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End of an era or dawn for change?

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L

Lee Fletcher

Senior Member
There appears to be strong indications coming out of the Barbel Society Facebook page that Steve Pope might be about to throw the towel in at the forth coming AGM after spending the last 20 years as the BS chairman. All founding members of the BS have been invited to attend the AGM free of charge. Does barbel angling feel that more will rejoin/join the BS after Steve Pope is gone or will the BS continue to go into further decline?

Regards,

Lee.
 
I rejoined the BS last year mostly due to their Research and Conservation programme. I had been a member for several years and acted as a bailiff on one of their waters, but left. Back in membership now and giving it another chance.
Steve Pope - obviously has done a hell of a lot of work for the Barbel Society and also reaped some rewards. Maybe it is time for a change as nobody can go on for ever and there are some keen and dedicated people doing good work.
Cheers
Bob
 
I've been a member on two occasions now and won't be rejoining if he's chairman or not.

It won't last much longer and who know's, maybe he realises that and might as-well get out now.
 
Hiya gents,

I think you may have the wrong end of the stick there Lee. Happens quite a lot on Facebook, probably why so many knickers get twisted during debate. Better than watching TV these days.
Founding members have been invited to the show as a celebration...something to do with 20 YEARS of the BS...quite an achievement, and still going strong. Some would say the invites are a nice thing to do, of course, some won't. C'est la vie.
The 'announcements' at the show will mainly consist of how The Barbel Society plans to thrive over the the next 20 years!
The junior section will be up and running again before we know it, younger faces involved all round too, many people helping out with R&C at a regional and national level, management structure changes to come, thriving regions, etc etc etc. The wheels are already in motion.
People can say it won't last much longer and that's fine. In return I would say that's a fart in the wind though and beg to differ. Someone will have to eat their words at some point and a tenner says it isn't me. :D it's got to be around 10 years that the usual suspects have been saying the BS won't last now. I would think its a sensible time to give that one up.
Anyhow, with all this going on, I know Steve will be around to see it all through. I live down the road from him you see and we spend a lot of time together. We skip round the valleys whistling The Society theme tune quite alot. His Welsh has become quite good, for a cockney. The bloke has dedicated a third of his life to The Barbel Society, considering how old he is that's a lot. It's safe to assume he's going nowhere. He's not a daft man, he instigated the move for change. The rest of us have come up with a blueprint. We'll all be taking it forward as one, big, happy, lovely team. It's a crying shame some want The Barbel Society to fail. It's all fuel for the fire to thrive though. Along with our passion for fishing, the barbel and its environment, you'll unfortunetly be seeing a lot more of The Barbel Society.....and that Steve Pope chap.
 
Hi Bob,

What odds will you give me on Steve Pope making himself BS president after he puts one of his cronies in the chairmans seat? If I win the jackpot or not it will actually make no difference if the BS does not change the way it does business radically because you will have no members left anyway? Local fishing clubs offer way more than the BS does for less money and facebook has undoubtedly become the place where anglers meet for all of their social interaction both on and off the bank.

How did the BS take advantage of the internet under Steve Popes tenure? The BS website forum became a ghost town as I recall? How did the BS take advantage of facebook under Steve Popes tenure? 3000 FB members and hardly any of them prepared to join the BS and small wonder with the amount of bickering going off on their FB page. How did the BS fisheries portfolio fare under Steve Popes tenure? Shrank drastically. Magazines under Steve Popes tenure? Also shrank in editions. Membership? Shrank drastically. Number of disgruntled ex BS committee members who left the BS? Number of once staunch BS members and one time friends of Steve Pope who all left the BS? What about existing ex committee members complaining that they were never listed to?

Not exactly a glowing record is it Bob?

And the reality is there are far more members in my local fishing clubs with several offering anglers 20 plus fishery venues to choose from for less money than the BS wants. The BS wants 35 quid and then want its members to pay extra for access to a couple of fisheries. In real terms Bob the BS is very very small beer in comparison to size and what our fishing clubs offer anglers up and down the country. Facebook has taken over angling interaction completely and the plain fact is, barbel anglers just don't want to join the BS and have made that plain even on the BS FB page.

