TX Tourney Trails Need Change

[SkeetyCCTX]

First off I would like to say that I am a Tourny guy myself.  I enjoy them and concede that there are many positives to come out of them.  In no way am I advocating the end to all tournaments.  This being said, tourney fishing in TX needs some MAJOR SHAKE-UPS!

As of right now, I believe that TX tourney trails are one of the most detrimintal influences on our lakes, even more than meat-hunters!  Why do you ask?

There is a huge tourny craze in the state of TX right now.  The amount of amatuer type tournys in this state is staggering.  Every region of this state has numerous yearly trails, as well as large numbers of smaller events and club tournaments.  In TX, these larger events draw upwards of 200 boats for each event in each region of the state (North, South, East, West, Central)!

Now, you have to consider the characteristics of the state of TX; and the current demands of it's anglers to see why there is a problem.  Please try to stay with me on this.

First, a large portion of fish caught during the avg. tourny do not survive the stress of their ordeal.  Now, not all of these fish die immediately, as many die later on due to injuries suffered to them, such as broken jaws from improper handleing!  However, the major reason that many of these fish die is due to our climate!  Throughout most of the year, most TX lakes carry a temp. of higher than 80 degrees.  In fact, many S.TX lakes creep well into the mid 90's from June to Sept.  Keeping bass alive in a livewell during an all day fishing event is very hard at these temps!  Especially when considering the size of our fish.  On the primary tourny lakes it usually takes 30 lbs or more to win the avg tourny, big fish just dont do well in a crammed, hot box all day!  Summer fish kills from south TX tournys can be staggering, and you are being stubborn if you cant admitt this!

Next, the demands of the avg. tourny angler in TX are killing certain lakes!  In TX, there is a large number of anglers that only fish under tourny situations, they just dont fish for recreation!  Now, these anglers are very adament about fishing their tournys on the states hottest and best lakes:  Falcon, Choke Canyon, Amistad, Fork, and a couple others!  Because this is the only time they fish, they want to go to one of the Big Boys and catch BIG fish!  Many organizers feel that they have to have their events on these lakes to draw crowds!  I dont blame either of them for these attitudes, and I too like to fish these lakes.  However, there is a major problem; too much stress is being placed on these lakes because of this!

There is an exreme amount of tourny stress unporportionatly placed on just a few TX bass lakes.  These are our best fisheries and our best chances at seeing a world record, but they are being thrashed from tourny pressure and have drastically declined!  Just imagine if your home lake had 200 boats worth of Tourny pressure every weekend!  That kind of hammering will take a toll on any lake, especially when added to environmental factors such as the bad drought we had been in for the last 2 yrs!

All this being said, the negitives can easily be corrected if we would just make a few relitively easy changes to the way we fish our tournaments.

  First, organizers should take great care when planning out their seasons.  Southern lakes should always be fished first as this is when their temps are coolest!  This will greatly improve survival rates during events in the warmer regions of the state. 

2nd, more 3 fish formats should be adopted during the warmer times of year, or events can have all day weigh-ins so that fish are put back quickly and live-wells stay less cramped!  I fished an event last summer at choke canyon that was run with an all day way in, you could weigh fish in as you caught them and then go back out and upgrade.  The tourny only lost 1 fish, and it was a major success!

The last thing that would drastically help, is for event organizers to start alternating more lakes into their seasons.  To give you an example of how it is now, the trail I fish has 7 events all fished on the same 3 lakes.  Believe me event organizers, if you scheduled different lakes anglers will still come and fish.  There are more than just 3 good lakes in TX, in fact; we may even discover some hidden gems that are better than the current big dogs!

By mixing in new lakes, these other lakes would get a chance to heal themselves after the beatings they take.  I have seen drastic declines in several lakes that I know has something to do with heavy tourny pressure.  Its simple math; the more tournys a lake has, the more pressure is on the fish, the more that are caught, and the more that die due to the stress!

