ALAN BLAIR, best known for carp, caught this personal best 30 lb 4 oz pike after snatching a quick trip after a tackle show - despite not having the baits he wanted.
Alan Blair, who is Nash Tackle operations director, wasn’t even sure about fishing after the Brentwood Carp Show in Essex …but he was persuaded by colleagues Carl and Alex Smith.
Alan explained: “Without doubt this is one of the greatest fish I’ve ever had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with.
“I went to the Brentwood show and what a great day it was. I had always planned to have a quick go for some pike after the show, just a couple of hours.
“But what with going to Sainsbury’s earlier that morning only to find everything on the deli already filleted and the fact I enjoyed the show so much I didn’t leave till gone 3pm I was in two minds.
“As I headed back towards home I did question on many occasions ‘would it really be worth it?’ – with at best only 45 minutes fishing before it was dark.
“With my lamprey sections cast out, as that’s all I had, I sat there on the laptop working away and the weather was dreadful.
“And I sat there keeping busy trying not to think how cold and miserable it was when at 5.10pm I had a series of bleeps.”
“Fish of a lifetime” says Alan Blair
Alan, star of the hugely popular Urban Banx series on YouTube, continued: “The rest is history.
“I set the trebles with my heavy duty Scope curving over with this absolute crocodile giving a true big fish battle, attempting multiple times to spit the bait back at me.
“It was as tense of a fight as could be imagined as when it hit the surface for the first time I knew it was a fish of a lifetime.
“Massive thanks to Carl and Alex not only giving me the motivation to go but for then coming to share the moment with me and do the pictures,” Alan concluded.
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