Clive bows out after more than 20 years behind the counter
CLIVE Vedmore, from Cardiff, is one of the best-known faces in South Wales angling as the manager of the Garry Evans Tackle shop in Newport.
Tomorrow, he retires after more than 20 years and will be sorely missed by all his customers and the many he has put on the road to angling success with his advice and knowledge of all aspects of angling.
During his working career, Clive also fitted in running sea angling night classes as well as being an excellent casting coach and many of our top anglers have benefited from his lessons.
Clive has also been very successful in competitive sea angling and was the first winner of the Seamaster Championship when it was launched back in 1979 and he won again in 1990.
He also became the Wales international team manager for a number of years during which he introduced a team qualification process that is in still in use.
During Clive’s time as manager, the Wales team had a number of successes including the first-ever gold in the 1995 Home International in Ireland and a gold at the World Sea Angling Championships at Dover in 1997.
He is also someone I rely on when gathering news, so I join the rest of the South Wales fishing community in wishing him a long and happy retirement and in the words of the man himself as a customer leaves the shop: “Have a good ‘un and enjoy.”
Meanwhile, a flounder that weighed just 0.45kg proved a profitable catch for Dave Leader when he took part in a well attended Newport and District SAC competition at Coronation Park.
It gave him the microwave oven first prize and the top payout from the match pool.
Runner-up Richard Rogers caught two flounders to make his 0.37kg and they also paid off well by giving him the pool money for the most fish as well as second prize. One flounder of 0.23kg put Dave Lloyd in third place.
The club fishes from 4.30pm to 9.30pm tomorrow at Barry with competitors booking in at 3.30pm at the car park behind the cafe on the approach road to Cold Knap.
Sunshine was the only reward for the members of Penarth SAC who took part in the club competition on the pier and beach because a couple of under-sized cod were all that was caught and there was nothing to go on the scales.
Penygraig SAC members had just one tiny fish to show at the end of the competition at Ogmore and that was the 0.08kg rockling caught by Penygraig resident Jason Lewis.
The Gwent and District SAC competition was also at Ogmore, but members fared slightly better.
Ivor Smith, from Rogerstone, caught two dogfish to easily win with 1.52kg then weights plummeted to the 0.26kg whiting that put Rob Owen in second place and the one of 0.24kg caught by third man Robert Evans.