Let me start with some forthcoming dates

Let me start with some forthcoming dates: August 27th/28th Peregrine International Final Rutland September 4th England Loch-style National Bewl Water September 11th England Disabled Loch-style National Rutland Sept. 15th/16th/17th Hardy Final Rutland Nov27th –Dec5th World Fly-fishing Championships Australia Good luck to anyone who may be fishing in any of those events. I shall be at Rutland for the final of the Peregrine International Fly-fishing Competition – I am looking forward to some great fishing conditions and a fair final.What makes for a “fair” competition?This is a question that is often discussed at the various competition venues, and, like most other subjects that we discuss, it is one that can be most subjective. I know that I speak for a good many anglers when I say that huge bags of trout are not necessary to make for a good day’s fishing. Sure, we all like to have a good catch – especially if we are representing our association or club – but most anglers like to feel that they have worked out how to catch their trout: depth of fishing and choice of flies, made the right decision as to which area of the lake they have opted to fish, and then made the most of their opportunities. If they then return with a bag just above the average for the field, then generally they are happy.Fresh lorry-loads of stock fish don’t help to make a fair match, as you find that quite a few anglers catch large bags of fish, whilst those anglers not in the know, or those who have been unable to practise, will go out and aim for an average “bag”.Lately there has been a tendency for anglers to suggest that, unless they have caught their limit by half way through a match, they have had a poor day. This has something to do with the modern stocking policy and a lot to do with the amount of time anglers now spend on the water prior to the big competitions. The serious competition anglers practise in teams. They build up a picture of where the fish are more densely stocked, where the fish are likely to be feeding at certain times of the day and what methods are likely to catch the fish. All anglers have the opportunity to practise but, obviously, the closer that an angler lives to a venue the more likely it is for them to be able to get out in a boat. Local knowledge is certainly a great help – you can recall things that may have happened in similar conditions in previous seasons, but it can also work against you.I recall a match on Chew Valley several years ago. All of the local teams were confident in their approaches to the styles of fishing and the tactics that they thought were required to see them through to the International Final of the old Benson and Hedges Championships. What happened on the day was that Dave Shipman and his team went out on the water and employed the tactics that they would use on Rutland for recently stocked rainbows – i.e. ripping back mini-lures. They totally dominated the results, and few of the local teams made it through to the final. So be warned!Back to the issue of fairness! There is great discussion over the debate about stocking trout prior to competitions. The “older” generation of competition angler hates the idea of there being recent stockies. One school of thought suggests that the addition of a few stockies livens up the resident fish. This may indeed be the case, but I am of the opinion that the greater the time lapse between stocking fish and the competition, the better. I have witnessed the stocking of fish into a top competition venue just the evening prior to a competition. I was not fishing in the match. I can tell you for sure that anglers at the weigh-in the following evening were not too happy – especially those who did not do well. The feeling at this particular venue was that this act of stocking fish on the evening before the match provided the locals with a great advantage, as they knew where the recent fish had “run”. Make up your own mind! Over the years, rumours have circulated about isolated incidents of “cheating” in competition angling. One rumour suggested that an angler actually took the fish that he weighed-in along with him that morning! I find such suggestions very difficult to grasp, as all of the match anglers that I have encountered have been so honest. Occasionally you meet the “ultra secretive” type, who doesn’t like to tell you about where he caught fish in practise, or on which fly he has just taken a fish. But, the vast majority of anglers that I speak to will happily tell me what they have been catching on. I am most happy to tell people about the flies that I have been catching with, as I believe that if the conditions on the day that I am fishing suit my style, then I am very confident that I will catch more that most of the other anglers out there. This approach is the one taken by most anglers. You have to have a certain amount of self-belief! Cheating is not an issue in Competition Trout Angling – and may it remain that way.I think I would sum up a fair competition as being one in which most of the anglers catch a few fish, say 2-5, whilst a few “get the method right” and catch 6-8 fish. I am not worried about catching 12 fish or “double limits”. Most matches these days have a “time bonus” system in which you have weight added to your catch according to the time at which you complete your limit; usually this is done at a ratio of 2lbs per hour. I have heard a few people come off various lakes this season and claim that the fishing had been really tough. On asking them how few they had caught, they have suggested that it took them until 12.30 or 1.00pm to get the 12 fish that they were allowed to catch. There is certainly a danger that an attitude like this won’t help our sport in the long run. I have heard my friend John Horsey reply to people who have seemed so depressed about the length of time it took them to catch their limits that it often takes him all week to catch a limit on Chew!!!The finals are now all on the horizon. This week sees the Peregrine at Rutland. If you have followed these articles you will know that I help John Horsey who is the organiser of this event. I have had a lot of fun going to the various venues in the U.K., and I am looking forward to renewing some old acquaintances at Rutland. I am also looking forward to fishing on Rutland as this time of the year it can be at its best, but we don’t get too many spare hours to spend on the lake. I hope John is still prepared to travel up to Rutland early on the day before, so that we can get our preparations completed, then take a few hours afloat.The final is to be fished over two days. On Friday the fishing will be done into the evening – always an exciting time on Rutland. I can remember some great evenings afloat there in the old B&H finals! Unfortunately, it always seemed to be best at the ends of the arms, and just when the trout started moving really well the inevitable trip back to the harbour had to be started in order that you weren’t disqualified for being late. The weigh-in will be conducted and the competitors will be able to relax with a barbecue and a beer, discuss the successes and failures of the day and plan and plot the tactics for the next! There will be precious little time for sleep as the Saturday event starts at 6 o’clock in the morning. The weigh-in will take place, followed by a meal, and then the results will be announced. No doubt the competitors will hold heated debates as to why they did or didn’t win, and the ones that got away will get bigger and bigger as the afternoon progresses. Rutland has been an interesting venue this season. There have been sufficient numbers of fish at the ends of the arms to warrant the drive. The fish in the basin have had a tendency to “switch-on” and “switch-off” at odd times. One of our Chew regulars, Neil West, stuck it out at the dam in the “repecharge” of the Hardy English final. At 4.30 he had only one fish in the boat. By the end of the match he had added another 10! Most other anglers had left that part of the lake by the time the fish “switched-on”. A similar thing happened in my last outing at Chew. A bright windy day meant that the trout were not really feeding. I caught a couple on dries mid afternoon when a few clouds came over and the wind dropped for a few minutes. But most of the match was spent scratching around, swapping lines and trying different areas. Those anglers who found themselves by the North Shore or the corner of the dam for the last hour had great sport! Several fishermen caught five fish in that time. Hence the weigh-in took much longer than it was anticipated, and those of us with 2 or 3 fish ended up nowhere. The fish will be up in the water this month. Provided we don’t get strong winds and the temperature doesn’t drop too suddenly, then the floating line will be the one to use. Watch out for fish turning on to fry. They did so with a vengeance last year on Chew though, as I was in New Zealand, I could only get to hear about it on e-mails from friends or read about it in magazines. I have tied up some of the tube flies and huge floating fry patterns that were so successful on the fry feeders, so I for one will be looking forward to the fish slamming into those shoals.Tight lines – especially to all finalists!

Martin Cottis