TomBettle

Oh Terry Reading your comments is the first time I've smiled whilst think about this excuse for entertainment. Showing the culture is one thing, but showing it with even the mildest hint that this is how us anglers go about our sport is not on IMHO. Oh well, I doubt whether the show will be pulled, but if people do show their disgust then it may not get rerun or a second series... Just for the record, I don't think anyone has an issue with keeping fish, spearfishing or even bow fishing (assuming both the latter are for the table). It is the manner in which it's done and the lack of respect for the catch afterwards.

Terry It's a Glaswegian production company and a north of England "Actor", making a programme for channel 5 in the UK. I totally take your point about rednecks and the lack of culture, but why does that mean Robson Green can become one and then air the rubbish on UK TV, tarring us with the renecks brush. By the way, it isn't a petition, it is simply contact details for the production company and channel 5 if anyone wished to complain. Tom

I abstained last nights show and stuck to Dragons Den which was also about cruelty to animals, but more humiliation than injury. I've heard of a shark that was gaffed and returned(?), another that was seen swimming dragging a trace, hunting carp with a bow, shooting a moorhen with a rifle..... Why and how did this ever make mainstream tellie. If anyone does want to register a complaint about the harm the show is doing then on a thread of a very similar name on WSF is some contact details. Tom

It sounds OK Pete. Hope it works better than the Abu's, I'm sure it will! And if it comes close to the TLD's then it sounds like a nice reel. Good luck with it. Tom

Hi Pete When lowering, lobbing or casting, does the levelwind disengage and stay put or does it go from side to side?

I'm telling Dillis (sorry if the spelling is wrong Tel)!!! ...but then again, I do agree.

I take it you mean Paul and not me Terry...

Extreme Nooky! Two people, one person hammock, standing up only.... Naked in a Piranha infested pool whilst fly casting to salt water crocodiles.

Now you're talking. All we then need is a celebrity who's dulcet tones people recognise to do the voiceover. I have no delusions regarding being appealing to the general public! Terry. Terry I find you very appealing! I think we need a sexy, husky lady voice over person... How about Vicky Butler-Henderson? She does it for me and the thought of her hot and sweaty in a rain forest (visions of the flake advert mixed with VBH unzipping her racing suit very seductively - my god where did that come from!)... Oh I've just realised she will only be doing the voice over and not actually presenting. Actually Terry? I don't think we will be needing you for this shoot. VBH and I will cope on our own with nothing more than a camcorder and hammock for one. Tom

Just as an add on. Obviously the programme was supposed to appeal to a wider audience than anglers alone. Hence it was billed as a documentary and shown on mainstream TV. I've so far had 2 non angling colleagues come up to me and asked if I watched it and what a load of pap (they used other words) it was. Tom

I do know what you mean Terry and all I was doing was actually pointing out that PY allegedly has a huge ego behind the scenes which he does (admittedly) hide well on screen. However, there are only so many programmes on fly fishing for Brown Trout in Patagonia that I want to watch. I agree wholeheartedly that HG is not a natural presenter. He will agree to. He has fallen into the role almost completely by accident. He definitely has absolutely no ego abot what he is doing and has found quite a fan base by just being him. As for Robson Green. I know the producers wanted to find a fishing celebrity, but he is not really A list anymore (is he even C list?). The idea of the show would be fine and the concept of showing some of the customs and creatures of a far away land is excellent, but IMHO that other chap (I think it was "The angling adventurer"? Anyway he went fishing in the Amazon amongst other places, but as well as catching fish he showed us the culture in a more understated way) that did a similar style of show, was far better viewing and clearly on a far lower budget. I don't think it was the concept I had the issue with, it was the constant referrals to "Poncy Actor", the talking about a medium sized Sailfish as if it was a world beater (it may be quick, but it has zero stamina) and the terrible set up shot of them drifting down a river in bouyancy aids! Oh, that and then the whooping and hollering like he was some lune yank whoid just landed a grander Marlin using line plated from hair off his own genitalia. Keep the concept, send me and you instead and let us use Robson Green as a teaser for something with big teeth. Tom

Terry Paul Young is horrific. He sets all his crew up with rods and tehn goes and picks it up when one of them hooks up. Henry Gilbey is a photographer 1st. Very enthusiastic angler 2nd and stumbled into making fishing programmes as his brothers are producers / directors. He also is a very nice, unassuming man who doesn't actually realise he's a celeb in our angling world. Tom

I was so excited to see a new angling programme advertised. On mainstream tv too. Oh well, they'd were using some forgotten actor for the presenter, but surely it was gong to be good anyway. What the biggest load of pants!!!! Bad presenting, badly set-up shots, bad fishing, bad acting (from an actor) and full of basic bull and inaccurate facts. What a load of tosh ...Surely it can only get better Tom

Hi Rich Back in the 70's and early 80's Abu were the definitive in small multiplier manufacturers. Back then, their Swedish built reels were as good as anything in the size range from anyone else. Due to their excellence, we (the UK fishing public) adopted their reel models as a way to describe any reel from any manufacturer of the same sort of size. For example: A Penn 525 could be described as 6500 size Or the Penn 535 as 7000 size Another brand? Say the Shimano Torium 16 could well be described as 7000 size and so on. Another way of looking at it is rough line capacity. So (and without checking for accuracy), An Abu 5500 takes about 270yards of 12lb 6500 about 300 yards of 15lb and 7000 about 300 yards of 20lb. You could describe a similar capacity reel from an alternative manufacturer according to those model numbers and most anglers would know roughly what you meant. An all round light to medium duty boat reel would be 7000 size. Tom

Brilliant Al It's a fishing dream I would love to come true. A double figure Bonefish is an amazing fish, well done. Tom

Charlie It looks very smart. Make sure it has a couple of props underneath to stop water from forming puddles (or lakes) and stretching the fabric.

