I gots a question….

Haywood..I don’t want a smart alec answer

Let’s say your a non boater in a draw tourny..how do you divide the time if it’s another guys boat??

I know your suppsosed to share equal time on the trolling motor but what about fishing spots…Do you tell the guy where you want to go fish during your time and is supposed to take you there?? or do you jump in the drivers seat and you drive there??

What about casting…is there an imaginery line you don’t cross???

That’s for the input guys!!

well ill start i try to be curtious as a non boater but if your throwing spinner baits paralell to the bank there is no imaginary line in these minor league tournoments

now as for if i take a boat to my spots i better get to be on the trolling motor or on the front deck especially first thing in the morning on my fish now if there his fish ill stay in the back where i belong but im all for my half the day on the trolling motor 2 i want to win a protest some time when the boater says i took him to his water but he aint running my trolling motor

now as for the non boater has some responsibility also in that if he breaks stuff that could have been avoided on his part he should be liable for it

now in a pro am where your not fishing against each other the non boater should stay in the back etc…

i been on both sides of this i generally as a boater when i fished these formats told them to get on the deck all day if we are flipping and they generally dont ask for the trolling motor and i alot of times dont myself since the boater was nice enough to let me be on the deck all day

now if its my spot and i got a green boater who dont know the area or how to fish it id think id be put on the motor like this weekend i had a very curtious partner i took him where hed never been he said get on the trolling motor later in the day he asked me if he could run the motor in his boat on another one of my spots i said its your boat and i dont mind very nice guy

So when it is your time on the front of the boat can you make him goto your spot??

we was told at the illinois federation 8 man meeting if your non boater wanted to lock 2 pools down when it was his half the day you had to lock 2 pools down or risk being disqualified

we took this as we dont want you boaters running 100 miles one way then have to listen to you say we couldnt go to his fish they were to far away

In this format, I usually tell the non-boater, when we
fish my spots, I run the TM, and when we fish his spots,
he gets it if he wants it. I drive the boat, when we
are running, but locking through two pools, to get to
the non-boaters spots, is in the plan, if he feels
strongly about doing that.

As far as that imaginary line, it doesn’t exist in
my boat, unless it is over my line, or the line
is hanging on my ear! I have asked non boaters to
wait until I have worked my bait out of the
area before they cast to it, or past it, but that
often falls on deaf ears. If that happens, then I
counter with some creative boat positioning until
I have worked the sweet spot. 95% of the time I
go out of my way to avoid getting confrontational
with my partner. Those little green, and brown, fish
aren’t worth that much heart burn. Besides there
are many sneaky little counter measures that can be
used to add to the obvious frustration of a fisher
driven to rudeness I do try to focus on the
fish, and block out all of the other distractions, like
recreational boaters, other anglers, and people that
needed better parenting, that I draw for partners
That usually works, but there have been a couple of
extreme encounters that I had to keep reminding myself of
the penalties for assault and battery, even if the weapon
was a Flippin’ stick.

Big Bass Bane

When approaching a tournament with an unknown boater or non-boater I can usually tell right away what kind of experience it’s going to be. It’s all about attitude! On those days when your non-boater seems to know everything and doesn’t do anything but complain I usually just go fishing, chalk the day up as a loss, and let him call the shots. By the end of the day I’ll tell him to bring his own boat next time. If the guys got a great attitude it can be a lot of fun. I do everything possible to make the experience positive for him even if it means turning over the trolling motor and sitting in the back. Rarly have I had days where we didn’t get a bite on my spots but filled the boat on the non-boaters. It usually boils down to the fish, when your on them, everyone has fun, and when your not, the faces get long.

Let’s say that your a non boater and the boater insists on fishing the main channel all day long when the river is 6 ft high and muddy and you know the fish are in the back waters and he is reluctant to there!!

I’d say if you packed a lunch, to enjoy it. You’re not going to get much pleasure out of the day. Did ya bring a Bassmasters magazine to read? The boater might need it to brush up on his high water tactics.

Assault with a flipping stick.. I fear you would look ninja like with that weapon. -lol-

As for fishing the main channel in high dirty water, do you think just because the water is high all the fish move to the backwaters? hhmmm.
jc

Careful Jeremy, we don’t want to be givin’ any secrets away.

Yes, ALL the fish move to the backwaters. There is no need whatsoever to try main channel structure. It’s a complete and total waste of your time.

i think this is why alot of these tournoment formats have low turn outs

id take my boat to every one but since im un employed and cant afford a boat and feel im a very good fisherman i get in tournoments and i generally do descent (i always feel if i had a boat id do better) but thats the breaks of the game this is why the team formatts are doing better

you know your partner your not fishing against the guy behind you and you tend to comprmise more

as for fishing the river in high muddy water in the main channel where its predominantly large mouth country go to the back water or at least cleaner water or dead pockets in the main river but if it isnt working you go to do something diffrent some time

Back in the days of the club I would always let the non-boater go to his spots and use the trolling motor. He had half the day and that was divided up from the legnth of the tournament.

I never would fish out of the front when he had his turn cause I don’t like anyone close to me when I am fishing. They get in my way. Especially on hook sets and when working docks.

I usually let them pick which half of the day they wanted.

If I were the non boater I would prefish hard, have a straight up yet respectful conversation about what he expects in his boat, tell the guy honestly whether I was on fish or not … size included…, I would try to concentrate my efforts and plan on fishing the front of the boat the second half of the tournament. I would tell him I expect the opportunity to run the boat during my time though I may opt to keep him up there, and I would stay out of his way during his time. I would try to work as a team understanding we both want to win the tournament. This includes if he sets the hook and misses the fish I don’t immediately cast to the fish… alot of guys I fished draw tournaments with in the past love to do that… it makes me want to paint the top of their head blaze orange and use them like a marker buoy…

If he front ended me, angled the boat so the trolling motor blew the fish off the cover or slipped a wing dam in a way that prevented me to get to the fish etc… I would very cordially and respectfully without aggrivation do the same to him believing he’s the boater and he sets the rules for how we behave in the boat.

If we get along great and its an awesome outing I’d ask him very candidly why he doesn’t fish team tournaments.. they’re alot more fun and its enough to get the fish you want in tough conditions without having to worry about whether the guy in the front or the back is a pain to deal with.

Curt

Hmm… Imaginary line…

In the BFL and the like, it’s a good idea to ask if I can throw in front of the boater (I asked once, and it was suggested that when I have my own boat, I can throw anywhere I’d like). As a boater, I do not appreciate it, but they can throw anywhere they want.

In the Federation? I’m not locking through two pools for Jimmy Nimrod; for Jimmy Johnson is a completely different question.

My half of the time I run the boat & trolling motor. Jimmy Nimrod’s half? Well Jimmy Nimrod doesn’t get to run the boat; Jimmy could run the trolling motor with the understanding that if he breaks it, he then promptly sets his rod down, takes out his check book and writes little ol’ me a check to cover the damage. Now if Jimmy Nimrod is banging into things (as if he’s not too good with a trolling motor), uh, Nimrod’s time is then up infornt of the boat.

Finally, if a buddy of mine tells me that I’ve just drawn Jimmy Nimrod and he doesn’t know chit-from-Shinola, then I’ll take the time to teach him how to run a boat & trolling motor as well as navigate, unless he’s simply, well, a nimrod .

Thanks ,