The stuff dreams are made of!
more than that would be nice! Proud moment.. Rob happily shows off his trophy fish
In the spring of 2010, while sitting in a product development meeting, it was announced that our carp consultant Dave Lane would be leaving the company for pastures new, and it dawned on me that here was my chance to represent JRC in the World Carp Classic. With some less than subtle arm twisting,
it was agreed that I would be one of the UK JRC pair to compete in the event. To say I was pleased was an understatement! Now up until this moment, the idea of carp
fishing competitively had never really been of any interest to me – carp fishing is normally a very solitary and personal obsession – but to put you’re angling skills against some of the best anglers in the world, and fish the mighty Lac Madinne, was a chance I could not let pass. Having spoken to Dave Lane about the event and Madine, I knew it wouldn’t be easy. He had fished it every year the event had taken place and had only caught one double figure carp! It was clear that you needed a good draw and a good plan of action to make the most of what you got. The event was getting closer and I was
pestering everybody I knew to find out as much about Lac Madine as I could. By far my best source of information came from my good friend, and JRC carp category manager, Jan Mertons, who had fished the venue several times for pleasure and at the WCC. In the 2009 WCC despite not getting a
very good draw, he proved what could be done by working hard with good angling skills and the swim you get, and was rewarded with a fantastic mirror carp of 23.6KG (52LB). I had set my sights on just catching one! Catching a fifty would be stuff of dreams. At this point I still didn’t have a partner
for the event, but that soon changed with the arrival of the one and only Olympic gold medal winner, Dean Macey. It was announced he would be my team mate, and we very quickly got together to get
34 Team spirit.. Rob holds his cracking 55lb mirror while Dean and his team runner celebrate the moment
acquainted and make plans. It is always a worry meeting someone
new, let alone having to spend 10 days together, but my worries were misplaced as Dean is one of the most likeable people you could ever wish to meet. His competitive streak could only be an advantage for the event and the fact he is such a tart in front of the cameras would take the heat off me! (the only time I like to be in front of a camera is with a big slimy carp) With everything in place and the van
loaded, it was time to leave for Dover. We were both like children – excited for what lay ahead in the coming days. The whole trip was spent talking tactics and trying not to get lost. Within no time, we arrived at the main entrance to Madine and we could not believe our eyes, it was amazing. The whole drive leading down to the main hall was lined with all the nations flags, as well as giant sponsors banners .. 20 feet high. You could feel the atmosphere and we hadn’t even got
Magazine sponsored by Pescalis
www.pescalis.com
out of the van yet! Over the next two days we really got to
grips with what the event was all about. It was as much about the atmosphere as it was the fishing, with everyone catching up and having a laugh over a few beers. After registration it was time for the draw
in the main hall. As we walked in you could see that this was a world class event with the grand stage stacked with all the prizes. People from all over the world were in the hall waiting for their turn to draw for a swim. This was when the tension started to build. After what seemed forever, it was our turn to draw. We got peg 11 on the main island and we were both very happy with it. After the draw it was a real party atmosphere, with everyone buzzing with the live music and thoughts of the following day. The next day, we got up early and made
our way to the marina to be ferried out to the main island. We were not looking forward to carting all that gear to the boats, but to our surprise there was an army of marshals waiting to help us! These lads are great. Very helpful and without their efforts the event
would not be possible. After a short boat trip, we arrived at what
would be our home on the bank for the next five days. What a setting we would be bivvied up in – a hazelwood on an island in the middle of an inland sea. After a few hours of setting up a week’s worth of gear we were ready and waiting the horn for the start. When it came, it was like an armada of
boats heading out into the lake to bait up and start fishing, it was an incredible sight.
Now started the waiting game, it was all down to the carp .. were they there? Would they feed? Had we put enough bait in, or too much? We waited 24 hours to find out. Just as it got dark, one of Dean’s rods
screamed into life, an absolute one tone belter. If Dean had moved as fast as he did getting to his rod earlier in his career, he would have more Olympic gold medals than you could poke a stick at! After a good hard fight, the fish was in the
net and Dean was already dancing round the swim. We were off the mark. What a first
‘I must admit, I did start to think it was a catfish – any other time I would be happy with one ... but not in a World Carp match!’
fish, a stunning mirror weighing over 20 kg. We had already beaten our target of not blanking as a team and got the rods back out, hopefully for another. Again we waited a full 24 hours for the next chance and this time it was my turn. After a few scary moments trying to land
the fish with the H block marker all tangled up with it, it was in the net again. Dean was dancing around the bank. This was another mirror weighing 15+kg. We had both now caught and would have been happy with that, but it was not to be the last fish for me. In the early hours of the fourth day, my
right hand rod peeled off nice and steady (always a good sign of a good fish). I leaned into it and was met with what felt like a very heavy fish. The fight was very slow and powerful. The fish just plodded up and down the marginal shelf. I must admit, I did start to wonder if it was a catfish – any other time I would be happy with one, but not in a world carp match.
The fish was now in the net and we
could not believe it! It was a carp, and it was massive. Dean ran to get the marshal to weigh the fish and it bounced the scales round to 25KG (55LB)! It was me dancing around the swim this time! That was the last fish we caught, but we
had both exceeded our expectations and to top it off, we got on the stage at the closing ceremony, as the 25 kg carp I caught won the biggest fish in section I would like to thank all the competitors for
their hospitality during the event. Everyone we spoke to were a pleasure to be around. This year I have a new team partner
Stewart Downing, who is a great friend and has been waiting a long time for his chance to compete. If its half as good as last year he will have a great time. Look forward to seeing you all and be
lucky! Rob Nunn Magazine sponsored by Pescalis
www.pescalis.com 35
Our first ambition was to catch a fish, but anything
2010 Biggest Fish in Section winner Robb Nunn
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