Carp Tackle – From the UK to USA
In the UK and Europe, carp fishing is a well established and expanding sport, probably even the most popular branch of freshwater fishing. Up to the 1940’s, carp fishing was considered to be a difficult if not impossible sport! However, after World War 2 specialists started to develop carp fishing tackle, together with improving tactics and baits. In 1952 Richard Walker caught the then world record 44lb common carp from Redmire Pool in England using a split cane built rod. Soon after this carp fishing gained its momentum into the mainstream European sport we know today and carp tackle became more specialised.
Many bass fisherman in the US labeled carp as trash fish, though recently through publicity and education from groups like American Carp Society and CAG more and more fishermen in the US now seem to realise how challenging and exciting carp fishing really is.
The availability of carp and the water they inhabit will also help tremendously in the growth of this sport. In the UK many ponds and lakes have been converted to carp fisheries and many new ones dug. Many shops and online stores specialise in carp tackle. In the USA a similar pattern is beginning to emerge. Although the UK leads the way in developing purpose designed tackle and rigs, most USA anglers use American set-ups when they first get into carp fishing as a good selection of carp fishing equipment and bait is hard to find in stores within the United States. Now that the Internet has taken up a supplier role this is becoming less of a problem. Some online carp angling and general fishing tackle stores have been setup in the US and import the european carp gear to sell online, while others will ship directly from Europe. A very few companies are presently manufacturing their own gear in the US given the high quality of European gear, though this trend is likely to change with the future growth of this magnificent sport. A lot of carp tackle sold both in the UK and USA is currently manufactured in China and other Far Eastern countries.
It is hoped that more interaction between UK/other European and USA anglers can be encouraged with possibly tournaments being set up or “World Series” leagues established.