It was Christmas social time but the wife was due out for her Christmas to do in the evening. My dad was down for a visit so he would be on babysitting due but I was on taxi service! Therefore, my social needed a change of venue and we would also do some feeder fishing after some small carp.
After spending an hour looking for signs of fish and drawing more or less a complete blank, we opted for the comfortable option. The was wind behind us as we knew we were in for some strong winds and a few rain showers.
I had ordered a few bits from Spotted Fin’s coarse range and was feeling hopeful. But with no signs of fish and a few bad reports from other anglers, it was going to be hard.
You can always tell when a carp angler goes feeder fishing, as they always take the brew kit and a few mince pies – well it is nearly Christmas.
It was very hard going and about 10 minutes or so before pack up time, the heavens opened up again. All the kit was soaking wet and with a blank soon on the cards, it was time to head home.
I would like to give a brief snap shot of my life and introduce myself;
My name is Richard Handel and was born in 1965 in Suffolk. I have worked as a UK Operation & Intermodule Manager for a shipping company. I live in Hampshire now and am married with 2 young children, both girls so I am a bit outnumbered even the cat is a girl!
I have been fishing since I was about 7 years old. I started on small local rivers in Suffolk, then moved onto gravel pits and then carp fishing. My personal best is a 39.08 mirror, over recent years I have started river fishing again, on the Hampshire Avon, this is a nice break from the carp lakes.
My life has turned a big corner this year, the company I was working for relocated their Operation centre to Estonia. I was offered a job at the head office in London. This would have meant a 5 day commute and working in Stratford. As a family, we did not fancy this, as I would hardly spend any time with the children (and the Mrs). So after 22.5 years, I was given a nice redundancy package and with my wife is working full time. I became the house husband.
This has meant a complete turn around in my fishing, as I can pick and choose when I go. I have found a splendid new syndicate to fish this year, which includes 5 lakes and some 8 miles of river with only 150 members. It's an amazing change to the way I am able to fish.
I am now trying to start my own tackle business and make a bit of a name for myself in the world of fishing, as I have retired from real work.
Richard
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