"Charles Summers" wrote in message
...
Dying sport??? Ya gotta be kidding... right?

Its not my stats that say license sale sare down.


Please post your opinions here instead of linking to your public forum,
then
I'll do some research for Tennessee and show you that it's not declining
here!

I posted a link because it is a very long rant, but since you requested it
here it is... P.S. Why not post a link anyway? That way those who are
interested can read it and those that aren't don't even download it.

********
The number of fishing license sales has been declining for a decade.
Atleast according to some of the stuff I have read. Guys like Bass Pro
Shops seem to be doing ok because:

They are getting a larger share of the market.
The guys who are still fishing tend to spend more.

I remember fishing places as a kid where we could walk for miles and see few
if any anglers. Sure some very popular fishing areas would have anglers
lined up along a bank shoulder to shoulder, but you could always find a
place to get away. In the last few years I see more and more anglers in the
places I go fishing. I knows it is partly because I have started fishing
tournaments and tend to fish those areas during my recreational fishing as
well for the practice and knowldge it can bring, but still I see a lot of
pressure on the waters I fish. This may seem like it is not a problem, but
when I go to the small hard to get to places that I used to fish before
getting into competition I see nobody at all. Except for stocked ponds the
week after stocking I rarely see people stadning shoulder to shoulder
anymore either although the more popular places are still crowded.

Are the people who fish fishing more?

Seriously. I see the basic premise that there are fewer license sales as an
indication of a very bad problem. I am one of only a handfull of younger
(and by younger I mean under 40) anglers in the local fishing clubs. All of
them combined. Part of this will of course be blamed on baby boomers
getting older, but that can't be the whole picture. There should be a
smaller percentage of younger anglers, but not NONE. (Virtually None)

I have a few questions to think about. Some may help you to promote fishing
in your area if you have any desire to.

Are the anti movements making an impression that is affecting the sport?

Have health advisories dissuaded large numbers of people from fishing?

Has the almost religous zeal of catch and release anglers driven the casual
dinner angler from fishing at all?

Have the proliferation of tournaments made the sport seem like to much for a
casual angler?

Is the arrogance of some a problem for others?

Is society as a whole changing in some way that makes fishing too
inconvenient or unappealling?

Let me now offer some of my own insights. About 20 years ago or a little
more I had an unpleasant experience with a "pro" angler. I was about 16
years old, and the Gila River had been trickling and running often enough
that some decent fish had started to grow. I was fishing minnows, and some
artificials with what I thought was good success. There were miles of river
that were totally unaccessible except by walking and wading. Often you had
to swim or push through heavy brush. I loved it. I was going places nobody
else was going and catching lots of nice fish in spite of of people who said
there weren't any fish in that river.

One day I ran into a local woman who fished the tournaments in Yuma and
other areas, and I was doing a little bragging on how great a fisherman I
thought I was. I probably came off a little strong, but I was proud of my
achievements. She shut me down cold. She basically told me if I wasn't
fishing tournaments and winning I wasn't didly. I didn't know what to think
back then. Now I think, "Wow! What a despicable thing to say to a kid who
is trying hard and seeing some results from it." I really haven't thought
of it over the years. I have for some reason carried a disdain towards
fishing tournaments. Until recently I tried to stay as far away from
tournament anglers as was physically possible without leaving the country.
I probably fished less as well.

A week or so ago I happened to be chatting with one of the construction
supervisors for a general contractor I install a lot of alarm systems for,
and he made a comment that got me thinking. "The arrogance of a lot fo the
jerks fishing the local clubs turned me off from that. I still fish
sometimes, but I sure don't fish with that crowd." I wonder if he fishes as
much as he used to or puts forth the positive image of fishing he might have
if he hadn't been turned off by a "few" tournament anglers?

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not bashing tournaments or tournament anglers.
I am a tournament angler, and I can see exactly the same thing as has
happened in the past happening still. The same lady pro I mentioned earlier
is still around, and she has managed to alienate one of the young new
anglers in the clubs. I don't know if its her fault because I know the guy
and he can be brash and speak without thinking sometimes, but still. That
is one more angler with a sour taste related to fishing.

