World Fly fishing Championships 2014

[Andre]

I think competitive anything needs to be taken with a pinch of salt.
All valid points that you raise, I just find it interesting in competitive fly fishing, given the number of beats, number of anglers, etc etc, and the randomness of the draws, that it always seems to be the same guys that mostly come out on top. Regardless of how much luck is involved, there are a handful of names and countries that always feature. Makes me think that there might not be as much luck involved as you think. Succeeding in any sport, and being the best, is not so much about what happens on the day, but the preparedness in getting ready for the actual fishing. How does the Czech team for instance, prepare themselves for the eventuality that they might get a bum beat draw? in this case, they would have covered this possibility in preparation, and would be able to fish accordingly. Like football, the best team on the day will win, they played according to a plan, and exploited their strengths. I remember in the Lydenberg nationals, one particular beat yielded very few fish, in fact only two anglers manged to get a fish out of that beat. They were the first and second placed individuals in the tournament. Think that's luck? I doubt it. They were the two best guys in the tournament.

Surely competitive flyfishing needs to be taken with a pinch of salt... in other words the team/individual that "wins" on the day is not necessarily the "best" angler/team in the world, but rather, on the day, they performed the best, and were fortunate enough to be on the piece of water that delivered the best conditions and best number of fish...

Of course there is huge amounts of skill involved ( far exceeding my own, and most other anglers ) so I am not disputing these guys and girls are the top anglers in their fields... that could be said of all of them... on the day, its almost luck of the draw as to who wins right?

I think we should all look at the Championships as an amazing opportunity for groups of the best fly anglers rom round the world to get together, fish some great waters, share tactics/techniques/flies/beers/wine and good times, and acknowledge that this is what its actually all about, and that is amazing... what a great thing to be a part of... the actual "World Champion" moniker that is awarded to a team or individual at the end of the day is a nice thing to have, but surely not to be taken as gospel....

Now that I have thoroughly pissed off every single serious competitive fly angler, I will crawl back into the cavern from whence I came...

But before I do, best wishes to MC, Philip, GGY, Maddy, Chris and Dan... clap it.. hope you okes have a great event, have some fun, catch some fish, and meet some great people...

[Nepptune]

Korrie/Andre

Thanks for the reply gents... sorry I think you guys mistook my musings as a statement that it is all a luck of the draw factor, and that the winner is only there by luck... not my intention, I apologise...
I agree, factors such as the fact that the same countries/individuals seem to always end up in the winners circle proves that luck only plays so much of a part, and that the guys at the top, are ridiculously skilled anglers... make no mistake, I didn't mean to take away from that... these boys and girls can fish on a level beyond what most of us can even begin to aspire to, and I have mad respect for that... and certainly acknowledge that the top finishers are a cut above the others perhaps..

My post was more to take a look at it from a slightly different angle ( and elevate the mood somewhat ) by introducing the notion that these Championships are actually more important as a great opportunity for a bunch of great anglers to get together and fish, rather than the ultimate mission to crown a "Outright World champion-Best Fly Fisherman Ever in the history of the World and Universe"..... because , as Korrie stated, and I alluded to, draw a k@k beat, and you can be the best angler there, and Palooka Joe ( that would be me ) fishing a mile upstream beats the snot out of you by happening to be on a piece of water delivering huge fish one after the other... Sure thats an extreme example, and as much as possible is done to "even the playing field" I'm sure.... But trying to convince me that the guy who wins the World Championship is "The best flyfisherman in the world" is about as effective as trying to convince me that Soccer is a cool sport worth my time to watch ( see, everyone gets a dig in my posts! ) or that Golf is a lekker way to spend the day instead of going fishing, or that Jacob Zuma is an honest and morally upstanding citizen..... not gonna happen... I have no doubt that person is a VASTLY superior fly angler to me in every respect.... but the single Best Flyfisherman in the World.... ??? Nah....

[dlampert]

My point about stocked fish is not to diminish the comp in any way. I agree that you still need to catch the fish to have them count. My experience with stockies is that they take a couple of months to wisen up and until they do, are pretty easy to catch - especially if they are freshly stocked. The comp in these sectors will be more about rhythm and efficiency to get the numbers as high as possible. Dan and Maddy caught up to 100 fish in a three hour session on some of the practice water - quite a phenomenal achievement that they will hopefully be able to replicate during the comp. My comment was more from a fly fishing holiday perspective - I would rather pay money to catch a couple of wild fish in somewhere like NZ than a whole bunch of stockies in the Czech Republic or Slovenia for that matter.

We have possibly our strongest team ever, sure they will do well!

[Andre]

I hear you, but you need to understand that the World Champs is exactly that. Like in any sport, the World Champs is very very serious. The scenario you paint, about a few guys getting together to fish, is long gone by the time they get here. The few guys getting together to fish, would have been done a hundred times by then, and believe me they would have done those types of tournaments,. Trust me, the World Champs is to find the best in the World, and that is what they do. The guys that win this, are the best in the World, make no mistake. It could come down to the wire like any other sport, but the team with the best preparation will win. The luck factor only plays out on the day, and with the number of beats they fish and all the other factors, luck plays as little a part as any other sport.

Korrie/Andre

Thanks for the reply gents... sorry I think you guys mistook my musings as a statement that it is all a luck of the draw factor, and that the winner is only there by luck... not my intention, I apologise...
I agree, factors such as the fact that the same countries/individuals seem to always end up in the winners circle proves that luck only plays so much of a part, and that the guys at the top, are ridiculously skilled anglers... make no mistake, I didn't mean to take away from that... these boys and girls can fish on a level beyond what most of us can even begin to aspire to, and I have mad respect for that... and certainly acknowledge that the top finishers are a cut above the others perhaps..

