Todd H. Stirring It Up...

Todd posted a question on his facebook page recently about why people thought that the Crappie Tourny trail wasn't as popular as the Bass Tourny trail. I guess I've never thought about it that much. You have to be blind and deaf to not see how popular Crappie fishing is these days and it seems to only be growing. He got some really good responses and I have to agree with him in general.

In a nutshell, he said that trolling and live bait is the reason more sponsors aren't on board supporting Crappie tourneys. I would be interesting if there was a Tourney set up similar to a Bass tourney but with two rods max. Also prohibit trolling and no use of live bait. I think you'd see a whole new game in town!

Here's Todd Huckabee's Facebook Page.

Todd's a good guy, and a friend of mine too. I already had put my 2 cents in on his FB post before this thread popped up here for me. I've personally been doing tournys since the mid 1980's off & on. Tournament wise, competitor numbers have lessened quite a bit over the years, and sadly, several associations folded as a result of this. The tournaments drew huge numbers back in the 80's compared to now, and offered much better payouts. But currently, I think you are right too - more people are interested in Crappie fishing as a sport on whole than before, and interests in the sport are on the rise. Todd really believes that the one man, single pole, no live bait profile will bring in the big sponsorship money like the Bass circuits have. I am not so sure, but I think it may be a piece to the puzzle anyway. It sure would be nice to see those increases at the weigh-ins! I'd love to be making my living just by fishing in tournaments. But personally, I'd still like the choice to have a partner or not to compete at them too.

<,"}//>{ Tim

Doesnt it also have to do with the fact that there will always be more "money" in bass fishing? I fish for all species, and I know that the cost of my crappie gear is substantially less than bass gear. Since there is more money to be made, sponsors spend more money, and it gets more attention. I would say it has to do with the size of the crappie vs size of the bass, but when you compare catfishing, its probably close to crappie in popularity on the trail, and I suspect for the same reason. Lots cheaper to catfish than bass fish.

I'm with Todd on the "one man, one pole."
Who wants to see two guys sitting down watching 8 poles with two minners each. Most of the public would not understand, prob make comments like, "well if I had that many rods I could catch them easy."

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Originally Posted by Slabs Inc

I'm with Todd on the "one man, one pole."
Who wants to see two guys sitting down watching 8 poles with two minners each. Most of the public would not understand, prob make comments like, "well if I had that many rods I could catch them easy."

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Funny you should mention that. I've seen several videos on spider riggin' and nearly every one had at least a few comments about "how can you NOT catch a fish with all those poles in the water" or "do you think you need all those poles to catch a fish?". I'd venture to guess that those people are not die hard fishermen but rather a sampling of the general public. Many don't understand it's a lot like wingshooting. Sure, you have hundreds of pellets in the air, but there's a whole lot more sky around the target than there are pellets!

I'm not against spider riggin' or any other legal form of fishing. Heck, I started out learning how to do it from EB and did it for a year or two. But I would like to see a one pole, one or two jig per line tourney. I'd bet it would catch on pretty quick simply due to the challenge it represents.

I saw Todd's Facebook post. I am not sure it how much impact it would make, but he is right in that the manufacturers of plastics probably aren't going to pump much money into tourney circuits that have a bunch of boats spider rigging minnows. It is an interesting topic.

I will say that I have gotten more into spider rigging and have been using minnows more, partially with the upcoming tournaments in mind. If tourneys were rod in hand and artificial baits only, I maybe wouldn't be as avid with multi rod setups .. but can't say that for sure. I want to learn as much as I can about the many techniques.

Still learning is the reason I took a few lessons from EB and Winger and need more..An old man isnt to old to learn and besides until they have a tourney that is 1 man 1 rod as I prefer to fish guess in order to compete I needed those lessons on riggin with a zillion rods....that spankin I got last year didn't taste very good.....Ranger

I am prepared to try to beat all comers be it one pole or 20 I just want to fish live bait no problem jigs no problem I have been criticized by some around here for carring a bucket of minners all the time think about this who wants to drive 125 miles and they wont bite a jig I dont

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Originally Posted by Big George

I am prepared to try to beat all comers be it one pole or 20 I just want to fish live bait no problem jigs no problem I have been criticized by some around here for carring a bucket of minners all the time think about this who wants to drive 125 miles and they wont bite a jig I dont

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I know what ya mean BG, but I'm thinkin on the tourney trail, it would help greatly if there were high dollar sponsors of those minnows/live bait. I haven't bought a minnow all winter and have fished strictly jigs. Minnows will come during the spawn or when I have guests in the boat (kids).

