bluelabel

I prefer running lines... in fact all my bottom fishing is done with a running line... I also don't subscribe to using really heavy leads for running line work either.. preferring to use only just enough lead to get my rig into position

if you really have to fish this water I'd target the shallower parts as they warm up the quickest on a cold but sunny day.... otherwise go with Yonny's advice👍

One of the things I found out yesterday was that top sponsored anglers (in whatever field of their sport) are expected to publish results in soshul meeja to publicise that sponsors products... I suppose when you get down to it, there really isn't such a thing as a free lunch.... but it adds to the workload, when you get in from a hard days fishing, be it match, carp, fly, or sea and you have to write up the events of the day, not forgetting to mention the sponsor's products every few lines... That said, for a while I was sponsored by a local tackle shop as an NFA/AT coach, and although social media wasn't as prevalent then as now, there was an expectation that recommendations be made and results published in the angling press... it all adds to the pressure that you put yourself under and since packing in coaching and match fishing I have found my catch rates have gone up, as I do not feel the need or be pressured to try every trick in the book to get that bite or weight... now I just enjoy the day for what it is... and if I blank my bottom off in the process...? so what...? it's been a day out in the fresh air with flora and fauna to look at... tight lines👍

My Optonics are circa 1981... still going strong🤣😎

Mine are fine.... after 7 years I'd have expected problems but non have surfaced so far.... still on the original batteries.... "Bad-um-tish" (where's the little drummer smiley when you need him...🤣)

ATTs work under water... couldn't afford the top flight Delkims and heard they take a fair bit of setting up, so went with the Gardner ATTS... £250 for 3 alarms and receiver had them 7 years now, nary a glitch... having said that they'll go pear shaped next time out... My old Optonics are still going strong too... although they don't fare so well if it pee's down

I saw the light after I lost my parents.... time to slow down and enjoy what's around you, whether it be the bankside, wildlife, just being out in the fresh air, or your loved ones.... life's too short to worry about how big the next fish is going to be... just enjoy your sport for what it is

therein lies the appeal of angling for me... it's a time for introspection, compartmentalising ones thoughts... I think that for me, the actual act of fishing has become secondary to the day out... once you settle into the day you take in other things... bird life, fish movements, trees, flora and fauna... with so much to surround yourself with, it's easy to sink into into the environment... I think that once you settle in, you tend to fish on auto-pilot where casting, & rebaiting and all the other mechanical movements become almost automatic whilst your mind is on the water... Take it easy Elmo👍😎

Copyright, Chris Yates... Love his style of writing...

I suppose everyone has their own way of dealing with a lost fish... I have "The Short Informal Walkabout" and woe betide anyone who interrupts it... strangling fenceposts has a lot going for it too

I think that sometimes the pressure is subconcious and you are not really aware of it... I have seen marriages fail due to the desire to be out on the bank and I've seen some real tantrums on the bank over lost fish... sometimes you just have to take a step back and try to be philosophical about it... the turning point for me came after losing my parents... I vowed that my sport was going to be enjoyed no matter what... and once the pressure to compete (match fishing) went, along with the desire to take a step back from work.... I began to take stock out of what I really wanted out of my sport now the match fishing has gone by the by, the serious side of carping has evaporated for me and I go carping about once in every 5 sessions... maybe it's an age thing but sometimes you just gotta slow down and watch the world rush by... still nice to get a lump now and then though👍😎

Not knocking it... if that's your bag, fine, crack on... just saying it's not for me... and yes I do wear glasses (hardly new tech... they've been around since 1600) and my casting skills come from doing it since I was a nipper...(fishing for 57 years) to me a lot of the tech is just more stuff to cart about... if in the future I need to use it... then so be it, but for now... I'll toddle on as I am

With all the talk of technology flying about, I have to admit to going the other way (oo-er missus) I have reverted back to split-cane rods, center-pins, or Mitchell 300/400 reels and optonics.... what next...??? milk bottle tops... a penny placed on the spool with a hubcap below it...? Gotta say since I went traditional I have caught more... dunno why, can't put a finger on it... perhaps it's because you wouldn't expect to catch using such antiquated gear, but that said, subconsciously the pressure is off... if you are not expecting to catch, then you put less pressure on yourself... and the results come... Lets get one thing clear... I still use carbon gear occasionally and I am not advocating that everyone uses cane and pins to up their catch rate.... what I am saying is that we anglers can be our own worst enemies when it comes to hunting down that biggun.... Once I started in on the traditional side of carping, I used my watercraft skills to stalk carp out of margins, more often than not just using one rod to lay traps and picking up the odd good fish and relying less and less on bite alarms and chucking to the horizon, leading about, marker float trips, swim mapping and the like... even down to using just a hook with a bait, nothing else, no line clips, no leads, or fancy rigs... as soon as I started to fish purely for the enjoyment of the day, the pressure on myself was off and my catch rate went up.... nowadays I think too many anglers are putting pressure on themselves to pick up that magical fish... too much time spent planning and not enough time just grabbing a rod, reel, bag, net and chair and fishing purely for the fun of it... and the proof of the pudding has to be the smile when you do get a chunk.... All too often I see pictures in the angling press of some bod with his sponsor's tee shirt and hat and a serious whacker in his arms and a face like a bulldog licking pee of a nettle... they are probably thinking" where's the next big hit coming from" What I will say is, take the time to enjoy the journey... even smell the flowers along the way and when you get that lump.... for god's sake.... smile...😁 Tight lines all

