FLW Saltwater Striper Trail

[basswipe]

http://www.flwoutdoors.com/article.cfm?id=143876

Good?Bad?What does everyone think about this?

[striprman]

Cool, a Wal- Mart striper tournament. Sign up.

[Pete_G]

Well, it's sponsored by Wal-mart, so that kind of sucks.

I'm guessing it will be a boat only game. The priority registration for certain boat owners is a little weird. It's certainly not rigging a tournament, but it's almost like stacking the deck. What if the best angler around drives a Sea Craft? Will there be a big push for catch and release as in most of their other tournaments? It'll be interesting, I'm sure of that. Put $500,000 on the line and it can't help but be interesting.

[tattoobob]

I believe it is a hybrid/ land locked contest, not like the Red fish tourny.
I don't like Walmart at all

[StripinLine]

Ya, Thats what I saw....Not off/In shore stripers (saltwater), But inpoundment(freshwater) stripedbass

[shadow]

I think if you read the link it says norteast anglers that to me means saltwater.The flw does bring big money,but it will also bring added presure to the fishery.A c&r contest might be a good thing.

[Skitterpop]

More dead bass even with C&R more pressure to spots
more spot closure possibilities more trash
more damage to environment

more more more more

[tattoobob]

I just read the link and it seems as it is the Alantic coast, I wish we could some how stop this, (270) 252-1000 maybe we can call and voice our opinions.

[slapshot]

Why would you want to stop it? I think this is going to be a professional tour, not a bunch of worm boxes on the beach. I'll bet the entry fee will be way too expensive for your average joe.

As far as too much pressure, the striper population is well documented as being very abundant. (Please don't read into that, that I want to increase mortality, etc).

I don't see how a pro tour would be a bad thing. There already is one in the ASA. A lot of bass and blues are killed in the month long MV tournament, and not many say that should end.....

[Basser]

I agree with Slapshot. It will be very well run and may be the only way to have the corporate help we all need to enhance the Striper population along the East coast.

[outnumbered]

Corporate = Greed and profit. When was the last time you saw a corporation that cared about anything other than the bottom line. Once upon a time there were numerous well documented amounts of Striped Bass and we (fisherman) decimated the fishery. Didn't we learn. Now that it (striper population) is back do we really want a bunch of greedy corporate types profiting at he expense of the striper population.

C&R or not there will be a kill rate and I second what Indanite and Tattoobob say.

Wallmart s**ks, Support the local small tackle shop owners.

[redneck24]

Originally Posted by outnumbered

Corporate = Greed and profit. When was the last time you saw a corporation that cared about anything other than the bottom line. Once upon a time there were numerous well documented amounts of Striped Bass and we (fisherman) decimated the fishery. Didn't we learn. Now that it (striper population) is back do we really want a bunch of greedy corporate types profiting at he expense of the striper population.

C&R or not there will be a kill rate and I second what Indanite and Tattoobob say.

Wallmart s**ks, Support the local small tackle shop owners.

well said.

[Basser]

Do you think that Walmart and the boating industry would make more or less profit in the tackle business if the tournaments were designed to decimate the Striped Bass population? It has to be good for the recreational fishery. The people that fish the tournaments would be out fishing on the same days in the same boats under less regulation without the tournaments.

[Skitterpop]

Are you with Walmart?

[Skip N]

Heck i like Walmart. I dont buy much tackle there but walmart is a great store for many things. Why all the walmart haters?? A fishing tournament sponsered by Walmart will be nothing less than top notch. After all the Walmart name is on the line if it's run half ass. Why would they risk thier reputation by running a crappy tournament and killing tons of fish?

[Skip N]

[QUOTEC&R or not there will be a kill rate and I second what Indanite and Tattoobob say.QUOTE]

Should we also ban all the local tourneys in NE as well? Whats the difference between the walmart one and say the MV derby? A kill rate is just the same with all tournys. Fish will be killed in any tourny you have. Not just ones sponsored by Walmart

[Pete_G]

Originally Posted by Skip N

Heck i like Walmart. I dont buy much tackle there but walmart is a great store for many things. Why all the walmart haters?? A fishing tournament sponsered by Walmart will be nothing less than top notch. After all the Walmart name is on the line if it's run half ass. Why would they risk thier reputation by running a crappy tournament and killing tons of fish?

In a few words, outsourcing and reverse price setting. But it's a lot more complex then that, and there's a lot of misinformation on both sides of the Walmart arguement online.

It's a proven fact that Walmart pressures US companies to shift production overseas. They won't flatly deny it if pressed. Not illegal afaik, but definitely not good for the US.