As far as Crappie vs Black Bass, I think part of the reason is the cost to fish for Crappie is realatively cheap compared to keeping up with what it costs to chase Bass. That said, there's not that many companies that would be willing to sponsor big money Crappie fishermen. The boats, motors, electronics etc would be in play, but they'll only do so much since so many are already using their products.

Todd is right when he looks at it as one rod, one fisherman, no live bait. In my opinion, it's at least a step towards better tourneys.

Another thing about Crappie fishermen vs Bass fishermen, there are many Crappie fishermen that only fish the spawn. Bass fishermen at least fish Spring and Summer. Makes for a lot more sales of their items giving them more reason to sponsor equipment.

As a recreational Crappie fisherman, I like things the way they are. How many of us see someone Bass fishing on the lake and work their tails off, spend so much money on rods and equipment and get the rears handed to them from the lack of fish due to the pressure Bass have had for the last 35 yrs?

I personally do NOT want to see more people vying for Crappie in the waters I fish. If I'm a tackle manufactuer, I'd like to see the lake covered with guys fishing and hopefully a big percentage using MY STUFF.

It comes down to MONEY, and if that's the case, the green carp boyz can have it so I can fish and be left alone to enjoy a healthy population of decent Crappie.

:angel::popcorn Happy B'day Reaper. Some day, I would like to crawl into your boat and jerk some jaws. I am glad to see you are recovering from your recent episode.

I like the one pole, artificial bait concept, too. But as to getting sponsors, and it's just a thought, wouldn't it make sense that a rod company would be more willing to sponsor someone who's using 6 of their rods as opposed to a bait company where you might go through a $3 pack of their baits?

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Originally Posted by cricket george

:angel::popcorn Happy B'day Reaper. Some day, I would like to crawl into your boat and jerk some jaws. I am glad to see you are recovering from your recent episode.

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The two of us in my boat might sink it. We should fish out of your Ranger. Besides that, I've still never learned the Spider Rigging thing. Thanks for the Bday wishes.

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Originally Posted by Sandwich Maker

I like the one pole, artificial bait concept, too. But as to getting sponsors, and it's just a thought, wouldn't it make sense that a rod company would be more willing to sponsor someone who's using 6 of their rods as opposed to a bait company where you might go through a $3 pack of their baits?

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I thought the Rod makers already sponsored quite a few tourneys and fishermen?

Reaper - 1) I dont own a ranger and:dono 2) I have not spider rigged enough yet to get the hang of it either:fish and finally 3) I am working out and starting to lose weight. :deadhorse In closing, I am "cricket george" and not Big George.Rofl:welcome Its OK, your forgiven. Just breath a little deeper and everything will be OK. I still wanna crawl in your boat. I will bring mu own life jacket too.

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Originally Posted by cricket george

reaper - 1) i dont own a ranger and:dono 2) i have not spider rigged enough yet to get the hang of it either:fish and finally 3) i am working out and starting to lose weight. :deadhorse in closing, i am "cricket george" and not big george.rofl:welcome its ok, your forgiven. Just breath a little deeper and everything will be ok. I still wanna crawl in your boat. I will bring mu own life jacket too.

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doh!

You forgot the biggest difference I catch alot more fish

How do you know?

Guys it's not the 'live bait' thing or the 'trolling' thing that hurts(see the walleye circut). IT"S THE ENTRY FEES!!!! You are NOT gona see BIG payouts on $100 -$200 entrys. YEP there will not be big money till that happens. Would be nice to see fishers get paid, at the very least, entries down 15 to 20 places. Not to the top 3. I've seen tournaments series FAIL when they GUARANTEED $1000 to the WINNER. Low enteries fees @ no fishers doomed them. Sponsers give product and incentives to those who use there products. Not much $$$$ to tournaments that have a field of 30 boats who paid so little to enter. Will this cut out fishers,,, YEP. Not everyone can do or afford this HIGHER level of compitition. As the $$$ get bigger,,,, so does the corruption. Be carefull what you ask for. Do you honestly believe that the 'Bass Pros' don't have a network of fishers helping them???RoflRoflRofl You have tournament directors READY to come to this level 'IF' they even thought ONCE they could attract enough entries.<*)}}}><

Chatt Im with you I have talked with Todd about this several times, a few years ago they said Capps and Coleman couldn't compete unless they were sider-rigging and they proved them wrong. The other thing is that Walleye and Bass get huge, up to 20 lbs. Crappie are a panfish, much smaller! If you make the rules then fish by them, Todd, Barry, and I all catch fish differently. Techniques are the great thing about fishing! But the reason that crappiemasters and CrappieUSA still allow the partner and the trolling is they want to keep it family structured! There are tournament trails for several species of fish across the world and they all have different rules! Some live bait, some trolling, some artifial only, and some casting! The entry fees are the big thing with interest though. Not the techniques! I have been guiding for years now and the first question I ask my clients is "What do you want to do today? Meaning are you fish hungry, do you want to learn techniques, spots, behavior etc. Crappiemasters had kicked the idea around last year to have less tournaments with higher entry fees, and bigger payouts! The guys that are serious about competing will fish the others will not! Just my 2 cents! EB

