OTW "Striper Cup Tourney" Format is Irresponsible to the Fishery

[Skitterpop]

Originally Posted by stiff tip

its a dig ...it was late last night ,and i was tired, nothing personal..but it sounds like a lot of crying ,over a good intent, as for otw,s mag ,the intent of the derby was to have a good time bass fishing derby not a petty pi$$ing contest ...the opinions good or bad will make to the office for considration trust me ,,DAVE

I`m with you here Dave. I was kidding ya back.
I`ve been reading your stuff for years. Been getting OTW ever since 1997 when I moved close to the ocean and starting surf fishing/salt fishing. I appreciate OTW and all your articles and experiences & knowledge you have shared. Missed your articles in the last few years and got used to seeing Steve mention you in his as one of his fishing buds.

Hope this all works out for you and OTW and the Stripers.

Mike

[inTHERAPY]

I have to agree with bigfish. I will sign up for the tourney and my fishing "kill" will not be different from last year. I am looking for big fish, I couldn't care less about a 30# or 40# pin. On the other hand, a 50# or 60# is another story. I think a lot of weekly weighers may be commercial fishers who are taking bass anyway. Anyway, I mentioned my concerns about the yearly #age totals to OTW at the nesaltwater show ( I hope you all did the same ) and look forward to the party.

[l.i.fish.in.vt]

i can see the concern for the possible ill effects of the tournament on the stiped bass population, but i don't see the contest changing the way people keep fish or release them .the serious fisherman isn't going to keep fish just to weught them in unless it is a large fish. that they would probably keep anyways. the average joe who might weigh in a 34 inch probably won't catch 2 a week anyways and if he did he would keep them anyways.

[Joe]

What was that tourney they used to have for Bluefish - was it the Bluefish Boogie? It was pretty big for a while....

Flashback, circa 1992: Joe was at Quaker Lane B&T contemplating paying the $25 to enter - but decided against it as $25 bucks was kind of pricey and he was spending a lot on gas fishing six nights week. Still though, he was getting some big blues and the first prize was a Jeep that he would have looked good in. But ahh...what's the odds of winning?

Long story, short: The very next night, Joe goes out and twangs a 17-pound blue on a needlefish from along Jamestown's eastern shore - besting the Jeep winner by two-pounds.....

What does all this have to do with conservation and the ethics of fishing tourneys?
I have no blinking idea.
I do however know that not winning the new car hurts a lot more when you could have.

[spence]

Originally Posted by l.i.fish.in.vt

but i don't see the contest changing the way people keep fish or release them.

My understanding of how the contest works is that bragging rights are awarded to the club with the most points at the end of the season. If you were serious about winning, you would enter your two fish weekly to score the points for your club regardless if they were going to take the monthly top fish prize or not. I can't believe this wouldn't decrease the CnR among those members...

It just seems more than a little gratuitous...low size limit, frequent entries, big prizes for incentive (SUV, Grady White) and a season long duration.

I think with a few tweaks they could balance it a lot more and still put on a great tourney.

-spence