Low tournament numbers - bad economy or too many trails?

Reading the other post brought up this question for me. Personally I don't think the economy is too blame for trails getting lower numbers. People are spending more money nowadays on fishing than ever before. Look at how many new boats, new trinkets, and all the other accessories that money is being spent on. People have money and unlike in the old days, they are willing to spend it.

I think the difference is simply the vastly increased number of trails/tournaments. 10-15 years ago a Fisherman's calendar might have had 2-3 tournaments on it per month for one lake. Nowadays your bigger lakes have 15-20 tournaments a month. Your taking the same number of anglers (probably a few more than 10-15 yrs ago) and simply spreading them thinner. Take me for example...I'll fish a tournament every weekend, but even doing that I have to choose which one I'm gonna fish for that particular weekend, thus another trail is gonna suffer because I can't fish more than one.

How do we fix it? Simple. Be patient and with time some of these trails will fade off into the wild blue yonder. I've already started to see it on Rayburn with a couple. When it gets back to the right number of tournaments then we will start seeing the 200+ boat tournaments again.

Supply and demand is basically what it is. Why doesn't everyone drive a Ford truck? Cuz we have choices of several other brands. If Chevy, Dodge, Nissan & GMC went under, then Ford and Toyota would get all the business (entries).

If a trail doesn't draw they won't be around for very long

Nature will cut the fat so to say

I think its the number of trails. Too many out there. Its gotten to the point for me even though I can easily afford it I am not going to go fish a 10-20 boat tournament. Even if you do well you will lose money. Granted no one is living it up on the winnings at a local level just saying I want a shot to break even or come out slightly ahead if I have a good day. I also think when you add 6-8 events to a trail with that low of a draw you will not get as many entries either.

Throw in having to get boat passes, reservations and other deals like that to prefish and fish some of the lakes and it just takes a lot of the want to out. I also think certain divisions hitting the same lakes year after year at the exact same time gets to be monotonous.

I would love to see an individual trail with 6 events(within a 100 mile radius) no prefishing and all wanting to fish must registered by the Friday before. The guys registered get texts/emails on where and when the tournament is on Saturday or Sunday. Make it $100-150 entry fee and a year end Championship done on mystery lake deal as well. Then again that would be adding another choice and further diluting the way we spread out between the trails now.


If anything some of these trails need to merge and combine efforts.

I think it is screwed up beyond repair. You have too many trials, now you would think that would sort itself out except half the people running them are doing so as a hobby it seems cause you damn sure don't make money off 10 people showing up. There is no incentive to travel, you can sit on your home lake and fish something almost every weekend. I fact I am starting to think the ones that will travel, myself included are idiots. It doubles or more the expense and the odds are not in your favor for sure. When you do the math on fishing an event that has lets say 15 teams which is pretty common around here lately the guy in second doesn't even make out cause by the time you figure gas, entry, maybe one prefish day your in the red and god forbid you get a hotel room, now what should happen is you don't fish that event but that's becoming the rule not the exception for turnout.

To many trails!!!!!

Bass tournaments are the Debil.

I think it is a combination of both. Think about it. $200+ in gas alone to win $300 - Entry fee. Many won't fish. Numbers will drop. Trails covering up each other. It is saturated. I still believe that TD's could do a better job of scheduling not on top of each other on the same lakes.

It's not just scheduling on top its every weekend on the same lakes. During certain times of the year you can just fish that lake every sat and Sunday, some even schedule events based on practice days for the events the following weekend figuring guys will enter cause they are there anyway.

As this thread goes on there is another speaking of a different format. That's is the problem there are so many options and if you don't like everything about one then hell, just go start another. It's pitiful.

This may not be a popular response but I like things the way they are. I want to fish trails with a turn out of 35 to 50. I am only fishing tournaments to keep my interest in fishing going. There are about 4 or 5 lakes I care to fish they are all nearby and I do not need to pre fish. I check a lot of trails pick 10 to 15 dates and pay only if I have time to fish that day. JC Outdoors, Media, BLT, Ignition are the trails I am interested in fishing. I will fish Bass Champs or larger trails if they come to my lakes but I will not travel to fish other lakes on their schedule.

Exactly! So here we are discussing why trails are failing and another person starts a thread discussing what format of a trail he should start. LOL.

"Hey Bubba, my head hurts. I don't like it."

"Bubba, it hurts cuz you drank too much beer last night."

"Give me another beer."

I'm not sure if it applies to most tournaments, because most payouts correlate with entries, not an announced fixed prize. Tournaments honestly don't have a ton of risk. They still make some money with less or more entries. If they aren't covering the fixed costs, then they will probably get sick of it after awhile.

The nature of a trail is each year there are a few people that can't be kept happy for whatever reason be it that they did poorly or something on the trail isn't what they think it should be. New trails come and go. Also how the lake is fishing is huge. When a lake is fishing good then it's easier to get the numbers.

Just the natural cycle of things.

But right now, they don't come and go. They just keep coming! Therefore diluting the tournaments for all of us.

The economy is fine. Too many trails. We quit and four more showed up. Lol.

I think lake levels has a lot to do with it in west Texas. No water no tournaments.

It's like the good trails quit once the market got watered down.

They need to have more no practice tournaments. You might get a few more guys who's jobs keep them off the water till saturday entered because they feel they have a decent chance of winning.