  Plus, this would also make the trails more interesting; as anglers will get to fish new places and fish under different circumstances.  Down here in TX everyone allready knows who can catch fish on Choke, Falcon, Fork, and Amistad; lets see if they can do it on different lakes that they may not fish often.  I think this would make trails more competitive, fair, and we would see who is truely a more versitile fisherman!

Now, before anyone gets all defensive, consider this; the changes that I advocate are only meant to preserve our lakes and better our fisheries so that we can enjoy great tourny fishing for years to come.  At the rate we are going we will have to use TNT to get a limmit on lakes that used to be plum full of bass.  By taking a conservation/fish first attitude, we will in return increase the overall fishing experience.  These changes are just minor consessions and wont do anything but help out!

[Catt]

I've followed the Texas tournaments for years now, I also know some of the biologist and keep up with current research.

My question is where is your supporting data or is this your opinion only.

[SkeetyCCTX]

My supporting data comes from unbiased personal observation and conversations with other fisherman who fish as much as I do.  I am not an organization and do not have the time to conduct an type of official studies, Im just using un-biased common sense!

Like I stated earlier, none of these recommendations will hurt anybody, they will only help, so please try not to get defensive.  Im a tounry angler too, but as a whole tourny anglers are very over-defensive whenever better conservation efforts are suggested towards them.  Why?  It will just help us out more in the long run!

Have you ever seen a tourny on Falcon during anytime other than winter?  It can be sickening to see how many fish die.  I was at the Elite series 2 yrs back and it was the saddest thing I had ever seen.  So many big fish died that it wasnt even funny.  You cant tell me that it didnt hurt the lake!  I have been to numerous tournys on Choke Canyon and Falcon where large portions of the fish have died.  The sad thing is that it all could have been avoided if we and Tourny anglers and organizers would have tried a little harder.

I could throw fish kill figures out but it really doesnt matter.  There are so many conflicting studies on how many fish die and live that it is irrelivant.  Ive seen studies supporting a 1/3 kill ratio and I have seen studies showing that everything lives.  I dont put much stock into them because they can be manipulated based on the sampler's intentions.  All I know is what I see with my own eyes and other testimonials from trusted anglers.

I live near Choke Canyon and have been fishing it for many years on a weekly basis.  Any local that fishes the lake on a year long regular basis will tell you that the bass fishing has seen an overall decline over the last several yrs.  Sure, some big fish are still being caught; but there are a lot more lines in the water to catch them  with!  The overall fishing has gone down by more than half in my opinion, as well as many of my fishing partners.

The same can be said for many of the other top lakes.  Dont try and say that Fork is spitting out fish like it did in the 90's!  Amistad is the same way!  Falcon is the only one that I believe can handle the heavy tourny pressure because it is so big, and doesnt get as many club tournys and recreation anglers because it is so far out of the way!

What do all these lakes have in common?  Huge tourny crowds.  You can say that it doesnt effect things.  Im not advocating an end to tournys, I love fishing them, but I just think that we need to make some changes to make things better!

[firefightn15]

I'm curious, in your first post you ask that the reader not get defensive at your proposed changes and in your post to Catt's reply You start out one sentence by Saying "Don't try and say Fork is spitting out fish like it did in the 90's."

Now before you get defensive, this is only a question; why tell someone to not get defensive and then later on intimate that you don't want to hear their arguments? I do not fish these lakes and claim no expertise, I am just trying to understand if your looking to make sure everyone knows your right or if your looking for other constructive opinion on Fork.

[Tin]

I understand your point but you are not helping either. The fish in your avatar is on some sort of surface which is not good because it removes it protective slime coat.

[Matt Fly]

What trails in south Texas.    Media don't fish south Texas, and the big boys are BassChamps.

  What two boat trails do you get on Falcon, be real easy to show a bunch since you fish them.

  You should be telling this to your director, he's the one fishing 7 events on 3 bodies of water.

    Bass Champs is only 5 events, so name the other trails.

