King Of The Lake Spring and Fall

[visionquest]

Yvan with a Y". LOL

Good thread and I am impressed that you are into it early and ahead of the game. WOW  Nice...

Thanks for the efforts to put these on, absorb the potential risks and be the one to take the bullets as they come.  These events take time and a big effort by you, your family, Paul and the crew.  Thanks and thanks to all tourney event organizers.  They allow us the opportunity to play.

Some good ideas being written here.

With that said:

I favor the $400 entry.  Everyone likes to save a buck or two and this has been the concensus so far. Go with majority, esp. if it gets some new teams in. 

I like Darryl's idea of a twofold calcutta.  $100/$300. This helps the "jackpot" for the guys who wanna play for some more money-since the payouts may be lower due to lower entries? It allows for the same at a lesser level for the guys who may not be as confident but still wanna play for some extra money. I agree that we can only enter one calcutta.

I favor the current format of 5 fish, two days overall and one entry fee.  However, (6) fish would be cool to see from (5) and consistent with the WHI, Titelines and Tom's event.  Unless there is a lot of players who wanna keep it at 5. ?  No added long boxes.  Weigh 5 or 6 and call it a day...  Better for the fishery, faster weigh ins and its been successful as is.  It would also prevent a major blow out of fishing it tough and someone runs 40 miles and hits a grand slam...

I don't like the idea of breaking the event into two events.  The Pro-Ams did it and it equated to a lot more checks, longer weigh-in, longer wait at awards ceremony... for a lot of checks.  It definitely took away from that overall winner feeling and it became a shared win. Did I shared win ?  Granted, I was part of the tourney committee, I can honestly say that it felt very "broken up" and less prestigious with a split format. 
(I wish others would chime in on this one, either way) (If you fished the NY Pro-Ams in 2012 and maybe received a check etc.. Thoughts )
I say pay one entry and if your in, your in for BOTH days...  If your not ready for these or cannot commit to both days, then maybe there are other events and other one dayers that will suffice.

Vinces P.'s idea (verbal) about doing random boat checks in lieu of all boats was a great thought and would make it easier on the tourney committee.  Or boats could draw another team and perform their own self policing boat checks each morning?

I liked the day 2 top 10 observer deal you added last year BUT it needs to be more real and effort put into obtaining them for all boats.

The spot gutting/checking of the fish after weigh ins was added last year or this spring (can't recall) but it was not carried out for all the events?  It was a good added feature to the evets but it was not carried through ?  Maybe that could be brought back?

8 rods is cool.

Hard, really hard to decipher Pro fom AM... Harder to enforce...  Your format already tries to level out the playing field and to break up pro-am would make it way more difficult on yourself, be hard to enforce and you will be writing up another rule which decides who is and who is not ? Long sentence..

I think a late fee (moderate amt) should be added to teams that get in late.  Its unfair to guys who pay early.  It should be a late fee thats not excessive but enough to "remind" them to pay on time at next event.  That late fee goes directly to the payout or..... Can go to the team with the lowest score at that event as a consolation prize ?

Some good ideas brewing here. Thanks for opp. to post thoughts.

More to follow.

Capt. Pete
Vision Quest

[SpoonPullers.com]

[tyee3904]

I think the 8 rod rule should be dropped to 6 rods, 8 rods is too busy for most boats under 24' i.m.o.
Also 3 man or under teams are automatically at a disadvantage right off the bat with the 8 rod rule.

[FishAbout]

I like to fish the KOTL but the price has jumped up as has the other tourny's have.  Small boats can do well though. How many times has Pressman placed top 10.  I used to fish them with my dad in a 17'6ft boat as a two man team.  We placed 6th a couple years ago.  I don't buy bigger boats will do better because they can run more rods.  I fished on a team this year in a 20 ft grady white and we did well running a 4 and 6 rod spread.  We placed 10th in the fall KOTL and 14th and the tightlines.  We caught more fish in the fall KOTL then most did but not as lucky for size.   One advantage to big boats is they can run far in a rough chop but they can say they are at disadvantage when the water is calm and small boats can go faster.  It is hard to have a 4 man team though with small boat.  Having a $400 entry fee would great to see.  Cost me a lot of money to fish them and If they keep going up I will not beable to fish as many.  Have to take three days off work and then the entry, food and motel. 

