Hey all...

I did not express myself correctly in an earlier post so let me clarify:

I, like Lane and Flechero am upset about the high mortality rates after tournaments. I was concerned photos would "fall into the wrong hands" but that is not the case here. Sorry if I offended anyone with my "grey" humor....comment removed.

Good luck Lane, if you need help from an old fishing guy, I'm around!!

ajr

"IMO, Bad move Lane. That's what Paris Hilton said to her boyfriend

before the sex tape got out!!!!"

What do you consider a bad move? Keeping this topic alive and on the

forefront of every angler's mind? Sending some photos to a BR forum

member who not only lives here in Texas, but agreed NOT TO POST

the photos on the internet? Putting pressure on ESPN/BASS or any other touranment organization to address mortality issues, and to

consider or provide solutions???

I read the article in the San Antonio Express News. In fact we read it

on the day it was published since we subscribe to the paper. Yes, in

an interview Trip Weldon confirmed that 158 bass died before release.

He also stated in the interview that the TWO live-release barges were

overwhelmed by too many large bass. If they were overwhelmed on

day one, why didn't they make any adjustments down at Falcon? They

made an adjustment for Amistad by reducing the co-angler limit. There

are too many unanswered questions for many of us down here in south Texas. We would LIKE SOME ANSWERS to these questions. ESPN/BASS has already sent a, "letter of commitment" and a multiyear contract to the Zapata Chamber of Commerce.

You are right ESPN/BASS, "is not denying anything". On the flip side, they are not acknowledging anything either, other than the fact that 158 bass died before release and that their barges were overwhelmed. The Zapata Chamber of Commerce has REQUESTED

a statement, so far NOTHING!

Yes, , "they got caught with their pants down". Is this the first time

they have had their pants down, or is it just that they got CAUGHT with

them down???? Up until recently, we really thought that BASS had

below average mortality rates. That is until I read the Wisconsin DNR

tournament mortality summary report. There were flaws with the study/report, and the report for the most part addresses those flaws. With that being said, there is enough information to conclude that there

are problems. When problems are not addressed and dealt with, you

eventually get caught with your pants down. As a result of the summary report,  Wisconsin enacted some pretty strict tournament

regulations. Public sentiment was also a factor in the final report. Like

I mentioned in my previous post, it is available on the internet. Both

FLW and BASS experienced high mortality rates.

This ain't our first rodeo so to speak. Tony has been involved with

bass tournaments for over 25 years. The sad thing about all of this is

that Tony told me today about all of the innovations that he has seen with bass boats, tackle, etc, in several decades. Heck the original Catch And Release formula has been reformulated 5 times since he

first started working on it in 1982. Both of us are microbiologists, but

Tony has been connected with the sportfishing industry longer than

most people can remember. I grew up saltwater angling, so bass fishing and tournaments in general were very foreign to me. In fact

when we met I had a pretty negative opinion of tournament angling.

It took him TWO years to convince me to at least open my mind. It

took him 7 years to convince me that we needed a bass boat and to give bass angling a try. Now we tournament fish as a team, and I can see how you can get addicted to it. It has allowed us to conduct research on bass under actual tournament conditions. Even more importantly for me, it has given me insight into the tournament angler.

For the most part anglers want to do their part to conserve the resource. Lack of proper training and education seem to be the biggest problem. That is why we recently did a DVD outlining the

proper handling and care of bass for tournament anglers, which includes a segment on fizzing. We are not SELLING the DVD, but rather providing it to clubs and tournament organizations in an effort

to educate their members. The true stars of the show are the bass, without them there would be no show. That is a NO BRAINER! With

all the money that the big tournament organizations have, you would

think that they would do a better job at making sure anglers are educated, the fish are released in good shape and addressing mortality problems when they occur. They blame it on the livewells, anglers, etc. It is true you can't stick 30lbs in a 15 to 20 gallon livewell and expect your fish go be in good shape, but is that the fault of the tournament angler or the tournament organization. Correct me if I am wrong but the tournament organizatons set the rules and creel limit adjustments. They can make livewells bigger, but you ain't gonna be able to outrun that older boat with smaller livewells to your honey hole on tournament day. Adjusting formats and improving care seem

like better options.

In this thread I have been misquoted as being against co-anglers,

but that is NOT WHAT I SAID. I suggested a day with the pro day

or pro am day, where the co-anglers have their own tournament

and weigh in. I believe Trip Weldon is the person who FIRST stated

that co-anglers were the biggest contributors to the initial mortality.

I simply stated that C-rigging lead to an increase in mortality due

to deeply hooked fish on the co-angler side. I got most of my information directly from co-anglers that experienced mortality due

to deep or gut hooked fish. Maybe there would have been less mortality if they had been able to utilize both livewells as Paul Elias

was able to do on the last day with a deeply hooked fish. There are plenty of options and solutions, or course first you would have to

acknowledge there was a problem.

