YOUr a SUcka if you A CRokEr soker..
 

BAN LIVE BAIT FROM TROUT TOURNYS... THIS IS BS sorry it just burns me..:(

BAN LIVE?

Ban live and Dead. you know they go post up on the edge of the ship channel with em and pull some 8 lber out.

I could not agree with you more!!!!!!!!!!
 

The trout killing would not be near what it is if live bait is banned. The true trophy trout fisherman that fishes lures will have the respect for the big fish to try and keep it alive. The majority of the big trout caught this time of year are caught and killed by the people fishing live bait. The tournaments should either have two different divisions or ban live bait. The spectacular tournament banned wade fishing but allowed live bait. This is crazy, a tournament should be about skill and ability not who can throw an anchor and let a croaker swim around their boat. It takes a skilled angler to catch fish on lures, weather wading or in a boat. Anyone can throw an anchor hook and a croaker and sit back with their fingers crossed. You want to see fewer anglers on the lake, ban live bait and see how many people will get out there this time of year and grind it out. I would like to see the results for the tournament today listing what each fish was caught on. I bet it would be pretty interesting.

Bruce, hell of a fish and thanks for representing true anglers well!!!

SAVE THE CROAKERS; THROW A LURE

I agree 100%.....Live bait should not be allowed in any tournament ...Even STAR.....Winners should have some kind of skills not soaking a Croaker on bottom!!!!

I second that...

You cant wade. but live bait is ok.. dosent make any sence.. Maybe when gas prices go up we'll get more oil tankers in the ship channel and run these JIMS off.. there better b a rule against live bait on the 4th or this trophy trout angler will not b attending.. Lucky for yall!!! lol:pissed::pissed::pissed::pissed:

WE DONT ROLL LIVE BAIT.....NOT FOR MONEY....Their is NO SKILL in Soaking a Croaker on bottom.....Im No trophy trout king but I can say that I have never soaked a croaker or shrimp ........All my fish come off artifical

Thats what i like about u W.. keep it artifical... You feel alot better about yourself.. And for all you live shrimp fisherman, may the hardheads be plentiful... hahahah...

YEP and Strait in to the Grease.....

I fish artificials...however when my son is with me (8) he throws live shrimp. I agree as far as banning organic bait for tournament.

I have nothing against someone fishing live bait.....I was taught by my dad to use plastic only.....We never use live so there is no need for me to now.....I just dont think it should be used in tournaments......

The best fisherman never bet Croaker soakers......Thats just fact.....

Last two Tournaments Croaker Soaking won...

One thing that pissed me off a little more about the whole topic is the book Trout Masters. The book only has 3 good chapters and they happen to be on big lake anglers. I did enjoy reading these chapters but the rest of the book is dedicated to *%^#ing croaker soakers. To label these people as Trout Masters is a insult to the true angles of the book. I am gald this thread got started because I have been needing to vent on this topic for a while.

Its got some nice pics..lmao:*****:

Let me see if I got this right....You enter a tournament, knowing the rules....you decide to fish with artificals....you constantly get beat by folks who decide to fish differently than you....so, as a result, you belittle the winners and want all future tournament rules to be changed to conform to your method of fishing so that you'll have a better chance to win....!! Almost sounds like Obama's policies to redistribute the wealth.......Ain't this a Great Country!!!

Bunch of crybabies. If you are really in it "for the trout" then ban tournaments. You guys are in stage 3 which is still a rookie. When you get to stage 4 there won't be stupid threads like this.

Sounds like a bunch of elitists to me. If you don't like the tourney rules don't fish it. If it is legal why complain? Work to change the rules.
Whats even more hypocritical is ya'll get off on posting pictures of all the juvenile trout you catch, bragging on your bag limits and then you get your panties in a wad when someone uses live bait to catch a couple of big trout.

Thats not the FACT....We all love to fish Tournaments and love the challenge!! Who cares about bagging limits....I do that with plastic all the time...I dont compare my limit to a guy using shrimp!! When having a tournament its about the best winning....NOT HERE!!! Best have won but not when they should....YOu take the Shootout.....433 guys ...Our boat had 8th and 26th place trout...now if it was artifical only....Im sure we would of been 2nd and 8th....

Fortunately, the best will not always win,,sometimes luck will prevail over skill...and personally, I'd much rather listen to someone boast over how "lucky" he was, as opposed to how "good he is"...!!! I tend to agree with Salty,,,I haven't fished any tournaments,except STAR, for years because I don't agree with some of the rules....this is my personal decision, and I certainly wouldn't condemn the eventual winners because I chose not to participate..!! No more than you should downgrade their "win" because of their method of fishing ...

and fool would have prolly got 10th...


you all know that kids in the shootout 90% soaked live or dead bait. What did fool do????? he soaked plastics

HEY W,,,, you got any of those white and red's....