These articles seemed fairly unbiased:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontl...ets/shots.html

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/...partner=rediff

Walmart is a VERY smart company and I'm all for capitalism, but they're shady and I don't really feel they are helping the US win in the modern global economy. They often offer convenience and good, low priced products, but with a hidden cost. The loss of American jobs while powering rising Asian economies. They take our money and jobs and send them overseas in the name of the low prices we enjoy. It's a personal call if you wish to support a company that operates this way.

This is just the negatives on the national and global scale. Then you have the more well known local issues Walmart creates such as killing small business. Personally I feel the small businesses operating near Walmart need to innovate and evolve more, but at the same time the above articles show why it's so hard to do so.

[Slinger]

Just because we only recently registered on this site is no reason to belittle our inteligence or opinions. Basser has valid points, if you want to help the bass and make it a gamefish there would be no better way than to have a mega corporate sponsor on our side. There are still far to many questions to be answered to form an objective opinion as of yet. Will they be catch and release? Will they limit the areas open to fish? What kind of officialing will be in place? And many more. While I`m not a fan of tournaments I don`t see this as having a disasterous effect on the fishing.
Slinger

[Raven]

the dude (guy or gal) who coined the term "look for the hook"
(designed logo) should be flogged with wreckless abandon....

next the fish populations of largemouth bass ,walleye,redfish,and kingfish
need to be studied to see how these tournaments have affected
their over all health
....to see how hybrid striped bass would prosper in comparison to that information.

when they say: "in response to over whelming demand..."

what they're really saying is :
because of enormous profit potential!

and thats from Maine to Virginia ...not the reverse. morons

I think the striped bass hybrid is the most under utilized food fish
North America has ever seen and it should be introduced into more fresh water
lakes nationwide because of how prolific it is... IMO

and agreeing with Pete...it's all about boats...advertising boats-->
commercials for boats...seeing their boats catching fish in the north east
instead of only down south is their goal....

as stated :hydra sports ,well craft, and sea swirl boat owners will have priority entry...
thats a major unfair manuever right off the bat... and geared specifically towards generating new sales..

those sponsers will be donating one or more of their boats for the winner to further
their own advertising campaigns and then write them off later on.

it's also about walmart preparing to to battle with bass pro and cabelas move's on the chessboard.

[slapshot]

I would never shop for fishing equipment at Wal Mart. They just don't carry what I need. But as far as corporate greed? Come on. Any corporations responsibility is to generate revenue for its shareholders.

Wal Mart donates tons of its (greedy) profits to charities. I have had cub scout projects and activites entirely funded and items donated by my local Wal Mart. They are incredibly generous.

Maybe I have the wrong impression, but won't this tour be very similair to the one that is on ESPN2 for red fish? If you look at the guys in those tournaments, they are pros. There is a ton of money in sponsorship tied up in the events. I have a feeling that nobody on this board would even fish the event.

As far as a kill rate.. Even if it was a weekend long event, do you think the number of striped bass killed would be more or less than the bycatch from one commercial dragger?

[Pete_G]

I actually think it could be very good for stripers. Maybe. I used to fish real hard for largmouths as a kid so I was very into the whole tournament scene.

To say that freshwater bass are treated with respect and honor is an understatement. Dead fish even had penalties at weigh in if I remember correctly. Catch and release is a BIG part of most of the other FLW tournament trails. Most of the other "gamefish" are treated very differently then stripers. Partly because they don't taste as good...

The big challenge is having a livewell big enough to hold a 50# striper comfortably, lol. I think that will be the main stumbling block involved in a catch and release striper tourney. I suspect it will be a traditional striper tourney, i.e. dead fish because maintaining live fish is just too hard to do.

[Basser]

The publicity surrounding these events (no doubt that there will be TV coverage at some point) will serve to help not only WalMart sales but those of local shops as well. I personally know a few individuals that owned shops during the BASS tournament boom that would have earned a lesser living in other endevours at the time. They did it by participating in the events and seizing the opportunity and offering more expertise for the tournament angler than that available at WalMart. That expertise then flows down to the weekend angler in terms of better tackle choices. I would love to see local teams sponsored by SWE and other local business. A "tournament tactics and techniques" seminar at next years SWE show!

The semi-controlled entry to owners of certain boats was started years ago on FLW and it irks me abit. The early FLW model was to allow a separate bonus prize to owners of cerain model boats that was not taken from the general pool. These events are difficult to initiate because there is a desire for limited entries in order to exercise control on tournament size. I think they will establish smaller trails over time that will serve as qualifying minor leagues so to speak.

BTW I don't think I have ever purchased tackle at WalMart. But, if these things are going to happen, and they will, the FLW organization is very qualified to do it right.

[beamie]

I wonder how they will run it.

You see those redfish tourneys on TV and there is a slot size limit. Often they catch too big and have to throw back. Can you see a Striper tourney that targets 30 to 36" fish and goes by the weigth of 2 fish.

