Thames is the best bet for three new record fish - Keith Arthur
Those that know far more than I on the matter have been saying the perch record is under pressure for a few years now. In fact it could go before you read this but if it doesn’t, and if I was a bookie there would be very short odds on the stripey being replaced.
The 6lb 3oz current record has been challenged a few times in 2019, including by a Thames fish that weighed a genuine 6lb 1oz. Not many know where it was caught but if it is caught again before March it will be heavier. Whether the next (or same!) angler who nets it will divulge the details is a different matter. In fact, that could already be the case.
It could be from a section close to where I thought the record barbel would be captured and, indeed, still may be. There are a couple of potential record barbel and definitely several stripeys on course to conquer.
Similarly, a record chub from the Thames wouldn’t be a shock, and I think it may well come from the Thames. I have definite reports of fish within a few ounces of the old Fishers Green fish of 9lb 5oz. Thankfully at the moment it would seem like the threat of a carp angler catching a ‘nuisance’ double-figure chub from a carp syndicate seems to have died off, unless, of course it has already happened but the captor doesn’t care or the fishery has a no publicity rule. We live in weird times, not only politically but piscatorially too.
One of the biggest braces of zander ever recorded
LANDSCAPE Gardener Matthew Ward was left stunned when he banked one of the biggest braces of zander ever recorded in the UK.
The 35-year-old recorded specimens of 11lb 9oz and 17lb 9oz during a trip to Upton-on-Severn and both obliterated his previous personal best of around 6lb.
He said: “The larger zander gave me quite a strange bite – initially I just tightened up to my float, thought ‘this feels a bit heavy’, and I was into the fish.
“I soon realised just how big the zander was as I eased it towards the net, and I was praying that it didn't come off!”
Both of Matthew’s zander fell to chub livebait fished via a float-paternoster rig.
Surprise perch catches in matches
When Gary Hampshire’s tip pulled round he suspected a carp to be the culprit, so you can imagine shock when he realised he was connected to this immense perch, caught on would you believe it, the bomb and pellet!
The fish came during a tricky day fishing at Doncaster’s Lindholme Lakes, where his 6mm bait was picked up by the special fish.
“At first, I thought it was a carp,” Gary revealed, “but when it broke the surface, I was absolutely gob smacked! I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Unfortunately, I didn't have any scales, but I ran back to van and got the tape measure.
“The fish was 48cm long, and I would guess it weighed over 4lb.”
Yorkshireman Darren Richards was also in for a shock when he banked this 4lb 3oz perch during a Christmas match with his local angling club.
Fishing the River Wharfe in Wetherby, West Yorkshire, Darren had been catching small dace, so he decided to change his hookbait in the hope of something larger.
“I thought I would try hemp and caster in the feeder with a small piece of worm on the hook for maybe a bigger dace or small perch,” Darren explained.
“I didn’t think for one minute I might catch a fish this size - it only just fit in my small landing net!
“I was and still am buzzing about catching a specimen fish and a new PB.”
The fish equals the Wetherby Angling Club’s record perch, and Darren went on to win the match with a weight of 4lb 7oz.
1000 Fish Donated by Veteran Angler
Lifelong angler John Vincent has selflessly donated 1000 fish to a park lake in memory of his mother, who played a pivotal role in getting him into fishing.
John, who is 68-years-old, wanted to commemorate his mother in a way that would last for years to come:
“If we got a park bench it would maybe have lasted for 10 or 15 years before the wood started to rot, but the fish are a bit more permanent. They’ll last for generations and hopefully they can set up a breeding
population.”
The fish comprised of 500 tench and 500 bream, and these have gone into South Norwood Lake in Croydon, which is one of the few day ticket lakes in South London.
British record barbel - the full story...
THE BRITISH barbel record has been beaten following the capture of a 21lb 2oz giant.
Self-confessed pleasure angler Colin Smithson, who banked the fish from an undisclosed river in Sussex, revealed that he ‘almost drove into a ditch’ when a friend told him that he had just beaten the national best for the species.
The fish beats the old record, set by Grahame King with a fish from the Great Ouse in 2006, by just 1oz, and was taken during a short afternoon session on a club-owned stretch of river.
Colin (60), who retired last year, revealed how the capture was just reward for the countless blank hours he had spent on the tricky, low-stock waterway over the past 15 years.
