CLA

Here is a nice on the spot report, from Tomo, of the recent CLA Game fair. It will soon be followed by a report on the very recent World Championships in Norway. I missed both so, ‘nuf said.

 Mike H

CLA Game fair report Ragley Hall 2010
 
            Well another year flew past in the blink of an eye resulting in that time of year again when some of the best casters in the world descend on the CLA game fair to compete in the numerous competitions on offer. Available to the punters are several daily casting competitions for men, women and juniors; these include trout distance, salmon overhead distance and accuracy which ran each of the three days of the show. The two other events that were on offer are the events that draw individuals from around the globe. The International open saltwater distance championship and the international open Spey casting championship ran qualifier’s through out the show until there respective finals on the Saturday afternoon (saltwater) and Sunday evening (Spey). Along with the very prestigious titles up for grabs the winners of each final would also find them selves £1000 the richer.
 
With the conditions on the Friday being more favourable to the Spey casters trying to qualify; the saltwater qualification was quieter than usual with many of the favourites for the title making the most of the wind conditions to try and get some good distances put down with the 18 footers before switching to the single handers. Both Rauri Costello and Mathias Lilleheim spent much of the Friday along with Andrew Toft, Gerald Downey, and James Chalmers launching Spey lines across the huge lake gob smacking the onlookers.
 
3 finals were decided in front of the grandstands at the end of day one with our own Joseph Avery-Harris taking both Salmon and Trout youth distance titles. Nicky Ryder Clarke clinched the ladies salmon distance title; hotly follow By Debbie Morgan
 

Ladies UK Salmon Championship

 

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
Nicky Ryder Clarke
 34.25
2nd
 Debbie Morgan
31.50
3rd
 Laura Harcourt
 26.00
 

Hardy Youth UK Open Salmon Distance Championship

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
 Joseph Avery Harris
26.00
2nd
Shane Egan
20.50
3rd
James Fairlie
20.20

 

Greys Youth UK Open Trout Distance Championship

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
 Joseph Avery Harris
25.5
2nd
Jack Yates
23.90
3rd
James Fairlie
23.10
Saturday saw a change in the conditions, which meant that the Spey casting platform was quiet for much of the day as people headed to try out for the other events on offer. Competitors continuously filled the lanes trying to get through to the three finals that would be decided later that day.
 
The first of the 3 finals on the second day got underway with the Men’s UK trout distance casting competition. A very close final saw just 65cm between first and third place, the eventual winner being very experienced Andy Lamyman with 34.65 meters just piping Mathias by 15cm.
 
Qualifying was tight at the top especially in the men’s salmon distance. With just moments to go and with a last roll of the dice Tom Festing managed to knock both myself and Rauri out of the qualifying spots and into the grandstands to watch and support our fellow competitors; Well done Tom. Another fantastic final saw Gerald Downey, Tom Festing and Andrew Toft fighting it out with the other finalists whilst competing against an awkward wind coming slightly off their right shoulders. Some huge distances where hit with Mathias eventually being crown the winner with a great distance of 50.86meters
 
The third final of the day was the first of the 2 international open events that would be hotly contested. The CLA international open saltwater distance casting championship saw all sorts of rod, line and line tray systems on display which had been devised in the lead up to the show. Reigning two time champion Rauri Costello was aiming to make it three in a row after winning one of the most exciting finals I’ve ever seen the previous year at Belvoir Castle. The same slightly awkward wind conditions continued into the final. Qualifying distances ranged from 30- 40 meters so the final could be anyone’s to win, a good cast and a little lady luck could see anyone finish top. I was up third and managed to pop out a good one without any tangles in my running line, which eventually touched down at 46meters. All that was left for me to do now was sit back; cross my fingers and see how everyone else managed. Rauri had a torrid time with his running line, which stopped him from launching some superb casts courtesy of a tangle. Just Mathias Lilleheim and Joseph Avery Harris left to go. Both threw some great distance but much to my relief fell just short of my third cast. Once again a close final just 1.5 meters separating the first 3. To say I was over the moon would be an understatement especially as my parents had made the journey to the show for the day, after all without them and their support when I was younger I may never have got into fly fishing at all!
 

Angling Direct Men’s UK Trout Distance Championship

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
 Andy Lamyman
34.65
2nd
Mathias Lilleheim 
34.50 
3rd
Richard Wood
34.00 
 
 
 
 

Elm of Burford/Akuba Men’s UK Salmon Distance Championship

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
 Mathias Lilleheim 
50.86
2nd
Andy Lamyman
50.07 
 

The International Open Saltwater Fly Casting Championship

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
Jonathan Tomlinson
46
2nd
Mathias Lilleheim 
45.64
3rd
Joseph Avery Harris
44.47 
 
The Sunday saw the remaining 2 finals come to a conclusion. In the first final Nicky Ryder Clarke did the double adding to her salmon distance title from the Friday by casting a great distance of 29.16meters to beat Lisa isles into second place and win the UK ladies trout distance championships
 

The Sonik Sports Ladies UK Trout Distance Championship

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
Nikki Ryder- Clarke
29.16 
2nd
Lisa Isles 
27.80 
3rd
Sheena Good 
24.88
 

The finale of the weekend was the The CLA Game Fair International Open Spey Casting Championship. This competition had spawned such winners as Scott Mackenzie and Gordon Armstrong and is the one that the best casters in the world want to win. With the standard of Spey casting continually getting better just to get into the final you needed to manage a colossal 57m Meters (187 feet). A superb line up of casters prepared them selves to take on the horizon. Word from several people said that Andrew Toft who had qualified in first place was the man to beat as he was “in the zone” and was casting superbly well. A fantastic final produced some of the longest Spey casts in the history of the competition the eventual winner was indeed Andrew (64.95 m or 213 feet!) closely followed by Gerald Downey and James Chalmers. A fantastic spectacle of Spey casting and a great way to finish a very successful Game fair 2010.

 

The CLA Game Fair International Open Spey Casting Championship

 

Position
Name
Distance (m)
1st
Andrew Toft
64.95 
2nd
Gerald Downey
62.50 
3rd
James Chalmers
58.62 
 
 
 
 
As at all of these shows and competitions many of the competitors know each other and the camaraderie and sportsmanship is always second to none. Each individual wants to win which goes without saying but the appreciation for each other’s performances and the eventual winners of the events never fails to amaze me! Long may his continue!
 
In closing it was a great weekend many thanks to the Carron boys and Mathias Lilleheim for all the help with my Spey casting. Well done to those who won. Good luck to all the guys from Team GB and Team Ireland who are heading out to the World Championships in Norway in 2 weeks I’m sure they will do us all proud!
 
Tomo

This entry was posted on Friday, August 27th, 2010 at 9:00 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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