MarkTheSpark
Senior Member
If fishing is dying, it will be because self-centred old farts like me and possibly a large number of other FMers are letting it die.
The idea of catching a fish is as fascinating to small boys as it always was. But unfortunately, inspirational teachers like Peter Rolfe and my old friend Brian Crawford, who ran the school fishing clubs, are a thing of the past.
Recruitment, such as it is, is coming from the occasional dad taking his lad fishing. And that's it. Here is Peterborough we have one of the biggest tackle shops in the country. Guess how many junior angling days they organise?
I have no idea whether Peterborough DAA organises junior angling days, but if I don't know about them, I doubt anyone else does.
The angling press is no place to publicise opportunities for beginners to learn; if they're shelling out £2 on angling papers, they're already fishing. Angling, as Peter said, has to compete with everything from XBox to twerking, but if it loses that battle, it's not because it doesn't interest youngsters. It is because it is completely rubbish at organising and marketing itself.
And I and all my fellow anglers who had the benefit of a teacher or family friend who once engaged us in fishing should hang our heads in shame if we have not passed on this gift, or at least made the attempt.
I don't exempt myself from this accusation at all. I just wonder whether, if I did something about it, I'd be there on my own. I suspect so. We have all become self-regarding fishing snobs.
The idea of catching a fish is as fascinating to small boys as it always was. But unfortunately, inspirational teachers like Peter Rolfe and my old friend Brian Crawford, who ran the school fishing clubs, are a thing of the past.
Recruitment, such as it is, is coming from the occasional dad taking his lad fishing. And that's it. Here is Peterborough we have one of the biggest tackle shops in the country. Guess how many junior angling days they organise?
I have no idea whether Peterborough DAA organises junior angling days, but if I don't know about them, I doubt anyone else does.
The angling press is no place to publicise opportunities for beginners to learn; if they're shelling out £2 on angling papers, they're already fishing. Angling, as Peter said, has to compete with everything from XBox to twerking, but if it loses that battle, it's not because it doesn't interest youngsters. It is because it is completely rubbish at organising and marketing itself.
And I and all my fellow anglers who had the benefit of a teacher or family friend who once engaged us in fishing should hang our heads in shame if we have not passed on this gift, or at least made the attempt.
I don't exempt myself from this accusation at all. I just wonder whether, if I did something about it, I'd be there on my own. I suspect so. We have all become self-regarding fishing snobs.