Rich “Fat Bloke” Adams
My first memories of fishing were way back in the 70’s when I can remember my Dad sorting out his cane rods and centre pins ready for an overnight session on the fens in search of eels. How I used to pester him to take me with him, I never did go on one of those trips but did eventually start going with him to local canals and gravel pits at the tender age of five. We caught all kinds of species and my knowledge of angling grew as did I and by the age of thirteen I had spread my wings and was fishing for the local junior angling club, a good way of travelling further afield on the many matches they arranged. I believe these early experiences have made me the angler I am today.
I believe it is important to fish for different species and over the years I have accumulated a creditable list of personal bests however I always seem to be lured back to fishing for my favourite species, carp. During the 80’s I worked in my local tackle shop and under the guidance of it’s owner my obsession with carp began. Together, with some select friends we targeted numerous un-fished pits throughout the Nene Valley with relative success. During this time I caught my first twenty, this was a big fish in the 1980’s!
I have now been carp fishing in the Nene valley for over twenty years and have caught a good head of carp including many twenties and numerous thirties up to a personal best of 36lb 12oz. I have also been paying regular visits to various waters in France since the early 90’s and have caught many fish up to a French p.b of 46lb.
For the past five years I have been very fortunate to fish a well maintained, non profit making syndicate with a good head of big carp and this is where I have concentrated most of my carp fishing catching many of the lakes beautiful residents. Due to work and family commitments my rod hours are limited but I still seem to maintain a reasonable catch rate, this is down to various reasons but I believe using quality products from the Gardner range over the years has contributed to this.
Fact File
Name: Rich Adams
Nickname: “Fatbloke”
D.O.B: 17/6/1971
Favourite venue: My Northants syndicate water
P.b’s: (French carp 46lb mirror), (U.k carp 36lb 12oz mirror, 34lb 12oz common, 35lb Ghostie). Perch 4lb 4oz, Tench 9lb 6oz, Pike 22lb 2oz, Bream 11lb, Barbel 8lb 12oz, Roach 2lb 2oz, Rudd 3lb 1oz, Chub 4lb 10oz, Catfish 29lb 12oz.
HAPPY HOUR - BY RICH “FATBLOKE” ADAMS
There are times when we all sit fishing for carp with an element of doubt as to whether we are in the right areas, or the weather conditions are as we would like them, or even as to whether the fish are “on the munch” or not? There are also times for me personally when I don’t always feel like making the effort, be it due to work or family commitments; however it is usually the times when I push myself to get out on the bank that I reap the rewards for my efforts. I had a particular session recently when the above applied and after landing three fish including a 31lb 12oz common I felt that my efforts had indeed been rewarded.
After a week of twelve hour shifts and extra days doing overtime I finally persuaded ... (read more...)
MY TOP FIVE SPRING TIPS - by Rich “Fatbloke” Adams
With spring approaching more quickly than expected I thought I would share a few things that I feel help me put a few carp on the bank during this period.
The first thing on my list is tackle maintenance. Whether you are a seasoned all weather angler who still goes in search of carp during the winter months or an angler who packs his carp gear away neatly as soon as the first frosts arrive in view of either fishing for other species or taking a break until the warmer weather resides, now is the time to make sure everything is in order ready for a season when the carp will be in fine fettle and fully fighting fit. Nobody wants to spend the time waiting and working hard for that first run of the spring only to find that the ... (read more...)
Winter Roving - by Rich "Fat Bloke" Adams
With the colder weather soon to be upon us I thought I would write a short piece about a method that can put one or two bonus fish on the bank during the winter months.
Back in the 1980’s when my love affair with carp began it was deemed difficult enough to catch carp in the midst of summer and to pursue our elusive quarry during the winter months may have gained a few strained looks from even the most experienced of anglers. Once the calendar year had got to October my thoughts ... (read more...)
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