“It’s a difficult river. You could go every day for three months and not catch a fish, so this one has been a long time coming,” said Colin, who caught the fish on November 7.
“On the afternoon that I caught it, the conditions were brilliant. The river was 3ft up and coloured, and still rising steadily. I fished the swim for an hour then introduced some sticky groundbait on the crease line of a marginal slack to put down a scent trail.
“After an hour or so a big mirror carp rolled in front of me and sent up a sheet of bubbles from my spot. After a while I called my daughter and said ‘I’m going to give it another 25 minutes as I think something might happen’… and it certainly did!”
When he got the bite, Colin presumed he was playing the big carp he’d seen roll earlier, and it wasn’t until the back-end of the fight that his opinion changed.
He said: “The tip went knock, knock, bang! And my first thought was ‘I’ve got that carp on’. The fish it was doing big loops around the swim, making really strong runs. When I finally got it to the surface I could only see its back, and at first I thought ‘Wow, it’s actually a common carp!”
“Things then got scary when it snagged me under the bank. I got it moving again, and when it hit the surface a second time I could see it was a barbel. My heart started pounding as it again dived for the same snag, but it all came good in the end!”
Colin’s catch was photographed and weighed in the presence of other club members, before being released. But it wasn’t until he was on his way home that Colin learned the significance of his capture.
“I thought that I had smashed the club record. When I told my friend Bradley Hughes the weight, he replied: ‘That’s not just a club record!’ At that point I almost put my car in the ditch! The next day I contacted the British Record Fish Committee and got the process going.”
The remarkable catch also evoked poignant emotions for Colin, as he revealed.
“I want to dedicate this catch to my brother Roy, who died a couple months ago aged 63. He lived for fishing and was a National disabled fishing champion. When I got the fish in the net I looked up at the sky and said: ‘I don’t know if that was you, but thanks Roy’. He would have loved to see this fish. It’s an incredible creature and I’m a very happy man – my Mount Everest has been climbed.”
The fish fell to a hair rigged pellet on a size 10 hook on an 8lb hooklink attached to a Banjo feeder, a pattern which Colin believes holds bottom well on rivers. He beat it using a 1.75lb Shimano Vengeance rod and a 6000-sized reel loaded with 15lb mainline.
Line Recycling Scheme scoops John Wilson Award
LAST year we announced the creation of the John Wilson Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Angling’, and in 2019 there can be no more worthy recipient of the inaugural gong than the Anglers National Line Recycling Scheme.
Launched just 18 months ago, the ANLRS has gone from strength to strength, collecting a staggering five million metres of old fishing line, half of which has already been recycled into boards to be made into other products.
Tackle shops have been quick to embrace the scheme, with nearly 300 of them across Britain already having bins into which customers can deposit their old line.
Back in March the ANLRS had a stand at the largest fishing show in Britain, The Big One Show at Farnborough, and its stall was inundated with anglers keen to get involved and keep the momentum going.
When told of the unanimous decision by Angling Times readers to make the ANLRS the first recipient of the new award, co-founder Viv Shears said: “It’s an incredible honour to receive an award named after John Wilson.
“All we really are is a group of passionate anglers who want the sport perceived in the right light.
“Besides Steve Tapp (the other co-founder) and me, there are loads of other volunteers and supporters behind the scenes making things happen. I must also thank Steve Carrie of The Maltings Organic Treatment Ltd and ReWorked, who are recycling the materials into new products.”
It’s not only the angling industry getting behind the ANLRS either, Viv revealed. “The RSPCA has now put reclycling bins at its wildlife centres, so we are beginning to move outside of angling, he said. “Several groups, including the Marine Conservation Society and Torbay Cleaner Coasts Initiative, that carry out beach cleans and similar activities, have made contact as we now have a viable route for these general plastics to be recycled properly.”
Never one to rest on his laurels, Viv is keen to keep furthering the cause, at home and abroad. He said: “We’re hoping to start working more closely with angling clubs and fisheries. There is lot more work still to be done.
“The initiative is already beginning to gain a presence in Europe, with Belgium and Ireland creating mirror image schemes.”
Above all else perhaps, it is the many long hours of selfless, unpaid work that has been put into the scheme by passionate individuals that makes the ANLRS such a worthy winner of the John Wilson award.
