Colne Valley angler re-union

Did you fish any of the Colne Valley waters in the 1980s and 1990s? Well if you did, Dougal Gray is organising a get-together at Harefield Lake, Denham, over the weekend of Friday 14th – Sunday 16th December. The event is likely to attract many of the famous faces of those times. Dougal told Carp-Talk, “Anglers can bivvy up at Harefield and fish with a BBQ planned for Saturday from around 1pm in the main Harefield car park with drinks afterwards in the Horse & Barge. I have arranged this so old friends can get together in a happy atmosphere, instead of only meeting at funerals which has so often happened lately”. For more information contact Dougal on 077890 597639.

Fox Guide To Modern Pike Fishing

This 180-page guide to Modern Pike Fishing, is the third book in the 'Fox Guide To' series. It is packed with guidance and information designed to help you catch pike in every conceivable situation. From rivers to reservoirs, fishing from bank or boat, using bait or lures, this book will be invaluable to beginners and the more experienced alike. Fox consultants Mick Brown and Dave Kelbrick, together with Max Cottis and other European consultants explain the rigs, lures and tactics that have put them at the top of their game. Full of step-by-step

Sequences and illustrations are in full colour, and it is designed to help you get the best from Fox products, use them responsibly and, above all, inspire you to want to go pike fishing

Fox Guide to Modern Pike Fishing is available now from the Carp-Talk shop for £11.99 + £3.00 p&p.

Champagne Offers

If you’re already fed up with all the talk of Christmas and can not wait for the warmer weather to return, perhaps you could take you mind off it all by treating yourself to a trip to France next year. You may have noticed over the last two months in Carp-Talk and Carp-Talk Xtra that la Fritterie has produced a number of 60's. Well, JLP Lakes are offering 10% off all bookings for 2008 on la Fritterie. Willow and Orchard Lakes. There are only a few weeks left but you can see the  available weeks by visiting: www.champagnecarping.com  or www.la-fritterie.com. If you see something you like then contact Lisa or Jeff on 07710523154 /0033 326410643. All bookings must be made and deposits paid by 24th Dec 2007 to get the 10% discount.

19 UK Forties

What an amazing week for big fish.

Featured in this week’s Carp-Talk

there are catch reports and pictures of 19 different UK winter forties. When you consider that there are far less anglers out on the bank at the moment, lakes around the country are obviously still fishing very well. If you’ve been out on the bank during the last few weeks and had a bit of a  result, not necessarily a forty (perhaps you’ve had a personal-best or an unbelievable haul), please send us the pictures. You never know you may even appear on the front cover. Pictures should be sent to carper@btconnect.com and you can find a catch report form at www.carptalk-online.co.uk

CEMEX Angling DVD

Keep your eyes out for a new DVD which will soon be available from either CEMEX Angling or the Carp-Talk shop. Titled Ultimate Quarry and presented by Jon Banister, and featuring Terry Hearn, Martin Locke, Jerry Hammond and many more top name anglers, it focuses

on the famous waters that come under the CEMEX Angling banner. There’s segments on Wraysbury 1, Kingsmead 1, Horton Church Lake, Yateley Match lake, plus Frimley Pit 3, and is a must if you’re wanting to fish the

CEMEX Angling waters. For more information contact CEMEX Angling on 01932 583630 or visit www.cemexangling.co.uk.

I’m getting a bit frustrated lately. I just can’t seem to get out on the bank!. Every time I plan a session something comes up and prevents me from going. The reasons why I can’t go are getting more and more ridiculous and if I don’t get back out there soon I think I may go mad. I’d planned to go down to a water in Lincolnshire for a bit of a session but as I write this I’m sat in the office in pain. Last week I had one of the scariest experiences of my life. I had a car accident. I can’t remember exactly what happened but I was driving along a road I drive twice a day, every day. I came round a corner and hit some mud at the side of the road and the car went out of control and started to snake about. I ended up going off the road at the far side. I went down a bank, through a hedge and then through a fence. The car rolled at some point and ended up upside down in a field. Once it stopped moving I didn’t know what condition I was in, or if I was even alive. I was suspended upside down by the seatbelt so I unclipped it and crawled out through a small hole in the broken window. I wasn’t really aware of what had gone on and as I looked back at my wrecked car I realised how lucky I was to be able to walk away from it. I had some cuts on my head and hands and I was bleeding quite badly. I also injured my neck, my arm and my ribs. The police and paramedics arrived soon after and sorted me out. When I crashed I was on my way to Jen’s (my girlfriends) house to go out with her and our friend Marge. I rang her as soon as I got out of the car, before 999 or my parents etc. (soppy, I know…). She was in a right panic and they came straight through to look after me. Just being there made things a lot better.

As I sat and reflected on what had happened I was just glad no one else had been in the car with me. It really shook me up and made me think about a few things. The emergency services all commented about how lucky I had been and that they have seen less severe accidents result in very badly injured people and even fatalities. After a couple of days recovering at home I got myself an awesome new car and was back at work. I had a few injuries and was very sore and stiff but at least I was alive. Events like this certainly make you think about things.

Looking back now I can see the lighter side of things and there were a couple of occurrences following my crash which brought a smile to my face. I had a crate of Smirnoff Ice in the boot, left over from a couple of days before. When I crashed all the bottles broke and went all over my car. I can imagine what the police were thinking when they saw me and my car stinking of booze! As I sat in the ambulance a policeman asked me when I’d last had a drink. I was in a bit of a daze and just automatically thought about the bottle of Fanta I’d just finished. When my reply was: “Err, about half an hour ago.” His eyes lit up and he got his breathalyser out. I realised what he meant and was pleased when the test proved I hadn’t been drinking!