slowly and carefully...😋😎 40 years of shift work in a heavy manufacturing job take their toll, plus a couple of bike accidents and playing cricket up till my late forties... I'm 61 now and yes it hurts getting up in the morning... that's why I retired last year... my old employers have just gone back to a 12 hour day and with an hours worth of travelling each way there was no way I was going to continue... the times of me working 12 hour days and nights are long gone

errrrmmm... I have chronic osteo arthritis in my knees (6 operations and no better, waiting for a knee replacement) and collapsed discs in my lower back (1 steroid injection and 2 nerve ablations to stop the pain... to no avail) arthritic fingers and wrists, tennis elbow, both ankles damaged ligaments due to motorcycle accidents and blind as a bat.... I can still chuck a lead out and I will till they put me into my pine overcoat

the only tech I'll have on the bank is a bite alarm.... oh and a torch if I'm doing a night and me phone for emergencies.... I can't justify drones, boats, fish spies, deeper.... fishing as I do with antique gear may hamper my chances of getting that magic fish.... but then I'd have more of a sense of achievement if I did catch just using basic gear... if it's you thing then go for it.... I fished a water a couple of years back, with a tree-lined far bank and a lad next door was using a bait boat and was showing it off, and he said to me "how are you going to get a bait tight to the trees".... I had my third rod ready to go and dropped the lead and bait about a foot off the tree line and baited up on the ripples with a catapult... he just walked off.... I think folks who rely exclusively on tech to do their fishing for them are lacking core skills... when that tech breaks down it'd be nice to know that they have the skills to carry on fishing rather than packing up early as I've seen some folks do

today... yesterday's corned beef and mayo sarnie😥

it's not a fashion thing for me... I fish small waters... nothing bigger than 4 acres and on most there's tree canopies, so the shorter rods make sense for me, plus they can live in the boot of my car without dropping the rear seats so the whole kit is out of sight of prying eyes... and the reels are Shimmy Aero X 4000 hardly big pits.. also as a case in point my cane carp rods are 9'3" Sharpe's... circa 1955 and Walkers rods were 10'2" the longer 12' rods were developed by Rod Hutchinson for DISTANCE work...

I refer the honourable gentleman to the reply I gave some time ago or I'll move round to where the fish are... except cast where the overhanging tree canopy dictates otherwise😋 one thing I have learned over the years.... there are precious few absolutes in fishing... not being contentious... just a few thoughts

have to disagree partially with that Yonny... Terry Edmonds (I think it was he) got 170 yards with a 9' Dwarf 3lb rod.... and to be honest there's very few anglers who can hit that with a 12 footer, and of course you are right about fashion. (I bought mine because.... A, I fish small waters... & B, they fit in the boot of my car without lowering the back seats... and C, the wife bought me them as a prezzy for looking after her when she broke her pelvis... I think the biggest chuck I've had since I got them is just under 90 yards... more than enough for most folks in response to the original Poster, the old adage "if it ain't broke don't fix it comes into play"... why change your rods if you are comfortable with them... they'll still land what you hook...👍😎

bad eyes and arthritis don't allow me to make anything other than basic rigs these days, so maybe I'll just buy the bits ready made from now on...

I have two major online sales companies within 10 miles of my house so I tend to go direct Angling Direct and Total Tackle, I also have Keswall's within 10 miles too so I have no need to buy online, all can get anything I need

I can tie knotless knot rigs and some other types like multi rigs.... But at 61 my eyes are shot and my fingers are starting to hurt with arthritis, so for me, I'll buy some premade rigs or adapt a shop bought one to my own needs

yup... buy a pack of Korda Loop Rigs and some stiff booms.... makes a lovely bottom bait rig👍

InterLok... served me well for years... (about 12 so far) not cheap, but VERY good quality