I fish a lot at Farmoor as its my nearest reservoir. For most of the season my Greys rod is perfect but for Autumn/Winter fishing, when I need a bit more distance on sinking lines it lacks a bit of oomph.

I recently picked up a 10ft Airflo Super Stik Competition Special. This is the second iteration of the Super Stik and the competition special comes as a four-piece with a slightly stiffer action.

I tried it out on a recent trip to Farmoor and was very pleased with how it casts the heavier lines. I have the Airflo Fortyplus DI7 and DI3 and this rod can really hoof those lines out. The stiffer action takes a bit of getting used to but with a single/double haul and only a few false casts I could get an extra 10-15 yards distance which can make all the difference when the fish are holding further out.

I tried it with my floating and midge tip lines and its much less forgiving but that’s not really what I bought it for. It’s noticeably heavier than my Greys so it might get a little tiring on the arms after a full day.

It has a lovely olive finish, rod markers to help when putting it together and a rod tube. This is a decent rod for the heavier side of fly fishing and is very good value for money at around £160.