Pete's Fishing Blog

So the first round of the Barston B&J winter league series was to be an interesting round, the weather was warm, the lake had very little wind on it and the temperature a barmy 17 degrees!After meeting Diddy on the carpark with his mate Shaun it was time to get the bait sorted and the groundbait done.
I was given a little help with the mix that would suit the day and forgive me but I shall not be putting it on here at this time...too many people fishing it and if its the only edge ive got over these professionals then im keeping it as close to my chest as possible.....well ok then it was a bag of leam and a bag of Van Dan Eynde Superlake...cant keep a secret me.....Plus the waggler mix which was exactly the same apart from a little fishmeal in the mix.I decided on 1 pint of joker, 1 pint of chopped worm and half a pint of casters to fill my bait limit, and alongside the 12 litres of gear I was also about to launch at the lake.

So bait all prepared and ready mixed with the use of a drill and large whisk (never be without one) it was time for the draw. Walking in to Barstons clubhouse Diddy relieved me of my pools money and promptly made the draw which placed me on the road bank on peg 94. Not the best of areas as you have to compete with the point a little further to your left. But fish have fins.

So at least I didnt have a long walk ahead of me and I could pretty much park behind the peg, so a relaxing set up was all that was needed right? Think again.....long and hard.
At least I was in good company with Darren Cox to my left, Will Raison to his left, Lee Kerry further up, Des Shipp and Rob Middleton to my right...hmmmm...star struck much?

Darren immediately asked If I was well and are we having that pound on the side.....of course I couldnt say no and I expected a right battering. At least I would be able to see what they do differently.
The match is fished to Cips rules, so this means the match will be 4 hours in duration, (a little twist on the rules) 13m pole limit, float only and you get a 10 minute pre baiting period. So, I chose to have 2, 13m lines one directly in front of me and one as far right as I could push the pole. I also had a 7m line slightly to my left where I would put chopped worm and caster and look for a bonus perch or even an F1 if there was a bold sucker about.
I also decided on a waggler set up aswell, comprising of a Cralusso Rocket Lite, 3 number 8 droppers and a small swivol to attach the hooklength of some 15 inches to a size 16 hook.This was complemented with a Spro Tamas Walther Bream rod and a Spro Red Arc Reel filled to the brim with 4lb Ultima Power Steel.

I set up 6 top kits of my new Colmic X5000 match pole, 3 on the 13m pole line, which varied from 0.20grm with a lightly strung out shotting pattern to a size 20 gamma green set 2 inches off the bottom, 0.08 hooklength and 0.10mm mainline to a size 3 elastic. A 0.4grm sensas desque float, with a bulk of number 10s and 2 droppers to a 0.09mm hooklength, 0.10mm mainline and an 18 gamma black hook set an inch off bottom matche d a slip number 5 through 3 sections. This would give me the chance to get an F1 or bonus skimmer out. The last rig on this line was set 2 inches over depth, featured a sensas abbeville 0.60grm float, 0.12mm mainline to a 0.10mm hooklength and a 16 milo T213 hook. This was all connected to a number 6 elastic through 3 sections for when or if the bonus fish arrived.My far right hand 13m line would be fished with a 4x14 Garbolino DC11 float attached to 0.12mm mainline and 0.10mm hooklength again to a 16 Milo T213 hook. This was used in conjunction with J Range Lastix 3-6 hollow through 3 sections. This was my big fish line and would be fed with a fishmeal groundbait and worms.

My 7m line incorporated exactly the same set up as the big fish rig but used a 4x12 float instead as it was around a foot shallower just down the shelf in front of me. This would be fed with worm and caster thrown in by hand.Right, 20 mins to go and I havnt even taken care of groundbait and the joker yet...doh! So another quick blitz with the drill and whisk to make sure all the groundbaits were fine, then I separated the joker with dry leam using a sieve. I then added 75% of the joker to my initial balling in mix, as I really didnt want to re-feed later in the match. I added a handful of minced worm and some casters just in case the bigger fish turned up. I wanted the fish to get the fish feeding confidently with plenty of bait available. When it gets cold though....things change! That was that, 10 double handed balls were made for the 13m line.

