Derby fishing by yourself

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I fish alone often.  There are derbies which allow this and others do not.  I sent the attached letter on this topic to the LOC Derby and received no reply.  If enough fisherman agree with my logic, we can make a difference.

LOC Derby Participation.odt

[tuffishooker]

They make the rules take it or leave it ! I fish a lot solo and will not enter those derbies ! 

[GAMBLER]

Solo you cant have a witness and its unsafe to fish on the big lake alone. 

[reelintense]

Solo you cant have a witness and its unsafe to fish on the big lake alone. 

Brian, i disagree with this statement in a carte blanc manner. Many days and many people can fish on that lake alone. I go out 20 times alone, yes my boat is bigger and I have autopilot and I know and respect the lake, but given the amount I fish over the course of all of July, I think at minimum the summer derby should be allowed solo if not all of them. If the person at a weigh station is properly trained, they can tell a fresh fish from one that isn’t. I know the spring people need to be more weather and water temp cautious, but a lot of people are capable of fishing alone.


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[GAMBLER]

39 minutes ago, reelintense said:

Brian, i disagree with this statement in a carte blanc manner. Many days and many people can fish on that lake alone. I go out 20 times alone, yes my boat is bigger and I have autopilot and I know and respect the lake, but given the amount I fish over the course of all of July, I think at minimum the summer derby should be allowed solo if not all of them. If the person at a weigh station is properly trained, they can tell a fresh fish from one that isn’t. I know the spring people need to be more weather and water temp cautious, but a lot of people are capable of fishing alone.


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I have seen a couple boats wash up on shore in the news on Lake O over the years on the news.  I wouldn't want the death of someone that was fishing my derby on my mind.  There is enough BS that goes on every year with tournaments and derbies every year on Lake O.  Without a witness, I feel the integrity would go down the drain.  The weigh station personnel at some of the weigh stations are clueless.  One in particular, is a joke,  We were weighing in a laker for the Orleans County derby (this place is also a LOC weigh station) and we had a 14lb coho in the box.  We weighed the laker and the weighmaster asked us if we wanted to weigh in our big steelhead.  Stuff like this happens all the time.  

[whaler1]

Simply, the rules are the rules.
Plenty I don’t agree with but it’s your choice to participate.
Overall I think they do a great job and I look forward to fishing them.


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[reelintense]

I have seen a couple boats wash up on shore in the news on Lake O over the years on the news.  I wouldn't want the death of someone that was fishing my derby on my mind.  There is enough BS that goes on every year with tournaments and derbies every year on Lake O.  Without a witness, I feel the integrity would go down the drain.  The weigh station personnel at some of the weigh stations are clueless.  One in particular, is a joke,  We were weighing in a laker for the Orleans County derby (this place is also a LOC weigh station) and we had a 14lb coho in the box.  We weighed the laker and the weighmaster asked us if we wanted to weigh in our big steelhead.  Stuff like this happens all the time.  

Well you hit the nail on the head, there is already enough BS. However, I swear I see idiots all the time on the water when they shouldn’t, regardless of solo or many... Sodus Pro/Am too many times. Lol.

I just see the failure in the system and solo doesn’t seem to make a difference.... anyone fishing alone can find another ticket person to ‘witness’ for them, unless it’s a winner and concern of lie detector. If the goal is catching fish, and it’s a month long thing, not sure why fishing alone or with 10 people makes a difference.

I agree rules are rules for now.... but like Laker and steelhead rule changes, they do sometimes like to change things! 🤬[emoji23]🤪


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[GAMBLER]

7 minutes ago, reelintense said:

Well you hit the nail on the head, there is already enough BS. However, I swear I see idiots all the time on the water when they shouldn’t, regardless of solo or many... Sodus Pro/Am too many times. Lol.

I just see the failure in the system and solo doesn’t seem to make a difference.... anyone fishing alone can find another ticket person to ‘witness’ for them, unless it’s a winner and concern of lie detector. If the goal is catching fish, and it’s a month long thing, not sure why fishing alone or with 10 people makes a difference.

I agree rules are rules for now.... but like Laker and steelhead rule changes, they do sometimes like to change things! 🤬🤪


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I think we will see a steelhead division back in the 2021 Summer derby.  This one was a complete flop.  2 weekends in with good weather and ZERO walleye weighed in!  As for the lie detector test for BS, it should be used but it has not been used in the past when it should have!

[HB2]

For supposedly not being a good idea to fish alone , I sure see a lot of guys , including myself doing it . 

 

I don't see 2 guys being really any safer than 1 . Some guys  My wife  or children we bring are not going to be a whole lot of help in an emergency . 

 

As far,as a witness , they give lie detectors if needed . 

