Casting took place in continuous steady rain and a moderate south west breeze and the results in feet and inches were:

#5F – James Evans 113.07, Mike Heritage 107.10, John Reynolds 104.00, Paul Brown 103.06, Mike Roden 103.03, Bob Carlson 93.00, Mike Helliwell 89.10, Alan Bath 87.03, Pat Stevens 85.03, Louis Noble 85.02, Bud Budryk 84.06, John Forbes 83.07, Stephen Lindley 79.07, Tracy Thomas 77.03, Vera Carlson 75.09, John Lomas 73.01, Alan Cain 72.02, Nigel Rogers 71.10.

#7F – Mike Heritage 127.02, John Reynolds 123.02, James Evans 114.00, Mike Roden 110.08, Mike Helliwell 106.06, Paul Brown 104.08, Pat Stevens 99.09, Bud Budryk 96.10, Louis Noble 94.00, Stephen Lindley 93.09, Alan Bath 93.03, John Forbes 89.02, Bob Carlson 87.04, Tracy Thomas 84.04, Vera Carlson 82.10, Nigel Rogers 82.04, Alan Cain 82.02 John Lomas75.04.

B100 (#5 + #7) – Mike Helliwell 196.04, Pat Sevens 185.00, Bud Budryk 181.00 Alan Bath 180.06, Bob Carlson 180.04, Louis Noble 179.02, Stephen Lindley 173.04, John Forbes 172.09, Tracy Thomas 161.07, Vera Carlson 158.07, Alan Cain 155.10, Nigel Rogers 154.02, John Lomas 148.00.

#9F – James Evans 140.03, Mike Heritage 134.01, John Reynolds 126.05, Paul Brown 122.04, Bud Budryk 119.00.

T38 – John Reynolds 178.00, Mike Heritage 156.06, Paul Brown 152.07, James Evans 152.03, Mike Roden 149.06.

T120 – James Evans 166.00, Bud Budryk, 162.08, Paul Brown 160.07, John Reynolds 160.03, Mike Roden 160.00.

The competition took place in less than ideal conditions, with a fluctuating north wind, overcast skies and showers. However, there were some sparkling casting performances to brighten the day, particularly by young Carl Malpas, Mike Heritage and Alan Bath. It was also very good to be able to welcome Roger Enger Lie from Norway.

The results were as follows:

#5 – Mike Heritage 125′ 8″, Carl Malpass 113′, James Evans 111′ 8″, Steve Kemp 105′ 9″, Andy Hutson 102′, Roger Enger Lie 99′ 5″, Ian Malpas 93′, Alan Bath 86′ 5″, Tracy Thomas 84′ 4″, David Fisher 82′ 10″, Stephen Lindley 81′ 8″, Richard Walker 76′ 11″, Chris Walker 74′ 9″.

#7 – Carl Malpas 131′ 3″, Mike Heritage 129’1″, James Evans 127′ 6″, Roger Enger Lie 115′, Andy Hutson 106′ 11″Steve Kemp 100′ 9″, Alan Bath 99′ 6″, Ian Malpass 92′ 4″, Stephen Lindley 88′ 10″, Chris Walker 87′ 5″, Tracy Thomas 87′ 1″, David Fisher 83′, Richard Walker 81′ 3″.

B100 (#5 + #7) – Alan Bath 185′ 11″, Ian Malpass 185′ 4″, Tracy Thomas 171′ 5″, Stephen Lindley 170′ 6″, David Fisher 165′ 10″, Chris Walker 162′ 2″, Richard Walker 158′ 2″.

Distance Badges were achieved as follows – 30yd Philip Pledger, Alan Bath, Mike Smith.  35yd Steven Petersen, Roger Enger Lie. Congratulations to you all!!

Weather conditions were bright sun and a gusty east wind throughout, making casting challenging – particularly the backcast.

