Fishing The Fly Scotland
Index => Main Discussion Area => Topic started by: Mike Barrio on 03/05/2012 at 21:26
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Mowing the grass with 'The Loops' this weekend :z16
Cheers
Mike
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Mike, do you know the details about times? I have to drop some money off to Hamish but also have to go to Nairn..so trying to arrange going in past Strathdon on the way up/donw.
Cheers
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TIMES? :shock ....... that would suggest that there is some sort of plan! :shock
Basically Rob, you should find us either at the field or at the Colquhonnie hotel :z4
Cheers
Mike
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Mowing the grass with 'The Loops' this weekend :z16
Cheers
Mike
Smoking the what with the who Mike? :z4 have fun guys :z16
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Smoking the what with the who Mike? :z4 have fun guys :z16
:z4 :z4 :z4
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Mmmmm I'm afraid holland isn't coming... So no grass to share.... :cool:
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Hope you guys have a good weekend! Please say Hi to Dave and Paul from me.
Any chance of bumping into the Loopers on the Dutch Fly Fair in a couple of weeks?
Jeroen
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This is open to all, if anyone is up for a cast, head to the Lonach field at Strathdon we'll be there all day today and tomorrow.
Ben
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A few photos from the Sexyloops Scottish Gathering 2012 :z16
Matt clearly showing that he knows what the Barrio SLX line was designed to do :wink
An awesome weekend in great company!
Cheers
Mike
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Well, another Sexyloops Scottish Gathering has been and gone.
I'm sure for some the weather was a talking point..... from really warm sunny conditions on Thursday to freezing conditions, rain, sleet and snow :shock
My time at 'loops this year was cut short when, very sadly, my Mother-in-Law passed away on Friday morning.
With family matters to attend to, I left Friday before lunchtime but I managed to come back again on Sunday morning to join in with the activities.
I did manage to get a few photos taken on Thursday and Friday morning a few of which I've added below:
The troops gather for a cast on the Don. Other than a tan or two, not much was caught.
(http://i46.tinypic.com/wqx3bd.jpg)
The wire netting pool (about the best below the Colquhonnie) get's some serious attention.....
(http://i47.tinypic.com/2jdnxvt.jpg)
Matt covers the warm waters of the sunny Don.
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Friday.... and Matt gets Ben and I on his 'case' in the now much colder waters of the Don.
I'm sure he will never tire of telling the story of how often he was told 'FFS stand f*cking still' :z7
(http://i46.tinypic.com/2luxmo9.jpg)
I'm already looking forward to next years gathering :z13
H :z3
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I'm pretty ignorant of fishing celabrities. Can anybody tell me who this Matt character is?
Cheers Matt
PS it's not me!
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I wouldn't say Matt is a celebrity as such, but he had travelled to Scotland from Australia to attend the Sexyloops gathering.
OK, there might have been a family visit to southern England involved as well, but saying he travelled that far to attend a gathering reads better :wink
He is an FFF Master Instructor in Oz I believe. Also an all round good bloke.
H :z3
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Hi guys,
Looks like fun, how many 'Loopers' were present?
If there's a gathering same time next year, maybe we'll be present. It's been too long since our last visit...
Jeroen
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sorry to read that Hamish. :cry
nice pix guys, thanks ! :z16 more, more, more ! :grin
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The river looks fantastic there, thanks for sharing Hamish. Glad you all had a good weekend in such a great setting.
Lindsay
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Hamish my condolences on your loss and to your good lady please.
Great photos!
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Thanks Noel, appreciate it and a thank you to all who have sent condolences via email and PM, all have been passed on to Rachel.
Now all we need to see is some more photos and posts from folk who attended 'loops Scotland 2012 :cool:
I seem to remember seeing Kev launching a few big casts and Michael, Mr B and so on.
Come on chaps.... get posting :z17
H :z3
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Another Sexyloops Scottish Gathering....... 2012 was one of the best so far, we had guys from Latvia, Hungary, Australia and Canada this year and also from just about every corner of the UK.
Weather was grim at times, snow, wind, rain and the occasional bit of sunshine but for Upper Donside in May it was about as good as can be expected.
Weekend started off on Thursday with a few hours of unsuccessful trouting and a lot of beer. Hamish I took out Matt Howell who had travelled from Oz to be here out to try and get him a salmon, tall order on the upper river at this time. Day started off well with a nice trout hooked on a gold cascade, now I'd not usually count a trout caught on salmon gear but it was a stunning fish.
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Not long after we did hook up with a salmon which unfortunately managed to throw the hook after a few minutes and a good bit of time in the air.
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Shit happens!!
Saturday was the first of the casting days and actually started very early
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about 1AM.
Few pics from Saturday.....
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Mike whacking out a line, did a not bad job with the DHD for someone that doesn't do salmon rods
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Stefan & Peter Kovacks in full throw
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Bombay Bad Boy prepares to launch the DHD
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Irvine having a chuck with my saltwater outfit, don't think it'll be too long before he builds a 12wt :z4
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Results for Saturday round one......