RoflRofl Ya, 'Lucky Strike' would just love to hear about a $20 grand crappie tournament won using there lures,,, casting, trolling, down rigging, etc. any way!!! Yep $20+ per lure!!! Most crappie fishers complain about spending a $1 for lures. Even jig sponsers like to hear their product named even when 'minner' was attached. If you are winning,,, a lot,,,,sponsers find you. The bigger the payouts,,, the more attention. Thats the name of the game,,,, ATTENTION!!! <*)}}}><

This deal could happen over time, with the right p.r. guys and a little hard word.

4 tournaments, 4 states, 50 boats(teams), $500 per boat, per tourney. Must be prepaid!! for all 4 tourneys to compete. $20,000 goes back to fishers each tourney. $5000x4 goes to top 4 at end of season(tournament ?). Tourney directors(???) get $$$ from selling adds. Just thinking:fish<*)}}}><

Funny how we know all about these inside things isn't it Chatt? Especially since our friends and families have tried to make these very same things happen for several years on the Crappie circuits. $100 -$200 entry fee's just will never produce the kind of money people are willing to travel to compete for anymore in any numbers. I think I agree with your $500 per event amount statement. It would get it to come much closer, but there better be 100% manditory polygraphs for all paid finishes to accompany those bigger pay outs! So many stinking cheaters out there...

We need to go wet lines together again sometime soon! I'll buy the pizza this time! Love ya man!

P.S. As an after thought, most of you wouldn't believe the well oiled fishing machines that is the Team of Caps & Coleman when they are single poling minnows on slip bobber rigs on the wood- poetry in motion! I've never seen it done better! I Think I'd rather compete agaisnt them spider rigging! LOL!

<,"}//>{ Tim

Tim,,, you & me and prolly several others can remember the LARGEST field of crappie fishers at any tourney. RATHBUN, IOWA. Crappiethon had over 600 entries on a 12000 acre lake. 50 miles to find lodging. Church groups fed contestants because resturants full. Hauling in bait in by the truckloads. It wasn't fishing,,, it was like musical chairs. Don't leave your spot,,,, there aint any other to go to. <*)}}}><

LOL! yup! Dad and I took 17th or 23rd at that one, been so long ago, can't remember anymore. We'd of placed higher too if it hadn't of been for me flipping off the aerator switch instead of the boat's bilge pump on! Caused us to lose around 2 lbs with the big deads in the live well that we had to swap out for early caught dinks. I'd sure love to see that level of interest again! We caught a $1,000 tagged fish there that year too!

<,"}//>{ Tim

It would be so nice to see Crappie fishing tourneys get the popularity of the BASS gig. But, I personally don't want to watch people spider riging to win a tourney. I feel like the best fishermen only need one pole and no live bait to catch good fish; cause then you would have to really prove yourself!
When I fish with a certain couple of guys - there is a rule - NO MINNOWS IN THE BOAT! Jigs and lures only - it makes you step up your game, and I think that is how tourneys should do it!!!! My 2 cents?

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Originally Posted by bighook

It would be so nice to see Crappie fishing tourneys get the popularity of the BASS gig. But, I personally don't want to watch people spider riging to win a tourney. I feel like the best fishermen only need one pole and no live bait to catch good fish; cause then you would have to really prove yourself!
When I fish with a certain couple of guys - there is a rule - NO MINNOWS IN THE BOAT! Jigs and lures only - it makes you step up your game, and I think that is how tourneys should do it!!!! My 2 cents?

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My answer to this,,,, step up 'your game' & BEAT the minners with jigs. Look AGAIN @ the walleye circut. Yep,,, teams & live bait. Look at their entry fees. Good Grief fishers. You are not 'elite' while argueing who's best on the 'bank'. <*)}}}><

I was refering to the biggest fishing contests being the BASS tourneys. They are the ones making all the money, and they don't troll with spider rigs or use live bait. Live bait would change the game considerably - but then it wouldn't be about skill and knowledge so much, as anyone can throw out a minnow and cork and sometimes luck into a giant fish. I was just saying to set the skill level high and get the lure industry to really throw money in the pot, they are not going to want to see live bait dominate the wins in the circuit! Walleye on the other hand is a different ball game- they do great with the live bait and partner system, but it doesn't create the fame and money of BASS tourney champions. Now if Kevin Van Dam and Edwin Evers started fishing as a team using live bait in Walleye tourneys I would change my mind!!! :) Tourneys aside - it's all good - catch'em any way you can!!! :)

