I agree with this and I haven’t seen any of those guys fishing the bank culling much. Some do but I would guess most don’t.

And as long as they buy license and follow the laws it’s their right. Same as the guys fishing tournaments. We all pay for this through purchasing license and taxes.

Outlaw this and that because we don’t like it isn’t how democracy works. Let the dems get in office and you will see your rights and access diminish or disappear.

Nobody has to agree but we better stand together or we are all gonna lose.

Waldo have you ever seen a 250 Hp run on a photo electric cell or a windmill ? LOL

Ok. Let me rephrase it.

I understand why it's currently at Bham. I don't understand why Scottsboro, Guntersville and Huntsville don't join efforts to figure out a way to host it here, at home, Where the good fishing is taking place. Huntsville is every bit as capable to host a weigh in at the Von Braun Center. Seating Capacity isn't what the BJCC offers, but it could host a healthy crowd. Plenty of Hotels, Plenty of Restaurants. Huntsville has an airport that is plenty capable of anything this would need. It's a booming city and an overall nicer place than Bham.

Economic impacts have been reported as High as 32 million last year and is regularly in the mid 20 million dollar range. Our corner of the state could invest a little money into expansions at the VBC and capitalize off of the investment. IMO.

You may not know that cities PAY to get these events. I doubt those cities could match what Bham paid to host the Big Show.

I sure hope you can get them to host tournaments but good luck.

Ignorant?? JW tell me, just how many massive fish kills have you seen first hand, with your own eyes immediately after a major tournament? I’m betting the answer is zero. If what you believe is true, actually happened, in a typical BASS tourney there would be close to 2000 bass released all at the same release point with the majority of those dying. I’m not saying it has never happened but If the mortality is as high as some on here say, you’d see a raft of dead fish floating every weekend after every single tournament. I spend a lot of time the water and yes, I’ve seen a floater here and there around release points and tournament takeout points but nothing significant and dang sure not every fish caught in a tournament.

Heck, there a a lot of guys on the pro tour that intentionally target/intentionally fish tournament release points if there’s been a big tournament within the past week because all those released fish typically school/stage up on the first good cover, drop, ledge or major channel swing close to the release point. I’ve crushed them on spots like this 3-4 days after a big tourney. Re-read my post, I specifically said there’s nothing wrong with people keeping and eating bass if they want to. Do some fish not make it after release? It absolutely happens without question and nobody disputes that.

Looking at a lot of the comments on here, seems to me like a lot of people just don’t like tournaments, fast boats, don’t like other people catching big fish that others have trouble catching, having to wait at crowded ramps, crowded parking lots and the like. Trust me when I say that being a jackass on the water is not in any way limited to just tournament fishermen. Nothing pisses me off more than someone that takes 10 min to back their trailer down, can’t back their trailer without the boat on it, can’t get their boat on the trailer once they finally get the trailer in the water, or sits in the launch trying to get their motor cranked because the boat only gets put in the water 3-4 times a year. It’s just part of it. Everyone should just take a deep breath and be courteous of the others trying to enjoy the resource too. Now correct me where you think I’m wrong or you go ahead, drop back 15 yds behind center and punt.

Right. They ain't paying no 30+ million to host it, though. I still think that Huntsville could pony up a little bit and it pay off in the long run. Especially if we are talking 60 million dollar paydays over a span of 6 years. It don't really matter to me, I'd just assume everyone stay away from Jackson County. Huntsville is growing quicker than anything else in this state and being smart while doing it. I'd imagine if they ever want to host a classic, they'll host one.

ExactlyPerch. Bham is hosting because they have the facilities, population, and hotels to accommodate. I’m sure closer locations could do the same but can they match the $$ offered to BASS to host. Evidently not or the classic weigh ins would be there and fish wouldn’t be getting hauled 1.5 hrs one way.

You really believe the fish they pull out of guntersville, keep in a livewell all day, drive to birmingham, stay there two or three hours, drive back to guntersville in another tank, then dump back in the lake will still be alive two days after that? Most of them? No ive never been standing there when the fish were dumped out. Ive heard a couple people say they witnessed it and there were alot of dead fish, were they lying, who knows. I dont care if people fish tournaments I just think they should care for the fish better, mainly because theyre keeping alot of the trophy sized fish. I also think 500-600 boats on one lake in a weekend from tournaments is just too many, that should be addressed as well. And what I said was ignorant was the suggestion that killing a fish after a weighin even though you put it back in the water is better than killing a fish to eat it. The fish you put back in the water and died was wasted. I dont know alot about fish mortality rates after tournaments except what ive read. Maybe its all lies, who knows. Ive always estimated that probably half the fish put back will die. Why not just weigh them and put them back? Because then they dont get to hoist them big fish up in front of everybody and get that big crowd applause. Its all about the fame and money.

