Strengths and Weaknesses ? ? ?

Ok, so we are all 'serious' carp anglers, none of us would class ourselves as inexperienced noddys, but where do you feel your strengths and weaknesses are ?
Given the perfect venue that would give total free reign on your angling abilities what methods would you give trial to that you dont tend to use for whatever reason ?

[Blue]

Id like to do more stalking in margins etc with natural baits. The kind of angling where you can watch and see fish feeding in the swim. None of the bite alarm stuff, just a float or free lining. Does my head in sometimes luncking loads of gear round, id just like to have a bag, net,rod,un hooking mat etc....

[Joephus]

My long range fishing is not up to what it should be really. Dont like it so dont do it meaning i dont get better.

[bigted]

interestin question this phil!
and a chance for all of us to put some sereouse input into a post!!
i’m guna be putting my self up to be shot down here, so go easy on us people!

i’l try my best to write what’s in my head here, here goes i hope it dun’t sound poncy!

all said and dun, i regard myself as a very compatant angler with alot to
learn, and i’l never stop learning, i feel my strengths are :-

a never give up attitude,
even if i have jumped in over my head.....i read once carp fishing’s like playing chess,
the greater your opponent the greater you’l have to become to beat him,, it’s something i’v always
felt in my sole and when i read it confirmed my thinking.

ability
i think this is a development of a lifetime holding a fishing rod, from roach fishhing, to flatty bashing,
from flicking a float around to re-spooling your reels, a feeling of what needs to be applied were and when

passion and feeling
for my surroundings, the privellage of being part of the environment i find my self in,
i have a big respect for nature, all nature, ...even tufty’s LOL i could never bring myself to harm
any thing ......other than my fellow man

carp fishing strengths
marginal work, rigs, rig mechanics and presentaion, bait aplication,

weaknesses:-
inability to grasp what’s under my nose, it takes me ages to realise the obveouse!
and i beat my self up about it after it’s clicked.

watercraft
missing valuable sightings other carpers see straight away.
a skill i definetly need to hone!

stagnation
battering away at the same old thing when i know only to well there’s
a better option around the corner, not working hard enough!

the perfect water, with only me on it.....wel after getting my head around the fact no one
else would be fishing the lake and i was free to do what i wanted would be the ultimate!

i’d have the luxury of being able to watch the fish.........the lake would have to house tress
that were capable of holding a ted!, , i’d make swims, fabricate stages and vantage points were
i could make my job easire, they’d be furnished with my own marginal cover , these would fit in with
the natural surroundings.
i’d swim alot more, during the summer spend hours swimming and mooching around in speedo’s LOL
introduce food, see how they reacted to everything i put in, experiment with bait!, experiment with naturals, find and make situations were i could watch my fish in close quarters
be inches from them wile they feed, have the luxurey of finding out which natural larder was being eaten
at which point in the year, whitness there sporning, infact be able to closely whitness all of there behaveour, how they react when other fish are present,roach, bream, pike, i’d make myself build up a knowlage of every single inch of the lake bed, and the plant life,,, close, close observation! in other words be so unfesably familliar with the late that would not be possible in a fishin sutuation
i think i’d just make the lake mine!
and it would be a ****in joy!

quality reply no holds bard

[Nige]

Post of the week/month there BigTed, what an image you created in my head, and how I too would love that about a lake of my own!!

[kevw]

Strengths - patience, the ability to not mind blanking, enjoying "being there", don't mind seeing others catch even if I'm not, watching and learning.

Weaknesses - lack of time and fish mainly weekends when most waters are pressured, too often can't be ar**d to move even though I know I should.

What method would I like to try? Would love to find a "virgin" water and pre-bait it to high heaven, just isn't practical to do on club waters with limited time. I know I said I don't mind others catching but I'm f****d if I'm going to bait up for them

[Rick]

Strengths
In respect to fishing I have patience., I am prepared to sit and fish for ever without catching, as long as I feel I am learning or am having peace.(using some of my time on the bank to reflect on life and put things in perspective is one of the reasons I do it)
Willingness to learn, absorb info from others as well as by my own mistakes.
A sense of humour, I can see the funny side of most things, and that helps not only me but hopefully those I fish with have a more relaxed pleasant experience.

Weaknesses
It’s a big word weakness, I like to think people have a lack of experience or find certain things more difficult than others rather than call them weaknesses .Non of us are born as masters of anything, some things are just easier than others.
I have many things to learn as a fisherman, and hopefully the following years will help me learn some of them.

