Registered: Jun 2008
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I've brought it up on this forum before, but can anyone tell me the difference between B.A.S.S. tournaments and our competition events? I'm thinking the fisherman and coon hunter are cut from the same cloth, right? In fact many of them are one in the same.

So how is it they are looked at so differently???

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didnt know they even compared. To me coon hunting is much more entertaining. All the BASS tournaments have the same thing going on about the only thing that changes is the baits and the location. Think about it the boats are all the same the bass are usually around the same size or at least a couple pounds apart.

As opposed to coon hunting where you never know what will happen. Dog fight, coon gets caught on the ground, den tree, deer running dogs. It keeps us on our toes.

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not to mention the millions of dollars you can win with BASS tourneys

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Registered: Jun 2008
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I don't disagree, with your assessment of entertainment value, but of course I'm not a bass fisherman! I think Cynthia, hit the nail on the head... the most obvious difference is the television coverage, the big name sponsors and the and the amount of $$$ being given to the winners. Of course those all feed one another. The television coverage provides the sponsors the advertising, marketing and public appeal they're looking for and in return, the competitors and promoters reap the benefit of those large sponsorship dollars.

Our sport has sponsors too of course, but the magnitude of the investment pales in comparison. Of course there's a big difference in giving a dog box away in front of 100's of on-lookers, versus a pick-up and bass boat in front of millions of television viewers! They get what they pay for, and so do we, but that's all.

The question I have, is why??? Why couldn't the competition hunts have the same coverage, and therefore their winners, achieve the same notoriety?

I'm not talking about springing a camera crew on the final four of some major event. I'm talking about a series of events that are to be covered, and if you enter in them, you'll be filmed. This is no different than B.A.S.S. which has local and regional events, as well as the larger national events. Participation in the local and regional events is boosted, by the opportunity to qualify for a national event, end up on television and potentially walk away with that large purse.

And I’m not talking about wholly commercializing our sport, and destroying it. But if local events are bolstered by larger participation, they benefit and so do all the initiatives they want to achieve outside those events. They can do more conservation for the sport, and put more youngsters in the woods, because they benefited from the funding of competition events. Moreover, they don’t die because of lack of participation or interest. The registries benefit by the larger participation and the greater sponsorship of the national events. And perhaps the watchful eye of millions of viewers will shed some light on what some perceive as the potential problems in the events. Everyone will bring their “A Game” if there are cameras looking on.

So why can't this be done? What are the roadblocks to a means of supporting and promoting those involved???

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look what it done to deer hunting.... made 90% of land off limits to coon hunters.... commercializing it will do the same for the coon hunter... make it an even richer mans sport

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one thing too is the John Q Public and their impressions of the activities...and the fact of hurting the cute little raccoon and putting those poor dogs in that box like that.

ppl can see you catching a fish and winning and then the fish are either let go if still alive or eaten or given to shelters, something and for the most part are ok with it.

there is the appearance of some type of cruelty, for some ppl, chasing that raccoon until it cant run any more and the slaughtered or ripped apart, etc etc.

I think before the audience is there to support it, there needs to be a bigger and better PR campaign to show coon hunting in a better light...since it is done at night.

deer is daytime. hogs are anytime, but are a nuisance and not cute. coon is at night...but they are so cute...nevermind the fact that they could be carriers of rabies and such and can be a menace.

lots of work still needs to be done..imo

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yeah but how do we spread the good word without the help of television?

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Isn't hunting looked at differently than fishing?

Right now there is a coonhunt going on that will pay $40,000 to the winner at the end of the week. Most people don't even know its happening.

Coonhunting is offering more than it ever has but you just don't get a festival type event. The hunters show up hunt take home the money.

I was in PAVO, GA just a few weeks ago and they had a two night hunt that paid out a split of $1,000 and it gave away a truck and several other nice prizes. Entry fee was like $220 for both nights.

Another new truck was given away just a week ago in MS and another one real soon. Maybe this week, I can't keep up.

Think coonhunting is doing pretty good if you want to get in the woods and hunt 6 nights a week and train a hound.

I here you want millions but right now the Coonhunters themselves are not probably away of the thousands that are given away every month. If the coonhunters themselves are not aware of whats going on and really don't support it, you can expect sponsors to throw money at coonhunting.

I have said this before and I will say it again. It has to start at the local level. And Coonhunters have to work together which you guys know more than me is tuff.

About every town in American has a County Fair once a year.
Get your coon club to rent a space. Get a donation of magazines from the cooner and bloodlines and fancy up the booth and tell everyone about coonhunting. Take a couple cute puppies and let them see where it starts.

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Thats a good idea Bruce. We have the biggest ag fair in the state and it would reach alot of people. The game commission has a booth set up there and Im sure they wouldnt mind being set up by a coon hunter

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With a big time sponsor like Garmin, you might see a little more publicity for the sport. I'm sure Garmin won't want to sit by idly for too long before they start pushing more media coverage. Which is both good and bad. There really isn't a good reason why the World Hunt, Autumn Oaks, the Winter Classic, or the breed specific hunts aren't covered by anything more than the local news. The demand for dogs and products will go up, so you will have more culls switching hands and more good companies selling China made products.

