“Thanks, Dad!” Perry Breaks PB with Monks’ biggest!

  • Posted: 29th January 2025
  • Author: Team DNA
After a very challenging week following the passing of his dad, Perry Alabaster found strength in his father’s words, “be happy and live your life.” With that in mind, and a prime low-pressure front moving in, he headed to Monks Pit determined to restore some happiness after a difficult period.
What transpired was something almost unimaginable, a red-letter January session that concluded with the capture of a joint lake record and a brand-new personal best of 59lb 7oz, coming in the form of the colossal mirror known as Black Spot.
Black Spot’s capture in the final hours of his session completed an 11-fish catch on the Cambridgeshire syndicate, leaving Perry feeling understandably emotional given what he had recently been through. A simple, “Thanks, Dad,” was Perry’s parting words as he wrapped up the session, grateful to whatever or whomever made the moment possible.
“I was in two minds about whether to even go fishing this week, as I was feeling a bit down after my dad passed away last Wednesday but even in his final days, he encouraged his kids and grandkids to be happy and just go and live our lives,” said Perry.
“With that in mind and a sexy-looking low pressure front moving in, I headed for Monks Pit more determined than ever to make the most of this session.
“I got into one of my favourite swims and started by using various tactics to see if I could get things under way, but it wasn’t until the evening on my first day that anything happened. My S7 Corker wafter fished in a solid bag of Crayfish Mini Mix pellets was picked up by a 27lb mirror closely followed by a nice scaly 36lb 8oz mirror. ‘Here we go,’ I thought.
“The next day and night went pretty much to plan, as I decided to put all my eggs in one basket and go with the S7/bags method, which ended up producing bites on all my rods. I was into double figures going into my final days, having banked 10 carp, including another nice thirty, but I did wonder where those Monks Pit giants were hiding as the action slowed down a little.
“My mate Mark asked me how things were going just before he headed home and I joked, ‘Oh, I’ve just realised why it’s gone quiet; my scales are still hanging on my tripod.’ It’s a little superstition of mine to pack them away after each fish. Madly enough, 10 minutes after putting my scales back in their pouch, I had one last take. Fellow DNA user Steve Haylett in the next swim up came along to help me land the fish and I gave him a running commentary of how big it felt as it neared the net. It gradually grew from about 20lb to 30lb-plus in my estimations, until we got a glimpse of it under the rod tips and saw a big black spot on its flanks. I can’t repeat what I said, but we both knew which fish it was and it’d be much bigger than 40lb if it went in the net! I was fortunate enough to catch Black Spot at just over 40lb during my first spell on Monks Pit over 12 years ago, but since my return, it’s definitely been one of the few fish I’d always felt I’d be more than happy to catch again, because it’s massive these days. Steve scooped it into the net at the first time of asking, then helped me hoist it up on to my weighing tripod. We carefully checked the scales as they settled on 59lb 7oz, which meant I had a new UK PB, beating my previous PB from last year by just under 4lb. A bit better than waiting 17 years like I had to for my last PB!
“Steve congratulated me and informed me that it was a joint lake record! It was a great to share the moment with someone who I witnessed catch the Special One a couple of seasons ago, arguably the second-most-sought after Monks Pit resident after Black Spot.
“I’m not really into all the supernatural stuff, but after releasing the fish I felt quite emotional, so sat back down on my bivvy bed, looked up to the sky and said, ‘Thanks, Dad,’ just in case!
Perry with Black Spot at 59lb 7oz

Thanks, Dad!