photos by Peter Furze and Dick Mills
Despite the heat, the car park at the Rose Community Centre was packed as fishkeepers piled in to support
Windows and doors were wide open to encourage fan-assisted air-flow past the 200 or so entries benched.
Extra aeration and filtration provisions were on hand bearing in mind the lower water oxygen content due to the high ambient temperature.
A most notable feature were two Discus fish entered into one of the four FBAS Championship Trophy Classes - how often do these magnificent fish see the light of day except in Specialist Shows?
Well done to their owners for letting us see them!
All present were delighted to see the return of Alan Henderson to the ranks of 'officaldom' once more following his recent health worries.
Another happy event was the announcement that this was to be a VIRTUALLY FREE DAY -
no entry fees and all the refreshments you wanted - although you had to buy Raffle tickets!
There were the 'Goodie Bags' for all visitors, exhibitors and non-exhibitors alike plus the rewards for the winning entries all thanks to the generosity of the Federation's sponsors, Rolf C Hagen, Aquarian and Tetra.
Exhibitors had even more bonuses in the form of double points in the ordinary Classes and triple points in the Championship Classes counting to their credit in the FBAS Brooch Scheme.
Prize-giving was a doddle, none of the standing in line through seemingly endless Classes, each exhibitor simply received Award Cards bagged up with their accumulated rewards in one trip to shake the hand of FBAS Chairman, Les Pearce.
The organisers would take a moment here to say a very sincere 'THANK YOU' to all exhibitors for NOT rushing to debench until after prizegiving was completed.
This display of good manners not only helped cut down presentation time but also contributed much towards ensuring that the day ended on a very happy note.
It made such a difference to allow each exhibitor to enjoy their moment of fame, generously applauded by their previous opponents, without having to wade through buckets, polystyrene boxes and fishkeepers anxious to join the homeward traffic.
See you at Port Talbot, Kim! Rod Isted and Eric Franklin worry whether
one of John Egan's fish has escaped
FBAS Championship Trophy Classes
D - Cichlids
1st John Egan (Port Talbot) - Viejita zonata
2nd John Egan (Port Talbot) - Viejita regani
3rd Roy Davies (Port Talbot) - Cichlasoma robertsoni
4th Roy Davies (Port Talbot) - Cichlasoma robertsoni
P - Cultivated Livebearers
1st Terry Hewitt (Bracknell) - Poecilia sphenops
2nd Kim Reed (Newport) - Pinpoint Platy
3rd J Evans - Black Molly
4th M Andrew - Platy
N u-w - Pairs of Coldwater Fish
1st John Egan (Port Talbot) - Red Belly Dace
2nd John Egan (Port Talbot) - Aetheostoma blennioides
3rd Eric Franklin (SPASS) - Common Goldfish
W - Coldwater Fish
1st John Egan (Port Talbot) - Aetheostoma caeruleum
2nd Terry Hewitt (Bracknell) - Pseudorasbora parva
BEST IN SHOW
John Egan (Port Talbot) - L 128 Blue Spot Catfish
1st Reserve - John Egan (Port Talbot) - Viejita zonata
2nd Reserve - Eric Franklin (SPASS) - London Shubunkin
FOOTNOTE:
If either of the two Petes
(Caira and Furze) tell
you that they helped
clear up, then please
believe them -
here's photographic
evidence!
Last updated July 3, 2006