"Just Saying"

If you fish a team trail, you are only out of $125-$150 per tournament and all expenses are cut in half, right? 1st place=A Truck or a ranger or a Tritin or a champion. Maybe $15K to $20K.

If you fish a draw tournament, you are out of $200-&300 plus expenses are all on you. 1st place is $2500-$4,000, maybe a thousand more.

Well, if you fish a draw or an individual tournament the 1st place money is not half of what the team trail is? I think a tournament trail should have their sponsors increase what they spend and the trail cut back on the entry fees. *note* the opinion of my post does not reflect the opinion of any company I may or may not represent ! Lol

You would likely see the same guys winning unless the off limits were 30 days or more. That would lower the number of entries and the sticks would still win their share. 90% of the tournaments are won by about 10 to 15% of the Teams. They are just better whether it be more effort, time or skill.

Was this a serious comment?

Spend $300.00 and try to win $100.00!

That would be a heck if a plan if there were actually any sponsors that were interested. Sponsors get very little benefit from smaller trails. Not going to be much sponsor money there.

I think its the economy, as overall fishing participation is down. the hourly mega bass events pull in good numbers but after that the numbers of rigs parked at ramps are down, and you just don't see the number of rigs being pulled down the highways. In the summer most of my fishing is night, and back in the nineties and early 2000's there would be almost the same number of boats on the water at night. this past summer it seem I had fork to myself, I think the most boats a saw on any Friday night was four, and this is in areas around Big Caney, Little Caney and Dale.

I quit "money" tournaments several years ago, after factoring prefishing costs, tournament cost (lodging, food, fuel, and entry fees) versus the potential winnings it was not worth the time away from the family. "Championships" had become a joke, no need to actually qualify, just enter all the series tournaments and you're in, the lakes chosen often favored locals, and the payouts were weak, though my partner and I did benefit on some deep payouts, it basically paid for dinner on the way home. Most boats awarded for winning were not worth keeping and the resale of the actual boat or certificate brought less than the taxable value.

For us in the TX panhandle. It is a long drive to fish most trails.
Take a trail like Bass Champs. We drive at least 6 to 7 hrs for one day of fishing.
If they would allow pre fishing, say on thur and Friday the week of the tournament
they would draw some more boats. It is not worth the drive for one day of fishing.

Wake up Bass Champs!!!!! your losing anglers.

In some parts of Texas you could argue the drought is hurting the turnouts as well. Some people worry about damaging their boats, dealing with a crowded ramp and a lake fishing even smaller than normal.

I know we are talking Tournament Trail, but there are also local club tournaments to contend with. I think it might be beneficial if there was a State Commission to regulate tournaments. Uh oh, did I just say that?Sounds scary, but if casinos can live with gaming commissions...it might work to the advantage of having so many tournaments at the same lake so often.

By doing this, annual scheduling might work out to be more organized. Could also limit the amount of tournaments and trails. Additionally, tournament championships would be forced to remain located within the State. This might also be applied to pre-fishing as well. Just a though.

vote for Windy and she may make it happen

sounds like a perfectly good waste of my tax dollars

You seriously wouldn't mind the Govt regulating pre-fishing?

I'd say bad economy for sure as well as other factors. Most of the guys I fished with back in the 80's and 90's are still alive and kicking but just lost interest in the sport. Most of them sold their rigs and bought Harleys, bought collector cars, took up golf, or just crappie fish. Some talk about getting back in but won't because of the initial cost involved...........
I was spending $500 a month just on fuel alone back when it was around $1.20 a gallon. I was pretty much limited to fishing club level tournaments with the budget I had back then. Fishing as a boater/pro pretty much dictates hauling to Big Sam or Toledo and renting a hotel room because of my geographic location. With that cost, entry fee, fuel, and food once or twice a year would be about as good as it gets. I figure a second tournament would only come if I did well enough in the first one to pay for a second.

Not alot of trails fishing on Sunday any more. The old Mon-Fri work week now seems to include Saturday for lots of people making it difficult to fish most of the trails.

Economy down fuel prices are up. Too dang expensive to fish a trail seems better to just jackpot the local events.

Mark this would be a neat concept, one item for thought. If the lakes come from a 100 mile radius, post the lakes in that region well before the start of the year. The participants could visit the "unfamiliar" lakes on their own time, find the ramps and at least learn how to run the "main" lake before heading to it completely blind if chosen for a tournament.

Lack of a younger generation fishing. Older folks move on to other things. Competive feelings fade. We need younger folks fishing tournaments. No need to have 21 ft boats either. Just need younger fishermen.

To many trails.

That's not the issue IMO. Look at how far college fishing and even high school fishing has grown. When I was in high school I was very lucky my stepdad had a bassboat. Kids now have their own bass boats

i have seen a lot of guys that look to be 20 to 25 years old with bass boats fishing. What also hurts some trails is letting guides fish. I'm personally not fishing against guides. Call me what you want but I donate enough money already to the locals which I think I can fish against but guides, no way.

This is not that hard to answer, this is one of the rare things thanks to the internet that could be figured out. Most results are published, one of the larger organizations could easily get a list together of the names of basically everybody that fishes tourneys in the state, then you start playing with number, are guys fishing one trail, are they fishing everything within certain areas, how far do they tend to travel, what formats draw the most guys, what formats draw guys that fish multiple tourneys vs 1-2 a year. What is the total number of guys that fish any tourneys. And you can go back years with this stuff. Slap it up against whatever variable you want, ecenomy, gas prices, lake levels. I don't know if the trails that are serious about doing business are doing this stuff, every other business I know is all about this kind of research and unfortunately doesn't nessasarliy have access to competitors customer data base, not so with bass tourneys. They seem to just throw mud against the wall and see what sticks or worse yet listen to what people say on forums as opposed to looking at actual buying patterns which are 2 completely different things.