The results were:

Accuracy – John Reynolds 12 points,  Jonathan Tomlinson 10,  Mike Heritage 10,  Andy Miller 8,  Lisa Isles 7,  Trevor Bourne 6,  Lee Martell 4,  James Evans 3,  David Fisher 0.

#5F – Jonathan Tomlinson 129′ 7″,  James Evans 121′ 2″,  Alex Titov 120′ 9″,  Mike Heritage 120′,  John Reynolds 114′ 2″,  Dean Bass 108′ 7″, Lee martell 107′ 10″, Trevor Bourne 106′,  Andy Miller 103′, Lisa Isles 87′ 7″,  David Fisher 87′ 2″.

#7F – Jonathan Tomlinson 136′ 11″,  Mike Heritage 128′ 1″, James Evans 127′ 4″, Dean Bass 126′ 1″,  Alex Titov 125′ 5″,  John Reynolds 115′ 6″,  Lee Martell 108′ 2″, Trevor Bourne 107′ 3″, Andy Miller 100′, Lisa Isles 97′ 2″, David Fisher 77′ 7″.

#9F – Jonathan Tomlinson 148′ 3″,  John Reynolds 143′,  James Evans 141′ 1″, Alex Titov 137′ 10″,  Mike Heritage 135′ 5″,   Trevor Bourne 132′ 5″,  Lee Martell 125′ 11″, Andy Miller 122′ 3″, Lisa Isles 103′ 9″,  David Fisher 94′ 7″.

T38 – James Evans 187′ 4″,  Jonathan Tomlinson 182′ 2″,  Dean Bass 176′,  Mike Heritage 173′ 7″, Andy Miller 172′ 9″, John Reynolds 172′ 8″,  Lisa Isles 165′ 1″, Lee Martell 163′,  Trevor Bourne 161′ 9″,   Terry Jenner 155′ 8″,  David Fisher 114′ 6″.

T120 – Trevor Bourne 225′,  Andy Miller 221′ 7″,  Jonathan Tomlinson 209′ 2″,  John Reynolds 204′,  Terry Jenner 198′ 1″,  Mike Heritage 189′ 7″,  Lee Martell 171′ 1″,  David Fisher 129′ 2″

Victor Ludorum (All Round) – Jonathan Tomlinson 10 points,  Mike Heritage 23, John Reynolds 24,  James Evans 29,  Andy Miller 37,  Trevor Bourne 38,  Lee Martell 42,  Dean Bass 46,  Alex Titov 47,  Lisa Isles 55,  David Fisher 62,  Terry Jenner 63.

Badges: Lisa Isles 30yd,  Terry Jenner 50yd.

Congratulations on new BFCC Records: Lisa Isles #9F OR & SNR 103′ 5″ & T38  OR & SNR 165′ 1″, Jonathan Tomlinson #9F OR & SNR 148′ 3″, John Reynolds #9F S50 143′, Mike Heritage T38 S60 173′ 7″.

Breeze – Moderate SW. Sun strong and atmosphere very humid.

#5F – Mike Heritage 125′ 1″; Jonathan Tomlinson 122′; James Evans 112′; Tom Festing 108′ 9″; Joseph Harris 89′; David Fisher 84′ 4″; Tracy Thomas 89′

#7F – Tom Festing 128’7″; James Evans 125′ 2″; Joseph Harris 124′ 5″ (junior 17 record); Jonathan Tomlinson 123′; Mike Heritage 120′ 7″: Tracy Thomas 90′ 3″; David Fisher 98′ 5″.

#9F New Saltwater Event – Joseph Harris 143′ (outright & junior 17 records); Mike Heritage 139′ 9″ (S60 record); Jonathan Tomlinson 135′ (SNR record); James Evans 133′ 6″; Tom Festing 127′ 3″; David Fisher 98′ 5″.

BADGES – Congratulations are due to – 25yds Richard Ellis. 30yds Don Andrews; Jamie Cushman.

