Avid Carp is a brand label that has somehow managed to avoid my notice since my return in 2011. I own just one piece of kit which bears their logo, a Combi Mat , which my Brother-in-law got me as a Christmas present several years ago now. Nash, Korda and Fox dominate my carp angling purchases, although there are several other companies who's gear I'll use without hesitation, such is the quality available in this huge market place, that is the carp industry.
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The very simple, yet effective, logo of Avid Carp.
My "Combi Mat" might not be state of the art carp tackle, but it does the job and
is also brilliantly suited for unhooking large pike. |
So what's the big deal with the Avid Carp thing? Well; I've been watching hours of carp related offerings on You-tube and stumbled across
Next Level Carp Fishing - Vol 3, an Avid Carp production. I am not watching this stuff to be entertained, I want to be educated. I already know what a carp looks like, I've seen a bent fishing rod and the final moments of a successful battle - the prize being drawn over the waiting net. For the individual involved - bloody amazing and fantastically exciting! But I'm not that guy and I just want to know how and why? Is there some detail, some smidgen of advice, which might assist me in my quest for that split cane thirty? I don't want advice on specific fisheries either. I am fully aware of several commercials which are capable of producing thirty pound plus carp; all within twenty - five minutes of my front door (driving!) No, what I am seeking is that little snippet which I might just be able to adapt/adopt to suit my purpose. and may just have found one? It should assist me in my efforts when employing the "blow-back rig" (that I will be using) later in the year when more confident of introducing larger quantities of bait. I've experimented with tying this rig and have already come up with a small tweak which improves my own confidence. I will spend some more time tank testing the presentation and, hopefully, get a few shots to show what I'm attempting to do.
I'm not a member of any carp (angling) related forum group, don't use Twitter or Facebook, so might well be completely off the mark here? I have no more chance of original thinking, where carp are concerned, than I have of re-inventing the wheel! I would like to think that it is universally accepted that location is the number one factor in successful specimen angling, bait, rigs and tackle coming a long way behind in their relative importance?
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My friend, and ex Tring Syndicate member, Richie Francis made comment about the carp's limited ability to learn from experiences. Rigs and baits will have a given period of effectiveness in heavily pressured situations before the fish suss them out and deliberately avoid/ignore them. Fortunately I am not conducting my campaign on such a venue, yet there is still a fair amount of angling pressure, and I have no idea as to the methods, tactics or baits of the other anglers. From what I have seen there a few guys who are extremely cute, know the score, and are going about their own projects in a very focused manner. I cannot allow them to impact upon my tactics unless I have information which suggests duplication. I'm perfectly happy that they go their way and I go mine. If they are more successful - hey ho! Crazy thing is - none of us speak to each other, we'll probably never know?
It was around thirty-five years ago that I started to deliberately target carp and, to be perfectly honest, I don't think that much has changed, despite an eighteen year gap! If you are prepared to find an edge, that unlocks the code, carp remain fairly easy fish to catch. I readily accept that this glib statement might wrangle a few die-hards. After all my PB remains firmly stuck in 1984 - 23 lbs 14 oz!
I have absolutely no doubt that, should I take my kit across to Cottington Lakes for a session, I could improve upon this particular statistic dramatically. It's no longer what drives me. I don't want yesterday's news - I seek to make my own headlines, in an angling parlance? I am looking at the conundrum from the opposite direction. I'm attempting to think (?) like a carp and adapt my bait presentation accordingly. I agree that it's a weird concept but feel sure that there's plenty more scope to explore as the project unfolds.
Hi Dyl. My carp pb remains locked in 1980 at 15lb's 6oz. Taken on floating crust one morning on the GUC. Come to think of it, my very first carp was also taken on floating crust.
ReplyDeleteFunny about carp being able to learn. We all know about how they learn how to avoid situations which lead to capture. That is what most carp appear to do. Of course there's those other carp which do the total opposite and simply regard the outings to the bank as an occupational hazard.
I once caught a carp with that attitude. My own attitude was it was a waste of bait the second time I caught it. That's because I suspected it had eaten every item of bait and nothing else had.
So much for a pre-baiting program.
Ric,
DeleteCheers for the comment and my apologies for the tardy response - my time is not my own at present. PB's stuck in the 80's is a growing theme amongst our generation, along with a total bewilderment at the "carp obsessed" direction freshwater angling has gone? My feelings about modern angling are very much tinged with sadness, because none of today's anglers will ever have the chance of experiencing the thrills of discovery, the huge characters and the camaraderie that existed just being part of the "Tring thing" during that most magical period.
If my gut feeling is right, then modern carp anglers are like sheep, anything new and they're all over it like a rash! Absolutely nothing wrong with what they were doing previously, but fashion statements are more important than results? With this as my basis, I am happy to use baits which are no longer in vogue - they didn't blow, they got hyped by another brand/flavour. Still too early in the year to expend any energy on pre-baiting, just turn up, find a fish or two and try to set a trap. This campaign on The Royal Military is great fun, the venue home to huge variety of wildlife and, being right on a public right of way, a wonderful mix of humanity also sharing the facility.
Trust all is well with you and yours? - Dyl