Will the BS survive? With Steve Pope having anything to do with it? Nope. With Steve Pope completely out of the picture? Nope. I'm afraid the damage has been done and cannot be undone plus social media has risen to the point where 175 million people look in on facebook every day. Social media went racing past the BS and they never even noticed it came by until it was too late.

Good luck none the less with your endeavours Bob.

Regards,

Lee.
 
I joined a few years ago principally because I'd heard good reviews about the 'Barbel Fisher' magazine. A few weeks or so after joining I emailed the BS to politely enquire as to when I would be sent the latest copy of BF - no reply. I then subsequently sent a follow-up email to politely ask about the magazine and a received a terse, snotty email along the lines that I'd have to wait until the next issue.

So unsuprisingly I didn't rejoin and I never will regardless of who is the Chairman.
 
Hiya Lee,

It's all about how you spin it mate, I could counter your take on things all day long. Completely respect your views and observations....I'll just direct you back to my original reply. I beg to differ.
I'm quite concerned with the amount of attention Steve gets from individuals on here and the fishingmagic website.
I'm in agreeance with Drew Lawrence on his 'prince of the river' Facebook page. This is all a bit tedious. Actually, it's all a bit weird if I'm honest. We're just crossing platforms and repeating everything. I was well up for a bit of close season banter but this is a bit 'stalkerish' and its giving me the willies.

It is a mistake to compare The Barbel Society with a fishing club.

Thanks for your good luck. Top bloke.

Cheers.
 
Lee, perhaps it's just me but your posts come across as incredibly bitter and I must say, profoundly cowardly. If you have an issue with Steve then why not take it up with him directly? What on earth has possesed you to lauch this "campaign" and not only on here but on more than one FB page. Have you any idea how that comes across? And if all these clubs are thriving and doing fantastically well and the BS is dying then isn't that a bit of a result for you so why do you feel the need to make the statements you have? Quite bizarre. Some might even suggest it's a sort of compliment because you have interests and BS are a threat.

I simply don't understand your need to launch this sort of personal attack.
 
I have been a member of the Barbel Society now for three years and have just sent my cheque of for next season :)
I have meet some friendly anglers in the 3 years I have been a member .
Great magazine and newsletter , Been to some good regional meetings with good speakers . The Barbel Show in June to look forward to .
The Barbel Society may not be every ones cup of tea ? You pay your money and make your choice . Personally I don't have any complaints :D:D
 
Thought as much. Cheers for the reply Joe. That's not how things are run these days but hopefully you'll think about joining again someday in the not too distant future. All the best.
 
When ever I read anything about the BS on here, there's always arguments...
It always seems someone has a axe to grind, so obviously something or someone that is to do with BS is upsetting people..
I joined many moons ago and it was not my cup of tea, but I took it as just that..
Nothing wrong with a group being passionate about what they do, they don't do any harm to others..

One thing I will say though, it does not do the BS any good at all if you are seen arguing on forums..

The Carp Society don't seem to draw the same sort of criticism..
 
After a long lapse of not renewing I felt that this year was the right one to rejoin. With the state of our rivers, I figure that any help the BS can get in the way of pennies in the pot and a membership boost will do no harm. If I feel that they're not accomplishing the objectives then I simply won't renew again, count my lost 35 nuggets and move on. I had some of my most memorable days out with BS members, along with meeting some great guys on the social side and I'd like to reignite all that.
As bit of an outsider looking in lately, I find it hard to see why there's non BS members all over the internet, armed to the teeth with scary keyboards who seem so intent on taking a dig at the BS and it's committee at any given opportunity. Fair enough if there's 'history' between people, damaged egos or whatever then that's human nature, not everyone gets on. I don't see the need to keep on opening up old wounds, it does nobody - on either side of the fence - any good. Ever.
If one is not a member then why the constant, and quite frankly boring, attacks all the time? I don't spend my time slagging off the ABF or BCC or East Midlands Land Rover Owners Club as I'm not a member and not really interested in how well they're being run. It's not my concern. Same with the BS; for the 7 or 8 years I didn't renew my membership I didn't waste a load of time voicing my concerns on how well it was or wasn't doing. I wasn't a member and it had no effect whatsoever on me or my fishing.
Naturally now I have forked out for membership I'll take an interest, offer opinions, help where I can and support an organization that I believe in.
I guess I'm either very naïve or just very confused.
 
