Ian Poole takes a look back at the last twenty years to the start of Richworth, and what's new for 2007.
I'm sure there are not too many of us around who can recall exactly when we bought our first bag of boilies. All I can remember is that it was in the spring of 1987, and now of course exactly twenty years ago. As I've mentioned it here it won't come as any surprise to you that the baits were made by Richworth and were the Strawberry flavoured freezer baits. Through the course of the school summer holidays I slowly cleared out the shops freezer of bait and with them caught an amazing amount of carp from a local irrigation reservoir, and it has to be said, the odd session before and a few after! You certainly couldn't get away with it now, but I remember going back after yet another absent day to be asked by my form teacher as to how many I had caught this time. Of course I never ever knew what they were going on about and always pleaded innocence.
Richworth's main release for 2007 is the new freezer bait known at the K-G-1
"Twenty years on and Richworth are still producing baits that catch carp day in, day out"
In the late eighties there were nowhere near the amount of Bait Company’s as there are now, but still firms came and went within a year or so. Twenty years on and Richworth are still producing baits that catch carp day in, day out, and without the need for any hype. In fact, I know of a couple of anglers who have used nothing else since they’ve been carp fishing, and they’ve been at it now for nearly as long as I have. Asked why, the inevitable answer was that they were catching so felt no reason to change. Also, the fact that the quality and consistency of the finished bait was to a high standard every single time counted for a lot. Consistency in a bait is an important point to consider if you are planning a lengthy campaign where you are really looking to capitalise on its long term appeal. It’s nice to know that the first kilo you put in is exactly the same as the tenth, the twentieth and so on, with the quality from Richworth being second to none.
RICHWORTH FOR OTHER SPECIES
Although carp are my target fish for the majority of the year, I’m very fortunate to live just minutes away from one of the best barbel rivers in the country. Last autumn I finally took advantage of the fact that the River Severn is literally right on my doorstep and spent a number of evenings on a club stretch getting to grips with the excellent sport the river offers.
Pellets have been dominating the barbel catches on the Severn for several years now, and it seemed silly not to adapt this approach for the first few trips until I got to know the river better.
Richworth supply the ever effective Halibut pellets in three sizes and these were the obvious choice to begin with, although after a few evenings spent reeling in numerous bream, a rethink was in order. I’d originally gone in with small mesh PVA bags of 4mm Halibuts with a 14mm pellet drilled out and fished on a hair, and whilst I was catching the odd small barbel, the tiny pellets were also a magnet for what was obviously a huge population of Severn bream that patrolled up and down this part of the lower river. In clear water conditions for finicky fish and on the smaller rivers the 4mm Halibuts would still be my first choice, but when in flood the fishing on the Severn was unlike anything I had done before, with big baits, big leads and beefed up end tackle the way to go. For the following trip I had a rethink on my tactics and dropped the 4mm Halibuts for bags containing half a dozen 14mm pellets and a couple of Complex freezer baits broken in half. After some advice of a few experienced Severn anglers, the hookbait was also made much larger and comprised of a 14mm Complex boilie wrapped in a large piece of paste. This was made up at home from the Complex base mix and matching liquid additive at the recommended levels. I’d generally only target the Severn when levels were up and the river was running coloured, and the baits strong seafood aroma seemed just right for these sorts of conditions when the barbel seemed to throw all caution to the wind and feed much more confidently than when the river was low.
I have to say that the use of the paste wrapped boilies transformed my results. The large hookbaits meant the bream captures were kept down to a minimum, but proved no problem to even a medium sized barbel. The Complex boilies and paste proved particularly good for the River Severn, although any of Richworth’s boilie base mixes and the liquid additives of your choice will make an effective river bait. Some of Richworth’s proven flavours such as the Crab & Mussel go superbly well with either Minamino or Liquid Yeast to form a powerful savoury smelling paste that barbel are very attracted too as it spreads downstream. To save time I make up six eggs worth in one go and then split it down into smaller blocks. I found that one eggs worth would be just right for an evenings fishing, with the remainder stored in the freezer ready to use next time.
NEW FOR 2007
Richworth’s main release for 2007 is the new freezer bait known at the K-G-1. Field tested on a variety of waters across Europe, the immediate feedback was that Richworth had once again come up with a bait that had tremendous potential.
Within the first two weeks of testing the K-G-1 had accounted for no less than six personal bests, and on a personal note, two UK 40’s and several other big fish for me over the latter part of the year. With several good quality baits already well established on the water I intended to target, I knew that I would be asking questions of the K-G-1 from the very first time it would be introduced. The carp that live in this particular water are definitely boilie orientated creatures, but over the course of the last few years I had seen a number of so called top baits come and go without making any impact whatsoever.
They liked their boilies for sure, but at the same time could also be extremely
fussy eaters. I knew I would find out fairly quickly if the K-G-1 was as good as we all hoped it would be. Fortunately the fish found the bait attractive from day one, and pictured are just a couple of the fish that fell over the next few months.
For me, a good bait has to work from the off. There are very few anglers around who have to time and money to introduce large quantities of bait just to get the carp picking it up. It has to be attractive enough to be instantly recognizable as food, but at the same time have the required food value to ensure the carp keep coming back for more. Take our own Multiplex for example. The bait has proved to be one of the best long term baits around and just goes on and on. I know of waters where the bait is catching as well as it did when first released six years ago. Ultraplex seems to be going the same way, so anything new has a lot to live up to.
The K-G-1 itself is based on a low temperature fishmeal with added milk products to ensure the bait has a balanced nutritional profile, the finished baits roll well and then boil up firm enough to withstand the attentions of nuisance fish. There is no Robin Red in this one (look at the Complex or Ultraplex if you require a Robin Red fishmeal), with the liquid content made up of a combination of fish and fruit attractors along with a tried and tested amino product. The bait will be available from the freezer in 10, 14 and 18mm, and due to demand there will now also be pop ups in 18mm as well as 14mm. Should you with to roll your own or perhaps make up some specialist hookbaits, a base mix and matching liquid additive are also available with the highly attractive Impact Boilie dip (this smells superb) completing the range. I mentioned that 18mm pop ups will be available in the new K-G-1 bait, and the good news is that we’ve extended the range to include several of our most popular flavours such as Tutti Frutti. Couple these with the Dumbell Airo Pop ups and the Hookable Boilie Pellets and you have ready rolled hookbaits to cover 99% of angling situations.
For ready made fans we have also added four brand new flavours to the range with Cranberry, Mapleseed, Caramel and Mulberry joining well established favourites such as Crab & Mussel and Esterberry. Matching Impact dips are also available for all the new flavours. Have a good 2007
