kim bain? 1st woman in classic.

[Wipn_bass24_7]

What is ur opinion about her? I know a few anglers that aren't so "THRILLED" about her fishing with the men.

I personally think its pretty creative, and attracts a lot more women viewers of the classic. When it all boils down, it brought in the $$$.

[Mark Pollard]

Kim Bain is probally a great fisherwoman. I think woman deserve a chance at the classic, but they should have to qualify to the classic just like the men. Her qulaifing thru The Womans Bassmasters is what I think is wrong. The Competition there is not the same as the Fed or Bassmaters. She should have to qualify just like everbody else. Then if she qualifes that way then, yes she should be there and deserves to be there.

[N.A.R]

She was the WBT Classic Champion and the WBT Angler of the year.

But the Open guys belong? Don't they only fish 3 events? And they take 3 guys from each division.

I think the WBT AOY Woman belongs in the Classic, well just as much as the top 3 in the Opens and the Fed Guys. Apples to Apples to me.

[TopH2o]

I feel that the Angler of the year out of the WBT Trail should ALWAYS HAVE A SPOT IN THE CLASSIC. It gives the women something to really strive for, & helps there tournament trail on becomming succesfull. The women have ta start somewhere. There was a day when they thought that women should never go into combat but last year there were two women awarded the purple heart.



And by the way are ya really going to miss one more male angler in the classic? NOT

[chf8500]

I for one don't see a big deal out of which circuit one qualifies on ya got to be good to get there, and you got to be outstanding to stay there. Wouldn't be a something if she comes back next year and makes day 3, times are changing and whether we agree or not after this year I think the girls are here to stay if they can qualify.

[sTony]

She earned the right to be there and she's one heck of an angler and competitor, regardless of gender. There are some fantastic anglers on the WBT and now that they've gained a qualifying spot sooner or later one's gonna bust through and win the Classic. This isn't football or boxing or what have you, it's fishing. It's a lot more about taking advantage of opportunity and being strong mentally. A lady can excel at it just as well as a man.

There are some pro anglers that don't feel the Federation rep has the right to be there either. Course we know that a Federation qualifier has won the Classic and in fact this year's qualifier made the final cut also.

What it really boils down to is this is a way that BASS is growing our sport. I'm 100% in support of it.

sTony

[bonsaibp]

Good for her. She earned it.
For those that say the competition is not at a high enough level in the WBT should try fishing with these ladies. I'd bet there would be some surprises.

[Cooch]

I have to agree here with a few of the other guys. The WBT has a more rigorous path than the Divisionals, and only one spot was awarded to the WBT Angler of the Year.

BASS has the only proffessional women's Tour, I don't see any reason why the best woman from that circuit shouldn't be allowed a spot in The Classic. The women may never prove to be as talented as the men and/or ever win one of these events, yet I think it's cool that BASS has opened the door for the woman to fulfill The Dream too!

As far as any of the guys being pissed about this, that's just yer typical male, bass fishing ego right there. The only ones who should be pissed( And pissed at ony themselves I might add) are the 8 guys who failed to catch more fish than her over two days, or the 4 guys who finished with less total weight!

[DAN]

Yes I agree with Cooch and sTony on this one! She worked hard to earn that spot and there are plenty of good women anglers competing hard in that circuit and should be there and respected!

[Bill K]

If a person, male or female, earns the right, then so be it. It takes work and effort to get to that position, so why not be rewarded.
Again Male or female. Bill K

[mongo]

Not a big deal to me. Didn't BASS add a spot for the WBT ATOY? So what is the big deal? Not taking a spot from anyone.

[Ugly Mo]

Hey Guys,
Kim Bain-Moore rocked! Props to Bassmaster for promoting such an idea. Kim got to play the game and it was a honor for her to be in the classic . Yes! men have been the dominate angler in fishing however I believe female anglers are starting to receive the recognition they have deserved for a quite some time and yes! it is possible we will succeed no matter which gender.
Sea you boy's on the water!..Oh Yea who came in last!!!!