1 Paul Arden
2 Matthew Howell
3 Stefan Siikavaara
4 Mike Heritage
5 Ben Dixon
6 Peter Kovacs
7 Michael "bad boy" Buchan
8 Trev
9 Andrew Parker
10 Pete Vicaris
11 Simon Beaudoin
12 Mark Surtees / Mike Barrio
14 Martin Flery
15 Anna Viklun
Outfits were....
15' Mackenzie shooting head rod with 65 gram 70' head on 30lb Varivas.
MSX 9' #6 with Barrio GT125 prototype
TCR 590 with Barrio GT 125 prototype
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1 Paul Arden
2 Matthew Howell
3 Ben Dixon
4 Stefan Siikavaara
5 Mike Heritage
6 Peter Kovacs
7 Michael "bad boy" Buchan / Trevor Bourne
8 Mark Surtees
9 Andrew Parker / Pete Vicaris
10 Mike Barrio
11 Simon Beaudoin
12 Martin Flery
13 Anna Viklund
Outfits were.....
Orvis Access 907 TF with Barrio GT 125 prototype A
Orvis Access 907 TF with Barrio GT 125 Prototype B
Ovis Zero Gravity 909 TF with #9 Bass line
Some big distances thrown there and over all a very good standard of casting, it is great to see how everyones' distance creeps up year on year
Prizes were kindly donated Mike Barrio - Barrio Fly Lines (caps & flylines), Stefan Sikavaara - MSX tackle (906 rod), Orvis - Encounter Reels and these were presented at on Saturday night. All qualified instructors were eliminated from the rankings and prizes were given to those who remained.
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Sunday saw a rather hungover start for all, there was a bit of sharing of tips, twatting of rods and general playing around before the obligatory shoot out.
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Bad boy Buchan in action
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Kev sends out a nice loop with the SLX
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Kev "bonding" with my 12wt saltwater outfit (check out the grimace), I'm going to make you one of those heads Kev as you seem to like it so much :z4
Sundays distances
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Outfits were....
Round one
Orvis Access 912 TF with 36g floating shooting head
Sage z Axis 765 with MED #5
Orvis Access 907TF with Barrio GT125 prototype B #7
Orvis Access 909TF with Orvis #9 Bass line
TCR5 with Barrio GT125 prototype B #5line
Barrio 903 with Barrio GT140 #3line
Round one was into a head wind, very difficult conditions!
Round 2
Orvis Access 912 TF with 36g floating shooting head
Orvis Access 907TF with Barrio SLX #7
Orvis Access 907TF with Barrio GT125 prototype B #7
Again, some cracking casts in both rounds.
Top weekend and I'm already looking forward to 2013, hopefully some more of the local guys can make next year. I've a few more pics that I will post over the coming days.
Cheers
Ben
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Next Year I WILL be fit for 'loops. I WILL I Will I will............ I hope :X2 :z16 :z16
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All I can say is that if you stand a bit closer to the river in the first place you may not need to cast so far!....
...i'll get my coat! :roll
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Next Year I WILL be fit for 'loops. I WILL I Will I will............ I hope :X2 :z16 :z16
Hope so Pete :z16
All I can say is that if you stand a bit closer to the river in the first place you may not need to cast so far!....
...i'll get my coat! :roll
You wouldn't understand, maggot boy :z4
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Looks like great fun. Shame work spoiled my chances of going again.
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Looks like great fun. Shame work spoiled my chances of going again.
It's always one of the highlights of the year for me Matt. No such thing as making a fool of yourself and everyone goes away having learnt something, I hope some more of the local guys can make it next year.
Some more pics here for anyone who is interested Sexyloops Scottish Gathering 2012 (http://www.sexyloops.co.uk/cgi-bin/theboard_07/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=1;t=13907;st=90)
Cheers
Ben
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Hi Ben :z16
Thanks for posting the report and the photos, excellent stuff! :cool:
It was a cracking weekend and I learnt quite a lot :cool:
Cheers
Mike
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really nice pics and report gents ! thanks.
good on you all for excluding the instructors from the prizes. :z16
cheers,
marc
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Looks like a great day was had by all and also some huge casts :z14
Would be good to go next year just to see people throwing that sort of distances.
Dan
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good on you all for excluding the instructors from the prizes. :z16
cheers,
marc
Yup, very pleased we did. Peter Kovacs was made up with his MSX rod and most of us instructors need more rods & lines like a hole in the head.
Would be good to go next year just to see people throwing that sort of distances.
Dan
You'd be mad not to cast if you did come up Dan. You couldn't buy one of those meets, the amount of collective skill & knowledge at a gathering simply couldn't be bought. I don't think anyone who has come and cast has ever felt intimidated, all you'd get is assistance if you looked uncomfortable no pretentious nonsense just a group getting together to have a cast and share some info.
Cheers
Ben
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Ben
That 12 weight outfit of yours is an instrument of torture. I had a sore shoulder for two days after trying to cast it. It's also a bit embarrassing to see in the photograph how little I could make it bend. :oops
Anyway it was good fun for the short time I was there and good on you for putting all the effort into making it happen. I will look in again next year, if my shoulder has recovered.