The waggler mix recieved a few bloodworm from my hooker pack and just a pinch of joker alongside a good helping of worm and caster. I then created some 26 sausages for catapulting onto the waggler line 35 yards in front of me. Give it to them......Just as I had finished doing this the first call was shouted to pre-bait...this is were it went all WRONG!So I cupped in my 10 balls of groundbait from some 3 feet off the water top make a spladoosh, everyone else around me all elected to chuck theirs in. So it was time to get the catapult out. I chucked my unbaited waggler rig into the spot I had clipped up and had 3 turns of the reel before it settled.

The first sausage slammed into my hand.....fook me that hurt and I managed to spray myself and the swim with bits of groundbait, worm and smashed caster....nice.The second sausage fell woefully short, the third well past it............shall I go home now?
The next 5-6 balls all landed where they should, then I managed to yet again slam another into my hand. I was ready to go home now.
Another 4 balls followed somewhere in the general direction of the float and that was it I had, had enough of that game. Now pay attention!I picked up my waggler rod and baited the hook with 3 bloodworm and a segemnt of worm and then made a lovely cast just where the last 4 balls had landed, the float sat up proud from the water as the dropper shot registered and slowly sank the carbon tip to its hollow bristle......dink down it went, a strike was met with the firm yet distinctive nod of a large skimmer...YES!

I played this fish very carefully back to the bank and managed to land it, perfectly hooked, what a start...or so I thought.
Darren then said to me, "Pete....that dont count mate....!)
"Pardon"
"That dont count mate you have to wait for the all in.....)

Oh rollox I had just caught an illegal fish in the first CIPS rule match of the league in full view of half the england squad.....dammit.

I was gutted, the fish had to be put back and at around 2lb+ it made me feel ill. I was that distracted I didnt hear Darren call the all in 30 seconds later.
Let me tell you I felt a right muppet.

Darren was very good though and said not to worry, we all make mistakes and at least it was an honest one. Just dont do it again he laughed.I managed to get a little composure back to re-bait the waggler again and chucked out to the same area, Iw aited some 5 minutes and missed the bite....my mind was elsewhere as Im sure you can appreciate.
I wound back in, checked the bait and re-cast.
Another bite was met with resistance as a near 8oz roach was netted and at least this one counted.Again another look on the waggler produced my First LEGAL skimmer after a another 10 minutes and at around a 1lb 8oz it settled me a little. At least ive got the 2lb in the net.............

I spent the next 10 mins on the wag with one more bite and nothing else to show for my efforts, this was time for me to go on the pole line and see if the roach had settled. Will had around 8 roach in the net with Darren having 4 and a skimmer. I baited up the heavier roach rig and was immmeditaly into dumpy little samples averaging some 3 oz, good weight builders. I did try my big fish line over the top when it went quiet and was rewarded with a perch nudging 1lb!
The roach came quite regular for me and with the odd look on the big fish line after all I could catch was roach...no bad thing I suppose.
I did try the waggler although even with repeated casts and more feed over the top I didnt get another fish off this line.About 3 hours into the match the roach all but dissappeared and even Will and Darren were struggling. I decided it was time to look over the big fish line and sit and wait for the big fish. Another 2 sausages of groundbait and generous helping of chopped worm went in on this line. I then baited up with a dendro tail and waited...and waited and waited....15 minutes and finally the float slid under, I struck and around 10 yards of hollow elastic streamed out to the centre of the lake, a spirited yet short fight ensued as a near 1lb 8oz F1 was netted, again rebaited I dropped in on the smae line, I had 20 minutes to go before the float went under and strike was met with a the resistance of a near 2lb skimmer....perfect, had these moved in?

Er no!

I wasted oo much time waiting for the skimmers and onlyu had one more liner before the all out was called.What a day, I felt a little deflated from the initial mistake and it affected my match as I just couldnt focus to be honest. It played on my mind a lot!

Darren was admitting to some 8lb and Will had admitted to around 10lb. I was sure I would have 10lb and might just do Darren. I was suprised to weigh in over 17lb and was delighted with the performance. Darren was very gracious and kindly gave me his pound later in the clubhouse...thank you Darren, Im sure you will get it back next time!
Will weighed in 11lb, and I managed 4th in section...not bad at all!
The team was 5th on the day with Diddy managing 2nd in section...always reliable, I think he knows fish langauge...well you cant be that ugly and not be able too?
Well done again Ian......

Remember if you fish CIPS rules...wait for the all in!

Tight lines.