As Hard As Expected

Fished my first Boddington Classic qualifier of the year yesterday. Conditions leading up to the day meant it was always going to be rock-hard, but it was surprisingly windy in the morning and tramming through in the upper layers. I drew peg 54, the nearest end peg to the car park, so a good peg in what’s normally the hardest section. With the wind blowing towards the dam wall and fish in the corner down by the car park I was optimistic of getting a couple. 

Realistically I felt just three or four carp could be enough and that’s exactly how it panned out. I’ve had three for 15kg, my neighbour had a slightly bigger three fish for 15kg and Steve Beard won the section and qualified with four fish for 16kg. 

Definitely a missed chance and really felt my peg was worth more. However, I’m not sure if anyone from end peg 2 to end peg 109 caught more than four carp on the day and only five people broke the 20kg barrier, which tells you just how hard it was! The top three all came from the sailing club with Martin Paynter’s 10 carp for 52kg from end peg S12 winning the day. 

Gearwise, I caught one carp using my 12ft Horizon X Ultra Pro Pellet Waggler with an 8g Finesse Pellet Waggler and a 14 X8 Power Carp hook. The two others were on the bomb with an 11ft Ultra Pro Commercial Feeder, 20g In-Line Lead and 12 X7 Carp Method hook. 

Hopefully the weather’s a LOT cooler on the next visit!