Irvine
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Bad boy buchan had a great weekend :z16
If your looking for inspiration on brushing up your casting these guys are awesome and not just distance there accuracy is also amazing.
Like Ben says theres no dick measuring ( which is unfortunate for me as would have placed better than 8th :z4) really good guys made to feel welcome even though not an instructor would recommend it to anyone. Stocked with my reel and line its not often you get something for finishing 7th cheers Ben and Mike.
Irvine's right the 12 weight was brutal, pretty cool though have ordered some DT 11& 12 lines to chop up and play with as casting these on the single handers was brilliant fun
Michael
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........ though have ordered some DT 11& 12 lines to chop up and play with as casting these on the single handers was brilliant fun
Ah ha :! Another convert, good to see you're having a play :wink It is very addictive. You and I both saw the look on Kevs face when he hit 41 metres with my 'prototype' outfit for the CLA.... he can't pretend he doesn't like a wee bit of distance work any longer :z7
H :z3
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I hear that the hotel was at one stage, beseiged by angry old ladies demanding to see the strippers.
They thought it was an adult dance troup called the Sexyloons that was staying for the weekend!
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A few more pics ...............
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why is Hamish punching the guy in blue ?
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why is Hamish punching the guy in blue ?
The guy in blue is Kevin Marc, he'll have done something to deserve it. Troublemaker that one :z4
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To me it looks more like Hamish thinks its his turn with that rod. Kevin doesn't seem to agree. Could also be that they are dancing awwww ya definetly dancing.
Good one for a caption competition.
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Hi Marc
Hamish was not happy because I did not want to give him his saltwater outfit back after mangaing to fluke a decent cast with it. (my longest ever).
It was a great weekend, great company and lots of great tips for distance and presentation casts. I liked the teaching tips explained during the demonstrations, especially the tip for roll casting, it makes it lots of fun to practise.
I have disliked (hated) Hamish's saltwater beast of a rod for as long as I can remember, now I need something similar to play with. Hamish, you and Ben have converted me to the evil of weilding heavy gear. Never thought I would have said that before, DT 10, 11 & 12 being ordered to cut up and play with.
Time to play with this sort of gear in preparation for the trip to Assynt chasing Pollock.
Next year the shoot outs should be capped at a Maximum of #3 lines, that way I may get a better overall final position :wink I seem to be better with lighter gear. I need to spend quite a few hours playing with the heavy stuff before next years event and also work on my technique. If only I had actually replicated what Paul said to do rather than seeing the red mist of the lanes and smacking it.
Looking forward to next year
Kev.
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Hamish was not happy because I did not want to give him his saltwater outfit back after mangaing to fluke a decent cast with it. (my longest ever).
Now that's one version.... another is you asked for a dance and I foolishly said yes. Two left feet there Kev :z7 :X5
I have disliked (hated) Hamish's saltwater beast of a rod for as long as I can remember, now I need something similar to play with. Hamish, you and Ben have converted me to the evil of weilding heavy gear. Never thought I would have said that before, DT 10, 11 & 12 being ordered to cut up and play with.
Excellent...... :X4
Next year the shoot outs should be capped at a Maximum of #3 lines....
Errrrrr let me think about that for a second...... NO :lol
H :z3
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Next year the shoot outs should be capped at a Maximum of #3 lines,
in that case we'll have to be sure that Fredrik comes back... ! :z3
good on the both of you. it's always refreshing to see two guys dance :X4
Kevin, a little mind-frame tip i like to pass on to students: a rod is a rod no matter what wt rating. some are heavier and some are lighter but we use them exactly the same way.
happy pollacking ! :grin
marc
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DT 10, 11 & 12 being ordered to cut up and play with.
Time to play with this sort of gear in preparation for the trip to Assynt chasing Pollock.
I don't even use gear like that for the Pike :) 8 and 9 weights with an outbaound are perfect for the Pollock.
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I don't even use gear like that for the Pike :) 8 and 9 weights with an outbaound are perfect for the Pollock.
Perhaps so, but shooting heads are very addictive....... making them up is a balancing act and the satisfaction of chucking one a very long way is really rather rewarding :z13
Just because a shooting head has been made from (say) a floating DT #12 that doesn't mean it'll be going on a #12 wt rod.........
........ after managing to fluke a decent cast with it. (my longest ever).
That cast was 41 metres or around 135 feet or 45 yards depending on your church, which makes shooting heads fun :cool:
Michael Bombay Bad Boy himself managed a similar distance with the same outfit and I believe is now similarly hooked..... undeniably, it's all about to happen :wink
H :z3
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Just because a shooting head has been made from (say) a floating DT #12 that doesn't mean it'll be going on a #12 wt rod.........
Indeed...I was given a WF 12 line by someone, to which I took a knife and created a very short shooting head that I use on the rocks. It allows me to cast in very tight situations :) Its horrible to cast but I don't need a big back cast to load the rod.
I also have a "3 weight" shooting head I mucked about with on the 3 weight XP I bought off of Sandy. Its rather fun! I use 12 pound Fireline as the running line..extremely fine. The line I cut up was a 5 weight Aircel DT.