Even on the big boats we fish these days, space in the cockpit can still be a problem. We fish mostly stand-up tackle with our rods at the ready in the aft rod holders on the chair arm and with the chair’s footrest removed. The problem with this setup comes into play once we get a fish on. The two chair rods could impede the angler and crew from moving from side to side between the chair and transom while fighting a fish because they sit at a pretty low angle.
To keep these rods out of the way without moving them to another location, I use a trigger snap and some bungee cord looped around the forward end of the chair arm. To make the rig, form a loop in the bungee using a stainless-steel hog-nose ring. Loop the bungee around the chair arm and then pull the rod to the upright position. Adjust and cut the bungee to fit, then attach the snap with another hog-nose ring. After we hook up, the crew simply pushes the rod upright and snaps it in place. A quick opening of the snap puts the rod right back in place after the release. The bungee and snap hang harmlessly out of the way on the chair arm while not in use.
