Bassnajr Posted February 17, 2010 Posted February 17, 2010 Hey all... Bit of a rant here so.... I enjoy the BPS Spring Classic every year since they've opened. Last year some good deals and seminars by Timmy Horton and Brent Chapman. This year we get three guys named John Maniaci, Bill McElroy, and Don Messier. No offense to these fellows but...WHO THE HELL ARE THEY??!! Not one Elite series guy?? Guess we know how we rate up here in the Northeast. They should just close this store. They never have anything in stock, most of the employees no nothing about what they are selling, (there are a few GREAT guys and gals, don't get me wrong), and now this. No good...... Quote
j-bones Posted February 17, 2010 Posted February 17, 2010 I know the guys that give the presentations here in bolingbrook, IL (chicago) are local pro's. They are actually great sources of information on local waters with patterns and colors Quote
Bassnajr Posted February 17, 2010 Author Posted February 17, 2010 Let me clarify.... I am not taking a shot at the local pros. Gene Ellison is our local pro at BPS Foxboro. Great guy, great advice, and a great rep for BPS. I get the feeling that BPS Foxboro is leaning towards salt water fishing/fisherman and leaving the bass fisherman behind. (BASS pro shops...let's not forget!!) The Northeast store doesn't rank a national (Elite Series) pro and Gene is being sent to another store for the Spring Classic....just not right. :-/ Quote
Super User Fishing Rhino Posted February 17, 2010 Super User Posted February 17, 2010 If you're ever in Orlando, go to the BPS on International Drive, not far from Universal Studios. Maybe because it was laid out differently, but it seemed like it had less freshwater tackle and gear than the Foxborough store. Roland Martin was there on Friday night, holding court, telling fishing stories. He was surrounded by three or four people. My wife tried to get me to go over and speak to him, but I'm just not into the celebrity thing. There were fewer customers than I've ever seen at the Foxborough store. The Orlando store did have a larger golf department. What I found interesting was their fish tank held largemouth bass and tarpon, along with other species. Quote
powerman970 Posted February 17, 2010 Posted February 17, 2010 We have several pros right in my area. I live about 5 minutes from Aaron Martens and Kota Kiriyama. Randy Howell is about 15 minutes away and Gerald Swindle is fairly close as well. I think Swindle and Howell will both be at the local BPS which is also about 5 minutes from the house here but I'm still ticked because the sales are not what they have been in the past. Where are all those deals that I have been waiting on for the last 6 months?????? For a totally different reason, Bassnajar, but I have to agree that this SUCKS!!!! Quote
Revo_Carrot Stix Posted February 18, 2010 Posted February 18, 2010 IMHO, the Xmas sales were better (ie RC Lucky Crafts were $9.99, same rods are on sale again). They use to extend the Buy 2 Get 1 Free with lures and soft plastics...not anymore - just 20% off which is NOTHING special. One Shot Deals to get $30-50 reels = zzzzzzzzzzz. Quote
thrawn67 Posted February 18, 2010 Posted February 18, 2010 well thats poo..was planning on making my way up to foxboro during the sale..how do you know whats going on sale? havent seen anything and wanna find out if itll be worth going up to get some stuff. Quote
midnighthrasher Posted February 18, 2010 Posted February 18, 2010 Bps are fun to go to but apart from that............useless! I go there for fun not to buy. Ever since I've found *** I dont buy anything anywhere else. Bps are overpriced and their selection SUCKS. TW on the other hand ships to my front door, is cheaper, have a better selection and they order baits on request. Quote
CAdeltaLipRipper Posted February 18, 2010 Posted February 18, 2010 Dude i just posted a topic about this lol.I got one old guy doing a striper trolling seminar on the day im going and ive never heard of him.We dont troll for stripers either we fish the boils with spooks and spoons if we see one while we're bass fishing Quote
flyboy Posted February 22, 2010 Posted February 22, 2010 I was excited about the show at the Orlando BPS until I saw the lineup. That BPS is in the heart of Central Florida bass fishing and there was only one bass pro on the agenda, Roland Martin. Ralph Delph is there from Key West. If any of you are interested in light tackle salt water fishing, Ralph is the guy; it usually takes about a year to get a day with him, so they did get the very best in that area, I just expected a lineup of bass pros at that store. Quote
