if you live around the gilmer area and like to fish tournaments then the harmony high school bassmasters need you! we need boat captains for saturday tournaments. we do pay gas and entry fees, please pm me if you or anybody you know would like to help us out. thanks everybody!

for the kids

Looks like i will be available for the LOP tourney.

Isn't amazing how many kids want to participate and yet we struggle with captains? Bass fishing is alive in our youth! I love it. If anybody has any doubt about participating please reconsider. I am from Winnsboro, we have kids playing football on Friday who then wake at 3am the next morning to get to the tournament and fish. We, as adults, have zero excuses to not participate.

I scratch my head about the lack of captains all the time.
I think most people transform when they hit the water. They relax, are kinder and will help you if you need a hand while on the water.
Once they/we get home, we fall back into human nature. Too busy with life to take time and plan to help someone else. (Doesn't make us bad,just human)
Me, I was gonna go somewhere anyway. I like kids, as long as they are respectful, housebroken and well behaved. It's not going to cost me anymore to carry someone else.
Who knows, you might end up making friends with next KVD.

I think part of the problem is this is growing so fast. AT Pk they had a 140 to a 150 teams and that was 1 division. We had 4 captains from our club help with this. The next tournament is the same day as our club tournament. So what do these guys do? They want to fish also. Now next year we will try and schedule around the highschool stuff. We have around 10 youth in our club that fish.

I have some conflicts with the club tournament I fish. This past weekend I had a club tournament. Our tournament schedule is set in April or at the latest early May each year. It goes from May of the current year to April the following year. I want fish my Club heck I've been in it for almost 25 years. There are also family obligations. As luck would have it, one of the high school tournaments fell on my 35 anniversary last year (actually the day before but we already made plans)! One of this year's tournaments is on my grandson's 1st birthday! Which would you do?

Also it is difficult because you have to be "cleared" with a background by every High School you fish with. So if even at the last minute I get freed up I cannot fish as I'm not "approved" by the school that needs a boat captain.

One last thing (at least for me), there are several lakes (like PK) I've never fished so I would fell very bad about taking a couple of eager kids out on a lake I've never been on.

This is not a "rant" but maybe a reason why it is hard to get boat captains (especially so many).

If it was easier to "fil in" vs. commit to an entire schedule, I think you would find more boat captains.

These are just my thoughts.

Hey guys, finding boat captains always will be the hardest thing about these events. There are always conflicts with some that will leave some kids on the bank and that is unfortunate, but those who have trouble from time to time finding a boat captain know about it before they join. We, the THSBA, try to help find boat captains for our team advisors when we can. Sometimes we are successful, sometimes we are not.

Yes, we require that the boat captains be background checked for safety reasons. That will not change as the safety of the students is and always will be our #1 priority. We have great boat captains with great character. I would rather a few students miss a tournament as opposed to them being put into a bad situation on the water for 8-9 hours unsupervised. Thus the reason last minute subs are discouraged. And I'm quite sure that a last minute sub would be fine, however, would you put your child with someone on the water you knew nothing about?? I sure wouldn't and don't expect any parents in our association to do so either.

I am very proud of all of the volunteers we have to help make this run the way it does and I personally refuse compromise the safety of any of our students at any time.

I think the kids understand previous commitments. I know all the kids I've captained have but I've always told them up front about it.
I also don't know how important it is to have real knowledge about the lakes. Most of the kids just want to get on the water. Doing well is just a bonus.
I totally understand the background checks but is there anyway that it could be "stored" in a standardized data bank? That way guys who may only be able to captain one or two could pinch hit when needed?

please send me the schedule

I am a noob boater. I would be worried having a kid with me. or even an adult..

My son is joining his highh school bass club next year. Only open to 10th grade and above. I can't wait. I'll be piloting for them every weekend that I'm off and then my wife can't complain any more about me going fishing all the time! LOL

Happy Hooker if your son is going to fish in the THSBA, you can fish if you are in the 9th thru 12th grades.

Justin, go to the website in my signature and click on the individual divisions to see the schedules. Thanks Ken

Ken, Have you thought about having lake specific guides for the kids available in some sort of database like was mentioned?

For instance you guys seem to always be going to Palestine and Lake of the Pines. Perhaps there are bass fishermen at each who could be pre-qualified to fish and then when schools are heading to those lakes with teams that have no boaters they could be paired together. That could include any lake you might be fishing on once you know your schedule.

And by doing that and building a bank of fill ins you might encourage them to participate more frequently.

While I personally would like to try it I don't really have the resources to be running all over East Texas. Come to Lake Fork and I'd be fine. (Unless I've already committed to the LRB for your tournament).