GS7 - What will it take to win it?!

I dont plan on keeping any rf/lings other then for the pot luck.  Now cabs,hali,salmon are fair game for my ice chest

I am going to easy do this in my dreams Best of luck to everyone!

Fish hard & put your time in. For me there was
Elk 2007
Elk 2008
Albion 2009
GMS 2010
Albion 2010
GMS 2011
Albion 2011             before I finally won one. Lucky #8.
& as the number of competitors goes up each year......the individual's chances of winning goes down. With another 50 people OTW this year, including more professional kayayfishers than ever before, it's GOING TO BE A TOUGH ONE! I think that's a good thing.

Tough is good Jim like you say. This everyone gets a trophy stuff is a bunch of crap. Make it as hard as possible and the good will get better, or quit.

Tough is good Jim like you say. This everyone gets a trophy stuff is a bunch of crap. Make it as hard as possible and the good will get better, or quit.

Wow I see the competitive side coming out there Rob. It's all good I enjoy competition but placing in this event is a distant second to being able to join in such a gathering of like minded individuals. Don't get me wrong I would love to win this and will fish as hard as I can to win but c'mon get better or quit. I can't see this being what it's all about bro.

You can't ever win if you quit......The greatest thing about fishing is if you keep trying HARD you should always be 'getting better'. Likewise our bros are also getting better so that our club tourneys get harder as we simultaneously get better individually & as a club. That is good.

I'm kinda outa touch right now. Long days at work lately and my home PC is in for a tuneup - I'm pecking on my iPhone here!   

Anyway, it has occurred to me that we catch and kill a large number of fish during the tourney, but lots of people are very conservative and take few or don't keep any fish. I'd say that very few take a limit on tourney day, but I could be wrong. I'm considering a change for next year, and the number of fish taken is a major consideration.

Last year 141 people actually fished (out of the 153 entered) - I'll bet we killed six or eight hundred fish.  This year if about 175 are on the water then perhaps around a thousand fish will be taken. I'm not proud of that - it's just reality.

I've seen that cleaning table so stuffed full of hundreds of carcasses so many times over the years... I actually think that we, as a big crowd descending on the Cove, keep some of the powerboat fleet off the water when we're around!  Per capita, we probably take fewer fish than most other fishing groups.

there are plenty of lings.  Feel free to kill your limits in lings.  It will help the rockfish

Winning isn't everything. In fact its really nothing.

Tough is good Jim like you say. This everyone gets a trophy stuff is a bunch of crap. Make it as hard as possible and the good will get better, or quit.

Wow I see the competitive side coming out there Rob. It's all good I enjoy competition but placing in this event is a distant second to being able to join in such a gathering of like minded individuals. Don't get me wrong I would love to win this and will fish as hard as I can to win but c'mon get better or quit. I can't see this being what it's all about bro.

I did not mean this tourney specifically. It just seems more and more people want to make things easy so they can do well. It takes little skill to just be there. This is different at this venue. We are all there to hang out and fish and feast. I agree if you hang in there you do get better. If a person is incapable of learning and getting better at whatever they do, yet expect reward for just trying, that is where I have the problem. Kids sports where they don't keep score and they all get a reward. I feel that is wrong. It will make people lazy and not work harder. Welfare state shall we say. This is just my opinion.

I expect to do well at everything I do. I prepare. If I work hard, sometimes it pays off. I do not get pissed or down on myself for losing either.
I hope this clears up what I stated earlier.

Winning isn't everything. In fact its really nothing.

No it is not everything. It's nice when it happens though. For GS, if I just get on the water and catch some nice fish, I will be happy.

Most everyone here has not paid for there hobby by winning. I have for almost 25 years in racing. I'm sorry I come across a little strong sometimes about competition. It's my nature.

Winning isn't everything. In fact its really nothing.

No it is not everything. It's nice when it happens though. For GS, if I just get on the water and catch some nice fish, I will be happy.

Most everyone here has not paid for there hobby by winning. I have for almost 25 years in racing. I'm sorry I come across a little strong sometimes about competition. It's my nature.

I get where you are coming from Rob and it can be hard to ratchet down the intensity, but consider your crowd.  If I were handicapping this event you would be in the top 3, maybe top 1.  You know your shit and put in the work.  I on the other hand am a longshot.  I would buy your rights to your prize today for $100.  I might spend $10 on mine.  But I enjoy the trip, I enjoy the company, and the experience is unique - you can't get the 200 person wilderness kayak fishing experience on this scale anywhere else that I am aware of.  The $25 is a trivial addition in cost for everyone going, so even if someone is a longshot to win they most likely pony up.

If it were to turn in to a cutthroat dick measuring contest among the top producers, it would create, for me anyway, an uncomfortable situation where I'd probably want a lower tier category for recreational/unproven kayak fishermen with lesser prizes and an open class for the more accomplished with a chance at the big prizes.  Maybe that happens when we hit some magic number, maybe not, Eric already has a lot on his plate.  Or, I'd show up and fish and enjoy the day and not pony up the $25.  Several people have already indicated that they do this.  The macho ultra-competitive nature of a few people, if it reached some certain threshold, would reduce the number of people ponying up dollars for sweet prizes that you, Rob, have a much better than average chance of winning.  In effect, you run the risk of scaring away your customers, the people that allow you to pay for your hobby along the way.

I don't mean to single you out specifically Rob, but it is something I've thought about and your post segued in to this thought well.  I appreciate the tips and pointers that you gave very freely when we were in Trinidad and I have changed my tackle and rigging accordingly.  I can't wait to try it out in Shelter Cove. 

As for what my strategy is for winning:
- I spent all winter in the gym in preparation for kayak fishing this year
- I studied
- I listened to people like Rob
- I spent some money to get better fishing gear.  I could still really use a new kayak.  A Jackson would fit the bill nicely.

There are actually some real good fishermen participating in this one (every AOTY champ since 2006? ...plus paid-pros ...plus crafty vets ...plus the local ringers). So it's gonna require a little luck to win....do you feel lucky? Well, do ya?
 

Crash that was spot-on. Good post & hope to meet you @ da Cove!

I feel lucky!!!!

Yes, there probably is, let's say, a top ten list of anglers most likely to win, but they are all really good people who have contributed a lot to our sport. I'll be happy to congratulate whomever wins. The fact is Joe Smoe newb angler can and does win these events. I can personally testify that mediocre anglers, who only get to fish half as much as they'd like to, do in fact win.
As Booby McFerrin says, "Don't Worry, Be Happy. We are going to have a great time.

Eric, it's good to be concerned about our impact on the environment, but I don't think we need to regulate or penalize for total catch at these tournaments. Most of us have been off the salt for 6 months and yes we are looking to stock our freezers or have some extra to gift to family and friends. Weather is not always our friend at Shelter Cove. If you are coming from half a state away,  it would be silly not to take full advantage of natures bounty, one day, if the rest of your trip is going to be spent waiting out bad weather.