[tyee3904]

Let's do the math, 8 rods X 8 hours fishing =64 hours X 5 Tournaments =320 hours.
6 rodsX 8 hours fishing=48 hoursX5 Tournaments=240 hours.
Hmmmm, those extra 2 rods account for 80 hours fishing time over a season........
So i see a clear advantage having a 4 man or better team vrs a 3 man or less......
How many more fish do you figure you can possibly catch having 2 rods down for an extra 80 hours or 16 hours per tournament?
6 rods would clearly level the field.........

[TyeeTanic]

Let's do the math, 8 rods X 8 hours fishing =64 hours X 5 Tournaments =320 hours.
6 rodsX 8 hours fishing=48 hoursX5 Tournaments=240 hours.
Hmmmm, those extra 2 rods account for 80 hours fishing time over a season........
So i see a clear advantage having a 4 man or better team vrs a 3 man or less......
How many more fish do you figure you can possibly catch having 2 rods down for an extra 80 hours or 16 hours per tournament?
6 rods would clearly level the field.........

Why are you perfectly okay to suggest changes to tournaments here, but are adament not to consider improvements to other tournaments (GOSD)? Confusing ...

[tyee3904]

Why are you perfectly okay to suggest changes to tournaments here, but are adament not to consider improvements to other tournaments (GOSD)? Confusing ...
[/quote]

Why are you hounding my posts on this board??
What is your agenda?

[TyeeTanic]

No agenda - just confused why you want to shut down conversation on pretty much the same kind of topic for the GOSD, and then are perfectly okay to request changes for the KOTL series.  I was hoping you would see a lot of our point of view on GOSD through your approach to the KOTL here, instead of being selective. Anyhow, I'm done - won't bother you about it anymore.

[getitwet]

Ithanks for the imput gus and some really good things by Pete.  We have discussed things and Im glad he has put up on here.

I have to put one thing to rest though.  It is staying an 8 rod limt for sure.  I dont think I will ever consider that rule change.  Reasons are this:  Its as much of a disadvantage for a big boat that runs 10-12 rods per day to take out 4 rods out of his daily spread as it is for a small boat doesnt feel comfortable running 8 to fish 6.  I know many small boats running states side running 9 with three guys now.  4-6 or 8 rods, pesonal preference is what it comes down to.  some days 2 might be enough!  I dont want a lottery i want a fishing tournament in fact I dont want a fishing derby where a lucky fish dictates the winner as it does in the GOSD  I think the winners are very good fisherman but there is a lot of luck involved in boating that good fish not just catching it.

I am not one to like the long box short box format just thought of an extra feature as a side pot and threw it out.

I know there are a lot of excuses not to fish tournaments but I m trying to get rid of some of those in order to grow.  Every tournament was down this yr in entries, its time to turn this thing around.

We are also bringing back some raffles, food and non alcoholic drinks.  Beer tent is too costly and teams can bring their own without losing license. 

Keep it coming and please dont make this personal in any way it is going well and really want to keep it this way.  We want to have this settled by Oct 15th with dates and format.  Hope we get there.

[tyee3904]

Sorry to hear that about 8 rods, Tightline Shootout is 6 rods and no big boats are complaining about that.
Count me out then, no way in hell am i overcrowding my 22' boat so i can run 8 rods.
Plus if i was ever in the top 10 after day one i would need 5 onboard, 1 extra for the observer.........
It's hard enough to find 2 other guys to fish with.........
It's not a matter of being capable of running 8 rods, it's a matter of smaller boats having to crowd the boat in order to run the eight rods.......
Good luck, hope it works out for you........   

[fishdawg]

Great thread so far.

Love the idea of $100-$200 / $300-$400 2 day  5/6 fish box Calcuttas

As its been mentioned, I amongst many others though havent been able to participate in the past because home/work & unpredictable weather has not made it practical to throwing the cash in to make the early registration deadline. But from a business standpoint, I fully support the reasons for having it in place.

For this past Spring KOTL I did however committ to playing along in the Big Fish Friday, only to have it blow beyond comfort for our teams boat.

Also being on a "small boat" I have no problem/concerns only having 4/6 rods vs. 8.  Sometimes less IS more 

I like others appreciate your efforts in this whole deal Yvan. A simple update of results and standings via a Twitter Feed and a FB page might have gone a long way too...