Viv said: “As the scheme grows, we are becoming increasingly aware of what we could do with more time. Steve and I work 15-20 hours a week on the ANLRS outside of our normal day jobs, and we have 10 fantastic volunteers helping us out too.
“Funding is our biggest problem, and this is becoming more noticeable as the scheme grows. We don’t have the money for storage yet, so the spare room of my house has to do for now – it probably holds around two million metres of line, and there are a few boxes behind the sofa too!”
Viv also revealed the importance of the help he has received from within the industry.
“Linear Fisheries has been a great sponsor for us, and Gardner tackle reps have collected line from shops which I can then pick up from its warehouse – it is all so important.
“Nash has also taken an interest and is keen to add the logo to its packaging, as well as providing prizes for competitions to help us raise funds.”
But why is recycling your old fishing line so important? Viv made clear that the main goal of the ANLRS is to make the process the norm among the angling community.
He said: “Our primary aim is to protect the image of angling. With increasing focus falling on sports such as hunting and fishing, it’s so important that we have our own houses in order and show we are taking every step necessary to protect our environment.”
More pegs in Preston’s premier 2020 feeder series
Dates and venues for the 2020 Preston Innovations FeederMasters event are out – and there’s a slightly different look to next year’s qualifiers, with some of the 20 matches having their peg numbers increased to 66, meaning 22-peg as opposed to 20-peg zones.
Tickets (£35) go on sale on Wednesday, January 15, 2020 at 10am and, as last year, will only be available via a link that appears on the FeederMasters Facebook page on that day.
The event culminates in the two-day final at Tamar Lakes in the South West over the weekend of September 26/27.
FeederMasters 2020 dates and venues
Saturday, April 4 - Decoy Lakes
Sunday, April 19 - Barston Lakes
Saturday, April 25 - JCB Lakes
Sunday, May 3 - Daiwa Hallcroft Fishery
Sunday, May 10 - Barston Lakes
Sunday, May 17 - Southfield Reservoirs
Saturday, May 23 - Gold Valley Lakes
Saturday, May 30 - Larford Lakes
Sunday, May 31 - Ferry Meadows Lakes
Sunday ,June 14 - Tamar Lakes
Sunday, June 21 - Gloucester Canal
Sunday, June 28 - River Yare
Sunday, July 5 - Ferry Meadows Lakes
Sunday, July 12 - Carr Mill Dam
Sunday, July 19 - Patshull Park
Sunday, July 26 - Nicholls Pit
Sunday, August 2 - Tamar Lakes
Sunday, August 9 - River Trent
Sunday, August 16 - Carr Mill Dam
Sunday, August 23 - Southfield Reservoirs
Let's Fish! Campaign brings in 7,000 new anglers
THE FUTURE of fishing is brighter than ever after a recruitment campaign introduced more than 7,000 youngsters to the sport in 2019.
The Let’s Fish! project, run by the Angling Trust and the Canal & River Trust (CRT), was designed to encourage families to give angling a try through 250 free fishing events held across the country.
John Ellis, the CRT’s National Fisheries and Angling Manager, said: “These events have proven incredibly popular since we first went into partnership with the Angling Trust in the spring of 2018.
“You never forget catching your first fish and these events have got a really important role to play in developing the next generation of anglers.
“Let’s Fish! provides the opportunity to discover the health and wellbeing benefits of fishing, while enjoying some quality family time and having a go at something different.”
In addition to the success of the Let’s Fish! initiative, some angling clubs have also been implementing their own coaching schemes.
Bryan Dray, who is a licensed level two coach for Lets Fish! and Wellingborough and District Nene AC, said: “We’ve established an angling development team with three Level 2 and three Level 1 coaches, and as a result we’ve managed to boost our junior membership numbers from around 50 to 176. Plus, at least one parent from each child has joined the club.
“Our in-house junior matches are attended by 20 to 25 anglers per match, and this was only limited by the size of the lake we could use! We see our jobs as not creating future world champions, but shaping anglers that will hopefully support their local clubs in the years to come.”
Get involved
If you would like to become an angling coach or want to find out more information about Let’s Fish events in 2020, visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/fishing/lets-fish
5 minutes with John Edwards - The man who recreates anglers’ memorable fish
WE all love a good fish photo to remember our best catches – but what about having that fish perfectly replicated as a physical trophy?
