New Regional Organizer and Treasurer

Due to increased work commitments Andy and Carol Bates have stepped down from their roles as R.O. and Treasurer respectively, although they will continue to attend our meetings. As a mark of our appreciation for their efforts on behalf of the Cheshire Region there will be presentation to Andy and Carol at our meeting on Thursday 8th October. It should be a good night as we look forward to a talk from Gord Burton on his recent muskie fishing trip to Lake of The Woods in Canada.

I am very grateful to Neil Shortland who has kindly agreed to take over as Treasurer. Neil and I served on the PAC committee together some years ago and I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with him again.

Neil is one of PAC’s unsung heroes. He is a quiet man, who has never sought the limelight, yet whilst on the committee he did a great deal of work behind the scenes, as well as looking after the Club’s finances, which is a big enough job in itself. Neil is an experienced and accomplished pike angler and a real asset to the Cheshire Region.

I must admit that when I received word from Mark Johnson (L.O.) that he was on the look-out for a new R.O. for the Cheshire Region, I was delighted to have the chance to try and take us forward again.

For those who don’t know me, I have been a member of PAC for about 16 years now. My wife Vicky and I joined the Cheshire Region in the early 90’s when Neil Wheater was R.O. and the meetings were held at the ‘Nag’s Head’ in Macclesfield. We were quite new to pike fishing at the time. In fact we were both still chasing our first double figure fish.

Thanks to the help and encouragement we received from those we met at the R.A.9 meetings our results soon showed a marked improvement. In fact, Vicky’s first ‘double’ weighed 20 lbs. 4 oz. and we quickly began to feel like proper pike anglers.

However, catching bigger fish wasn’t the only benefit which came our way as a result of going to the meetings. Just as importantly we made some really good friends, and learned something about the methods they were using and the waters they were fishing. There was none of the secrecy or jealousy which occasionally casts a shadow over other branches specialist angling. Just a healthy respect for others and genuine delight when they enjoyed a good catch. How refreshing !

After a couple of years I became joint R.O. and began to produce a monthly newsletter whilst Vicky took on the role of Treasurer. We had some wonderful times with the Cheshire Region and made lots of really good friends, not just in Cheshire but throughout the country. Happy days indeed.

When the opportunity came we were both very honoured to serve on PAC’s North West Committee as Secretary and Products Manager respectively. Subsequently I served briefly as PAC’s Liaison Officer for the North West and later as Membership Secretary with the Specialist Anglers Alliance (now part of the Angling Trust of course). I am now a committee member with Northwich Anglers Association.

Despite being semi-retired, I still don’t get as much time to go fishing as I would like. My work with NAA keeps me busy and I also teach guitar on a part-time basis. Now and again I’ll fish for perch, but pike fishing is as much a passion for me now as it ever was. I tend to fish close to home these days and particularly enjoy roving the banks with a selection of lures. However, that hasn’t always been the case ...

I’m going to present a slide show at our first meeting on September 10th, so I won’t say any more about my fishing here. There will also be plenty of time to catch up with old friends and make new ones during the evening.

In closing, I would like to say a special thank you to Mark Johnson for his help and support over the last couple of months. It’s been a bit of rush getting things ready for this season but, between us, I think we’ve just about got there.

We are standing on the threshold of a new and exciting era for the Cheshire Region. We could, and should, be one of the strongest and most active PAC Regional Associations in the country. Please come along and be a part of it.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

Mark Leathwood