Even the numerous scientific studies have indicated that mortality rates have not improved since the 80's. Of course you can choose to ignore the facts and the writting on the wall, but don't complain to me when tournament angling becomes a thing of the past. It only takes

a few to ruin things for the rest of us.

Personally, I am not opposed to some form of paper tournament, ESPECIALLY when water temperatures rise. I enjoy tournament

fishing, but the overall quality of the fishery is MUCH MORE IMPORTANT to the vast majority of anglers including myself.

So IMO, whatever it takes to preserve the quality of the fishery is

a GOOD MOVE for EVERYONE including the tournament angler!

Lane,

I was actualy defending you Lane even though I don't know you. I felt you were getting ripped for no reason and being pressed into posting photos you didn't really want to send. Good luck...

ajr

Bassnajr, Actually I don't mind getting ripped if the final outcome is

positive. I sent a few pics to Flechero because he lives in central

TX. ESPN and TPW are the ones who NEED to see them the most.

We want some answers and not from the ESPN public relations department, but from Trip Weldon and Chris Horton. Actually they

need to see the video that was taken by the Zapata Chamber.

The rodeo thing was in reference to what 25 years of experience backed up with valid scientific research.

We will be sending a formal letter to the CEO's of parent companies,

American Broadcasting Company (ABC), Walt Disney World and

last but not least ESPN.

Like I said, good luck.....

PM sent to Flechero. Good luck, "K"!!

ajr

Lane, Thanks for the offer on the pics.

Before anyone gets in an uproar about the pics, I turned down the offer. I will see them in time.

Fishfordollars is a member of the Texas Association of Bass Clubs. He is familar with Falcon Lake, and is very concerned with mortality. He

has witnessed first hand unacceptable mortality rates down there.

There are several other members that are very upset by this as well.

We are honorary members of a TABC affiliated club, and we have discussed the issue of tournament mortality in depth with our club president.

The last tournament I fished on Falcon had a 28% mortality. That is totally unacceptable and it all goes back to the guys in the boat and their handling of the fish. Since we have boater education courses we might begin thinking about courses in the protection of the fish we catch and how we handle them. I for one never lost a fish at Falcon after five days on the water. It can be done if everyone will just take the time and make the effort to control the livewell issues that occur when the water begins to warm. If everyone will take the time to check on their catch, keep the temps down in the livewell, limit the handling of their catch it will go a long way in helping fish survival. I don't have the answers, but I am willing to join a think tank concerning our resources.

Use an additive like Please Release Me and keep the pumps running to recirculate the water.

I am not in any way associated with Sure Life and their products. I have used them many years and found that they DO make a huge difference.

FishinDaddy, I don't know what you are waiting on either. As I understand it, ESPN/BASS are looking at changing the time of year

and format, which is a postive step in the right direction. Another postive step in the right direction is angler awareness, with more attention being focused on better fish handling and care techniques.

More and more tournament trails on other lakes across Texas are

reducing creel limits to three fish when water temps heat up. I call

a very positive step in the right direction.

Questions are being asked, action is being taken (re-read Lane's post).  Besides, you don't NEED to see anything to take action - just do it if you feel compelled.  Why do you have wait for some pictures?

The pictures will NOT be posted because environmentalist groups would love to get their hands on them for their propaganda campaigns.

And, I see no "condescending tone" in Lane's response.  Not sure why you're getting fired up here, but I see no need for it.  Maybe it's time to take a break from a computer for  a little while.

FishingDaddy, I gave you an update. You stated that you did not know what you were waiting for, so I posted an update. I sent a few pictures to another member, he posted on what he saw. I am NOT

sending pictures to anyone else! There was nothing condescending about it. Sometimes I type too fast, sorry!

As far as anglers being given information, go to our website and you

will find plenty of information on how to properly handle and care for

bass.

I have been informed that the dates are being changed for next year. I guess we will have to wait and see if they change the format, but that is being discussed. At least some effort is being made on the part

of ESPN/BASS.

There have been plenty of changes since this unfortunate event occured, and for the good!

If you want more evidence, then I would suggest that you contact Falcon Lake Tackle or the Chamber of Commerce down in Zapata. There was a follow up article in the San Antonio Express News, it did mention that mortality rates were higher than originally reported.

BTW, Thanks for the kind remarks, hope it makes you feel better!

I talked to Lane last night. She said that the dust hasn't settled yet. The investigation is going full speed and the pictures have to be held until everything has been gone over.

Still waiting for something. I'm not sure what. Maybe some proof or some action, or ....Maybe I should just forget about it like everyone else has......

I have not forgotten about it. Just waiting on the report.