[rockandtroll]

Just a few thoughts......

We prefer the 6 rod format over 8 rods. We often just pull 6 even when the rules say we can pull 8 and we run a 31 ft boat.. I think that 6 rods would keep the small boat vs large boat on a more level playing field.

The advantage we seen in having a larger team was in the amount of fish that can be kept to stay within the possession limit rules. In the spring kotl and in Wilson with a 3 man team we hit our boat limit and could not keep upgrading. More team members would have let us keep fishing. 30+ fish days but cookie cutter size fish make it tough to upgrade more than a few ounces at a time.

We like the 2 day format. There is always a chance for redemption if day one didn't work out so well. 
We travel down from Georgian Bay for these tournaments and not being on lake O on a constant basis sometimes make it hard to get on the fish in a one day tournament.

The no communication rule helped level the field so we no longer find our single out of town boat fishing against a fleet of locals and us not having anyone to call for info.
Have met and made new friends at every tournament. Have learned a lot about tackle and techniques from them. Tournament fishing will make you into a better fisherman.

The entry fee for the tournament is not the big issue. Our expenses for fuel and travel far outweigh the actual entry fee. A couple hundred dollars is not going to make or break a tournament for us. The only tournament we decided not to fish because of the expense this year was Tom's tournament in Oswego. We worked out the trucking and boat fuel costs vs the chance of taking home a cheque and reluctantly decided not to enter.

Missed the final KOTL event this year due to engine problems but we are looking forward to next year and the new engines.

It's going to be a very long winter!
Wish everyone well and looking forward to seeing you guys next spring.

Mike

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[DDay]

Not sure if you are considering new dates Yvan. However I have heard people say they find labour day weekend to be a tough sell. The weekend before might be better suited for some.

[Yankee Troller]

Not sure if you are considering new dates Yvan. However I have heard people say they find labour day weekend to be a tough sell. The weekend before might be better suited for some.

Couldn't agree more!

[tonyb]

Question:  I recall hearing that there was a rule change for how the fish must be stored during the KOTL tourney now.  Is it true that you can no longer use a livewell?  Must be a cooler with ice that is equipped with a drain?  Only reason I bring it up is for consideration of smaller boats where deck space is at a premium   

I haven't fished the series in years, but I am enjoying following the developments here.  This is a good positive discussion, and I hope that your turnout improves next year as a result Yvan.   

[getitwet]

Hey Tyee

Im sorry to hear that you wont join us because of 8 rods vs 6 rods.  But I have to clarify one major thing.  You said the tightlines is 6 rods and nobody is complaining about that.  I haveto tell you that probably over half the field is complaining about that including sponsors and tackle shops.  Less rods means less participants, less tackle buying ect..  But lets make no mistake unless I dont talk to enough people or the same people it is a topic that comes up at every event that limits rods to 6 in a negative way. 

Let me say this though, This is what makes different formats work around the lake.  Some 6 fish, some 5 and some 12.  Some 2 days, some 1 day.  The cool thiong is for the first time in many years that I have been doing this (14) the organizers are all getting along and are all trying to put better products available for us to fish.  I love fishing other events whatever the rules are.  If you enter any tournament with the sole reason for fishing is winning you will be very dissapointed and not last long in the tournament scene.  If you go to enjoy all or at least most of the situation or weekend being with friends, meeting new ones, competing, getting your blood flowing before shotgun start, counting down the hours or min left because you need that last fish even if doesn't mena shit in the standings but you dont want to come in without a full box.  If you dont get that, your in the wrong sport becuse even the ones that are fortunate to win over time are lucky to break even.

Darryl,
I have thought about it a lot actually,  The 24th weekend could also work, what do you guys think.  I know a lot of boys like the labor day festivities in dalhousie.  I was also thinking of sat,sun fish with blow day on Mon if neccessary.  This would help get 2 days in some weekends.

I feel like a preacher sometimes on here, but I love the competition and love to compete.  I think most that fish these events do.  I am not looking at making this the biggest payout or the largest entry. I am looking at getting as many people invested in loving the competition part of this sport and having good payouts for as little as possible.

Keep this thread going, good ideas will come of it for many