IwillChooseFreeWill Posted February 22, 2010 Posted February 22, 2010 There are currently 60+ BPS stores out there, there are 51 qualifiers for the Classic plus at least that many more that are considered pros, then add in a number of local guides and pros and you have at least 150-200 people to choose from. Take out the ones that are not really a "people person" and you got maybe 50 left over which is why some stores got shorted and do not have anyone visiting their store (like several in Colorado) Quote
Super User .ghoti. Posted February 24, 2010 Super User Posted February 24, 2010 The closest BPS to me, St Charles, Missouri will have Rick Clunn. He's talking about walleye. Go figure. Quote
MarauderYak Posted February 24, 2010 Posted February 24, 2010 The closest BPS to me, St Charles, Missouri will have Rick Clunn. He's talking about walleye. Go figure. Where did you hear that? It's hard to believe he'd be focusing on walleye. Quote
Super User MALTESE FALCON Posted February 24, 2010 Super User Posted February 24, 2010 It's odd that Maniaci would be talking at your store. He's a well known guide and tourney fisherman here in S.E. Michigan. His nickname is Mini. Also a moderator on a Lake St. Clair forum. Falcon Quote
Pez Posted February 24, 2010 Posted February 24, 2010 Kevin Van Dam is going to be the at BPS this saturday in Harrisburgh, PA. Can't wait! Quote
Super User .ghoti. Posted February 24, 2010 Super User Posted February 24, 2010 The closest BPS to me, St Charles, Missouri will have Rick Clunn. He's talking about walleye. Go figure. Where did you hear that? It's hard to believe he'd be focusing on walleye. Got it right from the horse's mouth. BPS themselves. Quote
IwillChooseFreeWill Posted February 24, 2010 Posted February 24, 2010 we got Boyd Duckett here in Destin, FL talking about "preparation for tournaments" : Ok this is primarily a saltwater store and preparation for a freshwater tourney has very little to do with driving miles offshore to the same point where the same fish are every year at that same time. Even offshore fishing captains I have talked to say that locating offshore fish is so much easier than any other type of fishing. Quote
rondef Posted February 24, 2010 Posted February 24, 2010 I agree they don't have the greatest of deals this year but I still enjoy shopping at BPS in Hanover County, VA. The store is very accomodating, they ordered items for me to pick up this weekend that they usually only sell in the catalog. Furthermore they just contacted me to tell me that all of my items are in, I have to say that is good customer service for sure. We also have a couple of good local pros/guides that are doing seminars that should be very informative. However Woo Daves and Chris Daves are doing seminars that were a waste of time last year and I will not go to those again. Quote
JKarbo214 Posted February 24, 2010 Posted February 24, 2010 Here I was really looking forward to making the drive for the Fishing Classic at the BPS in Foxboro. I'll probably still go, but I'm not nearly as excited as I was before seeing all this. I also took a look at the circular on the BPS website for the sale and it doesn't look very good at all. Has it been better in the past? Quote
tritz18 Posted February 25, 2010 Posted February 25, 2010 I agree 100% with you. I have gone to the store multiple times and literally no one in the fishing department can tell me anything besides the basics (there is the occasional person who knows a little more than the average person walking into bps). As for the spring classic I am not even making the effort to go down there if they are just going to disregard the Foxboro store. Personally I think I will stick with ***. Quote
MarauderYak Posted February 25, 2010 Posted February 25, 2010 The closest BPS to me, St Charles, Missouri will have Rick Clunn. He's talking about walleye. Go figure. Where did you hear that? It's hard to believe he'd be focusing on walleye. Got it right from the horse's mouth. BPS themselves. Got a hold of Rick & he said he was planning on talking about the effectiveness of square bill crankbaits. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.