My post was more to take a look at it from a slightly different angle ( and elevate the mood somewhat ) by introducing the notion that these Championships are actually more important as a great opportunity for a bunch of great anglers to get together and fish, rather than the ultimate mission to crown a "Outright World champion-Best Fly Fisherman Ever in the history of the World and Universe"..... because , as Korrie stated, and I alluded to, draw a k@k beat, and you can be the best angler there, and Palooka Joe ( that would be me ) fishing a mile upstream beats the snot out of you by happening to be on a piece of water delivering huge fish one after the other... Sure thats an extreme example, and as much as possible is done to "even the playing field" I'm sure.... But trying to convince me that the guy who wins the World Championship is "The best flyfisherman in the world" is about as effective as trying to convince me that Soccer is a cool sport worth my time to watch ( see, everyone gets a dig in my posts! ) or that Golf is a lekker way to spend the day instead of going fishing, or that Jacob Zuma is an honest and morally upstanding citizen..... not gonna happen... I have no doubt that person is a VASTLY superior fly angler to me in every respect.... but the single Best Flyfisherman in the World.... ??? Nah....

[Andre]

I agree with you. Im also in your corner. However, I do understand that some guys get a thrill out of the completion environment where they like to measure themselves against the best. I have respect for these guys, they have worked hard to earn the honour of carrying the countries flag, and pitting themselves against the best in the World. I remember when Maddy Rich was a young fly fisherman who couldn't even tie on a fly. I showed him a few knots and got him into some of his first trout. Check him now, one of the best our country has produced. That deserves respect.

My point about stocked fish is not to diminish the comp in any way. I agree that you still need to catch the fish to have them count. My experience with stockies is that they take a couple of months to wisen up and until they do, are pretty easy to catch - especially if they are freshly stocked. The comp in these sectors will be more about rhythm and efficiency to get the numbers as high as possible. Dan and Maddy caught up to 100 fish in a three hour session on some of the practice water - quite a phenomenal achievement that they will hopefully be able to replicate during the comp. My comment was more from a fly fishing holiday perspective - I would rather pay money to catch a couple of wild fish in somewhere like NZ than a whole bunch of stockies in the Czech Republic or Slovenia for that matter.

We have possibly our strongest team ever, sure they will do well!

[Umhlangarox]

I hear you, but you need to understand that the World Champs is exactly that. Like in any sport, the World Champs is very very serious. The scenario you paint, about a few guys getting together to fish, is long gone by the time they get here. The few guys getting together to fish, would have been done a hundred times by then, and believe me they would have done those types of tournaments,. Trust me, the World Champs is to find the best in the World, and that is what they do. The guys that win this, are the best in the World, make no mistake. It could come down to the wire like any other sport, but the team with the best preparation will win. The luck factor only plays out on the day, and with the number of beats they fish and all the other factors, luck plays as little a part as any other sport.

How can you call yourself the best in the World if the percentage of people who fish competitively is tiny? That right there is the problem, one of the reasons you always get the same guys at the top is because it is the same handful of guys that compete every year. Yes you might have a few guys coming in and out but generally it does not change too much.

[smallstreams.co.za]

I dont think so, stockies, after being hooked a couple of times can become very very hook/fly shy.

So I guess the guy that gets to hook them 1st could just count himself a bit luckier than the rest ....

[Korrie]

How can you call yourself the best in the World if the percentage of people who fish competitively is tiny? That right there is the problem, one of the reasons you always get the same guys at the top is because it is the same handful of guys that compete every year. Yes you might have a few guys coming in and out but generally it does not change too much.

Matt????
How come it is basically the same 11 guys in the Liverpool or MU or Barcelona team, week in and week out?
it is because they are the best.
there might be one or 2 that dont make the team, that should be there, That only plays a Sunday social league.but there are thousands and thousands of soccer players playing week in and week out. that dont make it to the top league.
The same with the fly fishing, some guys do the league in the countries, fish the trials etc, and it is because they come out on top, week in and week out. that is why they go to the World Championships. There might be a couple of good fly fishers, that don't want to do the competitive fishing.

[Korrie]

So I guess the guy that gets to hook them 1st could just count himself a bit luckier than the rest ....

You might be on a beat where the session before you, a French, Czech etc fished.
he caught just about every fish and some 2 or 3 times.
Or you could be on a beat, where a guy from Japan fished, and did not fish the beat as hard.
The LUCK of the draw. and the competition guys, are happy with it, because that is the way the rules work.

[Andre]

In the European countries there are thousands of guys who fish the leagues. I think Uri Peshkar was telling me a few years ago when he was here, that his club has a few thousand members, and in his town, there are a few clubs. These guys do leagues, competitions every weekend, they do Provincials, Nationals etc. The guys that get to the Worlds, are the cream of the crop. The guys that win, are the best.

Matt????
How come it is basically the same 11 guys in the Liverpool or MU or Barcelona team, week in and week out?
it is because they are the best.
there might be one or 2 that dont make the team, that should be there, That only plays a Sunday social league.but there are thousands and thousands of soccer players playing week in and week out. that dont make it to the top league.
The same with the fly fishing, some guys do the league in the countries, fish the trials etc, and it is because they come out on top, week in and week out. that is why they go to the World Championships. There might be a couple of good fly fishers, that don't want to do the competitive fishing.