Salty, no I don't think that it's right----in fact, I said I hadn't fished a tournament in many years because I don't agree with some of the rules...Weigh-ins can be a real "downer"...but, I can only control "me" and what I choose to do...not what "others" do...

Bottom line is bassmasters don't soak shiners!! Why should trout anglers soak croaker?

W, I agree,,,but, Basmaster's are really trying to determine who is the "best" fisherman....unfortunately, most local tournaments are mainly interested in entry fees/fundraising/and payouts...!!! That's the nature of the beast...by eliminating "livies" you're reducing those entry fees..

You may be right...but livies dont prove anything or show any type of skill.....I spend countless days on the water before a tournament looking for big trout....and mostly beat out by a croakers soaker who never pre fished!!!....Nothing you can do and don't want to knock someone for fishing with live bait.....Just should,nt show up in tournaments.....Just my BEEF...

i have fished both trout tours and bass tours.


Bass tours if you dont keep ur bass alive .25 deduction for 1, .50 for 2, .75 3, 1 lb for 4 fish after that i dunno.

speck tours- no death penalty just a bonus for alive


bass tours- no live bait

speck tours-live bait.


for local tours im worried about spanking the other peopl and putting some money in my pocket

I'm sure this is a touchy subject. Too many of these little events and big lake will end up like Rockport. A lot of big fish died for a few dollars so far this year on the lake, and I'm not sure that STAR isn't the number one culprit.

One thing about that live bait rule is that it's hard to enforce. The choice to boycott these kill/live bait tournaments is always there on the other hand.

It's not the fishermen's fault who are just playing by the rules set by the event coordinator. It was interesting to see the number of anchored boats with anglers sitting down with a line over the transom....ha ha

Wait until Tomorrow....This post will hit 300 comments....:smokin:

Wrong again reddy. You post up pictures of limits of juvy trout and brag about it with not one iota of concern for conservation. Yet some guy during a tournament catches a big trout on live bait and ya'll act like he just raped the resource and is killing off the species. I've said it before and I'm sure you will hear it again. You are a poser reddy.

bassmasters are professional fisherman but don't think for a second that if they allowed live bait that none of them would use it. Don't like the tournet rules, don't fish it. Its just that simple.

i can out fish people that are using live bait easily in bass fishing.
i for one dont use live bait to bass fish. EVEN if i had the choice i still wouldn't use it.


dont call me a poser either, i have caught more bass then any 13 yr old should catch. i have a 5 mounted that i caught when i was 7.

ask wtretrievers the river i fish is TOUGH



that was to " too tall"

Yea---
 

Live bait is not used in BASS tourneys or the Redfish cup series. This is the only time of the years it is more efficient than artificail , mainly due to accessibilty to the live croakers/mullets.

maybe one of the texas guys will comment on how most of the trout events down there are setting rules.

Here is the real deal....Their are only a hand full of Trout Masters in LA and none of them got popular by soaking croaker!!! They have what it takes to Trick the TROUT.....(most only catch take pic and release)..... You will never see a good trout fisherman winning tournament after tournament like bass anglers!! Reason they use artifical and can't compete with the Croaker soaker!!! Thats Facts......
You take out the live bait factor and I promise you would see more of the same guys in the top 10 than ever.......

I see a lot of Texas guys going against this..but ALL YOU TEXANS are Croaker and Shrimp soakers also.... Saw 4 flats with Texas # chunking Live Shrimp yesterday!!!

a lot of inshore tournaments in texas have gone to artificial only and that's a fact

Most fishermen don't have the "time" to fish 3x's a week nor extensively pre-fish for a tournament,,,they rely on live bait as their "equalizer" against the guys who are fortunate enough to have the time to garner the experience necessary to win consistantly...Without that "edge", they may chose not to compete...That's a tough decision (live vs. artifical) but it's ultimately controlled by the Tournament Organizers ......!!

Let me help you get it right.... I enter a tournament to test my skills, knowledge to find fish, and ability to adapt to the fishing conditions against others that would like to do the same. I fish with artifical lures because it is the weapon of true anglers which takes practice and ability to master. Do you see the anglers of the redfish cup, texas trout series, spectacular series, bass masters and flw tour throwing an anchor and soaking bait? NOPE! Why, because it would not be a true test of the angler. If these tournaments allowed people to soak bait you me or my three year old daughter would have the ability to compete with them. A tournament should be setup so that the anglers that come out on top are truly skilled anglers. It should be a tournament which requires skill to come out on top, not like a Lottery which is dependent on luck. Anyone can depend on a live bait and luck to make up for their lack of skill. I go out to compete against anglers not people who decide to fish in the Lottery. I have no problem not winning a tournament but I want to look at the leader board and say those were the true anglers of the tournament, not someone who depended on a live bait for the day. If I do not win, it shows I need to put in more time and work to better my abilities and chance to win. I do not have anything against anyone who chooses to fish with bait. I have used bait too, and depending on who I am fishing with (wife or kids) I am sure I will one day use it again. But, you will never see me use it in a tournament or competition. I will then depend on my true fishing abilities in which I think all others should have to depend on.

amen!!!