I am not sure we can really handle the truth if it comes down to it. Comparing the sport of bass fishing to crappie fishing is to me apples and oranges. Bass fishing styles absolutely favors tackle manufactuers and chatt is right walleye fishing compares much more favorably. THIS IS GOING TO STING A LITTLE, crappie fisherman are poorly organized and too cheap to make tournaments go on overdrive. That being said I applaud what you are trying to do in OKlahoma and hope maybe we could get some guys in kansas organized to help. We need to recruit fisherman-we all know plenty of people who are capable of fishing tournaments and who would even be a role models for the other guys. Crappie.com has helped organize fisherman somewhat but we need to do more-and there is a lot of guys who won't share anything with other fisherman and tear down each other even on these boards-those actions are not helpful. Fort Gibson fall tourney was great-and its too bad the newbies and novice fisherman didn't show up -they would learn a lot.
Live bait-Capps and coleman won world championships because of their brains not their minnows-find the biggest fish-catch em-that's all it boils down to. If you don't wanna fish with minnows don't- don't wanna watch em-don't. But there is way more too it than what's on the end of the line.

AMEN CHATT and FRANK!!!!!! WTG.

The 'TRUTH' be known,,,, it's NOT lure manufactures giving the most $$$$ to WINNERS. <*)}}}><

I crappie fish quite a bit and I won't ever fish a tourney unless it under 2 rods and artificials and neither will any of my avid fIshing friends. They should try it and see what happens.

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Originally Posted by taylmatr

I crappie fish quite a bit and I won't ever fish a tourney unless it under 2 rods and artificials and neither will any of my avid fIshing friends. They should try it and see what happens.

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:yikesSCARED???RoflRoflRofl <*)}}}><

It's not working now and PROB won't work untill we wash our hands of live bait, 8-16 rods and trolling. Sure it catches fish but like I said before "the public won't understand" Media coverage, that's where the real sponsors, and real money comes into play. It's not about baits, rods, and reels. This is what we need, and it will NEVER happen with 2 guys sitting in the front of the boat with 14 rods hanging off the boat with live bait. The whole format of a crappie tour. v/s a bass tourn. is like apples to oranges. Exampe. One guy fishing for 5 bites, v/s two guys sitting down, fishing live bait on 20 different rods, catching 100+ fish then culling down to 7??????? Check this out.

The Bassmasters - YouTube

Just me ranting. I know we all view things different but this is how I see it. The truth be known I don't know if I want crappie fishing to even go there.

Scared? Not hardly. The whole point for me ,is me tricking a fish. especially if I was fishing a tourny. I mean come on with all the high tech electronics these days who can't find fish. There is something special about knowing you caught that fish and not another fish doing all the work (minnow). If you wanna fill up the freezer use them by all means I sure have. Just a tournament seems a venue for people who wanna advance there talents and take them to the next level not just meat hunt. Just my 2 cents, others may not feel the same.

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Originally Posted by Slabs Inc

Just me ranting. I know we all view things different but this is how I see it. The truth be known I don't know if I want crappie fishing to even go there.

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Just 1 question. Do you have any idea of how much the 'Pro's' pay 'UPFRONT' to compete at this level? <*)}}}><

Bringing big money in requires big sponsorship, and the dollars just aren't there for the sport of crappie fishing. It's the boat companies that are the big tournament sponsors for bass fishing, and the average crappie guy is spending what, 1/3 of what the bass guy spends on a rig? The poles, baits, boats, etc... are all substantially cheaper than bass fishing gear, so the retailers aren't going to stray from bass fishing with their sponsorship dollars. Crappie fishing is never going to be bass fishing, so it needs to evolve into its own thing. If you want the payouts to get anywhere near those of bass fishing you're going to have to think outside of the box, outside of the industry, and find those sponsors who can benefit from placing advertising budgets (as small as those are these days) behind a family oriented fishing trail. It's that or Boone Pickens decides to do for the sport what he did for OSU football...buy success out of his hip pocket.

And no offense to you tournament crappie guys, but I think you're extraordinary in your desire to fish competitively for crappie. Most crappie fishermen I know fish for food and would not be interested in fishing for competition (especially since they may have to give up a hole or two to win ;) ). When they do get competitive it's more about bragging rights and who put the most fish in the freezer than who caught the 7 biggest fish. In fact, most of the crappie fishermen I know despise bass tournaments and the rude behavior the anglers often display on the water - behavior brought on by greed. I'm not so sure bring in the dollars and all the attention and hoopla would be good for the sport - I imagine most of you would end up missing the "good ol' days" when things were simple...