I just hope I feel up to going fishing soon. I can’t at the moment as I’ve got cracked ribs quite bad

The end result of my accident

My awesome new car, I love it!

Carp-Talks own Chris Ball kept the visitors entertained all weekend

Edge Bait’s new hookbaits, keep an eye out for these!

The audience were engrossed in Team Korda’s talk

bruising and a trapped nerve in my back. I can’t hardly move or even breath without feeling it. Sleeping on a bedchair or attempting to cast would not be clever.

The Carp-Talk stand at Sandown-before the crowds descended upon us

Memories of summer - I really do need to get back out on the bank!

On a  brighter note I spent the weekend at The Carp Society’s Winter Show at Sandown Park. I was working on the Carp-Talk stand along with Ben Wales, Bev Clifford and Chris Ball. It was a busy weekend and I really enjoyed it. The hotel on Friday night was a bit mental though! One of the highlights of the weekend was seeing a couple of rather effeminate gentlemen

Micky Gray signing copies of his new book

doing the funniest, campest dance routine I’ve ever seen, they did it to Grease Lightening off the movie Grease and had all the moves. I couldn’t stop laughing for ages!

On a more carpy theme Micky Gray launched his new book ‘A Merry Old Dance’ at the show. After a quick flick through it looks an awesome read with some great stories.

I picked up a few new bits and bobs from a couple of bait companies. Keep an eye out for some awesome new hookbaits from Edge Baits, they look and smell absolutely amazing. They’re going to be available in some very unique colour and flavour combinations and I can’t wait to give them a go. I also picked

up some of Heathrow Bait Services new Day Trippa hookbaits: they look ideal for use this winter alongside small PVA bags. I didn’t get a lot of chance to watch any of the talks at the show but I did see a bit of Team Korda answering questions from the audience. It’s always good to see things like this because it gets the old brain going and it was interesting to hear how differently some of the Korda boys go about their fishing. I think the main highlight of the show for me personally was spending the weekend on our stand with Chris Ball. It was a pleasure to be in his company and listen to his many stories. Looking through his photograph album blew me away. There are so many pictures of historic captures in there. I hope one day I might get in there myself, but I’ll need to get out on the bank first!

It seems the big fish are really on the munch at the moment as we have 19 UK caught forties in this week’s magazine. How mad is that!? 19 UK forties in a December issue. If you needed any inspiration to get out there and have a go then surely that has to be it.

Adam Snowden

Eric’s ousted from Society Show

Just a couple of days before the Carp Society

Show opened its doors a major bust up took

place between the Society and one of its

exhibitors. Mail order outlet, Eric’s Angling of Leeds was told by the Society’s commercial manager, David Mannall, that its booking for the Show had been cancelled and that the payment would be returned.

Sam Anderson, the owner of Eric’s Angling, made a number of angry postings on carp forums and the story has now appeared on numerous websites including CEMEX Angling, Northern Carp Fishing, Carp.com, Carp-Forum, Carp-UK and Carpfishing UK. We understand that CEMEX Angling consistently removed all postings relating to this matter and eventually banned Sam Anderson from its forum.

Allegedly, the Carp Society came under pressure at the 11th hour from three other well-known exhibitors who threatened to pull out of the Show if Eric’s Angling was allowed to appear. Sam Anderson claims this pressure was put on the Society because he consistently offers goods at lower prices than these other exhibitors. Clearly such allegations, if true, would contravene the Fair Trading Act 1973 and provisions under the Competition Act 1980, which exists to protect the public and ensure that competition is not restricted.

Sam Anderson told Carp-Talk that he has been in touch with his solicitor and the Office of Fair Trading, and that the cancellation had cost him a lot of money. Carp-Talk also managed to contact David Mannall, as he was setting up the Show at Sandown, and he confirmed that he had been put in an extremely difficult position just before the Show and he believes he had little choice but to cancel Eric’s Angling’s booking under the circumstances.

We’re now into December and less than four weeks away from the New Year – the week’s fly by and I can hardly believe were on issue 23. What, where and how will you be fishing in the New Year?

Over the weekend I attended the Carp Society’s Winter Show. But just before I was to depart for Sandown, news broke in the Carp-Talk office about the Society’s decision to not allow Eric’s Angling Centre to attend the show. Both Sam Anderson from Eric’s and David Mannall from the Society spoke to Kevin Clifford, who gives a written account of events in both this week’s Carp-Talk and Carp-Talk Xtra – very interesting reading. But why the need to prevent Eric’s from displaying? Obviously if you have several large exhibitors threatening to pull out at the last minute, what are you to do? Meet their demands and face the consequences or call their bluff and allow Eric’s to attend. It really is a no win situation for the Carp Society as there would either be the possibility that come opening time on Saturday morning large areas of the show would be devoid of exhibitors – or face the wrath of Sam Anderson and the bad publicity on the forums. So why were these exhibitors threatening to pull out if Eric’s attended? Don’t they like the competition or are there other reasons? Whoever these exhibitors are, perhaps they might like to contact the Carp-Talk office on 01430440624 or carper@btconnect.com and give their reasons for not wanting Eric’s at the Carp Society Winter show.

Ben Wales