Here is my idea on what might work. THE TEXAS WIDE OPEN. Two man team events, roadrunner, catch, photo, release. Team can fish from same or separate water craft of their choice, polygraph examiner at every event. It brings in the guys that want to compete against the best but don't have boats with live wells. Lots of guys fishing kayak tournaments that I believe would make the switch if the pot were right and had a fair chance at competing. Would be interesting to see the kind of results from that type of tournament. It would bring in some younger folks as well.

Everyone is tap dancing around the fact that tournament fishermen are some of the most fickle people on the planet. Pleasing an entire trail of anglers is almost impossible. There will always be whining and bitching no matter how good a trail is. Someone can and will find something to bitch about.

The Holy Grail FLW TTT back in the day. Pull that rabbit out of a hat and you got the trail to blow all others away. But that's just a dream.

You don't say. Lol

Too many trails and too many trails with too many divisions. I used to look at tournament results on Monday mornings to see who caught what. Now, that is an hour long process. Its so bad that you cant even keep up with all of them. Its too many watered down trails and too little water in our lakes!!

I know cause I is one myself....................

How many guys actually fish 2 tourneys a year and pay an entry fee of 200 or more in the sate of texas, I could be wrong but I put the number at 1500 or less total. I also think that the sport of tourney fishing is suffering from the same issues as golf, takes to much time, too much money, to much commitment and is just not all that fun sometimes. Guys that would otherwise fish tourneys don't because thier kids are playing never ending youth sports. Also activities like hunting have become more expensive and at the end of the day you are competing with all other recreational activities for the dollar. It's truly a niche deal now.

Too many trails, too many options, too much competition or not enough competition. Why travel 2 hours to fish against locals when your home lake has a tournament every other weekend? The same 15 boats show up at that tournament and the competition gets stale and isolated. You have to spend 3 days a week pre-fishing to keep up with the competition to win it. If you place second you don't break even. Don't like that? Fish champs on the same lakes they've been fishing for 10 years against guys that have been fishing those lakes for 30 years. Prefish unlimited hours and spend 250$ on entry fee, 500$ on gas and what not. Finish 17th place and you don't break even. Guys with disposable income that can do it for fun, its not a big deal. Guys that need to make money to keep their desire afloat, they get discouraged and stick to clubs.

I miss fishing, but with a second kid I am putting it on the back back burner and spending time with the family. The above sounds like I am butt hurt, but if you know me none of those things bother me. I traveled all over Texas to fish tournaments for fun and spent all the money I could on equipment and boats. I'd have to win the classic to break even at this point. I never really experienced any major success, but loved it regardless.

Baby Boom

Price of cotton went up too fast.

(Cotton = boats, gas, lodging, entry fees)

This too.....they are being squeezed out by the economy. My son is 21 years old and has never experienced tournament fishing and hasn't been bass fishing from a boat since he was about 5 years old.......I think there has to be a lot of dads out there that have wanted to pass on the flame but haven't because they can't afford too. My son and I have done a lot of things together we've kart raced for a while, he has shot both trap and skeet and won 4H district titles in both, we had a show truck for a while and won stock pickup class at a few car shows. Right now he is in college and is starting his senior year. We've really haven't done much since he started college other than some hunting and that is about it. I'm hoping once he finished school he gets a job close enough to home that he can come fish with me and see what it is all about........

Good point. The young generation can't afford a boat with the way they are priced....not even an entry level boat. Buddy of mine's kid wanted to fish the high school team, but since they can't afford a boat(besides their metal 14') he can't fish. So there went another person's dream of being a Pro. He now works and dreams about the day he can afford a boat.....but at 60-80k a pop, that dream is long away for the average Non Trust Fund kiddo.

There are a ton of good starte boats that are used that a young guy can afford. Granted a top of the line 20-21' boat will be a tough buy for a young guy but there is a lot to be said to working your way up to that. If a man truly wants to fish then he can find a boat in his budget that allows him to. He might have to adjust his want to a bit and realize it might not be the dream rig but guys can and do compete in smaller and older rigs.

How much you talking? Cause I sold a boat for 4.5K with a blown motor. Can't get too far with that boat.....maybe TM away from the boat ramp. I never had $4500 as a kid or even until I got out of college and got a real job did I come across that much money. And I lived in a RV park.

Plus, you can't get a job for a young person anymore.....too many non natives taking those jobs....or retirees.

Fishing - It's a rich mans sport or a sport for people who like to waste money.

Me personally, I am an expert at spending and wasting money.

That Skeeter boat.....is not an investment as much as we like to think. LOL!

