Bass Fishing Forum - Westernbass.com

First I want to thank Bill Egen from WON for doing the research on this item before it got out of hand.

I can see it being more of a problem then anything you might as well throw out a trout line and come back in a couple of hours and pick up you catch. I also agree it will be more harmfull to the fish and relate in more dead fish then it is worth.

There fore I am banning this type of rig or any variation of it from the Hook Line & Sinker tournaments. If used and caught using it in the Hook Tournaments the team will be DQ and banned from fishing any further Hook Tournaments.
Gene Buchholz
Hook Line & Sinker

Gene Buchholz wrote:First I want to thank Bill Egen from WON for doing the research on this item before it got out of hand.

I can see it being more of a problem then anything you might as well throw out a trout line and come back in a couple of hours and pick up you catch. I also agree it will be more harmfull to the fish and relate in more dead fish then it is worth.

There fore I am banning this type of rig or any variation of it from the Hook Line & Sinker tournaments. If used and caught using it in the Hook Tournaments the team will be DQ and banned from fishing any further Hook Tournaments.
Gene Buchholz
Hook Line & Sinker

Right on! Good for you. A big +1 . Thinking about the fish 1st. Awesome!

Good move Gene, thats the way it should be. Bass tournaments one rod, one lure, even playing field. Simple. If you cant catch bass that way dont fish tournaments.

Agreed 100%. Thanks.

James

Lame. So fishing a castable rig is like a trot line? That is your justification? I hope you ban double fluke rigs, and shakey head/dropshot combos. Those are just as bad as gillnetting.

Right on Gene!...

BIG BAIT wrote:Lame. So fishing a castable rig is like a trot line? That is your justification? I hope you ban double fluke rigs, and shakey head/dropshot combos. Those are just as bad as gillnetting.

Big Bait, you forgot to include the Double Underspin rig, jig under drop shot rigs....

makes no sense at all...

Gene, without a doubt, new he would get mixed reactions from his decision..It really does not matter why he opted to disallow the use of the A-rig or unbrella rigs for his tournaments..They are his tournaments..I may not agree with him on if there will be increased fish mortality, but I do agree it is somewhat less sporting than some of the other rigs..If you want to use the rig, by all means do so, just keep in mind it is not allowed for Gene's Hook, Line and Sinker tournaments..

mac

It's pretty obvious that Gene doesn't like it, so he has to have some reason to ban it. Unfortunately, he doesn't have any evidence to back up his "increased mortality" claim.

bryanmc wrote:It's pretty obvious that Gene doesn't like it, so he has to have some reason to ban it. Unfortunately, he doesn't have any evidence to back up his "increased mortality" claim.

Well, common sense would dictate more dead fish it would seem. It's tough enough making sure one fish gets properly taken care of, not hitting the carpet, thus losing it's bacteria fighting slime coating, and then trying to get it into the well in short order if it's a deep gut-hooked one, etc..

Now multiply it by three fish wiggling all over the place (no way to keep them all from bouncing all over your carpets), maybe lunkers if you are lucky (un-lucky for them), and one or more gut hooked? Good luck on that scenario- and good job Gene.

And what if and what if and what if....

bryanmc wrote:It's pretty obvious that Gene doesn't like it, so he has to have some reason to ban it. Unfortunately, he doesn't have any evidence to back up his "increased mortality" claim.

+1

I respect the way Bill Egan stated it, he doesn't feel it has a place in the BassFishing tournament scene. But Its legal, so its accepted! Under the proper DFG guidelines. No personal feeling involved. Good Job Billy

This Alabama Rig situation reminds me of playing Call of Duty, Modern Warfare or any other shooter video game..
You got guys complaining about "noob guns" and "he sucks because he uses that Famas" (or whatever) but all while they are complaining, they could be using those same guns too..
SMH

You dont have to participate in his tournaments if you dont like his rules. Simple as that. In a way its a benefit to have the choice to fish tournaments that either allow it or dont allow it. Be thankful you have options. Doesnt that make everyone happy? If you're for the rig, compete in the tourneys that allow it and if you're against it, again, compete in that tourney. But dont grill the man for his decision. Besides, he has more of a finacial gain to promote the A-rig from a buisness prespective.