[fishfordollars]

Too many tournaments? I think supply and demand will eventually settle that. Participation is definitely down in a lot of them; however, Bass Champs is still drawing north of 200 boats. Many of the other higher end ones have seen a large drop in the number of participants. The weather and the economy may have caused that for this year, we'll just have to wait and see.

Fish mortality is always an issue when they visit a lake. Most don't take the care with their catch that I would like to see. Cold weather months do help, but there are way too many that totally disregard the livewell system and the way they handle the fish. There needs to be more stringent penalties for dead fish. I am all in favor of a three fish limit for June-September tournament months, but I don't think you will see it happen. Tournament directors need to make a more concerted effort to care for the fish during the weigh in also. What really irritates me is the holding of weigh bags in the weigh tanks. Makes no sense to stand at a tank with a weigh bag without any holes in it being placed in an oxygenated tank. That is nothing but fluff for the spectators. Does nothing to help the fish.

Can the lakes handle it? Well so far, they seem to be holding their own. Parks and Wildlife stocks large numbers each year. Big fish numbers may be down. I have not seen any information that would support this other than the sight of large numbers of large fish seen at Falcon after the Elites left there several years ago.

Instead of cutting back on the number of tournaments I would like to see a program set up to educate all anglers in fish care, survival techniques, and demand that they abide by it. Maybe a requirement that the boats livewell be setup a certain way(dimensions, oxygen system, etc.), and research done to help the survival rate during weigh in.

I believe that 90% of the stress that kills our fish is done from the time it is removed from the livewell until it is released after weigh in.

Strictly my opinions backed by no scientific information or studies.

Jack

[R520dvx]

I think you are ignoring the fact that lakes will go through phases. Other factors come into play like spawn size, climate, and changes in the lake.

I live on Kentucky Lake and our fishing has been improving the last few years and is expected to continue improving. Is it the best it's ever been? No, but improving. We had some years with better than average spawns and some other factors. The fishing has changed also. The resurgence of vegetation in the lake has had an affect on fish location. We've had to adapt to that change.

Believe me, Texas isn't the only place with tournament pressure. Several hundred tourney boats is an every weekend occurrence here. I have seen times when there were upwards of 1000 tournament boats involved in big tournaments only ..... not counting club tournaments and recreational fishing.

We also have our share of high water temps. We have quite a stretch of water temps in the 80's to close to 90. Not as high as yours, however because of conditioning just as stressful to our fish as your temps are to yours.

Some anglers could do a better job of taking care of the fish. There are plenty of products to use .... oxygenators, livewell treatments like Catch and Release, hydrogen peroxide, and good old fashioned ice. There will always be some anglers who are not diligent in fish care. Some angler education would be good in some cases.

All in all, I believe if fisheries biologist and management thought tournament fishing was seriously damaging fish populations, that they would regulate it more or put an end to it.

[Matt Fly]

Good points 520.

Cut my teeth in the 60's on Amistad as a boy, Dad coached and ran baitstand at Comstock.

All lakes have cycles, you could show the cycle of droughts that plagued those 3 lakes that have been mentioned for kicking out 40 lb 5 bass sacks on Choke, Amistad, and Falcon.

With that being said, you could also show the BassChamps results 2003 and prior and you will not see 1/2 the 5 fish limits you see now or even one third of the 20 lbs sacks, much less 30-40 lbs sacks.

And you can't blame BASS or FLW or state run tournaments prior to those years for the fishing being so so then.

So why was the fishing so so then? 40-90 ft of missing water on those 3 lakes might explain it with no cover for fry to survive.

Mother nature filled those 3 lakes after 10-15years of new growth, then filling them with massive rains of 2004 created brand new lakes.

And as for pressure, when those 3 lakes support half of what Rayburn and TB do annually, then you might have something to talk about.

Team tournaments are not issues, 5 fish spread out in 2 wells, not an issue.