Mona Dunlap

[medfish]

well I say this; when you have a invite only tourney, they invite all types of teams/people. BASS is NO exception. They do this for for many reasons. ( money, exposure, growth and DREAMS) Some say it's not fair or they don't deserve to be there. (those who are left out) Ask any NFL team who wins 10 plus games in a season gets left out of the play-offs only to see a team with 9 wins make it to the super bowl how fair or unfair it is. The NCAA has teams with lossing records in there tourament each year. They qualify their in, period. Fans boosters and what not go crazy, and it they can win 2 games we go crazy and embrace cinderella. (month away get ready). Does every rider in the tour de france have a chance to win? NO!!! but do they ride? YES!!!!!(for what ever reason) (sorry tour of california last week worked saftey bus). Fishing is a sport where gender doesn't matter. Just ask my last G-friend who alway out fished me. (quite I know what your thinking and it's true)
Now lets look at the field. Half of those participants didn't have a chance of winning, they were just happy to be there. Dream fulfilled! If we were going to bet the money on who would have won it would have been bet on 5-10 people. (mine on Skeet haha). But they all showed up.. Just like all teams will show on april 1? for MLB opening day. Most have no chance of the world series (rays, JP Howell represent sactown) but all will play the season.....
But, does that trophy, (their fishing fishing for), not have an "amatuers" name on it??????????? "Brain C"
last but not least does she have an open back seat?

[leachman90]

How about the winner of the WBT gets automatic entry into the elites? Then from there they can try to qual for the classic. As for what Stony said about Bain taking full advantage of her opportunitys,she certainly has.And she has been given alot more chances than most of her counterparts whether man or woman. After all like she said "I'm just Kimmy".

[jrbasspro]

BASS has the only proffessional women's Tour, I don't see any reason why the best woman from that circuit shouldn't be allowed a spot in The Classic. The women may never prove to be as talented as the men and/or ever win one of these events, yet I think it's cool that BASS has opened the door for the woman to fulfill The Dream too!


Well said Cooch

[Moose]

Seems to me that there are a lot of guys that feel threatened by her being in the Classic. If I am correct, BASS giving her a berth did not take away one from the men. They added an extra berth for the WBA didn't they? If that is correct I really can't see the big deal. I don't see it anyway. She didn't end up last so she beat a few of the men. maybe that is what everybody has their panties in a bunch over, they don't want to get beat by a girl.

[FATGUY]

when the season starts bass says this is who qualifies so many here so many there and ect . if she met one of the qualifications according to bass then she sure deserved to be there. as far as someone saying " maybe the women will never be as good as the men thats a crock . i remeber when some people said the AFL was inferior to the mighty NFL . then joe namath And from there we know what happened.. when the season starts everyone is at zero .. and whoever qualifies. ??? QUALIFIES !!

[Oddball]

Brilliant move by BASS. In a declining market, with factories, dealerships, and local bait shops closing doors, this move will help maintain needed revenue. It is a great marketing strategy, as well as being fundamentally fair.

Women make up 50% of the population. As they enter the sport there will be new sales for boats, rods, reels, and other fishing related equipment. That's good for all of us.

Let WBT qualifiers into the Classic. The cream will rise to the top, which was evidenced during the 2009 Classic.

As participants in this sport we had better be inclusive, and not exclusive, otherwise we'll be fishing tournaments by ourselves. And, that makes for a lousy pay-out; and, by the way, I would probably still be first out of the money. So it really wouldn't affect me anyway. Dang it!!!! I'll catch 'em next time for sure!!

[Cooch]

As far as someone saying " maybe the women will never be as good as the men thats a crock .Ii remeber when some people said the AFL was inferior to the mighty NFL . then Joe Namath And from there we know what happened.. when the season starts everyone is at zero .. and whoever qualifies. ??? QUALIFIES !!

HAR! HAR! HAR! You comparing or calling Willie Joe a woman? HAR! HAR! HAR!

[mark poulson]

Well, he did wear pantyhose.

[leachman90]

I'm not sure if it as much of a man/woman thing as much as it is a CLASSIC thing.The Bassmasters Classic is looked upon as he biggest tournament ever.It is true that there are some that have made gender the main focus but I hope not the majoridy. It was just a couple weeks ago that Justin Lucas was beaten by a woman and not once did I hear her gender brought up. Judy has won 3 times and has 15 top 10s with FLW. And in her only 2 events with BASS she has a 5th and 26th place finish(total earnings of over #145,000.00). Now Kim best finish aginst the men(pro or nb) was a 5th place(her only top 10) in the 05 BASS open.She also has about 4 or so mid 20s finishes as a nb(total earning $25,000 or so).These #s do not include the WBT.Her resume is no near as impresive as Judys and who knows how far Judy could go if she had ever chose to go pro.I bet not to many people would have a problem if it would have been Judy in the Classic just looking at what she has done in bass fishing.
To me it is more about the tournament than about the gender.Kim has had alot handed to her to get where she is.

[mark poulson]

Ask Aaron how many time his Mom Carol has outfished him from the back of the boat.
I wish this had happened sooner, so my girls could have seen it while they were young enough to be inspired.
As it turns out, their choice, soccer, takes away from my fishing time.

[RipnRog]

Kim gave up a lot to fish the womens classic as it cost her the sponsorship with Kellogs because she missed and FLW event. Looks like she made the correct choice. She is a great stick and a very nice person and she deserved to be at the classic as she earned it.........

