Retention Question

we can get ol' eya at bay to answer that one for you buddy.....how about JMairey? he went AWOL long ago,,,,only to post a stupid comment after my encounter in the GWS thread (the one he moderates)
If they leave the nest, we dont need them or their transparent membership.

  Hate to say it, but I think they recognized their addiction and sought out a cure (unlike the rest of us!  ).

or they wised up either way...it is their loss.

I was just wondering myself about members like Howard from Bodega, Eric from Carmel and James (OnecrazyIndian). I miss my old fishing buddies.  You guys still out there? 

Do I dare mention ... Skygreen. 

I think we all know why she isn't with us.

Anyone remember Ark?  He was the one who planted the seed, telling me about rockfishing from his kayak.  Who knew??  (not me)

Do I dare mention ... Skygreen. 

I think we all know why she isn't with us.

Haha, I found Skygreen.

http://www.yakfishing.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=4746

Haha, I found Skygreen.

http://www.yakfishing.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=4746

Thought about registering just to reply to the poor fella:

No you don't.  No it wouldn't.

From the Fishbowl

 Every forum is always in a state of constant decline.

All forums start off good, enjoy a "honeymoon period" in which they continue to be good, and then steadily decline... from the point of view of each individual observer.

You get involved in a forum because it appeals to you. If it didn't appeal to you you wouldn't have joined in the first place. Eventually, however, one of two things will happen: the nature of the forum will change so it's no longer the way it was when it first appealed to you, or it will stay the same and you'll just get bored of it.

It may be possible for a forum to change for the better after you've become involved in it, but I can't say I've ever seen it happen.

The First Corollary: The Four Ages of Forums

Every forum enjoys four ages:

1.The Golden Age
2.The Silver Age
3.Limbo
4.Utter Crap
When you join a forum, unless you're a charter member, you'll be regaled with tales from the regulars about how the place used to be so much better. As such, the Golden Age is defined as some time prior to your joining the forum. You, of course, enter the forum in the Silver Age. It's not as good as the legends tell you it used to be, but it's still as much fun as you'll ever experience it.

Eventually the forum changes or you get bored, as described in The First Law. You hang around, however, because you remember how good it used to be and there are still enough remnants of that to keep you coming back. This is Limbo.

You'll spend a lot of Limbo telling people how much better the place used to be, oblivious to the fact that now is, to them, the Silver Age.

In some cases Limbo can last years, extended by occasional cycles that cause the forum to become interesting again or shift closer to the way it was. But it will never be as good as it was in the Silver Age, and all these cycles do is prolong the time it takes for the forum to descend into the realms of Utter Crap.

The exceptions to this corollary are charter members, who can't look to any predecessors for a Golden Age. To them the first age is Golden and from there it's a fall straight into Limbo.

Corollary Two: Stating the Bleeding Obvious

Since the boundaries of each age are defined by the participants, you will never truly convince someone else that your timeline for a forum's decline is right and theirs is wrong. To them you'll either be a jaded old fogey who can't see what fun everyone else is having, or you'll be a clueless newbie who has ruined the place, damnit.

Haha, I found Skygreen.

http://www.yakfishing.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=4746

Thought about registering just to reply to the poor fella:

No you don't.  No it wouldn't.

This one is hilarious "How to Find a Kayak Partner by Skygreen". http://www.yakfishing.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=4723

Polygamist Al needs a new wife 

What ever happened to the guy who left his yak on his car roof, had it stolen, then had a new one purchased for him through NCKA donations?

Who was that?

Kayak James was his handle,,,,,pissing me off was his game!  please do not bring him back

Kayak James was his handle,,,,,pissing me off was his game!  please do not bring him back

Ha! That's right. I remember it being extremely hard biting my tongue back then and not asking "Why the F**k did you leave your kayak on your roof anyway, idiot".

It was cool to see NCKA's generosity....but I sure as hell didn't pitch in anything.

Dude Mike that was hilarious! And so true. Where'd you get that? (I'm gonna copy & send it to some friends = thanks)

I've noticed people tend to come & go on here. And sometimes I wonder where they went & why. Everyone has their own reason. But, in general, this site retains a higher % of members than most fishing sites.

These are my Good Ole Days!

Kayote yer killin me haha! I went and clicked on those links and found an excellent question from one of our former-members lol...it reminded me of the question once posed to Abking "what are those thingys that go on the line?" or whatever she asked...