BASS eliminated co anglers, no longer crowding issue with the use of both livewells.

FLW, still has an issue, angler and co angler, even if Co anglers limit is 3 fish, it don't help the boater with 5 fish limit.

So really, what tournaments on Falcon have 200 boats and fighting for the use of one livewell,

by the way, thats the only problem with a tournament on big fish lakes, is trying to cram 5 big fish in one livewell when you have co boaters.

   

[SkeetyCCTX]

I think that I was misunderstood when I said, "Dont try to say Fork is spitting fish out like in the 90"s!" I was not really talking to anyone in general, or trying to be defensive. However, I am trying to prove my opinion and was just making a generalized statement about what most people already know! Honestly, I was not trying to cause any harm.

This stuff is just my point of view on the situation and I am not trying to get personal with anyone. Im sure all of you are great people. However, that doesnt mean that we have to agree on all issue. And, if we dont that doesnt mean that I mean any personal insult or harm.

You do have the right to your opinion, as I also have the right to object to it. As long as we are doing so in a civilized manner, there is nothing wrong with it. In fact, a good intelligent discussion; about an issue that draws strong opinions ', is fun!

I dont ever take this stuff personally, its just about fish! So, please dont get upset or have ill will cause I have none towards you.

That being said, I think this is a prime example of my assertion that Tourny Anglers get very defensive when our conservation methods are scrutinized, or brought into question!

Look, everybody has room for improvment, and I just think that TX Tournys have room for a lot of em. My goal is to just better our lakes and sport, not to belittle, name call, or point fingers. That will get nothing done. I just want to open some eyes to the fact that we do take a toll on our lakes and that we can do more to help sustaine them than what we are doing now. Thats it!

FYI, in no way am I perfect or the top authority on conservation. In no way am I trying to act like I am any better than any one of you. Yes, I have made mistakes before. However, I am Man enough to admitt when I am wrong and change my ways if corrected. Someone made a statement above about the Bass Pictured in my signiture. Yes, you are correct; lying a fish down on the boat carpet is not too good for bass. Just so you know, that pic was taken over 2 yrs ago while by myslelf. Though I have always been convervation minded, I did not think about things like that during that period of my fishing. I was by myslef and just wanted a pic of the great fish! However, you can rest assure that I know do all that I can to not place fish on the boat carpet.

That is neither here nor there though, I am not trying to nit pick on every little thing and call individuals out for every improper action. I just am asking for us Tourny fisherman to collectively strive to improve our lakes. Nobody should have a problem with this!

BTW, as for different TX trails:  Bass Champs has like 5 divisions, BFL has 5 div, Federation has 5 div, Bass-N-Bucks has several events, S. TX 5!  These are just the Trails that I can name off the top of my head.  I fish the S. TX 5.  Also, there are many large annual tournys every year, for instance:  API events, BassChamps Big Fish Bonanzas (Choke/Fork/TB), and much more!  Then, you got all the little events (50 boats or less) and Club tournys!

Also, there was a comment about Toleto Bend getting hammered way more than everyone else.  I agree, and you are just restating my point.  Tourny pressure on certain lakes is way out of hand and it needs to be spreed out. 

[basscrusher]

I agree with the post that hot-water summertime tournaments need to be scaled back some.

Also, the slime coat issue you always hear is overrated, for bass at least.  That's coming straight from the mouth of a VDGIF biologist (not me...one I talked to.)

[Big-O]

You make some valid points Skeety and if you go to many of the bigger Texas tournaments now you'll see that the rules regarding fish handling are ever changing for the better to try and remedy this big challenge.

Maybe not as fast as we (or the Fish) would like it but this seems to be a priority that is getting more and more attention nationwide.

Rome wasn't built in a day...but it did get built and that's our promise to the future of our great resource THE BASS

Maybe not in mine, but in your lifetime I think you will be proud of yours and everyone elses efforts that make friendly competition as safe as possible for the fish

Big O

www.ragetail.com

[Glenn]

Fish care is of utmost importance, and should be the #1 priority for every tournament angler.  To that end, SureLife put together a fantastic video all about fish care.  Every tourny angler should memorize it.