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quote:

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Originally posted by patches9452
look what it done to deer hunting.... made 90% of land off limits to coon hunters.... commercializing it will do the same for the coon hunter... make it an even richer mans sport

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brittanernst - exactly!

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quote:

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Originally posted by Bruce M. Conkey
Isn't hunting looked at differently than fishing?

Right now there is a coonhunt going on that will pay $40,000 to the winner at the end of the week. Most people don't even know its happening.

Coonhunting is offering more than it ever has but you just don't get a festival type event. The hunters show up hunt take home the money.

I was in PAVO, GA just a few weeks ago and they had a two night hunt that paid out a split of $1,000 and it gave away a truck and several other nice prizes. Entry fee was like $220 for both nights.

Another new truck was given away just a week ago in MS and another one real soon. Maybe this week, I can't keep up.

Think coonhunting is doing pretty good if you want to get in the woods and hunt 6 nights a week and train a hound.

I here you want millions but right now the Coonhunters themselves are not probably away of the thousands that are given away every month. If the coonhunters themselves are not aware of whats going on and really don't support it, you can expect sponsors to throw money at coonhunting.

I have said this before and I will say it again. It has to start at the local level. And Coonhunters have to work together which you guys know more than me is tuff.

About every town in American has a County Fair once a year.
Get your coon club to rent a space. Get a donation of magazines from the cooner and bloodlines and fancy up the booth and tell everyone about coonhunting. Take a couple cute puppies and let them see where it starts.

---

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that may be the case in some places but not here.... you cannot hunt deer lease land around here and thewre is not enough coon hunters around to be able to rent it from under them.... they pay thousands for hunting rights to places and dont want a dog anywhere near it

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I recently moved to Central Wisconsin, where virtually everyone is a deer hunter, and there are a lot of acres leased by deer hunters. And yes, those that pay for hunting rights to a property, don't want anyone else on it. Not coonhunters, not other deer hunters, not anyone! But, there are a lot of acres out there, and deer hunters haven't leased it all. There is also state ground to hunt.

But the point is this... those commercial sponsors didn't lease that land! They simply sponsored shows and events that made deer hunting more popular than ever. So what you're really saying is that you're angry that deer hunting is more popular than coon hunting.

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It’s real simple, money. The B.A.S.S sponsors pay for most everything. The TV coverage, the advertisement the prizes, all of it. The only reason they do that is for advertisement. There are two reasons for advertisement, to get your name out there and compete with your competitors. Garmin is the only one of our vendors that can sink that kind of money in anything. The question they are going to ask is why? They really don’t have a serious competitor and everyone in the sport that would use one already knows about them. So why would they?

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I'm watching a fishing show right now and guess who just had a advertisment. Garmin!

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It doesnt help that a good majority of people that know absolutely nothing about coon hunting view coon hunters as nothing but a bunch of law breaking, trespassing, poaching rogues and think that all of the dogs are abused and starved. Most also think that everytime a dog is turned loose a poor little cute raccoon is torn to shreds by a pack of those starved and abused hounds and then the dogs are just left out there abandoned. Some of the stuff I've heard from people is just absolutely crazy! It's all bs I know but when they get their little flier from the humane society or see one of those commercials on tv that has the backing of big money and big name movie stars its hard to change their minds. It doesnt help that there has been plenty of things done over the years that have done nothing but add fuel to their fire. One bad apple ruins it for everyone. .... I think it would be hard to ever get coon hunting to go mainstream and not real sure that I would want it to.

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quote:

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Originally posted by VaBirdDog
It doesnt help that a good majority of people that know absolutely nothing about coon hunting view coon hunters as nothing but a bunch of law breaking, trespassing, poaching rogues and think that all of the dogs are abused and starved. Most also think that everytime a dog is turned loose a poor little cute raccoon is torn to shreds by a pack of those starved and abused hounds and then the dogs are just left out there abandoned. Some of the stuff I've heard from people is just absolutely crazy! It's all bs I know but when they get their little flier from the humane society or see one of those commercials on tv that has the backing of big money and big name movie stars its hard to change their minds. It doesnt help that there has been plenty of things done over the years that have done nothing but add fuel to their fire. One bad apple ruins it for everyone. .... I think it would be hard to ever get coon hunting to go mainstream and not real sure that I would want it to.

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quote:

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Originally posted by deschmidt27
I recently moved to Central Wisconsin, where virtually everyone is a deer hunter, and there are a lot of acres leased by deer hunters. And yes, those that pay for hunting rights to a property, don't want anyone else on it. Not coonhunters, not other deer hunters, not anyone! But, there are a lot of acres out there, and deer hunters haven't leased it all. There is also state ground to hunt.

But the point is this... those commercial sponsors didn't lease that land! They simply sponsored shows and events that made deer hunting more popular than ever. So what you're really saying is that you're angry that deer hunting is more popular than coon hunting.

