Jay Engel, Founder

After retiring as a police officer of 20 years, Jay Engel decided he wanted to share his lifelong passion of fly fishing with others.  Jay has been an avid fisherman his whole life and recently took up the sport of fly casting.

While in conventional fishing the weight of the lure is used in order to achieve distance, fly casting utilizes the weight of the fly line to cast both short and long distances. A former rower, Jay likes to say that casting is to fishing as the rowing machine is to rowing.  While fly casting is a step towards perfecting the art of fly fishing, casting itself is its own sport entirely.

In May 2019, Jay graduated from the L.L.Bean Fly Fishers International Casting Instructor Preparation Course, given by world renowned caster Macauley Lord.  Jay is also currently pursing a CI (Casting Instructor) certification given by Fly Fishers International.

Jay started Saw Mill Fly Cast in November 2019, hoping to impart his passion for the sport of fly casting to beginning casters.  He sees fly casting as a sport for a lifetime, and after a few short lessons, casters can bring their new skills to water all around the world.

Jay strives to help children and adults with disabilities, as well as first responders and veterans suffering from PTSD.  Inspired by his autistic son and his career as a police officer, a profession in which trauma and stress related disorders are all too common, Jay aims to harness the healing power of fishing to help those in need.