[jim sylvester]

my two cents on walmart

10 years ago i was the national account manager selling to walmart.. to say the least a HUGE account. (2.6 million in one product) This is how WalMArt buyers work (probably VERY different from your buying strategies as the shop Pete.)

I would go in to see the buyer, present a contact with pricing, bogos,advertisment $$ ect,ect. The buyer wold then dictate to me the price in which he would want to buy the product for.. LESS THAN WHAT IT COST TO MANUFACTURE. Oversees production went to his price.
CORP. America = Greed
Pushing production oversees to get a inferior product for pricing.

As you can see, Walamrt is a bitter pill to swallow for me..
Regardless if they run the best striper tourney.. I would be against it.

[Joe]

I would not worry too much about a pro-striper tour getting a foothold in the norheast.
There are lots of problems - weather, sponsorship and a short season being the three of the largest.
They'll try, and maybe they will even launch a couple, but its not going to fly in this culture. That's a red state sport.

[squiddler]

These anglers, due to entry fees, equipment necessary, etc., WILL be professionals, the elite of their sports. As far as bycatch goes, the recreational sector kills TONS more fish than the commercial sector, and it is well documented. These anglers will be seeking LARGE to get paid, and therefore targeting them specifically, releasing any small fish quickly and adeptly, with cameras/ spectator boats watching their every move. BASS and FLW tourneys pump major amounts of money in to the local venue economy, bringing tourist dollars, exposure, etc. that would otherwise not be there. The local shops will benefit greatly, as WALLY world is not setup to sell the vast array of live baits and tackle required by these anglers on the tourney trail. Regardless of your thoughts on "big business", this type of event affects so many other facets of local economy that to simply state WAlMART is greedy and therefore this tournamnet is too is just plain ignorant. The business end aside, the main issue here is benefit/detriment to the Striper population. I cannot fathom how this would harm the biomass, as these anglers will undoubtedly be interested in not only promoting their sport to the masses, but ensuring the "big money" payouts are there for years to come. They have a vested interest in kkeping the fishery healthy, obviuosly.

[Pete_G]

Originally Posted by jim sylvester

my two cents on walmart

10 years ago i was the national account manager selling to walmart.. to say the least a HUGE account. (2.6 million in one product) This is how WalMArt buyers work (probably VERY different from your buying strategies as the shop Pete.)

I would go in to see the buyer, present a contact with pricing, bogos,advertisment $$ ect,ect. The buyer wold then dictate to me the price in which he would want to buy the product for.. LESS THAN WHAT IT COST TO MANUFACTURE. Oversees production went to his price.
CORP. America = Greed
Pushing production oversees to get a inferior product for pricing.

As you can see, Walamrt is a bitter pill to swallow for me..
Regardless if they run the best striper tourney.. I would be against it.

Yep, reverse price setting. Genius and a great way to make money, but cruel to US companies.

[Swimmer]

Wow PeteG, wow. Might change the face of thing just a tad.

[big jay]

If you are going to fish this thing - just remember how to answer questions at the weigh in -- no "it was a good day -let's see what she weighs" allowed.

All answers Nascar style - "Looks like we've got a good fish to weigh here, and the only reason this is at all possible is b/c I could only get to the fish with my mercury optimax powered hydrasport fueled with Texaco supreme and castrol motoroil. And even though I got the fish on a live eel - that was only possible b/c of the high quality yozuri plugs I normally fish, which I just know contributed to my overall success. That fish also couldn't possibly be landed without my sponsors high quality Gamakatsu hooks, seagur leader, and the mother of all high-tec fishing lines, Cajun red. Reel? - I'm sorry, had some miscommuncation with the home office this week, and just can't remember which one I was using. Lastly, thanks to helley hanson for giving me a raincoat, and the good folks at fruit of the loom for keeping the boys warm and cozy so I can concentrate on fishing."

[Skip N]

Originally Posted by big jay

If you are going to fish this thing - just remember how to answer questions at the weigh in -- no "it was a good day -let's see what she weighs" allowed.

All answers Nascar style - "Looks like we've got a good fish to weigh here, and the only reason this is at all possible is b/c I could only get to the fish with my mercury optimax powered hydrasport fueled with Texaco supreme and castrol motoroil. And even though I got the fish on a live eel - that was only possible b/c of the high quality yozuri plugs I normally fish, which I just know contributed to my overall success. That fish also couldn't possibly be landed without my sponsors high quality Gamakatsu hooks, seagur leader, and the mother of all high-tec fishing lines, Cajun red. Reel? - I'm sorry, had some miscommuncation with the home office this week, and just can't remember which one I was using. Lastly, thanks to helley hanson for giving me a raincoat, and the good folks at fruit of the loom for keeping the boys warm and cozy so I can concentrate on fishing."

That sounds like most of the guys on this site when they talk about thier high end gear and custom plugs! So whats the differance i ask you?