I personally think that the weigh ins should be held immediately at take out in order to get the fish released back as quickly and in as good of shape as possible. I don’t care for MLF but I do like their immediate release of fish and agree it’s definitely better than keeping them in a livewell all day waiting to weigh in. I’ve fished a bunch of big 150+ boat tournaments with a lot of those being in Florida. I’m specifically mentioning those because most had the weigh ins immediately adjacent or very close to take out. Most were “true lakes” in non-moving/no current situations. In other words, there was no current to carry dead fish away from the release points. Most launch and release areas were weed and pad choked with fairly long idle zones that would’ve held the fish in view. If a high percentage of fish were dying within 48 hrs of release, those launch areas would’ve been littered with floaters on subsequent tournament days. I’ve never seen it. One or two here and there yes, massive numbers like some are quoting, no. It just didn’t happen or the evidence would’ve been there for all to see. I think you’re way high at estimating that 50% die. I’m also in agreement that tournaments create pressure and educate fish. Best way to combat that is to abandon community holes and the banks and learn to find and fish non obvious offshore stuff that others don’t. I’m like Swindle in that I love to get up on the bank and junk fish obvious shallow water cover. It’s how I started out fishing and what in learned growing up. I still love to do it, but at the same time, once I learned to trust my electronics and target the non obvious stuff, deeper and offshore, I got a whole lot more consistent in putting quality fish in the boat. And just for the record, I still fish a good bit but do it recreationally for fun and I haven’t fished a tournament in probably 10 yrs.

We dont disagree as much as it seemed

That 1.5 hr one way ride from the G to Bham is definitely going to put a ton of stress on those fish. Survival rate would be much higher if they just released them in the river there in bham versus hauling them all the way back to the G to release. Just not a good option IMO. Hot water, low oxygen/inadequate aeration, and stress are the three biggest killers of released fish. First two are easily remedied with insulated live wells, ice and good equipment, on the third all you can do is do your best to minimize it.

I'm one of those who believe all fish have the right to cornmeal & hot grease, bass included. I fish a couple of wildcats each year & my only problem with tourney folks is seeing them throw back the fish that they know are gonna die. That is a waste of God's creation but I reckon the turtles got to eat too.. That said, I won't eat a PCB fish from the LM or similar waters.

Livintohunt, sorry our thread got hyjacked. I would love to attend the outdoor show after the first day. Maybe I'll find someone and drive up there.

Come on up perchjerker I would love to meet you, it’s alright these boys got to argue about something!

Piss on them is my opinion. Believe they are fishing Guntersville, then hauling the fish all the way to Birmingham to do the "weigh-in" and ego-walk, then the fish are hauled all the way back to Guntersville to be put back in the lake where most of the fish will be dead within 72 hours - I've been told a study was done on fish released by BASS tournaments that showed an 80%+ mortality rate of the released fish within 3 days of release.... Might as well clean the fish after weigh-in and donate the meat to a shelter or people that will put it to use instead of wasting the fish. I hate the BASS organization and their format. They abuse a public resource for monetary gain which I think is totally wrong. They are killing huge numbers of the largest fish in the lakes they fish every year! I have the same feelings towards all other tournaments - local wildcats and others (and there's hundreds of them) that catch/keep fish for weigh-in then release after being bounced around in a live-well all day. The MLF format is the only one I feel is acceptable as it preserves the resource being exploited by "tournament" fishing.

Rant over.

You sound like my daddy, who died 10 years ago. He was an old school bass fisherman. He used to say, if it wasn't for the fancy boats and high speed outboards with their rooster tails, they would still be water skiing. I concur as well. I live on Logan Martin, and it is dangerous out there on any given summer night. I crappie fish at night, and I have to anchor next to islands to insure I won't be ran over. That has actually happened here, before.

It's the same as shooting spikes and sub 2 yr old bucks. If'n you kill the 3lb fish in a tournament, I can't catch a trophy. These tournament guys are going to wipe out the bass population. It's that damn Chuck Sykes fault. Ainsworth probably has a hand in it too.

Let me ask you anti-tx guys a question. Do you where one of the best places on a lake that holds lots of tx is to fish ? I can tell you from experience that its the marina where most tx on that lake are held. Merely go to the first piece of sizable structure near that marina and you'll find it loaded with catchable bass. If these super high mortality rates were true, this would not be the case. I've tournaments won in these places too.

It’s gonna be a slug fest if they keep the water where it is right now. Someone may go over the 90 pound mark. The big g is on fire right now

Tx have been around a long time and there are still plenty of bass so I guess they ain't hirting them too bad.