Years ago, of course, this was the norm, with memorable fish killed and framed by a taxidermist. Such trophies can be seen in fishermen’s huts and riverside pubs across the country.
But what if a brilliant replica could be made from just a photo? This week 60-year-old John Edwards, of Fish Recreations. shares with us how he puts together some fantastic pieces of fish art, including the record Wykeham pike…
Why fish replicas?
JOHN EDWARDS: Well, I have always enjoyed art and I like fish. I’m a self-taught artist and have drawn and painted in many mediums ever since I can remember. I mainly did shore fishing and spent many winters on cold North East beaches. Six years ago I got into fly fishing and am really enjoying this along with a renewed interest in sea fishing from boat and shore.
I get real satisfaction from creating a fish replica for someone, knowing that it is a special fish for many reasons to that individual. I would not supply a replica unless I would be happy with it myself – this has always been my philosophy. After all, why should someone pay for something they don’t like?
How did it start?
JE: I started doing replicas full time nine or 10 years ago. I had grown tired of my ‘flat art’ and had been toying with fish taxidermy, but then I saw some replicas on a USA website and said to myself ‘I could do that!’
My first attempt was not a pretty sight! After realising that it was not as easy as it looked I started to teach myself the ropes, and spent a lot of time and money experimenting to get the desired results. Even now I continue to move forward and try to better myself with each commission.
My big break came after I’d been doing a few replicas here and there for a couple of years. I spent a year preparing enough fish and then took a stand at Scone Palace Game Fair in 2012, where I met Gary Wingate from Glasgow Angling Centre. I was kindly invited to take a table at their open weekend, and thanks to Gary and GAC owner Paul Devlin my work was seen by hundreds of people at that first weekend show, and several more shows after that.
What goes into producing a fish replica?
JE: I can either make a mould from a dead fish, or simply work from photographs, which I mostly do these days. When I work from photos I can source a ‘cast’ to match the client’s fish. These can come from my own mould collection, or from colleges in Europe and the USA or Canada. I then work and alter the cast to match the customer’s fish.
If I can’t get a good match I won’t take the commission on. The fish are made from various resins, mostly polyester/fibreglass but also polyurethanes and others. Fins proved to be difficult until I eventually found a way of making them somewhat flexible.
I hand-paint all my own fish eyes – all are different and my replicas have to match a specific fish. I use a mixture of hand colouring and airbrushing to achieve the colouring.
It is done in layers, built up with gloss layers in between to achieve the depth of colour found in real fish. One individual scale can have as many as 14 layers on it! I have counted up to 4,000 individual scales painted on one side of a fish, times this by an average of, say, 10 layers and you get some idea of the work involved.”
How are they presented?
JE: I didn’t like the idea of the old fashioned ‘half a fish on a board’, so all my replicas are whole fish with wall mounts painted on their show side. But I also wanted something different, and started my ‘table-style’ fish, viewable all round and usually moulded in dynamic positions to add all-important movement to my work.
I try to be as artistic as I can with my wall mounts and 3D mount bases. Each piece is designed carefully to look as aesthetically pleasing as possible. I usually work with clients very closely at times to achieve the look they might want, or what I think would look right. I have also experimented with copper work for reeds and such.
How long does the process take?
JE: On average, with my current workload, a replica would take anywhere from 13-15 months from payment of a deposit to completion.
What fish have you replicated?
JE: I have been lucky enough to have done a number of fish species, and I always like working on fish that are a little different from the norm. Most of my work is with game fish, trout and salmon in particular, but also popular are pike and perch.
I am now starting to get quite a few exotic big-game fish such as tuna, permit and giant trevally. This year the former British record pike died at Wykeham Lake, and I was lucky enough to have the fish donated– not easy, moulding a 46lb pike, let me tell you! I’m in the process of completing the first of a few casts for this fish.”
What should people do if they want a fish replicated?
JE: If anyone is thinking of getting a replica done, you can either freeze the fish if you decide to ‘take it’ or it simply fails to ‘go back’ for whatever reason. I can then arrange a courier to collect it at your convenience.
Try to take as many pictures as reasonably possible on capture. If you release the fish, simply take as many pictures as you can before release, and measure the length. The weight is not really necessary as the length and shape of the fish are most important to achieve a good match.