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quote:

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Originally posted by Oak Ridge
Going by everything that you have said, ourit'ort NEEDS to be put into a positive light, and we NEED to educate the general hunting public.

Every year a big name deer hunter is caught poaching....and you know what it doesn't change the fact that deer hunting is growing by leaps and bounds. I get really confused by our own willingness to point out all of the bad things in our own sport.

Anybody have any idea how much money is raised each year for children's hospitals, or local charities? Ever get curious about how much money is raised to help those in our own ranks that fall on hard timm known that I helped organize a fundraiser for a fellow hunter locally a few months ago...and we put a whole bunch of money in his in by donation a. urs of our time, and a little bit of effort...the coon hunting community came together and supported one.f our own....that gets swept under the rug, and we immediately want to point out that there are those among us that may not take care of their hounds like they should...shame on us!

In reality, the biggest difference is that an organization (B.A.S.S.) took an interest in promoting the sport. Not just putting on events, not just collecting this fee or that fee from the sportsmen and women...but took an interest in furthering the "science" of fishing for a specific specie of fish. They took it from a Sunday afternoon past time, to a "major league" sport. They worked to partner with sponsors to raise awareness, and to enhance the image of all of those guys throwing plastic worms in the lake!

Today, as a group, we just don't have that kind of interest from the registries, and from the sponsors of the registries, to even start to be seen as anything but banjo picking, trespassers.

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why dont the deer hunters let yall hunt.even after deer seaso?they sure let ya in south alabama.lot of em will go with me to make sure the coon dies.sounds like yall got it ruff up there.i got 3 public lands one with in 30 mins.concuh national forrest 22.000 acres.the you have blue springs management area thats 10.000 are better cost ya 16 dollars a year.just in season.the upper delta anouther 10.000 acres just kill season.perdido management area just during kill season.and all these turkey hunters want you to kill all the coons you can on there clubs till turkey season then you better stay home lol.i guess we are really lucky down here.hey i sure like to be on that tv show lmao

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quote:

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Originally posted by sidneyjames
why dont the deer hunters let yall hunt.even after deer seaso?they sure let ya in south alabama.lot of em will go with me to make sure the coon dies.sounds like yall got it ruff up there.i got 3 public lands one with in 30 mins.concuh national forrest 22.000 acres.the you have blue springs management area thats 10.000 are better cost ya 16 dollars a year.just in season.the upper delta anouther 10.000 acres just kill season.perdido management area just during kill season.and all these turkey hunters want you to kill all the coons you can on there clubs till turkey season then you better stay home lol.i guess we are really lucky down here.hey i sure like to be on that tv show lmao

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I guess I really don't get some of the points, being expressed???

Is hunting land hard to come by, compared to years past? Yes, many rights and privileges are harder to come by these days! Some is due to those securing their rights and privileges, by leasing land, some by out-right buying it. Some of it is due to people afraid of a lawsuit, from a hunter that is injured on their land. Some is due to people just being greedy and not open to sharing their property. But none of this has anything to do with the better promotion other sportsman are doing for their sport!

The TV shows and advertisers aren't leasing this land, the hunters are. And if coon hunters on average can't afford as much, or willing to pay, what deer hunters are, is that really the sponsors or deer hunters fault??? Are we going to join the president, and pit the haves against the have nots?

Fisherman, Deer and Turkey hunters have done a better job of promoting their sport, and tapping into commercial sponsors, to do so. That has made their sport more popular, and perhaps more "mainstream" than ours. In return, those sportsmen are organizing to protect their sport. Groups of men, women and conservation groups are leasing and buying land to ensure their future is protected. They are pursuing legislation that protects it, and fighting against that which threatens it. They are coming together, and addressing this head-on, in public!

We on the other hand, are finding reasons to blame other sportsmen for our issues, are calling one another names, and asking that our sport be kept secretive! That is all a recipe for failure.

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quote:

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Originally posted by deschmidt27
I guess I really don't get some of the points, being expressed???

Is hunting land hard to come by, compared to years past? Yes, many rights and privileges are harder to come by these days! Some is due to those securing their rights and privileges, by leasing land, some by out-right buying it. Some of it is due to people afraid of a lawsuit, from a hunter that is injured on their land. Some is due to people just being greedy and not open to sharing their property. But none of this has anything to do with the better promotion other sportsman are doing for their sport!

The TV shows and advertisers aren't leasing this land, the hunters are. And if coon hunters on average can't afford as much, or willing to pay, what deer hunters are, is that really the sponsors or deer hunters fault??? Are we going to join the president, and pit the haves against the have nots?

Fisherman, Deer and Turkey hunters have done a better job of promoting their sport, and tapping into commercial sponsors, to do so. That has made their sport more popular, and perhaps more "mainstream" than ours. In return, those sportsmen are organizing to protect their sport. Groups of men, women and conservation groups are leasing and buying land to ensure their future is protected. They are pursuing legislation that protects it, and fighting against that which threatens it. They are coming together, and addressing this head-on, in public!

We on the other hand, are finding reasons to blame other sportsmen for our issues, are calling one another names, and asking that our sport be kept secretive! That is all a recipe for failure.

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