This is an interesting conversation and there are numerous opinions on the subject. I think somehow we as the average fisherman have lost our way. It’s not hard to lose you way in many situations and it happens all the time. When I live in Las Vegas I learned how to bet on sports, especially pro football. The problem was before I knew it I did not care about my favorite team winning or just me enjoying the game; it was about the spread and could they cover it. Look at high school football, I won’t even go there, because that like open in can of worms. We now use tournaments to justify why our boats cost so much, why we much have certain electronics and why we have a certain brand. Have you ever tried to add up the value of lures in your boat? It may surprise you. Then ask how many of them do you really use when on the water. I guess the million dollar question is why do we really fish tournaments; competition, money or enjoyment. There are going to be many different answers here. If you really want to think about why we fish, think about when you father or grandfather took you fishing and you tried to catch more or bigger fish than your brother or sister. My advice; keep these memories close to you and you will remember why we truly fish. Just my two cents on a sport I like to see stay pure and not become corrupted, although I feel that ship has already sailed. How about we do a tournament where all money goes to charity and the winner only get trophies and bragging rights; maybe I am asking for too much.

I won more money out of my $9k boat than I have out of my $50k+ boat

I think I will head to Austin and see if I can find the guy that bought it and buy it back to only fish tournaments...


The fact the younger generations do not spend as much time outdoors. A lot of children spend most their free time on the internet and playing video games. People shelter their children more because the world is a lot more complicated and dangerous place.

The economy is tough, with our current state of taxation on middle income America, it's hard to pay all the bills then have any expendable income for pricey hobbies.

Plus there is a lot going on in today's world there wasn't 20 years ago. A lot of people just cannot fit the time into their lives to fish.

I think there are numerous reasons why turnouts are low. I agree that there are too many trails, it's the price of capitalism. You would think some of the larger trails would consolidate to make one large trail and draw bigger fields.

Another factor is you have to have the entrants that honestly are not going to win often, the ones that are truly there to enjoy fishing a tournament. Just like a good poker game, someone has to finance it!




'

Even used rigs are mostly out of reach of the average Joe anymore. The price of new boats has pulled that market pretty much out of site as well. I know from my own personal experience 10+ year old rig that is in descent shape can go for more than what I paid for my last new rig which was about $17.5k, a Nitro 180TF with an XR6. I've seen some older smaller rigs as well but they are still nipping @ $10K..........That being said there are still older aluminum rigs that can be had a descent price. I've fished from aluminum and don't care for how they kite around in the wind but if things don't pick up soon for me I may very well by ridin' and grinnin' in an aluminum rig...........

New Metal boats are high too. Dang price of tin cans went up so much.

You don't see those random boats hung in the woods anymore....they are scrapped out for HIGH $$.

My first "touranment" boat was a 17' Fisher aluminum. It had a 40hp engine but had sterring wheel etc and I was damn proud of it. After that came a Nitro 170TF with a 90hp. I was really in high cotton then. Finally moved up to a big rig in a Stratos 278V with a 130hp. Would fish out of any of them it if kept me on the water and in the game. never paid more than $5000 or so for any of them. I can tell you I was proud to own them all and was not ashamed to get out there and fish tournaments in them.
A kid can mow lawns a year or two and save that much up if he truly wants to fish.

Instead of seeing obstacles and reasons why a guy can't fish they can put that effort into getting to where they wanna go and I bet it will happen. Its all in the want to.

These are all very good reasons why numbers are down and could potentially go down further. I'll add this...in today's society we don't teach kids to sacrifice for anything anymore. Or if we do sacrifice something, it's usually our savings account. Whatever Junior wants, he gets it, and there are a lot more "things" to want in this day and time. Parents don't tell Junior no very often. This means dad doesn't get to fish that one tournament a month sometimes. Nowadays kids are spoiled more than ever with material things to distract them from being a kid and requiring the parents to be parents. How many times have you been to a restaurant and seen a family sitting there with a kid that is playing on an iPhone or iPad? It's the easy way out for parents.

Sorry...got a little off subject, but it ties in somehow! LOL

I'll say this the biggest pay day I ever got tournament fishing was out of a TX-17 tracker aluminum rig with a 60 hp Johnson on it I bought new.....I give $12k for it......If I were to go the tin can route it would probably be another 17 footer with a 60 to 75 hp motor on the back. Tracker used to post top speed ranges for their aluminum rigs and according to their numbers the fastest aluminum boat they offered was the 175 with a 75 hp Merc. It was faster than the 19 footer with a 135 hp on back.......... If I remember right the 175 Tracker would run almost 50 mph and sip gas........I know can't help myself......speed freak.......

Not to argue but how many years ago was that? AND how old were you?

If you notice someone also said the price of new boats has thus pushed the price of used boats upwards. What we could afford then as a kiddo is not that affordable nowdays.

If you mow yards, you compete against the illegals too. How can a HS kid afford to compete? Vehicles are expensive and heck, I am still using my old 6hp mower and my 2006 truck cause they have gone up in price too.

We all like to think "We did that when I was young!" (We all walked to school in snow storms, ate ramen noodles, and didn't have any shoes, but still fished all we could.) BUT with the current state of the economy and lack of jobs for HS kids, your 2 strikes behind.

We like to think "Its possible, just work hard!" BUT if that was the case every kid would have a boat and the opportunity to fish the high school level and college level..and have college paid for. If that was the case we wouldn't even be posting about this topic.

Get educated, get a good job, fish all you want.

And don't get married and have kids...as long as you can hold out.

I enjoyed the good "free" life for many a years.

Then I realized I needed someone to wipe my arse when I got old.

Was 28-35 yrs old or so. Not that many years ago to me. I am only 44 now.

Its not a matter of how anyone did it when they were younger. Fact is a man can sit around and make excuses on why he can't do something or he can get up and get to trying. The people that truly want to find a way to fish and own a boat will make it happen. Its not about competing with illegals or finding other reasons to fail. Just figure out what you can do to get to where you want to be. That works in all aspects of life fishing or not.
Personally I think a lot of people find reasons to fail before they even try.

