I hate carrying my fly rod in a hard case to and from the boat. Once I’m at the boat I have to find a place big enough to stow the case or walk back to the car to put it away. And slipping wet fly-rod sections into my case for the ride home usually ends up causing a mildew bloom.
The problem is that you must keep your rod sections together so their combined strength will prevent breakage. None of the many solutions to this problem seems to work very well. Rubber bands break and are easily lost, while Velcro straps have to be made and wear out rather quickly.
I once saw how Marsha and Lenny Bierman use ponytail holders to secure coils of mono for pitch baiting. These same holders can also be used to hold your fly-rod sections together. Just wrap the holder around the handle and between the two guides closest to the butt on the top section.
The plastic balls on the holders fall to the bottom of your pocket, making them hard to lose, and since they cost next to nothing, it’s no problem when they wear out. I do, however, like to replace the metal crimp connecting the plastic balls to the elastic cord with a knot.
