Was I justified?

I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right in
front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm fishing
here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He responds
with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna work
our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to grasp the
concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues to keep
fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20 yards ahead
to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer limbs and
feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I boat a nice
2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good tournament fish
huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments I could not make
out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The boater seemed a little
more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you have
done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their deck
with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in a
heartbeat.

Was I justified?

Group: rec.outdoors.fishing.bass Date: Wed, Jun 29, 2005, 10:30am
(CDT+1) From: (alwaysfishking)
I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.
=A0=A0As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat
coming behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and
go right in front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy
that I'm fishing here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to
try. He responds with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" =A0 "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna
work our way down" =A0 again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to
grasp the concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and
continues to keep fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him
about 20 yards ahead to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm
to the outer limbs and feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a
nice fish, I boat a nice 2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would
be a good tournament fish huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A
few comments I could not make out from the duo but I didn't care I was
happy. The boater seemed a little more than upset.
Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you
have done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from
their deck with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it
again in a heartbeat.
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
I'm sure you were justified in the action you took. Maybe in my younger
days I would have reacted the same way, but as the years go by, I now
avoid conflct...I've fought my wars !

Now days, discretion is the better part of valor for me....I would have
just motored on out of there to quieter waters....and went fishin!

John

Fishing is fishing no matter if you're fishing for fun or a tournament. I
think you did the right thing...LOL. Ok, right is a questionable word... so
I'd say you did well. The didn't give a rats ass about you... guess you
showed them the same.

Way to go!

"alwaysfishking" wrote in message
...

I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right
in front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm
fishing here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He
responds with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna
work our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to
grasp the concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues
to keep fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20
yards ahead to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer
limbs and feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I
boat a nice 2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good
tournament fish huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments
I could not make out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The
boater seemed a little more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you
have done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their
deck with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in
a heartbeat.

alwaysfishking wrote:
I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right in
front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm fishing
here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He responds
with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna work
our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to grasp the
concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues to keep
fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20 yards ahead
to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer limbs and
feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I boat a nice
2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good tournament fish
huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments I could not make
out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The boater seemed a little
more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you have
done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their deck
with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in a
heartbeat.

The only person who can tell you if you were justified
or in the right is yourself. You were a horse's patoot
and happy about it. Not that that's a bad thing, there
are times when being a horse's patoot is absolutely
the best thing you can do.

I don't like the Tournament Fishing attitude. Some of
those guys figure because they've paid an entrance fee
they have no obligation to be courteous.

Having said that, if it was me I'd have just paddled
away. Life's too short to let jerks mess with my fishing.
Now, when I was younger there's no tellin' what kind of
mayhem I might have perpetrated on those a**holes. ;-)

--
Ken Fortenberry

It is hard to be nice when that occurs Randy.I am glad you stuck a fish
right in front of them,I am sure that did tick them off ! I just wish it had
been even bigger.
I have dealt with that "tournament mentality" too from real pros.I had 2
different ones pull up within 50 feet on each side of us one morning.We had
been on that spot for 20 minutes and had 3 keepers.When we voiced our
disapproval one said "hey,we are fishing for $200,000.00".I would have moved
off quietly had they yelled over or something or communicated in some
way,but just pull up and start chunkin',no way.We all have to be courteous
on the water.
"alwaysfishking" wrote in message
...

I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right
in front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm
fishing here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He
responds with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna
work our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to
grasp the concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues
to keep fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20
yards ahead to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer
limbs and feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I
boat a nice 2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good
tournament fish huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments
I could not make out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The
boater seemed a little more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you
have done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their
deck with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in
a heartbeat.

"alwaysfishking" wrote in message
...

I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right
in front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm
fishing here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He
responds with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna
work our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to
grasp the concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues
to keep fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20
yards ahead to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer
limbs and feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I
boat a nice 2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good
tournament fish huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments
I could not make out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The
boater seemed a little more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you
have done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their
deck with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in
a heartbeat.

As a long time recreational angler and a short time tournament angler I feel
that nobody has the right to cut off another angler. The courtesy of
atleast asking would be appropriate, but I do not believe a tournament
angler has any more right to a stretch of bank than a recreational angler.
We both paid for the same license. If anything I feel tournament anglers
should be held to a higher standard. We are mnore visible and we should
make the sport look better not worse.