I know as a fisherman before I owned a boat I would often get up an hour or two early and get out the door so I could get in a few casts at a local lake on the way to work. Had young kids at home and could not always get away in the daylight hours so I took what I could get without it negatively impacting my family time. I did the same with buying a boat. I worked odd jobs, OT and whatever else was there when it made sense for me to do. Once we covered bills and savings and all my responsibilities were met I saved up a little here and there.
In a non fishing example when I started getting healthy I had the same schedule commitments as anyone. Was actually working a part time job as well. Did not always have that extra hour or so a day to work out during daylight hours. It meant getting up way early and heading to gym on way to work to get my workout in. Its just what had to be done. No big deal. I wanted a boat and I wanted to fish so I did what it took. Wanted to get healthy and lose weight and did that as well.

My point is this its all about the want to. I am no different than anyone else and no better. If I can accomplish little goals like that so can anyone else that wants to.

Sounds normal to me. You got out of high school and got a job so you could afford it.

BUT how is that helping the HS kids who can't get into the sport (I mentioned HS kids affording what you bought when you were 30)? How do we protect the youth who want to fish, but can't. That is the future of our sport. Not us mid age wanna bees.

Fundraisers and odd jobs on weekends, get with bass clubs to see if they can wash/detail boats/trucks, part time jobs, anything at all that can be done legally to make money. In the meantime find mentors and folks that will help get them on the water till they have a boat. Again its all doable. Its not some insurmouuntable obstacle.
it will be graet practice for later in life in terms of learning to juggle responsibilities and prioritizing. It sucks we all can't go out and dow hat we want and buy what we want but there is no better sense of accomplishment than earning a goal you set on your own through hard work.

My son was 3 years old when he started fishing with me, then he started tournament fishing at 7, he is now 24 years old,has a great paying job, he has a $28,000 Bass Cat, Travel Trailer on Fork and is a High School boat captain for Scurry HS fishing team.

He loves fishing and teaching younger kids about fishing.

So a high school kid that goes to school 8-4pm should be able to afford what you bought at 30.....if he sets his mind to it?

He works Saturday and Sunday (only days he can work more than 4 hours).

When do you propose he take off to fish his high school tournament at Sam Rayburn 2+ hours away? Pay for his own hotel. Gas, Tackle. WITHOUT a family full of money and time?

That is the future, not us 30-40 year olds.....LOL! I'm halfway to the grave at 36.

Really helps to have a dad who fishes. My dad didn't even own a fishing rod. He bought me a tin boat for $100. 30" wide you could flip out of in 2 seconds.

It's the kids who dad's can't afford the bass boat that want in and have such trouble....and thus give up a dream.

There are plenty of affordable boats out there, you just have to spend the time and find them.


I know of a couple of good ones for sale right now that are very affordable and good 20 foot rigs.

If someone wants a boat, puts in the time to work and save they can afford one. Like many things in life today, everyone wants the best right now and with little or no work........

Sad thing is, several kids have gotten on the TFF to ask for stuff like this and never got anywhere with it. Here is our sign.

Who the heck says they have to have a fully rigged boat. I am saying you can get a solid bass Tracker type in the 17' range for less than $5000 if they shop around. work your tail off a couple of years to get there and its done.
Yes a kid can work a part time job after school and on weekends, yes he can still get a day here or there to fish and mix in a tournament. It is all very doable. is it the perfect answer maybe not but its one that rewards effort and a dream.
I can't sit here and honestly say I am all for handing a kid a nice boat and unlimited funds for gas etc along with a tow vehicle with no effort on his part besides show up and fish. I would not just sit back and support every aspect of my kid fishing tournaments and not have realistic expectations that he contribute in some manner.
I think there are huge lessons that will pay off a million times over in supporting a kid's hard work and draems but I expect some effort as well.

And plenty have stepped up and help give the kids an outlet to earn money. There have been recent postings by Donald Darper and PapaMark wanting someone to stop by and help work for a day that went unanswered. Decent wage, lunch provided and an oppurtunity to earn a little something. It goes both ways.
I also see a ton of local guys stepping up and offering to mentor, captain, and outfit some HS teams with gear. See it at boat shows, boat dealers and locally too.
it takes a combined effort by those that want to get kids on the water and the kids themselves to make it happen.

$5K for a high school kid to purchase on his own? I assume Dad bought his truck (we won't even bring that into the picture)

Once again I sold my boat with blown motor for $4500.....and it would have taken another 5K to make it run....won't run with a rod sticking out of the head. So price of boats is HIGH now.....if I sold a junk boat for $4500 several years ago.

I for one was only making $4 an hour when I was 15....and to think of $5 was like it was a million dollars then. My weekly check was $75 bucks. LOL!

Mark, if it's not that much money why did you not have a $5K boat before you were 28?

I've personally given two different high school teams between $500-800 worth of plastics and other assorted tackle. So, your opinion that nobody helps them is bogus and laughable.....

You do the Ice Bucket Challenge too? Ya Big Donater!

http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbt...rice_Dro#UNREAD

Here is a boat for a high school kid....$2K....not sure it's worthy for Sam Rayburn on most days. BUT I imagine it floats.

