[Fish On]

Looks like this trip is going to happen! Awesome! Thanks Niko!

I hope I’m not overstepping my bounds but I wanted to make a proposal. I’ve fished both of these boats and the Challenger is just so much more fishable, especially when you are catching big cod. The back of the Sundance is fine, but landing a big fish at the bow is not as easy. It’s true that they don’t like to charter the Challenger on the weekends because they like to save the better boat for the regulars but they will do it. I made a call to Joe at the Clipper Fleet and talked about what he would be willing to do. Here’s what he said:
1) He will reserve the Challenger for us!
2) Cost: The Challenger is a bigger boat and is twice as expensive to run but fits more people. They used to put 50 to 55 on the boat but today they like to limit it to a very comfortable 40. The normal weekend rate is $68 pp at 40 head plus $4 for a rod. He will charter the boat to our group on May 15th for $2600 plus rod rentals, 7 AM to 4 PM. We can make is a marathon, 5 AM to 5 PM for only $200 more.
3) Those that sign up can call the Clipper Fleet and pay directly. He will handle this for us. This way no one has to collect the money and deal with all the hassle that goes with that responsibility. They take credit cards as well. All we need to do is name our group and direct individuals to call Clipper Fleet and pay by 3/31. (He typically asks for $1000 down and the balance on the day of the trip so as long as we get 15 guys to sign up by 3/31 we should have additional time to fill the boat. (I suggest we pay this way whether we do the Challenger or the Sundance to make it easier on Niko and avoid Pay Pal fees)
4) If we don’t get the full 40 which it looks like won’t be a problem then he can open up the additional slots to his regulars or we can cover the cost of the additional slots between us. There is a twist to this is if he has to open it up to the public in that he may have to go to a regular 9 hour trip. So if we want to do the marathon we can pay the additional $200 at the dock. We just have to decide now so that people know what they are signing up for. If we don’t get the magic number or agree to cover the open slots by say 4/15 then he opens it up and it goes to the regular 7 to 4 trip. As long as we have a critical mass and agree to cover the extra if we don’t hit 40 then we can leave the trip open to our group right up until 5/15 to fill any open slots.
5) Zacs or Niko can own the sign up list and give the names to the Clipper Fleet so that only our group is signing up. When we’ve reached the agreed upon number of paid spots we can shut it down.
6) At 35 guys this is $74.28 pp, at 40 it’s $65 and at 45 it’s $57.77. I realize it’s a few extra dollars but this boat is much more fishable and even a bit faster. It also has a flatter bottom and doesn’t roll as much when drifting. We’ll be more comfortable and be able to include more of us for more fun and a bigger pool!
7) We are responsible for the $2600 or $2800 only. How we fill the boat is up to us.
8) Next steps:
a. Tell me to shut up and stick with the current plan on the Sundance. I won’t be offended and I am definitely in!
b. Decide we want to do the Challenger.
c. Agree on the target size (say 40 at $65), name the group and start PM’ing our full names to whoever will own the list.
d. Call Joe at the Clipper Fleet and give him our group name and the individual list.
e. Direct folks to call the Clipper Fleet and pay for their slot.
f. Start the trash talking on who is going to land the biggest cod!

By the way, I did not mention striped-bass.com, Niko or anyone here so if we don’t want to pursue the Challenger nothing has changed about the Sundance deal.

Tight lines!