I have pulled off many a bank and gone somewhere else even when I was
unethically (If not against the rules) cut off by another tournament angler.
It makes me mad, but I try to get over it and get back to fishing.


--
Bob La Londe
http://www.YumaBassMan.com

Actually you should have shot them. . . . so I think you showed remarkable
measured restraint g..

--
God Bless America

Josh The Bad Bear

Hell yes Randy, that's probably the way I would have done it too. Only I
think I would have kept working the shore instead of trolling off. As
another poster said, "You bought a license just as they did, you have as
much right to be there fishing as they do". It just comes down to courtesy
between anglers, in which they didn't have any. The "In your face" fish is
great! though, you had to love that when you hooked up! I always try harder
to catch one in situations like that!

Doug


"alwaysfishking" wrote in message
...

I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right
in front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm
fishing here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He
responds with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna
work our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to
grasp the concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues
to keep fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20
yards ahead to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer
limbs and feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I
boat a nice 2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good
tournament fish huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments
I could not make out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The
boater seemed a little more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you
have done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their
deck with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in
a heartbeat.

alwaysfishking wrote:
I was camping these past few days at a State park. Well Saturday morning
comes and I head out to the lake for some early morning fishing.

As I am fishing a particular shoreline and I see this bass boat coming
behind me from the other side of the lake. Two guys pull up and go right in
front of me, maybe 50-75 feet away. I yell over to the guy that I'm fishing
here and that maybe there's somewhere else he wants to try. He responds
with. "Are you fishing a tournament?" "No" I reply.
He states " Well we are and we won't get in your way, we're just gonna work
our way down" again I voice my displeasure at his inabiltiy to grasp the
concept that I'm fishing there. He ignores me now and continues to keep
fishing. I put down the rod and troll in front of him about 20 yards ahead
to a laydown tree in the water. Cast my speedworm to the outer limbs and
feel a solid thump, I set the hook and get into a nice fish, I boat a nice
2.5 lb bass, hold it up and yell this one would be a good tournament fish
huh guys?, then release it and motor away. A few comments I could not make
out from the duo but I didn't care I was happy. The boater seemed a little
more than upset.

Question: Was I right in doing what I did? Or should I have trolled to a
different location considering I wasn't in a Tournament. What would you have
done. One suggestion was to try and see what I could snag from their deck
with my lures. What are the groups thoughts? I would do it again in a
heartbeat.



As you have read from my previous posts, I have been a victim of the
same situation on a few occassions this year already. I think really,
they should have motored up to you and asked if it was ok if they jumped
in front and fished. That is the approach I have used when coming into
an area where someone was anchored. I stopped about 100ft away and
asked if I could fish the area near them, even if I realistically really
wouldn't have bothered them , I would still ask out of respect.

I love fishing tournaments, but would never think my time on the water
is more valuable than the next guys. If I see bank fisherman on a
shoreline I like to fish, I don't fish it. If I see a boat anchored
near an area I am going to fish, I ask if they mind if I sneak past
them. I think a lot of people see these big sparkly boats and right
away have a negative attitude about us for reasons such as Randys. I do
my best to counter those attitudes here on Winnebago. I think more of
us need to stand up and think about others as well, regardless if you
are in a tournament or not. My last tournament on the 28th , I had 3
boats come into my waters (within 10 yards of my boat) that were also in
the tournament I was fishing. They saw we were on the smallies and kept
creeping closer and closer. A 4th boat, saw my marker buoy and would
not come any closer than that (over 100 yards away). We were fishing
back and forth between 2 points. It just goes to show that some people
could care less about anyone else, and some people respect others.

Randy, I think what you did was awesome, and the guys got what they
deserved. It would have been even more funny if you followed them all
day, they would have probably broke down completely though. Oh well, i
just wish there was more respect out there.

Chris

I agree with Bob, the proper etiquette would be for the tournament
fishermen to ask if you mind if they fish through there. I know Randy
personally and we've fished in a tournament together. I believe that if they
asked he would gladly have moved aside, or at least allowed them to fish
around him without conflict. As a tournament fisherman, I cant understand
why they didn't just ask Randy if they could fish there. Common courtesy!

Rich P