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/fish-care-in-the-livewell.html

[Catt]

Tournament anglers get defensive when people like you come on public forums or in political settings trying to blame tournament anglers for their suspected problems. Every member here that has replied to your post is a tournament angler and all are highly involved in conservation.

What you have failed to understand is that a vast majority of all improvements in lake conservation, boat livewells, fish care while in the livewell, fish care during the weight-in, & fish care after the weight-in is not only supported by tournament anglers but often times enacted by and paid for by tournament anglers.

[fishfordollars]

Tournament anglers get defensive when people like you come on public forums or in political settings trying to blame tournament anglers for their suspected problems. Every member here that has replied to your post is a tournament angler and all are highly involved in conservation.

What you have failed to understand is that a vast majority of all improvements in lake conservation, boat livewells, fish care while in the livewell, fish care during the weight-in, & fish care after the weight-in is not only supported by tournament anglers but often times enacted by and paid for by tournament anglers.

X2 Catt, you put it out there very well.

[SkeetyCCTX]

Quote:

Tournament anglers get defensive when people like you come on public forums or in political settings trying to blame tournament anglers for their suspected problems. Every member here that has replied to your post is a tournament angler and all are highly involved in conservation.

What you have failed to understand is that a vast majority of all improvements in lake conservation, boat livewells, fish care while in the livewell, fish care during the weight-in, & fish care after the weight-in is not only supported by tournament anglers but often times enacted by and paid for by tournament anglers.

End Quote:

Once again, I have clearly stated that I am not trying to get into a personal argument or directly fingering anyone for blame on anything.  But, since it keeps getting brought back to that, I will comment. 

Comments like this just prove my point that "we" Tourny Anglers get too defensive when conservation is brought up, when we should be excitedly trying to constantly improve!  Any time improvements are suggested "we" resort to vigorously defensing the conservation steps we already practice.  No body is saying that there are not conservation minded measures already in place.  However, what I am saying is that we are not doing as good as we can ultimately do.  Im not the kind of guy that settles for mediocracy and I bet many of yall dont either.  Lets put it this way, in a tourny would you just stop as soon as you catch your first 5 keepers?  No, you are going to keep fishing and try to improve upon what you already have.  This is the same concept I am trying to advocate, we need to make improvements.

What was sufficient 10 yrs ago, does not necessarily apply to today.  Tournaments have become HUGE and we need to adjust accordingly to maintain the proper balance.  As stated earlier, these efforts will only improve our sport, so there is no reason that you shouldnt be all for it!

However, the fact is that "we" tourny anglers are very over-devensive when it comes to looking in the mirror and seeing what we can do better.  We are so worried about ourselves and having a good time, that we sometimes neglect to properly protect our main resource, "Bass!"  Trust me though, if we spend a little extra effort protecting rather than just taking, the results will be heavier sacks and a more entertaining sport!

BTW, please notice that I keep saying, "we" "us" and  "our" when talking about Tourny related issues.  As earlier stated, I am a tourny angler too!  I currently fish a little amatuer trail and many other single events, such as the API, BassChamps Big Bass, Coleto Creek Invitational, and several more.  In no way do I advocate getting rid of something that i enjoy.  However, I can be honest and look into the mirror.  We all have room to improve!  Just because we are better than others doesnt mean that we should be satisfied and stop there.  With the way our sport is growing we must evolve!

[Catt]

You see a need for MAJOR SHAKE-UPS!

I see a need for minor adjustments

You see a large portion of fish caught during the avg. tourny do not survive the stress of their ordeal.

I see a small portion of fish caught during the average tournament that do not survive.

You see a portion of these fish that do not die immediately but die later on due to injuries

I see no supporting data proving these bass were in fact caught in a tournament and not by recreational anglers.