[Ricky-S]

I have fished with Kim and Judy. Kim is the real deal. I was not impressed with Judy.

[Cooch]

The BASS Master Classic has always been the measuring stick of the best anglers in the world competing for the title of World Champion. This is NOT, an "invite" only event. BASS has designated various spots to a wide array of anglers from the weekend joes, local Pros and their Elite anglers. It only makes perfect sense for the growth of the sport to have them open a spot to the "Best" woman who qualifies through the ranks provided. Each of the anglers making the Classic, MUST qualify through some rigourous means to get there.

I don't agree with Leachman's statement, that Kim has had a lot handed to her. She earned her way here from Australia. She's fished through the ranks of various Big Time events. She WON, the WBT's Angler Of The Year, and with that, she earned and qualified to get into the Classic. Every other woman had that same oppurtunity through the WBT. There were a lot larger number of men fishing this year's event, who's names I'll forgoe in an effort to not insight a riot here, that where "handed" a much easier path to grab to this years Classic, than Kim. It could have been any number of women that made it, Kim, out fished them all and earned her berth! I say, that's an awesome feat on her part!

[StockOption]

She earned the right to be there and she's one heck of an angler and competitor, regardless of gender. There are some fantastic anglers on the WBT and now that they've gained a qualifying spot sooner or later one's gonna bust through and win the Classic. This isn't football or boxing or what have you, it's fishing. It's a lot more about taking advantage of opportunity and being strong mentally. A lady can excel at it just as well as a man.

There are some pro anglers that don't feel the Federation rep has the right to be there either. Course we know that a Federation qualifier has won the Classic and in fact this year's qualifier made the final cut also.

What it really boils down to is this is a way that BASS is growing our sport. I'm 100% in support of it.

sTony

Well said and I agree completely.

[jamie cyphers]

ok i may be a little bias! As Kim and Andre are Legend Pro Staffers!
But when Kim approached us about the possibility of losing her sponsership to go to the classic, we thought it was an incredible opportunity to step in and support her in this and future endeavors!
i think it shows a lot of maturity in our sport to include her and future woman in the classic. remember just a couple of decades ago guys didnt want girls to fish at all! i have drawn a number of woman over the years, and a couple have been absolute sticks!

At Legend we have arguable the finest womans team on the WBT!
we have had tremendous success with sales because of these woman! i have had the opportunity to fish with members of our team and guys these girls are the real deal!!

i think its awsome!

[sTony]

Pam Martin-Wells can flat out fish and has been doing so for some time. Only a matter of time before she makes her Classic debut.

Cindy Hill, Lucy Mize, Juanita Robinson, Angie Douthit, Tammy Richardson, Cindy VanHorn, Penny Berryman... I could go and on about how many really skilled female anglers we have out there that are extremely competitive.

Anybody local can tell you Carol Fagundes, Wendy Tochihara and Julie Smith and others are all darned good anglers as well. I'm sure I'm leaving a lot of names out and that just goes to further prove that the ladies are here and ready to get some of theirs in this sport.

sTony

[N.A.R]

Comparing Kim to Judy is ridiculous.

Boater vs. co-angler is apple and oranges. Not even close! There isn't a snowballs chance in you know where that Judy could have the success that Kim had in her first year on the WBT. Sorry!

[basscat09]

I fell in LOVE with KIM Baine-Moore........while she
drop-shotted off my dock in the FLW.....here on the River....

Friendly and a Pure Fisher.....watch her fish, nothing else....she has the skills.

AND IS HOTT...........!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

I have pics dang..hmmm

[wccjanel]

basscat09,
You took this a different direction. Not that I disagree.
Alls I know is, not only did she qualify and fish the Classic, but she outfished Velvick.

Jamie,
I hope folks don't get the idea that Legend boats are for girls. Legends are awesome watercrafts, and I know some of the fem-sticks that you have fished with, and I agree.

RipnRog,
Right On!

Kim,
Good job!

[tunaman]

I hope folks don't get the idea that Legend boats are for girls.

Not because of Kim, but Rae El sure drove that point home!


Just messin' with ya Rae! Love and miss you my friend!

Roger

[basscat09]

basscat09,
You took this a different direction. Not that I disagree.
Alls I know is, not only did she qualify and fish the Classic, but she outfished Velvick.

Jamie,
I hope folks don't get the idea that Legend boats are for girls. Legends are awesome watercrafts, and I know some of the fem-sticks that you have fished with, and I agree.

RipnRog,
Right On!

Kim,
Good job!

Velvick has a History of getting his a$$ kicked by a Girl.....No ?