You just re-enforced my position....if you don't like the rules, for whatever reason--don't fish,,,,it's your choice..!!! You and you alone decide what you want to fish with---don't blame it on others....maybe if enough people stop fishing these tournaments then maybe the Tournament Organizers will get the message and change the rules, but I doubt it..

This is one of those things that unless the tournaments bans the live stuff those guys that use artificial will have to do one of two things: either use the live stuff or have a lot less % of winning. I find people that use artificial will do everything in their powers not to use the live stuff. Also, most that use the live stuff will you it 24/7/365. I myself, rather use plastics and catch 20 then use live and catch 30. Also, what about a tournament being at a particular venue where a certin person in the tournament field has fished the lake 100 times and another person in the tournament field has maybe only fished it 10 times. Them guess who has the bigger advantage? I guess it is not a perfect world.

You maybe right..

i see it as i have blown my money on a few tours, lost to croaker soakers so....i doubt i fish many more unless it is artificial only. Thats why i rather bass tours NO LIVE BAIT.

Its about the $$$$. Its not in the best interest of the Tourney to allow live/dead bait. They limit it to arti's to sell sponsorship products, test the anglers skill and create interest. The tourneys don't want to be handing out $$$$ to some no name who happened to get lucky soaking some dead shrimp. They lose sponsorships and fans that way.

Also I don't disagree with most of what you are saying but don't think for a second that the folks, maybe not all, fishing the above tournaments would not fish live bait if allowed to by the rules. They will go with what is catching the fish and gives them the best shot at the $$$$.

I don't understand why all tournaments are not all catch and release. I wish they all were however if someone tells me I can use live bait and I know at least 50% of my competition are using live bait then so will I if necessary! I still think it takes alot of skill to catch an 8 pounder even with live bait but you still should use conservation and have catch and release tournaments.

I guess my thoughts are that just because there are more less skilled anglers that choose to use live bait I do not want to throw something I have worked to learn and become aside to down grade and join the majority of less skilled. I understand that live bait will probably never be banned due to the fact that the entries will drop dramatically and the cash flow will suffer. My suggestion would be to have two different divisions in the tournament, Lures & Bait. Split the prizes down the middle and post the results separate. I think this may encourage some average fisherman to become better and strive to setup to the big league. They will be able to choose fishing against the majority and have the same chance or setup to test their skills and against fewer people. This way everyone is happy and the tournament is still profitable. I also agree with the weight penalty rather than the bonus. I think people will strive to keep a big trout alive knowing their 5lb trout will be posted as a 4.5lb versus the opportunity to get a bonus if the trout happens to stay alive.
[SIZE=3] [/SIZE]

I'm not against live bait. I think to each his own but I really like your idea. Good post...

Ok so Guys...Deff Should Be Banned From Tourneys...no doubt..i do try to throw artificial as often as i can when not deck handing or fishing with customers..mah captain charter captain that is has to make a livin too..and sometimes artificial just dont get the job done guys..i mean its easy for yall to scream no live bait when yall fish in a place like big like (arguably the greatest trophy lake in the country..) but just from a breton sound platform fishing fisherman...artificial dont always get it done..im no uscg charter captain (yet)..so i only deck hand charters on weekends to make a lil extra cash to pay for gas in the boat during the week...but i do know and see what its like tryin to make a livin in this bizz when there is know live bait..especially when fishing in such a place like The B sound where many situations artificial is not an option..some times its not just croaker soaking..more than often its a croaker free lined getting workked much like a hybrind or H&H...not tryin to cause arguments here but just tryin to make the point that just because you fish live dont mean ur less of a fisherman...

BTW The Biggest Trout Ive Ever Caught Was Caught On A Hybrid Flurry Tipped With Shrimp..haha wats that make me?

that makes you a cheater *****!!!!! all good , i think you made a great point. some guys make a living at this and live is the way ta go. i think tournaments are what the real beef is all about. yall do good in venice hustler? pm me with sum pics and a report. also which charter down there ya work for. goin in 2 weeks ta b sound. thanks

Salty the best story was CHINK.....LMAO x 10.....He double up on croaker....

you forgot trout master capt eric dumas. w's mentor :*****::*****::*****::*****::*****::work::work::wo rk::work:

I want to be like "CHINK"....Soak two Croaker at a time and get a story about it.......

i say just ban it from the tours or have a seperate division.