I do struggle with many species for casts, especially coarse fish such as carp. As such I rely heavily on people donating dead fish for me to mould. Any fish found dead in good condition may be suitable but it would mean it has to be frozen by the finder. I get fish from fish farms, fisheries and anglers. All fish die at some point and at least I can work with them and put them to use after their death.”
More information
Visit: www.fishrecreations.co.uk
Tel: 07930 586100
Email: john@fishrecreations.co.uk
or on Facebook
England will host the world champs!
ENGLAND is set to host its first major fishing world championships for more than 25 years, Angling Times can reveal.
Not since Bob Nudd’s memorable 1994 triumph at Nottingham’s Holme Pierrepont has a truly Blue Riband fishing event been held on home soil – but that’s all set to change next summer after England won the right to hold the first-ever Ladies World Carp Angling Championships.
Although the finer details of the ground-breaking event have yet to be decided, it is likely to be fished next September.
Even at this early stage, teams from as far afield as Russia, the US and South Africa have expressed a desire to be involved, and once the final line-up is settled, a venue will be chosen. Discussions are already being held with TV companies about broadcasting options for the championships.
Carp Team England manager Rob Hughes played a central role in formulating the bid and the ratification process. Both were submitted to FIPS Ed, the governing body of sport fishing, by the Angling Trust.
Rob said: “This is a significant step forward for women’s competitive carp fishing, and I’m over the moon that FIPS has endorsed the proposals and that we have won the honour of hosting the inaugural event.
Participation in competitive women’s carp fishing has risen rapidly since the first female international was held between England and Wales in 2016. That evolved into a Tri-Nations event and then an exhibition World Cup competition hosted by France last year.
Bev Clifford, manageress of the women’s team, said her charges would be entering the highly-anticipated match with bold expectations. “We’re really pleased that FIPS has recognised the importance of ladies’ carp angling as an international sport. We are really looking forward to competing and we will be doing our utmost to win historic gold on home ground,” she said.
More records tumble...
ALONGSIDE the ratification of Colin Smithson’s British barbel best, the BRFC also announced that records have been broken for four other species.
Among those granted were three sea fish, with the first being a colossal shore-caught tope weighing 77lb 3oz – taken by Ryan Wingfield at a Pembrokeshire mark.
Ben Wallis’ boat-caught streaked gurnard record of 1lb 7oz 15dr also made the list, alongside a shore-caught thin-lipped grey mullet of 8lb 8oz 13dr, caught by Gary Marquis from Guernsey.
Mat Faulkner’s three-spined stickleback of 8g and taken from Lower Beauvale Ponds near Nottingham completed the line-up.
Nine hours, one bite, 35lb!
Ronan Murray only had one bite during a nine-hour piking session... but he wasn’t complaining when it turned out to be from this huge 35lb 7oz fish!
Targeting a water in his Irish homeland, Ronan presented a floatfished roach to fool his quarry, and he knew he was into something a little bit special straight away.
“When I struck I realised instantly I was connected to a good fish, and after a long hard fight I eventually got her in the net.
“I knew this was close to my PB which stands at 36lb 4oz, from December last year, but when the scales stopped at 35lb 7oz I was still a happy man!”
Perch trip of a lifetime
Angling videographer Robert Theobald enjoyed the perch trip of a lifetime this week – smashing his personal best three times in the same day.
Topping Robert’s catch was this 4lb 1oz specimen, which was backed up by three more fish weighing exactly 4lb each. The superb haul was taken from the same reservoir where Robert filmed his friend Charlie Coppollo catching a glut of big perch last month. All of Robert’s fish fell to Berkley Pulse shads in a perch pattern, presented on Berkley all-round jig heads.
Monster chub comes out after dark
Chub don’t get much fatter than this 7lb 13oz cracker taken from the Great Ouse by James Crameri.
The train station supervisor, from Bury St Edmunds, was targeting a favourite swim on a fining-down river, but it wasn’t until the hours of darkness that the specimen pulled the quivertip round.
“It was the only bite of the evening although in fairness I didn’t fish much longer after catching it as my desire to continue had been overtaken by the size of the chub I’d just caught!” said James, who used a legered boilie on a semi-fixed rig cast to the crease, with a PVA bag of loose offerings nicked on to the hook.