You are not the only one Doug as you pointed out. I can think of a bunch of guys that do the same. Thats a cool way to pass on some gear to those that will enjoy it. Wsa talking to a custom lure maker last week and he sends all his blems and mispours to HS teams. Most of the time you could not tell the blem and since they are high end custom baits the kids love it.

The truth is if one gets off their rear and goes and works and saves then they can afford a boat.

Complaining and playing the "poor pitiful me" card won't get you a boat.....

I will go through my boat and shop every year and box up the stuff I've purchased but will not use and donate it. If I had the means or if I ever get to that point I would donate a full rig to a local high school team.

Here is an idea, we (members of the TFF) could possibly take up a collection, have a raffle, have some charity events then pick a team and donate a rig. I'm sure a member who wraps boats couold wrap it wi the names of the business's that donate, so they would get some advertisement out if the deal.

$10-15k really isn't that hard to raise for a good cause.

There was a HS kid on the TFF who I was friends with on FB. He made skirts. Really a gung ho kid. Everyone tried to lend him a hand on FB. He would post on here great questions and never got anywhere with them. People somewhat ignored him. He has since started college this year and passed on the dream to another kid.

I have seen kids offer to detail boats only to be run off....either from smart comments or lack of replies.

We like to say we are helping, but half the time it's right under our noises.

I know the struggles of coming from a non fishing family, I was lucky to get a rod for xmas. I was lucky enough to go to college. I was lucky enough to get a job and make a living. Spent all my money fishing and traveling....now my torch is out and it's time for someone else to pick it up. I tried to help my buddy and his son figure it out (high school kid) and due to financial strain they can't afford a boat. Poor kid. He used to text me weekly asking for fishing tips, now he never fishes. Since started running with the non fishing crowd and lost all interest. One less person who will get into the sport.

I for one felt that way with golf as a kid. I had my grandfather's look alike Pings. Old bag and trying to compete against kids who grew up on the country club, new sets of clubs yearly, along with new bags. Could I compete? I was so far behind the Eight Ball. Now years later, my golf game is better and I often think, what if I grew up at the country club and had all the new big drivers (instead of old wood driver by Wilson)....would I have made a career out of it, would I have played in college?

Many adults can't even afford the boat they want.....not to mention getting a boat that is safe enough for your kiddo to go out on Rayburn in 4' waves.

Your single and no kids right? Trust me....it's so much easier to make that statement you made.

I was there for many a years..... People who had married, kids, ect looked at my boat and thought...."Man you are lucky!" BUT really it was me holding back starting my life/family.

Looking ahead 15-18 years (I got a new born) I don't know how I will be able to afford her college. Takes $300K to raise a kid to their 18...and that $300K does not include college.

Price of Cotton is at all time high.

If you have the right attitude and passion you can get the right people together to make getting a boat for a high school team happen.

There are a lot of people out there that will help, they just don't all look for those to help, but help when approached they will help out.

This is a good resource to get the ball rolling, go for it!!!

I will donate the first $100

HS Teams require a boat for every member/2 man team. Gonna be costly.

A team can start with one boat. If that's all they have they will have to take turns fishing.


You have the first $100 donation if you get the ball rolling.....

I think Mark has hit the nail on the head, it's about drive. If you have it you will find a way, too many these days just want to say it's too hard. And don't have the drive to get up off their butts to do anything about it.

If you look hard you will see many very cheap used boats that need a little tlc to get going.

I once bought a 100.00 plastic john boat on craigslist to get back on the water, saved for another year and bought a 98 sx185 that needed a battery, carbs rebuilt and a lot of tlc for 3k and was on the water again.

I bet if I looked hard enough I could find a boat that was "tournament capable" for under 2k that needs some elbow grease on cl...

I guess a team can only have one boat if they only have 2 members.

I'd like to take the ball, but I never venture into the TFF as much as I used too. Especially not the bass section....ya'll are too stressful.

I'm out of the fishing scene now, I don't even fish, don't have any spare time, all I do is work so my baby can have a home, food and diapers. I work paycheck to paycheck now days. Sorry!

Might be good for a firefighter who has spare time!

While the plastic jon is great for getting on the water, don't forget the rules on keeping fishing alive in an aerator in tournaments.

I fished a tournament out of my job boat one time. Left the fishing hole with a nice sack, only to arrive at the weigh in with Poached Bass! DANG metal boat cooked my fish!

You either do not get it or you are just a wise guy. If a team has 8 member and has 1 one boat, then they would have to figure out how to decide what 2 members fishes each tournament.

If they have 8 members and no boat then nobody gets to fish, it's not complicated.


If you or your friends are concerned about the kids in the local high school getting funding for their program. Help them start a mowing business during the summer to pay for their expenses for the next year.

If one wants to do something and is willing to work for it, then it can be done...

I'm match that $100...you now have $200 donated towards the team of your choice's boat...don't be the guy that just sits on the sidelines and says you can't score....get in the game...we are giving you the ball!

I have a extra $100 I will donate. now you have $300

Gas, oil, insurance, repairs, tires, iphone.

Great idea. BUT that is not how the HS fishing works. Dad must have a boat. My buddies son was in this situation this last year. Only kids with a boat (livewells) could fish.

I wish it was a team boat they could pass around....not sure who pays insurance, wear n tear, ect. Since it's not a sanctioned UIL sport and all. Sounds like a great pipe dream for the High School to own the boat, like they own the football fields, band instruments, ect. BUT I don't think our sport is there yet.....and will it get there....who knows?

What are your experiences and what have you heard? I would be curious to know if other teams are doing.

