Aussie Team Enter 2010 World Carp Classic
Wow! What can I say, this has come as a bolt out of the blue for sure! Yesterday (8th of December) I received conformation that our entry into the 2010 World Carp Classic had been accepted. After a great deal of anticipation and nail-biting our little Aussie flag had appeared on the list of competitors, and to see your name on the board along with high calibre guns like Tim Paisley and Lee Jackson is a very humbling experience indeed.
So far my part in this historical venture has been somewhat of a superficial nature, and I can take no credit for any of the work that has already gone into the lodgement of our entry. This has all fallen squarley on the shoulders of the team captain Ben Cook, or ‘Captain Cook‘ as the event coordinators have already dubbed him. Ben is originally from Queensland’s Gold Coast, which is about as far as you can get on mainland Australia, to my home in Perth (about 3600km). It is also quite ironic that he’s an Australian born carper now based in South London, and is fishing Kent waters that I know. And I was born in Kent, yet have lived and fished for the majority of my life down here in the land of Oz – which is a paradox in itself! I’ve not met Ben face to face yet, and it could very well pan out that we don’t get a chance to meet each other until a few weeks before we depart for France. This situation will obviously make our preparations that bit harder, and with me being over 17,000km from the venue, I will not get the opportunity for a practice fish at the lake either.
Aside from the disadvantages of being so far away from where all the action will be, we will both be further handicapped by our lack of experience on the Continent, not to mention a lack of equipment. With a 20kg baggage limit on my flight over to the UK, I won’t be of much help in terms of bringing gear with me. At the moment this is probably our biggest challenge, but with 270 days left until kick off on September 5, we do have plenty of time to amass what kit is required. Even if we rock up there with a load of secondhand old shit from eBay UK it won’t matter! It won’t deter us, because we are both highly motivated and resourceful, and even at this early stage we feel confident that we’ll be able to proudly hold our heads up – even if we are massively outgunned in a field of named carper’s!
Here is a video clip of the WCC 2009 opening ceremony – note the distinct absence of an Australian flag?
WCC logo, file photo and YouTube video curtesy of the World Carp Classic Official Website: http://www.worldcarpclassic.com/
Happy hippo hunting 
Niblet
G’day Mate,
We are definitely up for the challenge, bring on the 2010 WCC!! I like the site, the home of the Australian team couldn’t be in better hands mate. Top job!!
Cheers,
Ben
Glad you like it
Crank up the barbie – here we come!!!
Hi Niblet
You’ll have a great time fishing the “World Carp Classic” with Ben!!!! I had the pleasure of showing and fishing with him on our lovely Nepean River when he was here earlier in the year… no monsters landed but I lost a beauty to weed in the swim we were fishing!!!! Ben landed two nice fish tho… he was stoked!!!!
Hope you both fair well and put Australia on the map for all things Carpy!!!!
Cheers
PJ
Hi PJ,
You have no idea how much I’m looking forward to some proper fishing in Europe, as far as carping is concerned WA totally sucks! I’ve just got home from yet another horror session on our crappy river, back to back blanks in a new swim – things are grim here indeed!
I will most definitely get over to the Nepean sometime in the next few years, probably when Ben moves back to Oz. I’d come over sooner as a good mate of mine has just moved to Sydney, but I promised the Essex lads in Melbourne I’d head their way after the WCC and Xmas 2010.
Thanks for your well wishes, it is really appreciated. If either Ben or I can manage to catch a fish at Madine we’ll be so stoked, as it’ll hopefully help shine a more positive light on Oz carping in the process?
ATB
Niblet