How are fly anglers breaking all of these rods?

[Sylvaneous]

I broke the tip TWICE on my Helios 3 Euro rod, 10.5 ft, 3 wt. in a 2 year span. 1 time I swear it just happened. I was "casting" (nothing in Euro nymphing has much to do with what I've known as fly casting) while steelhead fishing and noticed it acted weird. Never felt any collision with a branch. Looked around for what I would have hit. Mystery.
It hasn't since, but it has established an unfortunate precedent.
Syl.

 

[KELORGO]

I was fishing Grand Lake Stream up in Maine a couple of years ago standing out in the middle of the wide open stream. Suddenly, my rod impacted something overhead that felt like a frozen turkey. Rod didn’t break, but that was one low flying heron and I’m sure he had sore ribs for a while. Just goes to show how easy it is to break a rod through no fault of your own!

 

[Duriensbane]

Almost 1 year into picking up fly fishing and ive broken one rod tip by accident. On the outing i took 2 rods, one for dries the other for nymphs, laid the dry rod down to tie on nymphs and stepped on the tip because i was looking for light to see my tippet. Would have been fine if i wasnt wearing cleats, but i knew i broke it the second i heard the snap because there were no sticks near me at the time.

 

[troutbert]

Almost 1 year into picking up fly fishing and ive broken one rod tip by accident. On the outing i took 2 rods, one for dries the other for nymphs, laid the dry rod down to tie on nymphs and stepped on the tip because i was looking for light to see my tippet. Would have been fine if i wasnt wearing cleats, but i knew i broke it the second i heard the snap because there were no sticks near me at the time.

Just take one rod on the stream. Keep it simple.

 

[Duriensbane]

Just take one rod on the stream. Keep it simple.

I do now, and this is a while after i broke that tip, i got stuck in an area between a creek and a path that was full of briars with a 9ft streamer rod and my 11ft euro rod. For now im just taking my euro rod with a different spool with reg fly line on it.