I think the guide tournament was a great idea. It's a great way to promote fun competition and get us an extra trip during a slow time.

However, I don't have a lot of clients who would want to pay my rate to fish during a time when the fishing is so slow. Additionally, I don't believe it is very safe to be on the water with the amount of clothes I've been wearing the past month (especially in the rain). I'm afraid I might not be able to get out of that 38 degree water with that extra 100 pounds of clothing before getting hypothermia - and I'm more agile than most people that go in my boat. I think a lot of guides didn't participate because they had enough sense to stay off the lake in those conditions.

If the purpose of the tournament is to promote trips during a slow time, why not have it on a Monday in late spring, summer, or Fall?
That would be safer, better fishing, and would be an extra trip for most guides. The better bags would also help promote Lake Fork and could encourage more guide trips for all of us.
With the exception of the spring, Mondays are so slow that most of the guides don't have trips. And full-time guides don't have to take a day off to be available. I'm sure most guides would prefer Monday.

I realize Saturdays are easier for most clients to get off. But if it was advertised for a Monday in 6 months, I would think we would get better participation than a Saturday in January or February.


What do you think?

I would do it if held that way.

Richie,

Having fished both of the tourneys the past two years, I appreciate your sentiments on this. While I realize the intent of the tourney is to have fun and camaraderie, as well as contributing to the Fork community, it is hard as a working stiff to spend hundreds of dollars for a weekend to NOT catch fish. Last year I boated one fish. This year I boated zero fish. This was not really the guides fault, but more the timing of the tourney. Obviously fishing a phenomenal lake like Fork makes me (and others I'm sure) tingle with anticipation of not only catching a giant, but even just catching some quality fish. I have to admit while I have had fun, I have found myself going back home disappointed in not catching anything. I know this can also happen at other times of the year, but certainly winter and the unpredictability of the weather can really make it a tough go, as evidenced by only a handful of boats catching some good fish.

I had to ask myself after going back home disappointed last weekend if I would return and spend hundreds more again not to catch fish. My answer came back to me as "probably not". I'd rather save the money and go on a guide trip on my own or with someone else at another time when I can have a better than average chance of boating some fish.

This is absolutely no knock on the people who have worked so hard to put this on, and to their credit who promote this to help during that slow time of the year. I also think the turnout, both with guides as well as potential clients, would be higher at a different time. Not sure a Monday is a good day, as that requires anyone that works to use a vacation day (or two) to do it, but perhaps could be worked in on a weekend when there are not other tourneys on Fork, but at a time when the weather and fishing could be more predictable.

Just my $.02 on the matter,

Jim

I didn't fish it this year because of a prior commitment but did last year and had a blast and although we only caught a couple of fish, that wasn't what the weekend was about for me. From when Stax first called me about this last year, it's always been about trying to add in a chunk of business for the lake Fork community during a time when there isn't much to go around. So while I completely understand your thoughts on trying to make it a better fishing time of the year and/or a safer thing, this has always been about that little boost to the economy in that area when it wouldn't have happened otherwise. I don't know all of the numbers but this should be close:

*20 guides hired paid an average of $350 for the day not including any tip = $7000
*59 people staying at LFM or Oak Ridge or some other place around the lake (assumes probably most shared rooms) @ $55/night = $1700-$2000 depending on how rooms where shared and what the avg cost was for just 1 night when many stayed more than 1 night.
*Food and beverage money spent in the area ($40/person which is probably low) = $2360

So by doing this in a time where hardly anyone would be out there fishing, this event generates somewhere in the area of $11,000-$12,000 in business that otherwise wouldn't be there.

Love the idea of trying to make it more fun with more fish caught, but the purpose has always been to do exactly what was done both this year and last.

I don't know if everyone realizes just how dead the lake is on Sunday night/Monday morning any time of the year but spring (and maybe Labor day and Memorial day). All the marinas are empty and very few guides have trips most Mondays.


Having the event on a Monday in the off-season would serve the exact same purpose as winter on a Saturday.