The TEAM I know didn't even have an adult as a president/coach. Hallsville, Tx.

Someone on here had posted a link to a high school page with contacts. Awhile back ago.

I know I always wanted the big two sanctioning bodies to uncork the horsepower rule and let folks run a larger motor back when there was 150 hp rule. Sometimes I look back at that and wonder if they stayed with that would cheaper 18 foot rigs still be ruling the roost........

Heck, I nominate all ya'll to start a "Go Fund Me" deal for the HS teams and post it on here.

If it was 5 years ago, I'd start it. I had more time then.

New baby at home and too much work, I don't have enough time to stop and let alone take on something like this. Like I said, I don't even get to fish anymore.

BUT these kids are the future of the sport and tournament entries in the next 5-10 years....they will be out of school and HUNGRY for competition.

It's an expensive sport obsession.

I think most of us have worked our tails off to get what we have got. The boat I first started club fishing in had 60 hp motor and I made the top six a few times with the oldest and ugliest boat in the club.

I wonder how folks caught fish in the 60's and 70's without a 50k dollar 20ft ranger with a 250hp motor?

Sarcasm aside, KVD or most of the FLW/Bass guys could whip me in a 14ft jon boat while I'm riding around in a 50k boat with 1k rod/reel combos. Go fish, have fun.......

This is one thing I have been planning on for a while and that is to start a bass fishing team here Cooper High School. We may not have but one team but at least we'd have one. I figured I'd get with the ag teacher and he'd know which guys are likely candidates......The main thing I'd want is not so much guys that are good but guys that want to learn..........

This thread has taken a turn.... I was going to paste some stuff but there's just too much "poor me " to do that.
WHO says that a high school kid has to have a boat to fish? Or, that they have to fish tourneys to foster a love of fishing? That's a load of [censored]. Those are wants, not have to haves.
I grew up poor,, really poor. No dad, no grandfather, no uncles to take me under their wing. My mom fostered my love of fishing and I started with a cane pole. Big present when I was 9 was a rod and reel.(still have it) I loved to fish, still do.
A boat was out of the question when I was young. Got married, worked my butt off and bought my first boat. Then my second and then another. "Want to " goes a long way.
Problem is, as was pointed out earlier, is that today's kids want NOW with no wait.

And to say that the guys on TFF don't help is also a load of it. I've been a captain for a hs team and saw a lot of guys from this forum at the tourney.

I guess I will retype my statement again. HS teams must have a boat for every 2 team members.(kind of like having your own golf clubs to be on the golf team) No one is having a piti party....just stating facts I ran across with peeps I know. Sorry you got all fired up cause you walked to school in the snow.

These are the kids who will be entering the tournament scene in 5-10 years. They are the ones that will buy the boats, tackle, entry fees ect. Get them pumped now, so they will continue to fish and keep the numbers up.

Kids are the future. Us middle age farts in 5-10 years will be happy to get out of bed. LOL! People need to look at getting these kids involved. Tournaments need to embrace this. KYKX does a good job with Big Bass Bonanza. Kids will request to fish it instead of getting a birthday present. (overheard a kid talking). They create a Junior Division where you win Chic Fil A for life. Kids get fired up about that tournament every year. Us adults.....most of us stay away from it. See my point!? Kids eat it up, us old timers are skeered (or realize our odds).

You fire up a young kid, he will most likely look for the best degree to get, highest paying job, and create a focus and discipline to make it happen. We need more kids like that!

It depends on who you ask.

It depends on where you are in the pecking order.

The playing field is not level.

Today, in order to have a chance of being competitive, and for the competition not to look down their nose at your equipment, one needs to spend about $65,000 on equipment. Then, after you compete in a few tournaments, you find out that in addition to having competitive equipment you gotta spend 30 years competing in tournaments (and upgrading your equipment every couple of years).

The bottome line is that it's not how much it costs to win, but rather how much it costs to LOSE! Think about it. There's only one winner.

Hobby fishing starts looking better and better.

I agree. But if tourney fishing goes away does that mean people won't fish anymore? We're a small part of the sport fishing world. (Before I get slammed, I know the advancements and money made due to tourney fishing) I'm all about getting kids into the outdoors, have run or been involved in outdoor youth programs for the last 20+ years. This HS format is great but it's just one small part of getting them involved in the outdoors.

I'm sure glad I don't get my outlook and perspective from this board Lol. The tournament scene in Texas is crowded but that's because it's alive and well. We are in a strong economy, certainly better than say 2008-2010. Bass fishing is big business and so is tournament angling. A billion dollar a year business and Texas is one of the biggest playgrounds year in and year out.

There will always be a range of demographics from the guy with the $60k truck and $60k boat to the cat on the bank. Neither is better than than the other. To each his own. But to paint the picture that times are tough simply isn't true. Our scene is overcrowded but it's overcrowded for a reason. That reason is, there's a lot of bass anglers.

You need to check out how many students a HS tournament draws. In our region is about 80 teams. East TX I have heard is about 150 teams. That is a lot of youngsters, boys and girls. At our school we may have more kids wanting to fish then boat captains. We have already about 25 students fishing but with all the trails and other activities for adults it's hard to keep all the kids fishing for every tournament. Most kids will have one or two rods at best and maybe a little tackle that has been handed down to them. Instead of buying a boat for a school why not help a lot of schools out and get these kids something to fish with. When there done for the year the kids coming in the next year will have something to fish with. Getting them ready to fish other tournaments and what is expected out of a non-boater, how to fish as a non-boater. I have no kids of my own fishing but just volunteer and I love being a captain and will continue to. The captains are doing about all we can to get the next generation into fishing.