 

I sure wish they would allow this . I would be out there all the time  . 

Would sell my boat , buy like a 19 ft center console T top  and set it up to the max . 

 

Still going to try and run a one man out of Sandy this fall . 

 

Low key cheap , see how it goes . 

[bluegiller]

The only reason one person is more unsafe than 2 or more is the fact if you fall over board .while trolling there is no way your catching the boat. I would hope if you have anyone with you even kids you have at least shown them how to put he boat in and out of gear. They might be an ace at driving it or be able to come back and get you but they can at least make it stop going away at 2.5 mph . I fish alone alot and I was thinking of at least getting one of the remote kill switches.. a few days when it was really bumpy I rigged a pcs of fish if line to my belt loop and to the kill switch string. Just in case ..but even on a flat day if you fell in the boat is a goner

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[GAMBLER]

For supposedly not being a good idea to fish alone , I sure see a lot of guys , including myself doing it . 
 
I don't see 2 guys being really any safer than 1 . Some guys  My wife  or children we bring are not going to be a whole lot of help in an emergency . 
 
As far,as a witness , they give lie detectors if needed . 
 
I sure wish they would allow this . I would be out there all the time  . 
Would sell my boat , buy like a 19 ft center console T top  and set it up to the max . 
 
Still going to try and run a one man out of Sandy this fall . 
 
Low key cheap , see how it goes . 

If you fall out of the boat alone, you are done. It happened off Toronto last year. The boat drove until it hit shore and was found. They recovered his body days later. You will not be able to swim fast enough to catch back up to your boat. If someone is with you, you can be picked up. So 2 people is a lot safer than one.


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[Peave]

I just installed a Fell Marine remote kill switch on my boat for this exact reason.  https://www.fellmarine.com/  If you are trolling alone and go overboard the engine stops.   

[Chowdaire]

4 hours ago, Peave said:

I just installed a Fell Marine remote kill switch on my boat for this exact reason.  https://www.fellmarine.com/  If you are trolling alone and go overboard the engine stops.   

 

Wow. That looks awesome. Too bad they're sold out right now but since I fish alone 90% of the time I'll be watching for when they get back in stock.

[Rookie Fisherman]

Auto-Teather is another automatic kill switch.

[BottomLine]

They are available on Amazon.

 
Wow. That looks awesome. Too bad they're sold out right now but since I fish alone 90% of the time I'll be watching for when they get back in stock.

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[tuffishooker]

Boater drowns off Crystal beach on weekend ! Boat apparently capsized ; life jackets do not work unless they are worn ! Boater was apparently with his grandson who was rescued .

[Gator]

Brian, I agree that it is safer to have multiples on board, but with all due respect, we are talking about grown men and women. I guess as a derby organizer, you might have to worry about liability if you promoted lone wolfs (although there are plenty of kayak fishing derbies), but from the perspective of personal responsibility - you are only (directly) putting yourself in harm's way, and I think folks should be given credit for being able to make their own decisions. From the perspective of rule management, multiples simply means that everyone has to have their story straight. Cheaters are gonna cheat.

 

End of the day though, the derby owner makes the rules, arbitrary or rational.

[Fishsteelers]

I fish alone and love the challenge of catching and netting my own fish. Two things: Where are you going to go and catch bigger salmon than Lake O. Alaska maybe, good luck with that. Second, I know quite a few people that would get into the derby if they could because they fish alone. Not everyone has the luxury of having a dedicated fishing partner. A launch ticket or seasonal pass should suffice as proof that you fished Lake O.

Just my two cents

[ErieBuck]

The only reason one person is more unsafe than 2 or more is the fact if you fall over board .while trolling there is no way your catching the boat. I would hope if you have anyone with you even kids you have at least shown them how to put he boat in and out of gear. They might be an ace at driving it or be able to come back and get you but they can at least make it stop going away at 2.5 mph . I fish alone alot and I was thinking of at least getting one of the remote kill switches.. a few days when it was really bumpy I rigged a pcs of fish if line to my belt loop and to the kill switch string. Just in case ..but even on a flat day if you fell in the boat is a goner

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I fish alone quite a bit as well, and so I installed the Fell Marine MOB device for piece of mind. No doubt about it, you slip in high seas and fall overboard with the boat in gear, forget about it.

The old style lanyard kill switch just wasn’t practical with all the moving around I do while fishing. With the Fell Marine system, you wear the Bluetooth fob and it kills the motor if you fall overboard. $200 and pretty easy to install. There’s a manual override where you can bypass the system with a simple plug in the event the system quits working, FOB battery dies etc. I ordered mine from Amazon.

This company has GREAT customer service as well.

https://www.fellmarine.com/




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