Why are fisherman so competitive?

[MAKAI]

Originally Posted by BassDawg

saltheart,

for me, it's like THIS! i LOVE to compete, at ANYTHING!!!
just part of me DNA i guess,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,both parents were successful
atheletes (Mom AAU swimmer, Dad semi-pro linebacker) and my whole family is like that.
it doan matter if it's SCRABBLE, the alphabet game on a car trip across country, or
pick-a-number-between-1&10! if there's a prize or a title to be had, I'M IN!!

that being said, i've toned it DOWN quite a bit from my youth and am endeavoring to be
more humble in victory and most gracious in defeat.

with regard to our vaunted prey, while i realize that there are numbers of stripermen out there that HAVE landed multiple large and must laugh at us Hungries; how many of you remember what YOU were like BEFORE you crested that mountain?

i do believe that a certain degree of competitiveness is required of one to become a bona fide Sharpie and to "walk away" from rats, 15#-25#'ers, in order to hunt trophies. and i totally agree with you that ONE big fish does not a sharpie make. while many have said that they fish to relax,,,,,,,,,,,,,,i find it the MOST relaxing to fish AND compete. since i LOVE the added ADRENALIN!!!!

i am most focused on competing with others when that competition is framed by the confines of a tournament. my biggest competitor is ME vs Sir Stripey. for each time i enter a competition, while it is TRUE that we are competing against other entrants/teams; at the end of the day(s) of said tourney i measure yours truly against me, myself, and aye-aye! just sum thoughts, gents

you will change in time

[jimmy z]

Years ago, I was more competative, than I am today. I get a good felling, with a strong pull, and a decent bass today. And I'm happy for the ones who do well.
I get great joy, in just getting out there at times.

[afterhours]

i guess i compete with the fish, sometimes i win, more times i lose... most of the guys i fish with are low keyed non- competitive types - but bust gonads very well. i feel that being out there where we fish puts me closest to my maker.

[Raven]

Competition with the sea is enough for me

my Moments of ZEN...

[MarshCappa]

I think it all boils down to the individuals personal makeup. Some people have to win at everything they do now matter how big or small the stakes are. I've competed most of my youthful life in all types of sports and reached a semi-professional level in football so the need to win and perform at a high level runs deep with me. I have to constantly calm myslef down when I'm fishing and remind myself to enjoy the moment, take in the scenery and be thankful for another day of fishing. By your classifications I'm an intermediate at best with a lot to learn from the experts but I also like to help out those starting off in this sport as well. I have no problem not being the best fisherman in regards to where my place would be amongst the folks here. I just wrestle with myself when i do something stupid or I don't pick something up fast enough becasue of my lack of patience. I just need to relax and

[RickBomba]

Personally,
I only care about myself...good thing, too, because except for once, I always catch small fish.

[BassDawg]

i hear ya MAKAI,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
and no doubt as my physical abilities fade,
i will be less able to "Fish Hard" as the saying goes.

something i left out of the earlier post is this;

there is a comraderie along The Striper Coast that DOES
entail the, "oh yeaaaaaah, show me the picture!" mentality
and it is MORE THAN rampant among these fine posts and pages.
don't get me wrong, saltheart, i'm not saying it's a bad thing~~~

i'm just saying that it IS an element of what we do out there!
we catch fish, we take her pic, we keep/release her and then
others want to know about it,,,,,,,,,,,,,so we share it with them and
it often inspires the rest of us to get our butts off of the coach and to push AWAY from the keyboard.

for me it's not necessarily bragging or false bravado, simply sharing in the victory of the spoils and the recounting of "last night's fight". i revel in each others' fishporn, and money shots, and get a reel charge outta who's tonging when and how lahhhhge. this forum also allows us a place to share these joys/accomplishments with our surfbrethren and does often inspire myself and others to attempt to achieve such lofty striperin' heights.

momma always said, "shoot for the stars, son. you may just land on the moon!"