#5F – 114′ 4″ James Evans, 111′ Mike Heritage, 108’10” John Reynolds, 106′ 7″ Alex Titov, 104′ Jonathan Davies, 101′ 9″ Lee Watts, 96′ Andrew Bagshaw, 93′ Mike Roden, 91′ 3″ Louis Noble, 90′ 11″ John Forbes, 82′ 2″ Tracy Thomas, 80′ Tony Bennett, 76′ 9″ Ken Jones.

#7F – 133′ John Reynolds, 123′ 10″ James Evans, 118′ Roger Miles, 113′ 2″ Mike Heritage, 112′ Lee Watts, 109′ 9″ Tony Bennett, 106′ 7″ Andrew Bagshaw, 99′ 8″ Mike Helliwell, 97′ 6″ Jonathan Davies, 87′ 6″ John Forbes, 84′ 8″ Ken Jones, 83′ 8″ Tracy Thomas,

T38 – 166′ 4″ Andrew Bagshaw, 156′ 4″ John Reynolds, 150′ 5″ Roger Miles, 143′ 7″ James Evans, 143′ 2″ Paul Brown, 140′ 3″ Mike Heritage, 112′ 10″ Tony Bennett, 107′ Mike Helliwell.

Badges – 25yds John Lomas, Edward Pugh. 30yds Dudley Savva, Andrew Parker, Peter Taylor, John Forbes, Clint Lloyd, Mike Roden, Mike Helliwell.

The BFCC successfully completed its second public exhibition and, in spite of the recession, did nearly as well as in 2009. However, it is now clear that the expanded team operates in a very friendly and efficient way, a factor not lost on the angling public. New members Mark Surtees – tuition and Vernon Wood – stand duty, contributed very significantly to the efforts of the existing Members to produce such a good outcome.

It was good to see that our tuition is increasingly popular with the public and our visiting Members, with some from 2009 returning for a ‘refresher’. However, I suspect the Badge attempts are growing in popularity, with people returning to try for a longer distance and, even, some local fun-rivalries being settled!

The weather was generally good, if overcast to start with and very cool throughout. There was a gusty easterly wind which did not help when teaching or when the competition took place.

Competiton Results:

#5F  –  Jonathan Tomlinson 119′ 2″,  Mike Heritage 118′ 5″,  James Evans 101′ 10″,   Andrew Bagshaw 101′ 6″,  Alex Titov 98′ 5″, Mick Bell 97′ 7″, Carl Malpas (jnr) 96′ 7″,  Steven Lindley 89′ 1″,  David Fisher 82′ 5″.

#7F – Jonathan Tomlinson 128′ 5″,  Mike Heritage 125′,  Carl Malpas (jnr) 111′ 9″,  Alex Titov 109’7″,  Mick Bell 108′,  James Evans 106′ 10″,  Andrew Bagshaw 101′, David Fisher 86′ 9″,  Steven Lindley 82′ 4″.

There were some very close results at the top, which added spice to the competition, but special mention must go to Carl Malpas who, as a junior, came third in #7 – in his first casting competition!

Badge Successes:

25 yards – Paul Speed, Christopher Walker (14yrs), Richard Walker (12yrs), Peter Boyle, Simon Kearns, Alan Bath.

30 yards – Vernon  Wood, Chris Tong, David Walker.

35 yards – Terry Mann, Toby Merigan, Karl Humphries.

From a personal point of view it was great to see so many smiling faces following successful tuiton and badge attempts, which is good for the future of the Club. So, please make an entry in your diary for our next scheduled meeting at Reading on Sat. 10th July.

Reporter Mike Marshall

Early morning frost disolved as a beautifully sunny autumn day developed, with a very  light, inconsistent, north west breeze. These conditions usually produce quite difficult casting conditions, with the leader not turning over, and so it proved to be. However, there was some lively and very close competition in the distance events and, also, some very good progress made in the tuition area with a number of distance Badges achieved. In fact it is hard to imagine a more enjoyable and rewarding day’s casting!

