Bizarrely, I've just watched an old fly fishing "tutorial" from 1983 (in conjunction with Benson and Hedges no less) with Arthur Oglesby. One of his guests was Bob Church.
Bob was trying to introduce Arthur to "a new fly" which was called a dog nobbler, in very controversial, loud colours such as pinks, oranges and whites.
A great day seemed to be had by both fellows, and even the introduction of a sinking line was seen as new and revolutionary.
To me, the sport is continually evolving and new methods such as sink tips, midge tips, flurocarbon, fast action rods etc are advances in technology which all sports adapt to.
It was great to see the not too distant past and be given a reminder of how far technology has brought us.
Unfortunately, it was totally spoiled for me when, at the end, the camera cut to Arthur and Bob on the bank - with around 20 or 25 Rainbows lying next to them.
To me, that's where competition angling and recreational angling differ. I will take fish from a stocked fishery, but even if there was no limit on the number of fish that could be taken, 20 or 25 just isn't sport in my eyes.