You see "There is an extreme amount of tourny stress unproportionately placed on just a few TX bass lakes. These are our best fisheries and our best chances at seeing a world record, but they are being thrashed from tourny pressure and have drastically declined!"

Again I see no supporting data other than personal opinion

You say "First, organizers should take great care when planning out their seasons."

I don't know any tournament organizer who doesn't!

You mentioned Toledo Bend as proving your point of being over pressured

I say Toledo Bend is 190,000 acres divided by 200 anglers equals 950 acres per angler

Is there a need for improvement?

Yes & it is done through individual education not point fingers at Tournament Organizations.

[Catt]

"BTW, please notice that I keep saying, "we" "us" and "our" when talking about Tourny related issues. As earlier stated, I am a tourny angler too!"

I would not be so quick to add yourself to the same catorgory of "we" "us" and "our"

I personally think you are a young angler whose heart is in the church...wrong pew

[Matt Fly]

I think its lame to pass the buck.

   Those are my fish in the livewell for up to 8-9 hours. 

Easy to blame an organization that only handles your fish for short time for the dead fish.

     And, 80% of TX tournaments are team,thats one limit that has the use of 2 wells, again, not really an issue,

The one rule that needs more teeth in it is the dead fish penality.      Half pound don't cut it.       Needs to be half the dead fishs weight.    ie....5 lb dead fish would only count 2.5 lbs, so the bigger the fish, the bigger the penalty.

     Knock on Catts head, I have never had a tourney bass die!

 

[R520dvx]

I just read some tournament rules that the dead fish penalty is 25% of the ENTIRE CATCH !!!

That is the kind of penalty that will make a difference in the way some handle fish.

[fishfordollars]

I think its lame to pass the buck.

Those are my fish in the livewell for up to 8-9 hours.

Easy to blame an organization that only handles your fish for short time for the dead fish.

And, 80% of TX tournaments are team,thats one limit that has the use of 2 wells, again, not really an issue,

The one rule that needs more teeth in it is the dead fish penality. Half pound don't cut it. Needs to be half the dead fishs weight. ie....5 lb dead fish would only count 2.5 lbs, so the bigger the fish, the bigger the penalty.

Knock on Catts head, I have never had a tourney bass die!

Matt, I wish I could say the same. I've lost a very few. It was always due to my ignorance and lack of attention. I try to do better.

[fishfordollars]

I'm not the least bit over sensitive when I look in the mirror. I always try to protect the environment, as well as our natural resources.

If you feel that strongly about the damage we, as tournament fishermen do to the lakes, maybe you need to put the rod down, grab a sign, and stand a picket line at a ramp or weighin.

[SkeetyCCTX]

First off, I am a Man of almost 30 yrs old!  I grew up on Padre Island saltwater fishing since I was a kid and later moved to bass fishing during my College years.  I began College in 2001, and have been hardcore bass fishing since then.  That is 9 yrs!  So, dont judge who I am, or my experience!  I have not finger pointed any of you personally nor have I made foolish judgements of who you are!

As for me wanting drastic shakeups, what are you talking about?  All of the the things I ask for are simple and can be done without much money or stress on anyone.  Im not asking for anyone to bend over backwards.  Just do a few little things that will make are sport better.  The only drastic changes that will occur are in the numbers of fish that we see caught.

Next, if you have not seen the declines in these major tourny lakes, than you abviously do not fish them on a regular weekly basis.  I have been fishing Choke Canyon weekly for many years now, and any of the long time regulars will tell you the same thing, overall numbers are way down and fishing is tougher!  Are there other factors involved?  Yes, but that doesnt mean that we can help what we can!

Furthermore, if you do not think that there are signifigant fish kills because of tourny stress , than you are being very naive!  You dont have to visually see fish floating!  Remember, many fish suffer injuries that arent noticeable to us, such as broken jaws from improper handleing.  It may take some time for these fish to slowly die due to their injuries.  On a large lake like TB, Falcon, Amistad, or even Choke; you will not notice fish dieing at differnent times!  But, it doesnt change the fact that they do!

