Opinion Piece – Gazumped!

So, my club, Warrington AA got gazumped, and lost a superb stretch of the River Ribble at Balderstone to another angling club, Clitheroe AA Ltd, that apparently paid nearly three times as much for the same privilege! As a member of WAA I am gutted, even though I had only visited that particular fishery a couple of times. I had a trip planned in a few weeks, an overnighter staying at a travel lodge, now those plans will have to be revised.

The Ribble, enjoyed by a coarse angler

I am convinced that the secretary and management team at WAA did everything they could, but despite the massive last-ditch efforts by the committee to retain the water, all was lost. Had it been an underused stretch of the Upper Severn 20 miles from the nearest town, sure it still would have provoked some bad feeling, but many members probably would have shrugged their shoulders and not given it a second thought. But this was different; this was one of the jewels in our crown and will be very difficult, if not impossible, to replace, especially in that particular catchment.

But the water has now gone, and regardless of the ethics, or lack of, and the whys and wherefores of that particular transaction, the specifics of which I am not privy to, the signals don’t bode well for other angling clubs who lease water in that particular area.

Firstly, if the rent has indeed nearly trebled, how many other landowners in that area (and others) will be looking for similar increases when future leases are up for renewal? More to the point, will angling clubs be willing and able to meet said increases and prevent oft-falling memberships from falling even further? In many cases I think the clubs will stump up the money in the short term, hopefully many will now secure their leases on longer-term deals or, even better, buying where possible. But what for the future? If this is the start of a precedent what are the implications for some clubs? For once prices go up, will they ever come back down again?

For starters, and I know it’s been said a million times, I think we are going to finally have to accept that us club members don’t pay nearly enough for our sport in most cases. To join WAA as a new senior member costs £ 62 for your first year and £ 31 per year thereafter. Thirty-one quid! For that you get the choice of well over 50 waters, including many miles of river, canal and several excellent stillwaters, it truly is excellent value for money; indeed other clubs around the Cheshire area also offer comparable alternatives within a similar price band. Are these prices realistic in this day and age when one considers the price of joining a modest golf club, attending a premiership football match, or even going into town for a few beers? I don’t think so.

However, I have witnessed the attitude of some anglers when told the price of their club card is going up by a quid or two. Heaven knows what they would say if told the price will go up five-fold this year and the same next, even if it was to protect their future angling interests. I think its fair to say that wholesale price increases are a definite ‘no no’ for juniors and OAPS, and are definitely not going to be the flavour of the month where the majority of senior club members are concerned either, and may not even be carried through in some cases were they to be proposed in the first place. So what of the other options? What have we learned these past years?

The decline in many club memberships suggests that anglers are voting with their feet, maybe going to commercial fisheries or leaving the sport for good to pursue other leisure activities. Decreased membership means less financial resources for clubs and means their premier waters will be all too easy to pick off by unscrupulous third parties as clubs try to financially juggle their remaining assets and judge what represents best value for money, whilst having to allow for a falling membership also. Net result, more dissatisfied club anglers, and more club anglers voting with their feet!

Also consider other factors that angling clubs compete against today, that they weren’t competing against, say 15 years ago? Today £ 10 a week (or £ 40 a month) in fishing terms gets you between 4 and 6 visits to a good commercial fishery with flushing loos, refreshments, bait and tackle on site, secure parking, an easy walk to your peg, and a netful of fish. For £ 40 a month you can also have full membership of Total Fitness Gym where you can visit any of their many gyms as often as you like, and stay for as long as you like, price includes all fitness classes, swimming, hydrotherapy pool, sauna, the works. For £ 40 a month you can get the whole package for Sky TV (football also) where you don’t even have to move out of the armchair to see some fishing take place. A seat at a premiership football match now will cost anything up to £ 50; yet attendances the last few years have still been excellent. But let us also remember that some of the most popular northwest-angling clubs charge several hundred pounds to join, and have full waiting lists, which last several years. The point of each of these examples is that people will pay if they get quality and value for money.

Anyway, accepting that the purpose of the exercise is to safeguard our club fisheries for the use of one and all, and not just the minority, what can we do to increase our chances of retaining and increasing club membership to allow this to happen?

Firstly, clubs need to retain their best waters, at whatever cost. If this means constantly monitoring usage of all waters and regularly rationalizing their least used fisheries to free up assets in order to keep their most popular waters stitched up on long term leases at the going rate, then so be it.

Another idea is for some clubs to pool their assets and amalgamate. I am sure some club stalwarts would baulk at that thought, for let’s remember some of these clubs are upwards of 100 years old, and there is some serious history therein. However, I am of the opinion that you must act on current trends, and if memberships are falling as is the case in some clubs, then act accordingly and do something about it, for if you stand still, you get left behind and effectively end up going backwards. A local association to me used to compromise 20+ clubs in the mid 80’s, representing 1000s of anglers, now down to nine member clubs. One other club I joined had 2000 members in 1985, now down to less than 300. And yet subs are only £ 10 more now compared with what I paid 21 years ago! Madness. Several smaller clubs pooling their resources would create a very formidable angling body, especially if the new membership were asked to pay a realistic amount for their now increased options.

Other incentives? Well, off the top of my head how about a card exchange scheme for clubs in other areas of the country, whereby clubs allow visiting/holidaying members to fish certain waters? That would entice me to join another angling club.

