AAPGAI Spring Meeting

What a great spring meeting for the Association of Advanced Professional Game Angling Instructors at the Trout Hotel and the Cumbrian Derwent in Cockermouth. I think the performance of the candidates taking the AAPGAI assessments (and we all know how tough they are) shone as brightly as the sun did all weekend.

Neil Barcock demonstrates salmon techniques on the Derwent

There was an unprecedented pass rate of 83 per cent - 10 out of the 12 assessments were successful. That shows just how much preparation candidates are now putting in for the AAPGAI instructor qualifications - and it is paying off.
I was delighted to be part of the team assessing candidates in all three disciplines - trout, salmon and fly dressing. It was great to see Frank Moors complete his Advanced Fly Dressing qualification - and in doing so become the first full member of AAPGAI to enter through the fly dressing route. A big moment for AAPGAI and I'm sure more fly dressers will follow him.

Gary Champion's demonstrations always silence the crowd

Jim and I assessed together along with Illtyd Griffiths on Saturday and we were particularly pleased to be able to pass Nick Taylor in his provisional salmon assessment - the first rung on the instructor ladder. Nick's come a long way since Jim and I first met him down on the Rio Grande in Argentina last year and we're delighted he's now joined us in AAPGAI.
Tiggy Pettifer passed her Advanced Salmon assessment in style while Alexandr Chernysh flew in from Russia to become AAPGAI's second Russian member.
The weekend was completed with a day of excellent demonstrations from top instructors and a chance for one-to-one casting with AAPGAI members.
For more details of AAPGAI qualifications or qualified instructors, visit the AAPGAI website and for a full account of the AAPGAI assessments and open day visit the AAPGAI blog.

- Bob