Competitive fishing
 

Tournaments, quota shares, googans, sharpies, "confirmed" fish......, we certainly do our best to ruin a wonderful sport. It is you against the fish guys, on whatever grounds you choose. If you need to make it about you vs everyone else then you may want to pause and consider why first.

We'll said Numbskull.

Some actualy fish for food .. imagine that ? I had a conversation with one of these weirdo's and the thought of fishing for sport was totally baffling to them . Catching fish and letting them go ??? Why not just leave them alone ? I've asked myself why, but I don't like the voices in my head .. I prefer Bliss..

Funny you mention that I get looks from people like I'm from another planet when I let one go.

Some people need the attention, the spotlight. If someone wants tp participate in one or many competitions so be it. There will always be a pecking order established in anything, running, baseball soccer etc. Fishing is no different. There will be those who think thier SH!T doesn't stink and others who think they are right by thier anonymously posting, word of mouth of just plain braggadocio.

Bait vs. plugs, fly vs. spin, conventional vs spin, plugmaker x vs plugmaker y. You can express your opinion but human nature is human nature. That is why communisn could never work, one guy always wants to be better than the rest.

Better to sit back observe and quietly comment to yourself. You cannot please everybody. The OTW Striper Cup is part tournament and part publicity campaign. Not everyone can afford a nice boat or a nice truck or has had any kind of stature in a given endeavor, this gives them that opportunity. It's not for everyone's tastes.

I find it better to keep this sport more personal and try to attain what I seek from it on a personal level. I wasn't always of that ilk but with age comes wisdom and the understanding that it means so much more when you get to an age where you realize that you may only have so many decades to go before it's over.

Time will take it's toll on all of us. Enjoy it for whatever you like but in the end it will never change things.

You have a way of putting into words exactly as my mind was thinking.Well said sir!!

i'll second that assesment ....
 

wiser words have not be spoken here in many moons

i agree with ya flaptail about the tolling of time...

as time has already taken it's toll on me...

i have surgeries all planned for next winter ... now

to undo the damage of time...

then i'll have my second lease :btu:

on life...

til then, it's just slow and steady...... with every step " planned "

very carefully.

Never did much for me....I have done a few freshwater ones in the past. I found that my enjoyment level plummeted due to the pressure to catch. To top it off I witnessed cheating on a pretty large scale and said "never again".....

as long as theres fishing there's going to be tournaments

There are good sides to tournaments, camaraderie and focus come to mind immediately. Unfortunately competition among strangers rarely stays friendly unless mutual respect is a priority. Unfortunately, too many fishermen confuse respect and admiration, withholding the former because someone has not "earned" the latter.

well thats a valid obervation - dont see anything that can be done about it, but it is an interesting point

i participate in the striper cup because it's fun, i can enjoy it with the guys i know here, and i can bs about it with my few fishing buddies. i and i think most others would still be out there without it.

hey goose relax he was just bringing up his point of view i dont agree with it either but im not telling anyone to kiss anything

Bingo. Dat's the Ding My friend Sonny from Nigeria used to say.

On whatever (legal) grounds you choose. Be responsible, respectful, and ENJOY it.

Competition can be fun in the right framework. Competition against the fish, competition against your fellow anglers, competition against the elements. I enjoy some competition (really enjoyed competition darts). Competition in the right framework can add to the experience but competition or no competition you gotta enjoy what you are doing. Get exhilarated, get humbled, get your juices flowing, getting schooled by the fish, or schooling the fish. Regardless of the style or circumstances you are fishing, Get to Enjoy It! On whatever ground you choose.

Well said JohnR.

And numbie, tourneys definitely have their value.
if one can keep them in perspective. it's just a tournament. this year could be my year, next year it's luds, last year it was tony o, etc.......for me, tournaments are fun and add the extra oompf of schwag for something i already love to do. win or lose, i'm still gonna hunt for Lahhhhhge. also, the comraderie with me fellow anglers is a bonus and always good for some laughs and cheers after the tournament deadline passes.

Then there are the tournaments that contribute to the community. WKPG's MS tourney in SOCO for one! had i NOT participated last year, then i would not have met some fine anglers from MSBA and CT, all striving for the common goal of High Hook for that time period along that portion of the Striper Coast. GOOD CLEAN FUN, for an excellent cause. that's a WIN/WIN in my books. :claps: :claps:

Competition is part of my nature, sometimes to a fault, because i LOVE it! i will be the first to shake your hand should you best me, and do my best to remain humble in Victory and gracious in defeat ~regarding all Competition. You can have the glory, whether perceived or real, i am in it to WIN it ~~EVERYTIME. and that is something that is internally etched upon my DNA and has much less to do with "nanna-nanna-boo-boo" or "look at me, ain't i grand"!!