How about the overwhelming gaps in knowledge about fishing and the totaL
unwillingness to share anything. I took a guy fishing a few weeks ago. On
the way home I showed him a few of my old bank fishing spots. Guess what!
He has actually gone out fishing on his own and invested some money in his
own equipment since then. We didn't even catch any decent fish when I took
him out. We were friendly, and I listend to his over enthusiastic bravado.
I shared any information I had with him freely.

I have tried to point out some of the causes of what I see as a problem, but
I really haven't stated clearly why I thinks its a problem. After all if
the trend continues and all the 50-75 year old anglers start to die off I'll
have more space on the water for myself when I am that age. Sounds like a
pretty selfish view point doesn't it? I think that is another driving force
behind the problem. I am sure not consciously, but it is there none the
less in many anglers. The flip side of the same thing is that as the
angling population gets older and not enough new anglers join the sport
there will be less opportunity to fish. There will not be enough people to
stand up to industry exploitation of our natural resources. There will not
be enough people to stand up to the antis even if we try and join forces
with trappers and hunters. They are having the same attrition we are.
There will be nobody left to learn from. When my son is forty he will be
able to fish on the local toxic waste pond all by himself, but he'll have to
do it illegally. The antis will persecute him when they see his fishing
tackle and the police will hunt him down and cofiscate his equipment if they
see him using it. Yes it can get that bad. Don't tell me it can't. How
many of you thought there would never be any national gun control laws in
the USA or were told that by the older people you knew?

Even if we do not lose the places and privledges to go fishing very quickly,
there are some other significant and more immediate impacts on the sport.
The sale of some sporting goods carries an excise tax that is suppose to be
used for wildlife maangement. With fewer of us fishing and standing up for
ourselves what is to stop politicians from plundering our money for their
own pork barrel politics. Now something even more immediate. Fishing
license fees are used directly by most state DNR (Department of Natural
Resources) and G&Fs (Game & Fish Departments) to manage the reosurces we
have. These guys use the money to pay enforcement officers, research
biologists, and even the upper level management that interacts with the
politicians and try to protect our lifestyle. With fewer dollars spent on
licenses these departments become dependent on public money. Public money
is supposed to spent where the public most wants it spent. If they aren't
fishing do you think they will lobby their representatives and senators to
spend the money on fisheries management? I really doubt it. Unfortunately
its worse than that. That loss of revenue creates problems today. DNRs and
G&F departments can't field as many officers for enforcement. They can't do
as much research. They have to scale back developent of resources or even
stop managing some. Places to fish are closed to due to secondary pressure
because nobody is there to keep them open. How many places have you seen
closed or restricted after 9/11? One of my favorites is blocked off with K
rail across the road.

This is a real problem. Today! What can we do about it? Casting for Kids
helps some, but I think we need to go further and actually take those kids
fishing. I also think we need to take their parents fishing, because that
is the generation gap thats going to kill the sport. People my age. I
don't see many people my age fishing or joining the sport. We also need to
take each other fishing even though it may damage the usability of our
favorite spots in the short term. Atleast we can still go there.

We need to take a garbage bag with us when we go fishing so we can clean up
for the few jerks that mess things up for everybody else before law
enforcement and government management close off more places to access
because of them.

Learn how to get along with the jet skiers and the speed boaters and the
wakeboarders so that we can enjoin them to help keep our waterways open.
Find a happy middle ground with other public water users. Well, if not
ahppy atleast tolerable.

We have to support the local tackle shops before they all clsoe down. These
guys are often the first line of education for the new guy who wants to go
fishing. Without them how many people are going to take the time to order
equipment blind off the internet to get started on a new hobby much less
make the lifestyle change to make fishing a major part of their lives?

I remember when I was a kid and almost everybody sold fishing tackle.
Sears, JC Penny, Yellow Front, the hardware store down the street, and even
the corner grocery store. we are backing ourselves furhter and further into
a corner and the signs are obvious. What are you going to do about it? Are
you going to enjoy your fishing while you can and let the next generation
deal with your mess? Are you going to go out of your way to share the joys
of fishing with the next generation so that there will be a next generation
of fishermen?
************







"Bob La Londe" wrote in message
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