The kids will use the captains equipment and tackle but it hurts when they throw a $6 crankbait into the rocks, fishing line, oil etc., etc. There are a lot of sponcers that give high schoold discounts on tackle, Santone Jigs is one of them. It would be nice if more would help out. Maybe have a list somewhere on the "Fishing Forum" just for the sponcers of high school fishing willing to help out with school tackle, i.e wieghts, fishing line, tackle, etc. etc.

Very interesting remarks all around. I know we fish more for the experience of competing against our friends because one isn't going to make a living fishing couples' tournaments! We enjoy being on the water together and competing against each other. I believe that we catch fewer fish these days because the fish are getting pounded year around. As far as tournaments go, sponsors, no doubt, are weary of getting requests for products from every Joe Blow tournament trail and seeing little return or even a Thank You coming back to them. I would like to see a club where a team CANNOT go to the Championship unless the team fishes all the events for the season in a particular region - however many that may be. Actually, I would like a club where at the first tournament of the season each team pays their membership and at least two tournament entries and a team cannot join after the first tournament without paying for at least two entries. At least this might be a discouragement to jack potters. A person needs to know what we are getting when joining a trail -- because the trail generally isn't going to make a change because someone is unhappy.

I have fished since I was 6 years old, one way or another. I did not come from a rich family, quite the opposite actually, dad did not have a boat, I bank fished, ponds mostly. I went to work doing all kind of odd jobs, first real job was when I was 15. then in the oilfield at 17, bought an old aluminum fixer upper and hauled it around for a few years and fished whenever I had the chance. Saved up enough money get get a "well used" old Roughneck boat and fished it for many years including some tournaments. Also I got married at 18, and had 3 children, all grew up fishing with me and still do today, the two sons love fishing as much as I do and are weekend anglers like their old man. For me tournament fishing takes the fun out of it and I just quit going to them, even try to avoid a lake when they have a big one going on. I gave both the boys a hand me down boat as I replaced mine, I say "gave" loosely as both of them helped me work on every boat I had as I never had the bucks to buy anything new. My youngest son is now 22 and has purchased his own bass bug. Fishing is not all about tournaments, it's about getting on the water and having fun, some enjoy the competition I understand that also as I was on that side for a while too, but enjoying family and seeing them using what you taught them is where it's at. Most kids today want it all, biggest boat, big motor, but don't want to work for any of it and will complain and make excuses about not having or being able to have but not willing to put in time or labor to get what they want, but I digress, this thread is about tournament fishing. Like stated above I can't compete with guides or anglers that fish 250 days a year, I get out maybe a few times a month. To me I spend enough already on equipment just to have fun, the added cost of entry fees for me it takes the fun out. I will just compete with friends and family for bragging rights among us.

I would say its a bit of both.
Personal economy is the biggest issue for a lot of people. I have no complaints with my little bass track pro 16. I have taken it on many big lakes and it does the job (except really windy then it sucks!) Some of us down have the extra money to burn fishing a trail or a number of trails. Does the costs equal the benefit? I will admit I love to fish and the tournament thing is a rush and made me better but again can i justify the costs?
Too many trails? In places yes there are a million clubs, regional trails (ABA, fishers of men) then more national trails (BASS Open, Everstart) plus a million more out there. Some people have the time/money to do it others do not.
In the end to each his/her own but i will say this much too much of "good" thing will hurt the sport. I love to fish but many tournament trails had a few bad apples hurting the overall sport. Sorry but if I fun fishing i have the same right to whatever spot on that lake that is legal to fish.

In my opinion its both. Every team trail out there would have a 15-30% increase in entries if they all allowed trailering. (I know this will start a s#!t storm, of negative comments.) But put a little OPEN minded thought in first.#1.A tow vehicle gets 10-20mpg. Most boats avg. 3-5 mpg. #2 There is a ton of excellent fishermen out there that can only afford, small boats that are not adequate to make long big water runs ( Pavillion @ Rayburn to 147 bridge, or the Canyons for example).#3 The 1st. argument, is always there would be to much cheating in that format. Well that is why you have polygraph. Imagine a McDonalds tourney where everyone had to take off from 1 location. The long & short of this portion is MOST guys cant stand the thought of a couple of guys in a 14ft. flat bottom with a 9.9hp. motor with no electronics, kicking their butts. #4 If Most of us as tournament fishermen, would work as hard (MENTALLY) to be successful when we compete, as we do on excuses & reasons to blame someone or something else. When we don't get-er done, we would all be much better off, and participation in all trails would be way up.(In my opinion).BTW I am not a bystander .Been fishing tournaments of various levels since 1976, and been guilty of all the above mentioned items more than once.

I think I'm a good fisherman but when it comes to fishing tournaments I'm always donating. I still like to fish the tourney's though. I like the competition. I kinda get an adrenalin rush from it, especially in the morning at takeoff. One of these days I will get lucky and make some money. I'm not good enough to fish Bass Champs and other big ones, that's a lot of money to give away. With 9 back surgeries it's hard for me to compete real hard and stay focused from the back pain. I'm always having to take pain meds to beable to stand on the boat all day. When I get home I have to lay down for a couple of hours and let the pain go away.

I agree with others, both are contributing factors