As far as me besting my best and besting our beloved prey, that does not ~to me~ seem to be fair competition. ARE not WE the dominant species??! :bl: :bl: :bl:

:soon:..-..:uhuh:,,,,,,I don't have to imagine ~ If I fished 10X last year, 9 out of 10X, fish came home with me. :devil2:...:uhuh:,,,I fished more than 10X last year,,, :devil2::devil2: - I got my herring basket ready, learned to count to 5 again, and have sharpened my fillet knife for those dark nights that are just around the corner :devil2:

Bring on the BASS!!! . .. .". .. '" . '... . .. ...; '.. .'''. ... ...

What did I miss?:eyes:

Who catches the biggest fish in a tournament is something you find out at the end.

During the tournaments I like the tournaments cause they usually involve an oppurtunity for a big gathering of fisherman , many of whom i know. Its always nice to see your friends and really convenient to see them all together as a result of some tournament activity.

I also prefer tournaments with things for prizes instead of money. If you win $100 bucks , its gone on gas and food in a few days. If you win a reel , for many years you will talk about that reel being won in a derby.

Anyway , I'm not denying that tourneys sometimes have a down side but overall , I like the oppurtunity they present for gathering with frineds.

To those that tournament fish ... Can't you say you've met some cool people at the gathering during and after. From the prep to the party its all fun. I met the crew I fish with now at a tournament 5 years ago and we've all become good friends. The Cup has brought together a small group of us, 10 total, ages 10 - 75. If you have never tried to fish one, try it, you'll like it. Art

My buddy introduced me to striper fishing about 10 years ago and I was hooked ,I lost touch with him for a few years until I moved to Cape Cod, He took me to some of his spots , with the promise not to tell the whole world , When I met some of his buddys there they didnt treat me with loving arms for sure I barely was spoke to like I did something wrong, Fisherman are a funny bunch ,more secretive and cold to the outsiders,untill somehow you find you way into there inner circle . if you ever do...I fish for the fun and the companionship more than the competion. there are a few gentleman out there who will gladly give a solid word of advice . thats what I like ..to learn from the old timers.thats why I like this forum and this website

B/C

you caught fish 90% of the time >>>>>> A swansea >.highliner >>:jump1:

I have a blast at both the MV derby and the striper cup. Competition of any kind gets my blood flowing. Alas,

"The healthiest competition occurs when average people win by putting above average effort." -Colin Powell

Again, competition with mutal respect is fun and healthy. Competition that entails putting others down or diminishing others for one's own edification is ugly and pathetic. The "I caught a big fish and you didn't so you don't count, or you're a googan, or you're beneath me, or I'm better and you're just lucky" attitude which seems so common, accepted, and relished by many experienced fisherman. The culture of striped bass fishing seems to encourage and perpetuate it. Someone's fishing prowness may well be grounds for admiration or lack thereof, but it seems to me that fishing prowness is a comically small measure of your quality as a person when compared to how you treat others. Listening to commercial guys ridicule recreational fisherman, recreational ridicule commercial, bait vs plugs, fly vs plugs, boat vs shore, experienced guys ridicule the novices,........seems to indicate a lot of us try to use success in fishing to compensate for inadequacy as people.

Of course fishing with eels is still cheating.

I think you summed it up perfectly. I fish to have fun and to spend time with family and friends. I admire guys who put in a lot of effort and do well, but I may not always want to spend that much time on the water working at it myself.

The only tournament I do every year is the town of Mansfield freshwater tournament at (a secret location). I take my neice and nephew and this year will take my son. That is what fishing tournaments are all about. Watching the smiles on the the kids faces as they reel in a little sunfish or largemouth is something that's better than anything I catch.

I may join the Striper Cup this year for the commraderie and the outside shot at winning something, but mostly because I'm going to be fishing anyways. I might as well weigh in a large fish if I'm going to keep it for the table anyways.

[QUOTE=fishbones;583570]I

The only tournament I do every year is the town of Mansfield freshwater tournament at the pond by the police station. QUOTE]

WHAT ??????? Thanks Dude, thanks for blowing my best freakin spot! Thats all we need in Mansfield is more goofs from this site parading all around, bad enough we now have LL Bean!
God, is ANYTHING sacred on this god forsaken site!

Sorry Jimmy. I edited my post so no one will know where it is. By the way, I have a spot on one of the ponds that produces guaranteed tourney winner fish and has little fishing pressure. Are you the guy with the white 5 gallon bucket or the one with the orange Home Depot bucket that fishes off the concrete platform there?

I love it George. I use eels to compensate for my inadequacies as a fisherman. What else can I do?
:laugha:

fish feel pain :hee:

Nah, you got it all wrong again. You use eels because you are morally corrupt.........probably from over exposure to ponography as an adolescent. Fortunately age and marriage will eventually atrophy your testicles to the point where you no longer need to catch fish when you go fishing and you can find true happiness in hoarding expensive plugs and high end fishing reels.

Define "Over" Exposed