And how about a genuine attempt at providing equivalent facilities on some club waters similar to those that you might find on a commercial fishery? Nothing attracts anglers like good fishing, and nothing attracts lots of anglers like good fishing combined with good facilities!

It is now evident that some people are prepared to pay an awful lot more for their fishing than the average angling club/club angler realised. There is no ‘code of conduct’ that will stop them from moving in, no ‘gentleman’s agreement’ or ‘correct protocol’ and if your waters are any good, well publicised, and the lease is up for renewal soon, it will have been made very clear to the landowner that he/she could get much, much more for that two mile stretch of river. Market forces now dictate who gets what, regardless of who has monitored, cared for, and cherished that water for the last umpteen years.

The question now is, how proactive are clubs prepared to be in order to both protect and develop their own members’ interests? For make no mistake, if we do today what we’ve always done, tomorrow we’ll get what we always got!

Two Better Ideas

Someone once gave me a good piece of advice at work.

“Whenever anyone comes up to you and moans about something Eddie, ask them for at least two better ideas.”

Believe me that statement made my life so much easier, for about a week, and then the good ideas started flooding in!

Market forces, salmon anglers, barbel anglers, underhanded tactics, banks like Glastonbury, and anglers cramming in shoulder to shoulder. All, with varying degree, are being blamed for the loss of fishing rights in what has now become ‘the post mortem of Balderstone.’

We’ve all had our moan; all expressed our disgust, our sadness, and our fears for the future. But what are we prepared to do about it and what can we do to stop it happening again?

Glastonbury

With regards to mess and litter, we are a dirty nation; it is not confined just to angling but is endemic across UK society. We will notice a difference on our riverbanks when governments take litter seriously and punish offenders accordingly, and not before.

I do not know of any angling club that doesn’t state in its club rules something like ‘anyone leaving litter will be expelled from the club permanently.’ I know some clubs do not allow tins or any plastic disposable bottles on their waters at all, not even in rucksacks, and I have yet to hear any angler not condemn litter louts, and still clubs have issues with litter, even those clubs with waiting lists.

So the clubs say and do the right things, yet litter still continues to be dropped, so apart from moaning to the bailiff, at least two other ideas please?

We could pay a private waste collection service to do our dirty work for us and regularly clear the mess left by the minority.

All new members to attend an inauguration evening/ work party.

Every member does at least one pre-organised work party, each year, without fail.

No work party attendance = no club membership. (This is what some smaller angling clubs and syndicates do already).

Pay (yes pay) the club bailiffs to be in attendance on some waters 24/7 during busy times.

See sardines 1.

Sardines

How to stop most popular waters becoming packed out, and avoiding the problems of overcrowding?

Operate a system whereby you, as a member, cannot just turn up and fish certain waters. You have to get off your backside, post a letter and book your exact peg days/weeks in advance with the club sec/water manager. The rules and regulations for those waters are very strict and specific, with each and every visitor having their car registration, peg number and catch return logged. This would eliminate anglers fishing shoulder to shoulder. I am sure it would also help to reduce the litter problem, probably not completely, but it would certainly make life a little harder than it is for the anonymous litterlout at the moment. Certainly it is an option for those popular waters most at risk of being lost through whatever reason.

Ensure members fish from permanent pegs only.

Maximum number of anglers/cars in car park.

Them and us

Is the lack of communication and distrust in angling so deeply entrenched that different angling groups (game and coarse) cannot use the same stretches of river? If it is that bad then we really are knackered!

OK, I know some landowners insist on fly only, and that’s fair enough, but to take things to the nth degree and remembering that for every one moan or question, we need two ideas.

Q. How can we make both parties happy?

We fish on alternate pre-determined days/weeks/weekends.
We have coarse angling ‘bits’ and game angling ‘bits’.
We just get on with it and react to problems accordingly.

Underhand

I don’t think that anything can be done to stop third parties actually approaching landowners and if all is well then this shouldn’t be an issue, but it’s a potential moan, so what can we do?

Ensure all leases/transactions are done thorough a solicitor.

Try and make leases as long term as possible on the best waters.

Speak to the landowner on a weekly basis and ensure he has no problems at all that could mean he seeks other tenants.

Constantly ask and haggle, find out what it would cost to buy said piece of water.

Ensure he/she is a guest of honour at every presentation evening, all drinks/taxis paid.

Saving the best bit ’til the last.

Market forces.

Probably the most contentious area of all, but assuming the moan is that some club waters are under threat by other parties whom are prepared to pay more, what can we do to raise alternative sources of income to improve current conditions and fend off so called ‘hostile’ takeovers?

Most obvious, increase subs to cover the extra rent.
Attract more ‘new’ members.
Run some fisheries on a similar basis to commercials selling bait and tackle.
Allow a limited number of pre-booked, pre paid day tickets.
Allow fishing guides on waters to bring in extra revenue.
Sell club merchandise.
Charge members extra to fish certain waters.
Charge members extra to night fish.
Amalgamate with other clubs.
Give up waters that are least used.

Some of what I have written I do not agree with, even having written it. Some of the ideas I came up with on the spur of the moment are unrealistic and in some cases, totally pie in the sky. But when asking what can we do to stop similar takeovers happening again I feel no stone should be left unturned and every avenue and idea explored, no matter how daft sounding.

Sticking your head above the parapet and suggesting something new and innovative will invite criticism and does require bottle. But if somebody shouts your idea down, ask them for two better ones, you never know, one of them might just be a winner.