I thought I would share some pictures of a few lumps I’ve caught over the past 5 years on my current syndicate water, and there are a few repeats captures. I don’t worry about these, these days, as I just love being on the bank and catching carp regardless. I’ve gone back to the reason why I started fishing, just to catch, have fun and be on the bank in the fresh air, which is very potent at the moment. At the back end of 2019, I started to fish the original club I joined back in 1997 and one of their lakes is about 10 mins away from my house and it’s brilliant fun over the Winter months. I’m looking forward to going after some carp with a float rod and a worm, just dropping of the pads. I feel I’ve come full circle now and am a lot happier in my fishing. There was a period of time where I only fished a section of the River Avon on a private syndicate for 7 years. This was because anglers were just not thoughtful towards each other anymore, but I can safely say that I was very lucky in finding my current water and will be there for as long as possible.
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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I feel I’ve come full circle now and am a lot happier in my fishing. There was a period of time where I only fished a section of the River Avon on a private syndicate for 7 years. This was because anglers were just not thoughtful towards each other anymore, but I can safely say that I was very lucky in finding my current water and will be there for as long as possible. 