But you can only ask your loyal fishermen so many times to come up there and take a beating for the "charity" of the Lake Fork community. Just as GrassProShop Jim said above, his answer to would he be back was "probably not". How many others feel that way?

It's gotta be fun or you will lose your following.

I say just have more than one tourney. I think you could do it 3 times a year and keep up some good participation. Maybe do one in fall, one in winter and have a championship during the spawn for the top guides from the other tournies. Do the fall and winter on Saturday and the championship on a weekday.

I think the point of the tournament may be being missed. The tournament is being held in the Jan,and Feb months because that is a slow time for guides and business. Yes they may be slow on Mondays in June but they are slow the whole month of Jan and Feb and the people are just trying to help out a few friends. There is no way of knowing before hand it was going to be this bad of a winter, but that is just one more reason to help in theses months. We know the fishing is going to be slow this time of year that is the nature of fishing the winter months but we also have a chance to catch a giant also on any cast. The guide tournament is to help out not just hire a guide. The people that want to come and catch fish should come and hire a guide during other times, and no one will think anything bad about that. The people putting this on where doing it more for the reason to give money to the people who have given so much to the fishing community during their slow time and during a slow economy. Yes their will be guides that do not want to come out and that is ok to. just my .02

Well the way I see it is advice can be taken or not. People will continue to show up or not. I think Jim has a valid reason to not want to come back. I mean it seems as if he might as well just send a check to whomever took him fishing and just stayed home in the heater. Not knocking on the guide he had just saying. Its the middle of the winter and fishing pretty much stinks! What do guides normally do this time of year? I can understand the point behind all of this but you will lose a following of folks unless everybody who participates has FOUZMAN money! haha! I haven't fished it yet. Mainly because for us working stiffs $400 bones is a weeks worth of pay for some folks and if I were to want to spend that much money on something plus a weekend in a motel, food and gas then I want to enjoy myself. Winter or not. Just my .02 also.

I understand that if the weather and fishing sucks every year then this thing would probably just fade away, but move it to a Monday and it will die instantly. Hard to come up with the perfect thing to do considering the intent and timing of the deal itself. Hopefully next year the weather and the fishing is better. We all know in North Texas it could be in the 70's and sunny or in the 20's and icy so just have to cross our fingers because I will be back next year.

there were several people that wanted to fish that could not get a guide for what ever reason. hire your self out and get some new clients for over the good and easy times of the year. all of the people that were looking to fish knew it was going to be tuff and they came anyway.i did not hear one person complain abought it.

Just to clarify my position, I am not complaining, just expressing my feelings and the disappointment I've felt regarding spending the money and not catching fish. That's just me.......your mileage may vary. Last year was a weird day, as it started out warm and humid, and we had to idle out to the first spot due to really heavy fog. Then the weather changed late in the day. This year we were SUPPOSED to have a 55 degree day, but I could see my breath almost all day until the sun finally appeared around 2:30. It's a given that planning ahead and counting on the weather is a carp shoot at best in late January or early February.

I am glad to support the Fork community and love fishing there. I just can't rationalize spending $300-$400 each time(or more counting gas there and back from DFW) and catch one fish in two trips. I'd rather donate to cancer research, March of Dimes, etc. Again, I know there's no guarantees on any given day, but this is just how I wound up feeling about it. Would I feel different if I had caught a fair number of fish or a whopper? You bet! But I haven't, so it leaves me with the saying I have heard before: "Expectation and Disappointment Go Hand in Hand."

I really appreciate Hole Shot, Stax, and the whole gang that worked their butts off doing this, as well as the guides who put us out on the water. My fun quotient would go up though if I was catching fish!

Jim

I agree with Richie I'm a poor college student and as much as I enjoyed last years tournment I couldn't justifying paying for a guide trip in that bad of fishing. I agree better weather more advanced timing will make this event allot bigger than it was. Now I understand all of this takes allot of work and preparation. But just thoughts

Money is money weather it's in January on Saturday or in another month on Monday

Man many of you are missing it here! Only thing I have to add is that Mondays would not work for most, most have to work. I have fished the last two and will be at a third if there is one.