Test in form for magical roach
A flurry of big roach have been caught from the crystal clear waters of the River Test in the past few weeks Angling Times can reveal…
One of the best hauls came from match angler Aidan Bordiuk, who swapped his pole for a float rod during a recent session on the Hampshire river and took three roach over the 2lb barrier, topped by a fish of 2lb 3oz.
After spotting a group of big roach, Aidan spent over an hour feeding maggots to gain their confidence, and on his first run through connected with ‘the fish of a lifetime’.
“The float dipped straight away, and I was into a roach of over 2lb – I couldn’t believe it,” said Aidan.
“Over the next few hours I caught fish of 2lb 3oz, 2lb 2oz, 2lb and 1lb 14oz, as well as lots of other fish over the 1lb mark.
Aidan used 3lb line and a size 18 hook below an Avon-style float to fool the crafty specimens.
Angling Dreams boss Adam Fisher also struck silver recently when he swapped the beauty of the Wye Valley for the equally scenic River Test and was rewarded with this fine roach of 2lb 5oz.
Fishing with Fisherman’s Blues radio host Nigel Botherway, the pair shared a swim which required them to trot baits through a deep run for both roach and chub.
Adam told Angling Times: “There was a hard and hacking upstream wind blowing, which made life tough even if it did help with our presentation. All the more reward to hook a fish like this!”
Adam fooled the fish on a single white maggot, ran through the swim under a float. The tactic also took a dozen other redfins over 1lb.
First grayling trip results in stunning lady
On his very first grayling trip, Alfie Naylor banked this stunning 2lb 11oz fish from the iconic River Itchen in Hampshire.
Using classic trotting tactics with a modern twist – braided mainline – the fish was one of over 50 fish that the Newark rod banked over the course of a weekend session.
Bumper roach haul after three day feed
A prebaiting campaign on his local River Itchen paid off handsomely for big-fish man Roman Vann when he put together an astonishing haul of roach to a top weight of 2lb 5oz.
Priming his swim with hemp for three days prior to his session, Roman waited until a low pressure front had moved in and he could see numbers of roach in the swim.
This resulted in a catch which included three fish over 2lb to 2lb 5oz, along with half a dozen over 1lb 12oz.
He told Angling Times: “The last three relatively calm and mild winters seems to have bolstered roach numbers and weights on the southern rivers.
“The plan seemed to work perfectly as each time I checked the swim the concentration of roach was increasing.
“When roach are feeding actively there is no need to fish too fine because you will just lose more large fish to hook-pulls.”
Romans haul fell to maggot feeder tactics with three maggots on a size 12 hook tied to a 5lb hooklength.
Big chub are rare on the Yare
THE River Yare isn’t noted for its chub sport but local angler Ben Parfitt proved otherwise when he slipped the net under this 6lb 11oz chunk.
Over the last month the all-rounder has been link-legering luncheon meat into likely areas on the Norfolk waterway, which culminated in a new personal best of 5lb 15oz around three weeks ago.
Believing that there was a bigger chub to be caught on his chosen stretch however, Ben persevered and managed to beat his chub record by almost a pound during his latest visit.
Big Thames chub the perfect remedy
DESPITE suffering from a severe cold Ken Hellewell braved harsh weather to get out and bank this fin-perfect 7lb 1oz chub.
The Farnborough-based angler reluctantly headed to a length of the River Thames and was forced to fish areas of slack water due to the floods.
He said: “I’d only fished for four hours as I really wasn’t feeling well, and I had to settle of fishing the slacks as the river was so high.
“I’d fed four areas with liquidised bread and fished a chunk of flake over the top on the hook.
“It was my only bite of the session but at 7lb 1oz I was very happy I’d made the effort to get out.”
Meaty hookbait fools Ouse specimen
Every season the Great Ouse produces big chub, and for Mark Austin the river certainly didn’t disappoint with this cracking 7lb 9oz specimen.
Targeting a stretch of the river in Milton Keynes, the big chub took a legered Pallatrax ‘Meatbeast Squabs’ presented on a size 8 hook.
Mark revealed that this tactic has been effective for other fish from the same stretch: “I smashed my Chub PB (previously 6lb 13oz) with this stunning fish at 7lb 9oz,
the same tactic has also produced five big chub over 5lbs in two sessions along the same stretch.”