    I prefer to think the absentees have all found their all-time honey-holes and don't want to risk even a chance of letting us claim-jumpers know where they are by posting even a keystroke.   

reminded me of the question once posed to Abking "what are those thingys that go on the line?"

Ah, yes, the famous swivel enquiry...   

I must admit, I was never clear on what Skygreen did to get banished.  Please, don't take it upon yourself to fill me in!  IDC.

From the Fishbowl

 Every forum is always in a state of constant decline.

All forums start off good, enjoy a "honeymoon period" in which they continue to be good, and then steadily decline... from the point of view of each individual observer.

You get involved in a forum because it appeals to you. If it didn't appeal to you you wouldn't have joined in the first place. Eventually, however, one of two things will happen: the nature of the forum will change so it's no longer the way it was when it first appealed to you, or it will stay the same and you'll just get bored of it.

It may be possible for a forum to change for the better after you've become involved in it, but I can't say I've ever seen it happen.

The First Corollary: The Four Ages of Forums

Every forum enjoys four ages:

1.The Golden Age
2.The Silver Age
3.Limbo
4.Utter Crap
When you join a forum, unless you're a charter member, you'll be regaled with tales from the regulars about how the place used to be so much better. As such, the Golden Age is defined as some time prior to your joining the forum. You, of course, enter the forum in the Silver Age. It's not as good as the legends tell you it used to be, but it's still as much fun as you'll ever experience it.

Eventually the forum changes or you get bored, as described in The First Law. You hang around, however, because you remember how good it used to be and there are still enough remnants of that to keep you coming back. This is Limbo.

You'll spend a lot of Limbo telling people how much better the place used to be, oblivious to the fact that now is, to them, the Silver Age.

In some cases Limbo can last years, extended by occasional cycles that cause the forum to become interesting again or shift closer to the way it was. But it will never be as good as it was in the Silver Age, and all these cycles do is prolong the time it takes for the forum to descend into the realms of Utter Crap.

The exceptions to this corollary are charter members, who can't look to any predecessors for a Golden Age. To them the first age is Golden and from there it's a fall straight into Limbo.

Corollary Two: Stating the Bleeding Obvious

Since the boundaries of each age are defined by the participants, you will never truly convince someone else that your timeline for a forum's decline is right and theirs is wrong. To them you'll either be a jaded old fogey who can't see what fun everyone else is having, or you'll be a clueless newbie who has ruined the place, damnit.

Mike's info here is definitely enlightening stuff.  When you experience a phenomenon such as being on a forum for over half a decade, and that forum actually proves to be a place where the strength of community (within the site but also chills, hookups, tournee's...etc.) is always growing and evolving right along with changing fishing regs and opportunities, there is a certain dynamic that perhaps allows a site such as this to avoid the pitfalls of forum aging.  NCKA has actually managed to change itself in ways that are directly tied to the energy and compassion of the membership (very seriously, look at the recent AOTY/ESA issue) and because of those good energies the freshness of the experiences here remains as a strong elixir for everyone from long time members to brand newb's or converted lurkers. 

Personally, I have tried to maintain a goal of sharing and caring, as Frankfish put it a few years back, because that is what I enjoy and what I feel enhances my life as a working father of two young kids who loves to kayakfish.  There are milestone wake-up calls like Craig's classic "Lemmings" post which I truly value, and which have the power to keep the forum from falling into a rut where the lack of a system of social checks and balances could ultimately lead to some kind of demagoguery.  (I had to refresh my knowledge of that term by Googling it  )  I don't look at what I have done on this board for 6 years as any kind of demagoguery, because I've not used false claims and promises, but I do think the term can apply because Craig was actually questioning my motive, and it probably looked like I was trying to use incredible outdoor opportunities as a means of gaining social power.  Irony here, I was!  I didn't know it, but, believe me, I've come to know that fact (watch out - I'm still doing it!   ).  I don't seek power through popularity for no reason.  I actually intend to enjoy and spread good vibes - Love, Fun, Camaraderie.  These things have clearly been the benefit that has kept me planted here.  There are so many opportunities for growth here, and looking at this community as just a stop on the path is acceptable - that's anyone's choice.  I maintain that what we do here actually makes using this place as a stepping stone a bad choice.  Live it.   



(BTW:  I'll send the link for my new forum soon.   )