Im not a tree hugger or activist, I just like Bass fishing and dont want to see it ruined.  Yall should be the same way, this is nothing to get worked up over and defensive about.  Lets just work together and try to make things better.  Whats wrong with that?

[Catt]

First off, I am a Man of almost 30 yrs old! I grew up on Padre Island saltwater fishing since I was a kid and later moved to bass fishing during my College years. I began College in 2001, and have been hardcore bass fishing since then. That is 9 yrs! So, dont judge who I am, or my experience! I have not finger pointed any of you personally nor have I made foolish judgements of who you are!

As for me wanting drastic shakeups, what are you talking about? All of the the things I ask for are simple and can be done without much money or stress on anyone. Im not asking for anyone to bend over backwards. Just do a few little things that will make are sport better. The only drastic changes that will occur are in the numbers of fish that we see caught.

Next, if you have not seen the declines in these major tourny lakes, than you abviously do not fish them on a regular weekly basis. I have been fishing Choke Canyon weekly for many years now, and any of the long time regulars will tell you the same thing, overall numbers are way down and fishing is tougher! Are there other factors involved? Yes, but that doesnt mean that we can help what we can!

Furthermore, if you do not think that there are signifigant fish kills because of tourny stress , than you are being very naive! You dont have to visually see fish floating! Remember, many fish suffer injuries that arent noticeable to us, such as broken jaws from improper handleing. It may take some time for these fish to slowly die due to their injuries. On a large lake like TB, Falcon, Amistad, or even Choke; you will not notice fish dieing at differnent times! But, it doesnt change the fact that they do!

Im not a tree hugger or activist, I just like Bass fishing and dont want to see it ruined. Yall should be the same way, this is nothing to get worked up over and defensive about. Lets just work together and try to make things better. Whats wrong with that?

I've tournament fished in Texas Longer than you've been alive!

Dude I live on Toledo Bend & have fished it for 38 yrs!

How you know their are dead if you don't see em

[fishfordollars]

First off, I am a Man of almost 30 yrs old! I grew up on Padre Island saltwater fishing since I was a kid and later moved to bass fishing during my College years. I began College in 2001, and have been hardcore bass fishing since then. That is 9 yrs! So, dont judge who I am, or my experience! I have not finger pointed any of you personally nor have I made foolish judgements of who you are!

As for me wanting drastic shakeups, what are you talking about? All of the the things I ask for are simple and can be done without much money or stress on anyone. Im not asking for anyone to bend over backwards. Just do a few little things that will make are sport better. The only drastic changes that will occur are in the numbers of fish that we see caught.

Next, if you have not seen the declines in these major tourny lakes, than you abviously do not fish them on a regular weekly basis. I have been fishing Choke Canyon weekly for many years now, and any of the long time regulars will tell you the same thing, overall numbers are way down and fishing is tougher! Are there other factors involved? Yes, but that doesnt mean that we can help what we can!

Furthermore, if you do not think that there are signifigant fish kills because of tourny stress , than you are being very naive! You dont have to visually see fish floating! Remember, many fish suffer injuries that arent noticeable to us, such as broken jaws from improper handleing. It may take some time for these fish to slowly die due to their injuries. On a large lake like TB, Falcon, Amistad, or even Choke; you will not notice fish dieing at differnent times! But, it doesnt change the fact that they do!

Im not a tree hugger or activist, I just like Bass fishing and dont want to see it ruined. Yall should be the same way, this is nothing to get worked up over and defensive about. Lets just work together and try to make things better. Whats wrong with that?

You were not around back in the 80s when the fishing sucked on Rayburn. All I can say is "Thank God" it's not the same. So much better now.

You sir, have no idea how the fishing was back then. It was really down on a lot of our lakes. It's natural though, due to many things, lakes go through up and down cycles.