Dan this perennial BS slagging off is tiresome , like you I don't understand the level of vitriol and nastiness . In particular this Pope fella seems to engender the greatest level of unpleasantness . I don't know him but as far as I can see all he does is run a niche market specialist fishing group , somebody has to do it . Why don't his ' enemies ' organise a' coup d e'tat ' [ is that spelt right? ] and take over the dreaded organisation ? I would suspect the reason they don't is that they don't fancy taking the thankless job on themselves . It's easier to just chunter from the sidelines
 
I am very new to barbel fishing and the BS and have often been in a state of bewilderment at some of the threads, posts and general nonsense that surfaces from time to time. I have never bothered to try and understand the source of this angst, in part because it appears to relate to a time when folk were also debating the relative merits of VHS versus Betamax. It also seemed to me that it was the same tiny group of people on the keyboard rampage.

I have always applied that tried and tested attitude to life: speak as you find. I have met many people connected with the BS and was impressed by the desire, drive and commitment to actually build, maintain and defend an organisation with a very worthy set of objectives. I think Steve and others with committee roles would freely admit that they haven't always got things right. But at least they have stuck at it.

It's a massive cliche I know, but there is a link between what you put in to something and what you get out of it. Providing a structure that enables barbel anglers to meet up, discuss and share experiences on their local rivers is hugely valuable I think and if friendships are formed then you've got a basis and opportunity for some great fishing experiences. It's those that create the memories that enrich that experience. Well, that's what I reckon anyway. For me, that's a key reason for supporting the BS. Many people may not realise the work that goes into organising regional meetings, not to mention the effort made by those that deliver presentations. And a great deal of credit needs to go to Bobby Baker who has put considerable effort in to improve the regional structure. That sort of commitment and endeavour is rarely recognised.

Personally I think it's perfectly valid to debate and question the role of any organisation- especially here- it's a forum. What I find highly distasteful, deplorable and cowardly is the sort of personal attack we have seen unfold in this thread and across Facebook. It doesn't matter who it relates to. It's crossing a line.
 
Very interesting point of veiw Dan and exactly why i have and never had any inteest in joining the B/S, far too much infighting, and far too much need to know basis, my dislike is purely on a personal like and dislike and every man to his own:)
 
Craig Wood said:
When ever I read anything about the BS on here, there's always arguments...
It always seems someone has a axe to grind, so obviously something or someone that is to do with BS is upsetting people..
I joined many moons ago and it was not my cup of tea, but I took it as just that..
Nothing wrong with a group being passionate about what they do, they don't do any harm to others..

One thing I will say though, it does not do the BS any good at all if you are seen arguing on forums..

The Carp Society don't seem to draw the same sort of criticism..
Click to expand...

Agreed they should rise above it, and I feel Steve Pope has in light of all the abuse he gets has acted like a true gent. I really don't get all this sniping at all, possibly it's a personal vendetta, or just jealousy, either way it's very odd.
 
The thing that has stuck with me is how welcome I was made from day one. I think I must have been about 13 when I first joined the BS. Many of the guys, especially Steve Pope, and many of the membership had a huge influence on me and aided my own angling no end.
I think that my most memorable days fishing was when I was old enough to be on the other side of the fence and was one of the adult anglers at a junior fish-in on the Severn. Although there were very few fish caught on that moody old river that day ( I think Trefor West managed to have one of his ''pupils'' catch one at last knockings ) I got more enjoyment out of that day helping and teaching a young angler the art of Barbel fishing than I ever have done catching some of the big Gt Ouse fish since.
In my eyes this is what the BS is about.
I'd never have gained the knowledge, skills and been able to fish where I have done without those chaps. If the BS in the future manages to have a fraction of that influence on only a dozen young anglers per year like I was then I think it will be a very bright future. Not necessarily in terms of the popularity of the sport, but if a fraction of those youngsters in the future switch on and take a positive, passionate and forward thinking interest in the conservation side then it's something I believe we can all be thankful for.
There's no need for history, egos and personal issues to get in the way of this. I'm very keen to learn more of this 20 year vision.

I hope I've worded that correctly to get my point across, I've been somewhat distracted the last 5 minutes or so by one of the Yanks cooking and eating the most beautiful steak ever in the workshop!!
 
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