Brian Without wish any ill or tempting fate, I'd double check and double check again that your boat is all OK. 3 years afloat without any protection from anodes, even in an area that won't have much electrolysis is a heck of a long time. Quite often you won't be able to physicaly see a lot and the first you'll know is when part of a prop drops off. Alternatively, it would only have taken a bit of fishing line around the prop to have worked it's way up and through the seals allowing water into the gear box. Boats should come out at least once a year for the correct anodes to be replaced, for a fresh coat of antifoul and, of course, to give the hull a bit of a breather from sitting in water all of it's life. Allowing the hull to dry will dramtically reduce the risks of osmosis. In addition, the leg should be fully serviced every other year, more often depending on hours. I hope yours is all OK, 3 years is a long time. Tom

Sorry Charlie Didn't get the point across very well. I was trying to say that whilst the reel will probably be fine if used sensibly against normal fish it cannot be compared with "the real macoy" and the fact that they make the same model up to a size that would be considered suitable for Big Game is a dissapointment as it will melt in front of you. Tom PS: You are right, the Shimano TLD or Penn 320LD or 330LD are a far better suited and a better investment if longevity is required.

Hi Pete I am sure the reel will do just fine for what you want it for, but with respect... A Penn International (and equivalent Shimano, Avet, Accurate etc etc) cost many hundreds of pounds. This is not just a rip off based on reputation, this is becasue they are not just "machined from a solid aluminium block" (which is all very nice), but they are built to take a pounding and use heavy duty, proper gears and drags that cost a fortune in their own right. At the end of the day, you will always get what you pay for and whilst the reel looks fine alongside Smoothies, the odd Conger and Tope (everything you plan to use it for), I wouldn't want to point it at any blue water fish in a hurry. ....I recently as lucky enough (or unlucky enough?) to find myself at the cranking end of a huge fish on a Penn International 50 (a veritable cotton reel for the fish on the other end). That got so hot that it was smoking from the side plates and you couldn't touch the sides at all.... If there had been any plastic in there, not only would the gear teeth have shredded on the first run, but I imagine the whole lot would have melted. Tom

Hi Guys This is a real longshot, but either some of our members with slightly larger boats, time, money and something of a midlife crisis may be interested in some plans that a fishing friend of mine has. He is deadly serious and would love to team up with you and help on costs etc. Have a read through and if you are interested, I shall put you in direct contact with each other. Tom PS: The boat would be shipped out there, don't worry you don't have to drive it all the way! Email reads... ....Anyway Tom, I thought I'd ask you if you know anyone who might fancy taking his boat over to Madeira for a month or two. Something like this is probably only going to appeal to a very small number of boat owners, but I'd really like to get in contact with those that do. I was thinking whether it might be worth spending a day or two at the Southampton boat show to that end. I've fished at Madeira since 2000, between 2000 and 2002 working there as crewman and going back there every year. I enjoy wiring fish the most, but the last few years have gotten more and more interested in skippering - understanding the factors that influence the bite and how best to work the fishing grounds, working with the electronics and so on. If you know anyone who would like to bring his own boat over I would be delighted to help with the fishing. It needn't be a big sportfisher either. The fishing grounds are close enough and in sheltered water that something like your Jeanneau 695 would be more than enough to get you to where the fish were, and if handled well and equipped with the right gear would be more than capable of catching a blue marlin. It won't be something that will suit everyone, but for guys that fancy a challenge they don't get much bigger than catching a blue marlin from your own vessel. As with any kind of fishing local knowledge is vital, that's where I hope I can help. I've also fished the Canary Islands (Gran Canaria and La Gomera) a bit over the last two years, and between 2005 and 2007 fished the Algarve in August and September. I'm quite familiar with these areas although not as familiar as Madeira. The Algarve has the benefit of being closer to the UK and having nice marinas, the Canaries fishing is similar to Madeira but you get more strikes from generally smaller fish, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

A few more pics for anyone interested. These all come from fellow angler Gareth Whittington of Svendsen Sports. Thanks Gareth for use fo the photo's. Tom Smile! An angry Blue Shark rolls by the cage Another Blue by the cage Andrew Alsop returns another.

John It depends on whether your outboard is still in warranty in which case it will need to be done by the local service centre for your brand. If not, go to the closest recommended marine mechanic.

8 O'clock although most get there half an hour early for a quick beer and a chin wag. Please could someone pass on my apologies. I can't make it tonight as I have family down. Tom

I've just "borrowed" this picture from one of my co-anglers over on WSF. I think it's pretty good as it shows our shopping trolley, sorry errr shark cage, in the water with a shark alongside.

Yes the adrenalin was pumping which probably served me well to stop me from drowning. We learned a lot on that first go. 1) A glorified shopping trolley works as a cage, but the wheels have to go - they just look silly from underwater 2) Don't put your fingers in an angry sharks mouth - it doesn't matter how small it is Julian! 3) Don't tether the cage tight to the boat - 8 tonnes of boat in a rough sea continually landing on the divers head gets a bit wearing after half an hour 4) It isn't a hugely good idea to allow the shark into the cage with the diver 5) You can't breath under water, don't even try. Tom