Venue
As for a perfect venue, I hope I never find mine till my last day with a fishing rod, because otherwise I will have nothing left to dream about

For me, i need to maximise my time on the bank more than i do...............i need to learn to refrain from going at the first sign of fish but to try and see the bigger overall picture of whats happening around me.........i dont lack patience, by far, but i seem to jump at the first sighting and want to do something about it, every time.
I want to try and become more aware of the fish in their environment and to try and become one with the fish mannnnnn............... But seriously i think more time watching and less time fishing will probably equal more fish on the bank..............especially on my chosen venue.
Rig and tackle wise im happy and confident so rigs and methods are not in question........and as for baits no worries on that score.

[oscar_grouch]

That's one hell of a question-well done.
I think one of my strengths when it comes to trying to catch carp lol, is not giving in (like many that has already said). I find i get stuck in a rut sometimes though, you know sticking with what has worked and not willing to try new things.However this i feel is a little double edged as sometimes i forget about the simple things that worked when i was a kid ( with a lot less complicated equipment).
My water craft is somthing i'm trying to improve, I've always been really eager to get fishing when turning up at a lake, after reading Julian's piece about the basics it made me think about my own fishing. The session following that i spent the first half a day with only my shades and bino's and kept nice and quiet and just watched for signs.I had a cracking result on a lake which i had struggled on before.
Which brings me to another important thing, I used to be shy when it comes to asking for advice, quite a few ppl have helped me since joining this forum.So i guess that was a weakness.
My biggest weakness is taking so much clobber that i'm reluctant to move if i'm in a quiet swim.

[Bet]

hmmm let me see...I think I have a good knowledge of angling but I still have a lot to learn,my watercraft needs work and realise like others, that time spent on it will improve my results but sometimes when time is short, the temptation to cast out my rods proves too much The last few months I've worked much harder when fishing and take more time before deciding where to set up,walking the lake 2 or 3 times instead of once,climbing more,being more stealthy,thinking like a fish the buzz of finding and watching carp is a great one Last yr I wasted opportunities of stalking fish and have vowed never to do the same again.I need to be more mobile and cut down on my kit and do the extra nite here and there instead of feeling guilty about not being at home. I've learnt so much from more accomplished anglers than myself its unreal,I have alot to thank them for Being on the bank is like home from home, I dont mind the blanks, I usually end up learning from them.Now and again I find myself pickling my head about rigs and bait but usually have the sense to snap out of it
Wow having a lake is a dream I will always have,like bigted I would learn to know every inch of it and its' inhabitants.I think i'd find it hard not to share something so good with my friends/mentors.Fingers crossed for the lotto laterMy biggest weakness....a fear of worms that I must learn to overcome although someone told me they had seen some immitation ones for sale

[davidg]

Grief, I never knew we anglers were so much into self evaluation, well here goes

Strength - Patience, I'm past the point where I need to catch to justify my time on the bank. The ability to learn from my own mistakes and from listening from others. A try and try again mentality, if it dont work on one water/one day then try again later

Weakness - not always applying what I learn as soon as I should. Taking to much stuff and therefore not moving when I should. Not spending enough time on the bank

Ideal water - 5 to 7 acres with one or two small islands, depths from 2 to 20ft. Fairly even bottom (no egg cartons please) Plenty of pads/reeds and overhanging vegitation, needs to be a few climbing trees. Must be in quite location (no airports, motorways estates etc). Fish stock mid double to low thirties mixed mirror and commons, low stock of tufties etc. Selection of tench, bream roach and perch etc for when I've had enough of the carp

[Chesh]

blimey theres some interesting stuff here, better add my t'pence worth

Strengths -
having no fear to try something a little bit different with bait
no fear of blanking - its more about enjoyment now
no fear when turning up to a water thinking what the hell am i going to do (in the past this has not been so)
Stealth - for a big bruising bloke i can get about quietly (providing the lake is surrounded by giant oak trees )
margin fishing
casting to features and getting rather close
General Observation of waters
keeps things relatively simple

Weaknesses
can tend to be a LAZY GIT!!!!! doesnt like to move
lack of research into lakes
prefer to stick to known lakes etc...
eeeeerrr struggling
make half cups of tea

[Julian Grattidge]

Great thread, Phil.

