far the best option for distance. As many people recommend, practice it in a large field multiple times so you don't waste your time at the beach. Another point worthy of mention is where to cast. Distance is typically not the deciding factor in successful surf fishing. Mainly with bait fishing, you want to cast where the water is most disturbed. For example, clam shells are broken and opened where the waves crash and collects in an area where the water current becomes cyclical. This area is usually where the white starts to form on a wave. Because this area is a feeding frenzy for most fish you will be trying to catch, this is often times the best place to cast. However, if you're fishing for shark, bluefish, or other various types of fish, this is not the case. For sharks, generally the further the better. For bluefish, look for the infamous bunker frenzy or seagulls congregating. You will go home empty handed numerous times- it's inevitable. Just stay positive and enjoy the atmosphere.

I really like the John Holden easy cast. As the name implies, it's easy and safer to cast than the pendulum especially if there are others nearby.

I caught this beast about 20' out a month ago in the surf...