|
I used to fish. I was never a hard-core fisherman, but I enjoyed a day on, or by, the water trying my luck and bringing home my catch to cook.
I haven't so much as wet a line in the past decade. Something changed. For me, at least, the very idea of fishing has lost much of its appeal.
Pasted below is an article titled, "ESPN changes face of pro bass fishing." It provides a graphic picture of what's changed.
Scott
PS... I also used to downhill ski, climb, mountain bike...
--begin quoted --
Sep. 21, 2006
ESPN changes face of pro bass fishing
Crowds bigger, contenders wilder, prizes better
By Brent Frazee - McClatchy Newspapers
KIMBERLING CITY, MO. - Flip the channel on your television to ESPN, and
you will get a good look at the changing face of fishing.
Bass boats plastered with the colorful designs of sponsors speed across
lakes during Bassmaster national tournaments, creating a NASCAR-like
scene on the water.
Helicopters carrying film crews hover overhead, cameramen ride along
with contenders to get action footage, and reporters do color segments
on fishermen.
See that guy with the tattoos, break-dancing on the weigh-in stage and
getting in the face of the bass he catches? That's Mike Iaconelli, one
of the new wave of fishermen attracting a wild following.
Local fishermen follow their heroes when they head out in the morning, hoping to get a glimpse of the pros in action.
Now look at the crowd at the weigh-ins. That's a lot of people, enough
to turn little towns like Kimberling City -- the site of last weekend's
Bassmaster Elite series tournament -- into big-league cities overnight.
Bass fishing, a spectator sport? Don't laugh.
Ever since ESPN bought BASS, the nation's largest bass-fishing
organization, in 2001, it has been on a mission: to bring the sport to
the big time. And by most accounts, it is finding success.
"A lot of people have always looked at fishing as a Bubba sport," said
Iaconelli, the colorful pro from Runnemede, N.J. "You know, laid-back,
kinda boring, something the `good ol' boys' do.
"We've always known it was a lot more than that, but we weren't getting
that across. Now, ESPN is changing that. ESPN gives us a platform to
show the excitement of our sport. And people are paying attention."
Some will point out that ESPN didn't invent pro bass fishing. It is re-inventing it.
Before ESPN purchased BASS, the fishing organization already had a huge
membership, a national tournament circuit, a successful television show
and a popular magazine.
ESPN is taking that proven formula and trying to make it even better.
It is adding more of everything -- more money, more national
tournaments, more hours of television coverage, more exposure for the
fishermen -- to chase that goal.
Look at the payouts. When the first Bassmaster Classic was held in
1971, the top prize was $10,000. In the 2006 Classic held in February,
that's what the last-place finisher went home with. The champion earned
$500,000.
The payback for the entire 2006 season? Almost $11 million. That
compares with a total payback of just over $2 million 10 years ago.
"I can't believe the way this sport has changed," said Guy Eaker, 66,
of Cherryville, N.C., who has been on the Bassmaster tour for 31 years.
"When I first got into this, I really thought I was doing something if
I got $3,000 to $4,000 for winning a tournament.
"Now I'm getting $25,000 apiece from sponsors to wrap my boat and my
truck with their logos. I'm making $150,000 to $200,000 a year fishing
-- something I never thought I'd see."
But the pro fishermen, Eaker included, concede that those riches haven't come without a price.
"You have to pay to play," Eaker said. "The entry fees are higher than
they ever have been, and a lot of fishermen don't like that."
Indeed, the pros are paying $55,000 for a season's entry fees before
they even make their first cast of the year -- $5,000 per Elite event.
The entry fee 10 years ago was $1,500 for each Top 100 event and $2,000
for MegaBucks tournaments.
"For a lot of the fishermen, that's the biggest thorn in the side,"
said Brent Chapman, a pro from Lake Quivira, Kan. "That's a lot of
money.
"I'd say half of the 100 fishermen are making money with this new format. But the other half are going broke.
"If that continues long enough, some of these guys are going to start dropping out of the sport. And I'd hate to see that."
|
- Outdoor recreation 