Revoke36 wrote:You dont have to participate in his tournaments if you dont like his rules. Simple as that. In a way its a benefit to have the choice to fish tournaments that either allow it or dont allow it. Be thankful you have options. Doesnt that make everyone happy? If you're for the rig, compete in the tourneys that allow it and if you're against it, again, compete in that tourney. But dont grill the man for his decision. Besides, he has more of a finacial gain to promote the A-rig from a buisness prespective.

This stance, and the few others alike it are complete garbage. Let's make a real-world comparison to "don't grill the man for his decision"---- Say you live in California, and the Governor and legislature of Arizona pass a law where suspected illegal immigrants are forced to present proper immigration paper-work if detained for breaking the law. As a citizen of California (NOT ARIZONA) are you not allowed to voice your opinion to the contrary, or in support of said law? I'm sick and tired of this "you don't fish it, so you're not allowed to have an opinion" BS. It is absurd to say that people aren't allowed to come to a public forum to support/speak out against an event/product/service that is offered to THE PUBLIC if they are not directly involved in said event/product/service.

Until I see FACTS regarding a massive increase in bass mortality due to the usage of this rig, it is ridiculous to support an all out ban on something that is ALLOWED by state law. Eventhough I'm only in my mid-20's, I'm of the mentality that the fewer the rules/laws, the better.

And if I were a bettin' man, I'd put all the money in my savings to say that Mr. Buchholz will be carrying the product(s) in question as soon as they are made available to the public.

Either way, I think WONBASS is on point, and this decision to ban is a snap-decision that will be proven to be based on false premises, over time.

JMHO... and +1 bryanmc

Andrew Lippert

What is an Alabama rig?

For those who have never actually seen one...


Sorry for the poor picture. The coin by the head is a penny. Total weight, 3/10 oz (9 grams) Obviously not as big and bad as they look in other pictures

The whole topic is about as usless as the Laser Lure. People will buy the rig, throw it three times and then kick themselves in the bean bag for having been sucked into the hype.

Oh, here is another lure that has been "banned". LMAO

bryanmc wrote:For those who have never actually seen one...


Sorry for the poor picture. The coin by the head is a penny. Total weight, 3/10 oz (9 grams) Obviously not as big and bad as they look in other pictures

I think it would look bigger with a 100 bill under it.

Didn't we have these same comments about the biosonix when it came out? I heard a lot of people saying it was like electronic chumming and making it to easy to catch fish. Guys were up in arms that it should be like cheating. This whole discussion is a joke. Besides as mentioned above Gene could have promoted the hell out of it, had some locals catch a few fish on it, took pics and sold the hell out of them in his shop.

He made a decision based on his gut feeling and it is what it is. I can see a fish hooked on this thing, as your fighting it other 2 hooks smacking the fish on the head over and over, not good IMO. I can see this working at some bodies of water, but the delta? I don't see it playing much of a factor. Seems like anytime an organization makes a decision on here its always damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Hmmmm... catching striper is ok in this rig. Been ok for years. Ive even banged halibut on a spreader. Jig + dropshot i just let the fish swim around until another one grabs the loose bait. I think when that happens its awesome! I cant see how a rig like this could make a difference in the hook tourneys. what about a double fluke rig with money minnows out back? Since theres no spreader its legal? that was a rhetorical question. Seems like alot of red tape over one rig thats been in use but now hit the TV and its like a brand new thing no one has ever seen.

NOT a tournament guy, just tackle whore. The difference between the electronic lure banned by X states and this rig is the bama rig just won several big money tournaments.

Gene's running the tournaments, gathering resources to do so, Gene sets the rules- nuff said.
Pete

Sorry people this lure is legal if rigged properly in this jacked up state. His tournament banned it. So what fish it in another tournament circuit that knows the regs or fish it for fun. Besides Brian D says it doesnt work so just put them in the mail to me and forget about it.