The results were as follows:

#5F Distance – Mike Heritage 106′ 9″   Jonathan Tomlinson  106′ 7″   Paul Arden 99′ 11″   James Evans 99′ 8″   Andrew Bagshaw 95′ 9″   Terry Jenner 77′ 6″    Tracy Thomas 71′ 2″   David Fisher 66′ 8″   Nicolas Surtees (7yrs) 42′ 2″

#7F Distance – Mike Heritage 124′ 4″   Andrew Bagshaw 122′ 9″PB   Paul Arden 116′ 7″   Jonathan Tomlinson 110′ 9″   James Evans 110′ 3″   Terry Jenner 91′ 1″   David Fisher 84′ 9″   Tracy Thomas 76′ 11″

T38 Distance – Paul Arden 166′ 7″   Jonathan Tomlinson 161′ 2″   Mike Heritage 154′ 10″   Andrew Bagshaw 149′ 6″   James Evans 138′ 10″   Terry Jenner 137′ 4″   David Fisher 101′ 11″   Tracy Thomas 95′ 8″

T120 Distance – Mike Marshall 211′ 7″   Terry Jenner 194′ 5″   Jonathan Tomlinson 191′ 2″   Paul Arden 186′ 7″   Andrew Bagshaw 177′ 9″   Mike Heritage 174′ 2″   David Fisher 156′ 5″ 

Distance Badges achieved: 

25Yards – Don Andrews,  Dave East,  Andy Stanbridge.

30Yards – Tracy Thomas,  Alan Tyson,  David Fisher.

45Yards – Terry Jenner.

Regarding casting competion performances, it was good to see Mike Heritage back to form in #5 and #7 – keep up the good work Mike. However, special mention must be made about Terry Jenner’s second place in T120, using a rod new to him and a borrowed line. Andrew Bagshaw’s PB in #7 was great to watch. It was also amazing to see seven year old Nicolas Surtees casting his #5 outfit in fine style after some tuition.

Distance Badges once again proved to be an area of much interest for several casters, but pride of place must go to Tracy Thomas casting 30 yards with immaculate line loops. David Fisher’s 30 yards was the result of diligently following advice received at BFCC events and putting it into practice in a very competent manner – good work David.

This joint BFCC – Sportfish Meeting was a great success and the BFCC owes Jonathan Tomlinson and his Sportfish colleagues a considerable debt of gratitude. Not only was their hospitality second to none, but they provided many anglers needing tuition, Badge Scheme casters and a few competition entrants.

The weather was not particularly helpful with occcasional drizzle and a moderate westerly breeze which was, unavoidably, slightly across the casting line. However, such was the general enthusiasm, it did not cause a problem and some very good distances were achieved, particularly for Badges, where there were some very proud recipients.

RESULTS:

#5F Distance – Alex Titov 115′; Jonathan Tomlinson 112′ 1″; Mike Heritage 111′; Tony Bennett 99′ 6″; Ronald Girnus 94′ 6″; Steve Kemp 93′; Terry Jenner 84′ 8″.

#7F Distance – John Renolds 136′ 2″ (congratulations PB); Jonathan Tomlinson 128′ 3″; Mike Heritage 124′ 1″; James Evans 117′ 3″; Roger Miles 106′ 6″ (congratulations PB); Tony Bennett 102′ 7″; Alex Titov 100′ 8″; Ronald Girnus 98′ 10″; Steve Kemp 96′ 5″; Steve Fox 85′ 3″ ; John Kelly 74′.

25 yd Badges – P R Coker, D J Edwards, Steve Fox.                                                 

30 yd Badges – M J Williams, Steven Davies, Matthew Gregory, Vince Granata.                                                                                                                                            

35 yd Badges – Ronald Girnus, James Evans.                                                             

40 yd Badge – Peter Mcleod.