Strengths…

My main strength would have to be my watercraft. I sometimes wonder if I’m more into that than I’m actually into catching fish! I used to spend hours upon end, often whole days just watching, without even wetting a line. At first this was simply because I could not catch (in numbers) from the Top Pool, but in time this has given way to a great passion of mine – trying to gain an understanding of what makes carp tick; what makes them do the things they do, and perhaps more importantly, what things effect where and when they do it!

I guess I’ve become a bit of a nature boy at heart. I love to just ‘be’ at waters, I don’t necessarily have to be fishing to get my kicks – I love the challenge of taking hints and tips from all the clues around you to work out where they will be and what they will be doing. This has given way to a *complete* addiction to stalking. I used to be a buzzer boy. Just whacking the rods out and waiting for action. Now I’m the opposite, I have to be off adventuring whenever the situation/water allows me to, and I see this as a major strength, as is doing so I often seem to catch more than those around me. Not that I’m competitive or anything, just that I like to do the opposite of most other people and it usually pays off. What’s more, it’s so much fun!

I’d like to think that another strength would be my willingness to help others. I love to see friends and newcomers into the sport catching, and will do all I can to offer advice and assistance, even if it means I catch less (or do not wet a line at all). I love the idea of people with a common goal sharing information and advice to help each other in their respective challenges.

I suppose another strength is my love of a challenge. I’m always trying to make the game harder for myself. I don’t know why I do it; I suppose I just love the idea of pushing boundaries. I could fish in a ‘normal’ fashion and catch ten times more than I do, but I always seem to lay down a challenge for myself. I suppose the reasoning being that I increase my understanding of both the sport and my own abilities as an angler.

Weaknesses…

My number one weakness has to be my all-consuming passion for the sport. It’s an addiction that I struggle to rein in at times and it’s caused more than a few strained moments at home. It’s nothing more than selfishness on my part – I love fishing so much that if I could get away with doing it every single day of my life, then I would. However, I can’t – and at times, that gets to me. Often (who am I kidding, all the time!) my mind is on fishing when it should be on other things!

No time more so than at present. I know my fishing time will increase again in time, but that does not make it any easier when all your mates are out banking and you are not! As such I knew I had to come up with a way of fuelling the passion from home or else I would go mad, and so, with others, decided to forge ahead with plans for our own carp lake. It’s been a massive challenge; everything from EA consent to choosing the right strain of fish to stock - but it’s allowed me to do carp stuff from home with the double whammy of giving me a whole new lake/stock to go at in a year or so when hopefully my fishing time will increase.

In fishing terms I try to confront my weaknesses head-on. I love the idea of giving myself a challenge in an area that needs work in the hope of improving my ability. My last (and current) challenge was to improve my surface fishing capability, which it had to be said, was pretty shabby! I gave myself a target of trying to catch a fish off the top in each month of the year, which then meant I was surface fishing every time I got the chance to fish - even if there was frost on the ground or ice in the margins! The result is that after help and advice from many others, Chris and Boneyman in particular, I’ve improved my technique immeasurably, which helped me to bank a new surface caught PB over winter at 24lb 4oz – well chuffed.

I’m still loving the surface challenge so much that I won’t be giving myself any new headaches to sort out just yet, although I really do want to get to grips with Birch Grove this year. I’ve never blanked on the water yet and bar one year with a fish two ounces under, have always managed twenties, but this year, as my fishing time is so precious at the moment (still not even got a proper pass to go yet!) I want to really try much harder to catch more during our week. Since the fish kill we’ve just sort of sat back on our laurels and have taken what comes, after all it’s always been part holiday, but this year I really want to get to grips with the current situation on there and do whatever I can within my power to have a few more. Chris is joining us this year which will be cool, as I think we’ll be fishing together, so I’m looking forward to it.

So long as I always enjoy my time on the bank, I reckon I'll be o'rite.

Julian

my strengths are that i am very capable of fishing bottom baits with presentation not being an issue,i am not affraid to tackle any water no matter how hard the reputation is,i can change my aproach to suit all my fishing, long range fishing this has come on a long way but i have always been able to push a lead a distance, i am also very capable in the artform of stalking. weaknesses floater fishing as i dont really rate it i try not to use it as it tends to be an easy way out of a blank whereas i would rather get the gratification of taking just one fish off the bottom when everybody around is floater fishing its like catching a pb everytime.