This blog is a week late due to, a late night home last Sunday followed by working away for 3 days. The Turner 400 was being contested by 29 teams of 4, my Thatchers team consisted of some very good river anglers, Andy Ottaway, Lee Trivett, Shaun Townsend and yours truly. The draw was being done at Clanfield football club from 7:30am, but as teams could place anglers in sections we already knew where we were going to be (we did a random draw rather than place) and I was headed for Kelmscott. Andy did the draw and let us know where we were, I was the downstream end of Kelmscott and had to walk from Grafton Lock. I wasn't to chuffed with my draw as I felt I was the wrong end of the section, and I was only about 8 pegs above above Andy who probably wrong end of his section too!
It was a nice walk past the lock, then three fields to get to my peg, I saw John Bohane who told me my peg had produced 25lb of chub recently in a match, that day the chub could be seen on the far bank, couldn't see any today. Still I was happy to know there were chub in the area and would be have a bonus fish line to go at.
As you can see from the picture there were stick ups right opposite me then a nice tree just below, lots of trees on this venue and I guess the chub find their homes under them. My biggest issue was that the wind was in my face and it was getting stronger as I set up, I could reach the tree easily with a 3.5AAA wag though which I set up with 0.13 to 16. There was hardly any flow and so I dotted the float down. I also set up a 1g chopped worm rig with 14 to 0.15, and a couple of pole rigs for 11m, a pencil float with 0.09 to 20, and a strung out rig with 0.09 to 18 for hemp. Also set the feeder up with 0.17 to 12.
I cupped a few balls of groundbait on the 11m line and fed some chopped worm at 7m down the peg a bit, picked up the waggler and cast out. I tried to feed it but the catapult only got the bait halfway, so I got a stronger catty and that got the bait not a lot further, bummer. I caught a 4oz chublet 2nd cast and a couple of bleak, but it was not any good as I simply could not get any loose feed anywhere near where I needed to and I couldn't all match, I was gutted. I dropped in on the worm line and had a few small perch, then went on the long pole line which was not great, a few tiny perch, dace and one roach.
After 90 minutes I reckoned I had 12oz at best and I was not getting any bites on my pole lines which meant I was in trouble. I guessed I needed a chub and so I picked up the feeder rod with a blockend feeder but to fish worm and caster. First cast and the wind was so bad the tip was blown around, so I put the rod rest down and put the tip by the river, Next cast I had a small bite but nothing, then next cast a proper bite and a tug of war began, with the right gear on I was able to drag the fish away from the tree and land a 2 1/2lb chub. With 3 hours to go I was feeling a lot better about things and expecting to get a few more chub. Well what happened was.. not a lot! I spent a lot of time on the tip getting stupid little pulls which I realised were crayfish, I reeled back twice with no hook, and the pole lines were dead. I did get another chublet and a perch on the feeder but that was it. Last cast and never had a bite but the hooklength came back looking like this, I assume a crayfish did this!
I thought I might have 4lb if I was lucky, and as it turned out I had 3lb 15oz. In the bottom ten pegs that were weighed in, in my section I came 3rd with that. Beaten by Gary Barclay above me who had 5lb 15oz, and John a few pegs below had 5lb+. I was happy with that and hoped I had done OK for the team. Andy in the next section had a high 5lb and was second in his 10 pegs beaten by an 18lb of chub, so looking OK.
When we got back to results Shaun said he was about middle in his section and Lee had done well with a couple of chub. However, it turned out me and Andy were indeed in the wrong part of our larger 29 peg section, with Andy only beating 4 more anglers, and myself beating 8 more anglers. As a team we ended up 10th out of 29, and the Drennan Team next to us who are a good local side had the same points as us and on weight had 12oz more. Again we had to be happy with that and took some credit from that.
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