For an example of triumph over adversity, nothing beats our newest member Stevie Davies, who struggled up from South Wales with a broken hip. Over three periods of tuition, casting from a chair, he ended up casting in fine style with double haul. What, I wonder, would he be capable of when fully fit – keep up the good work Stevie?

The next BFCC Meeting is at The Brentwood Centre on the 18 Oct. 2009.

Reporter – Mike Marshall

Sunday was an almost perfect day – for holiday makers, but not for casting! We experienced almost continuous sunshine, it was humid in the morning and less so later-on, but the worst part was an occasional puff of breeze from the north east or east, followed by completely ‘dead air’. The net result was that it was almost impossible to turn the line and leader over. Tough is hardly an adequate description and distances suffered, however, those present all seemed to enjoy their day. Results were as follows:

#5F – Mike Marshall  114′ ; Andrew Bagshaw  106′ ; Alex Titov  103′ ; Mick Bell  101′ 7″ ; John Reynolds  100′ ; Carl Malpass  97′ 10″ ; Kevin Knight   93′ 11″ ; Roger Miles  87′ 8″ ; Stephen Lindley  75′ .

#7F – Alex Titov  121′ 2″ ; Carl Malpass  117′ 9″ ; Mick Bell  115′ 10″ ; John Reynolds  107′ 7″ ; Andrew Bagshaw  99′ 10″ ; Roger Miles  98′ 3″ ; Kevin Knight  96′ 11″ ; Stephen Lindley  84′ 9″ .

T38 – John Reynolds  167′ 9″ ; Andrew Bagshaw157′ 7″ ; Kevin Knight  150′ 10″ ; Mick Bell  149′ 8″ ; Stephen Lindley 143′ 9″ ; Roger Miles  140′ ; Carl Malpass  116′ 7″ .

T120 – Alex Titov  178′ ; Mick Bell  169′ 1″ ; Andrew Bagshaw  148′ 3″ ; John Reynolds  144′ ; Kevin Knight  125′ 5″ .

Performance of the day has to go to Carl Malpass (15 yrs.), down from Durham, with his all round casting, but, in particular his 117’+ in #7F. What, in the future, is this young man capable of? It was good to see Alex Titov (Russian spoken here) cast so well to win the #7F and T120, the benefits of hard work if ever I saw them. Andrew Bagshaw’s PB of 106′ in #5F pleased him no end, particularly considering the conditions. New member Stephen Lindley, from the Sheffield area, came down for some help with his casting , ended up ‘having a go and cast 143’ 9″ in T38, incredible. Finally it was great to see old friends Kevin Knight and Mick Bell doing what their right arms were made for, after absenses due to pressure of work.

Reporter – Mike Marshall

The BFCC completed its first exhibition very successfully and, over the two day Spring Fly Show, sold lots of casting tuition sessions, Distance Badges and casting books. It was, in fact, great to see such good results from the major efforts put in by those keen BFCC Members who participated.

Casting took place in largely overcast conditions with a light southwesterly breeze and the results were:

#5F – Jonathan Tomlinson 128′ 8″ ; Mike Heritage  117′ 9″ ; Alex Titov  115′ 10″ ; Tony Bennett  103′ ; John Reynolds  102′ ; Roger Miles  102′ .

#7F – John Reynolds  130′ 6″ ; Jonathan Tomlinson  126′ 6″ ; Mike Heritage 124′ 4″ ; Alex Titov  121′ 10″ ; Tony Bennett  119′ ; Roger Miles  102′ 6″; Terry Jenner  91′ 1″ .

A highlight was fifteen years old Carl Malpass who cast a #7F outfit to achieve his 40yd Badge – well done indeed!

The proud recipients of Distance Badges were:         25 yds – Vee Carlson, David Adlard, Stephen Lindley. 30 yds – Bob Carlson, Terry Mann, Angus McLeod, Roger Smith, Adam Worker. 35 yds – Lee Kelly, Shane Carlton, Peter Major. 40 yds – Carl Malpass.

Reporter – Mike Marshall