Ringer's Roundup - Ferry Meadows, Feedermasters & Finding Form

I'm a bit late with this one! So, there is a lot to cover. Let's start with a Ferry Meadows catch-up, as I've spent a lot of time there!

Ringer's 3 Day Easter Classic Festival

First up was the Ringer Baits three-day event, all on Gunwade. It was always a brilliant match, with 50 anglers fishing. I had a strange three days; on day 1, I drew 51 by the river mouth. A peg I like to be honest. Now, I'm always honest; in this instance, I struggled to find a clear spot in the weeds. Looking back, I could have plumbed it better. Anyway, I was never happy with the weed where I was casting, but I managed 5 bream on a large 45g hybrid feeder and 6mm Ringers yellow wafter for 26lb, which was an okay start. It took me 3 hours to get a bite, so I was pleased to put some weight on the board with it being a weight-based festival.

Tactical Shifts and Big Weights: Day 2 Breakthrough

Day 2 and off to the fence end section, praying for peg 86 as that was the form peg. I was, therefore, disappointed to draw 79! This is the significant weight section, so I knew I needed a 50lb minimum to stay in the race if I was to challenge. A biteless first hour wasn't what I needed. So had a rethink as with plenty of bream being caught from 83 to 86 I needed to do something. So dropped down to a small 30g Guru caged window, slopped my groundbait up and decided to be really busy. Casting every 4 minutes. This worked a treat, and after 5 casts, the swim kicked into life. And gradually got stronger. I finished up with 16 fish, 14 bream, plus 2 skimmers for 75lb. A weight I was really pleased with. However, Dave Perry put 87lb on the scales from peg 83 to give himself a big lead going into day 3.

Learning Curve and a Solid Finish: Day 3 Reflections

Day 3 and peg 41 were left in the bag for me. Happy with that. Felt I'd learnt loads on day 2 about being busy and fishing little feeders to minimise disturbance in the clear water. So, I kicked off precisely the same! Sloppy groundbait to cloud the swim up with a few casters and maggots in the mix. Well, it just didn't work, I ended up catching 7 bream for 37lb, but they all came through being patient. It was like the harder I worked, the worse it got! On the plus side, this was enough for 2nd in the festival. I was pleased with that in the end, as I was a mile behind festival winner Dave Perry, who put another 77lb on the scales off peg 43 to finish up over 60lb clear of the field!

Gear That Delivered: My Festival Setup

Looking back, the secret was to be versatile, as no two days were the same. So, varying things up was crucial. Kit-wise, for those interested, I used 13-foot Aventus distance rods and tournament 25QD reels loaded with 0.08 Pulse 8 Braid. Then a 7m prototype braided leader in 0.20 diameter. The rig was a running paternoster using the super fine feeder link to a 25cm boom of 0.22 Pure fluorocarbon. The hook length was then 65cm of 0.16 fluorocarbon to a size 12 pole special hook. Pole specials in 10s and 12s are due out at the end of June, too, for all those who are waiting!

The feeder choice was mixed: small and medium caged windows in 30g or 40g and Nisa rockets in small and medium in 36g. With the water being so clear, it seemed important to keep mixing it up, i.e., a few quick casts, then, if there was no response, a 15-minute cast to settle the swim down again. The groundbait mix was two-part Ringers original to one-part Ringers dark.

Chasing Points: Super League & FeederKing Campaigns

Since the three-day festival, I've been back to Ferry multiple times with some decent results. I qualified for the Ferry Meadows feeder cup from peg 86! With a match-winning 84lb, plus a 69lb for 2nd off the high bank peg 33. For those who say I only report the good days, I did blank off 115 on Overton on the Feedermasters qualifier along with everyone around me! It was one of those days that can happen on big natural venues.

Other than that, I've been chasing feeder masters with some decent results and performances, but all off pegs that haven't given me a chance of qualifying. I've been winning 10 peg sections basically, but not the 20 peg zones that are needed.

FeederKing at Southfield Reservoir has been the same; I just can't get on the bream there so far. Feedermasters Super League has also kicked off. Round 1 was at Southfield Reservoir, and we had a poor start as a team in the form of Ringerbaits. I nicked a 3rd in my 15 peg zone with 3 early bream but never felt in control of my peg at all. The reality was 3rd was the best I could do from where I was, but I still felt another break was possible.

Round 2 was Barston, a venue we as a team love as it suits how we like to fish, i.e. attack. I found myself on 104, which is not a good area, but there was a job to do for the team. Fished one line at 55m, feeding heavily with a mix of pigeon conditioner and pellets through a 6 hole guru bait up feeder. Then, fishing a 28g large hybrid loaded with 2mm pellets over the top. A 6mm Ringers pink and yellow wafter on a size 10 qm1 being the hookbait of choice. By being very aggressive early I had a brilliant start catching 3 carp for 25lb in the first 35 minutes. From then on, I ticked over with an odd big skimmer and f1. Then, with 90 minutes to go, 2 more carp for 18lb in 2 casts. That was it, but my 74lb was enough for 2nd in the 15. A result I'd definitely have taken before the start. I would never have caught Pemb Wrightings 121lb from peg 82 on the grass bank. Overall the team won the day with 14 points and have now jumped from 7th to 2nd with two rounds to go.

That brings me pretty much up to date. I feel like I'm fishing well but not quite getting the rub of the green at the moment. My next stop, though, is the big one: the world feeder championships in Lithuania for the Drennan England feeder team. So, my next report will be all about that!