Big Red Classic 2011

[ekbelt]

Hello Fishermen,

This year’s event is planned for the weekend of August 5-7 and we would love to have you put a team together and participate again this year.

We are planning many new things for the 2011 tournament.

1. The weekend will start with a Women’s Tournament on Friday morning which raises money for Breast Cancer and the day concludes with a chicken dinner and the Pro/Am Captains Meeting.

2. On Saturday and Sunday, the Big Red Classic Pro/Am salmon tournament will take place.

3. To increase participation, the fish count being weighed in has been changed to catch 10 fish and weigh in your biggest 5 for each day.

4. If you qualify as an amateur (see rules at www.bigredclassic.com), and were to fish and win in the Pro Division a $1,000 bonus will be paid to that amateur team.

5. Pro Entry Fee’s have been reduced to $450.00

6. Prize money has been increased in the amateur division.

7. Free Pig Roast will be served on Saturday afternoon during the weigh-in.

8. Cash Prizes will be awarded for largest Salmon, Lake Trout, Steelhead and Brown Trout caught each day.

The Big Red Classic supports the Boy’s and Girl’s Club of Greater Holland and your participation in this event increases the amount of money that is donated.

If you want to have a great time with a very good chance of winning cash and prizes, while supporting great community causes, we invite you to participate at one of the best run tournament events on the lake.

Check out the website for more details. The website again is www.bigredclassic.com.

We hope to see all of you there.

The Big Red Foundation Committee

[Just Hook'n]

Not a big fan of the new weigh 5 rules.

I like the weigh 10 rules as it shows who the REALLY good fisherman are.

Typically out of 50 boats the REALLY good fisherman rise to the top in a weigh 10 format. You get a half dozen or so boats that weigh 10 and the big fish get top honors.

Also, the points/weight has a greater range. Say the first team has 200 points, the second place team might have 185, third, 179, etc etc.

With the weigh 5 format I see the ability for a few "average" fisherman to get lucky and don't really like that. Also I see a few ice cubes or water drops making the difference between 1st and 2nd. Keep in mind, I consider myself one of those average guys, but I don't like the reward of being able beat a boat that consistently boats double digits by just getting luck with some hogs.

Personally we may just do the womens event on Friday (because we like and support the cause) and skip the event this year, which would be sad.

This was out BIG tournament this year, and now we might not event have one.

I'm sure no one will miss us, but I just wanted to state my opinion.

[Just Hook'n]

:-). Other thoughts on this?????

[Just Hook'n]

Seriously, no one has an opinion on this?

[plumkrazy]

Was going to fish this but am not cause any one can catch 5 fish

[Just Hook'n]

Phil, that is EXACTLY what I'm saying.

I did some checking this morning to look at what other "Big" tournaments are doing thinking this may be the trend. It's NOT. Ludington, GH, Saugatuck, etc etc. Still all weighing 12 or 10.

MAN, I was really looking forward to fishing this thing because it's our first year staying all summer at Yacht Basin.

[Treblemaker]

We'll fish it but it will require a different strategy and some luck to win it this year for sure. I think they are trying to get more participation with these rules, we'll see if it works. They get a pretty good am turnout each year already (45-50 boats) and we fared pretty well under the old rules. If they can get 60-70 am boats it might be worth it, it is a fun tournament either way.

They only get 6-10 pro teams likely because they run it on the Coast Guard Festival weekend so no GH boats come down. I usually head to GH for the fireworks that Sat night.

[bmsstp4u]

fish it then, everyone bawks at a rule change as long as all the teams are the same whats the difference, go fish and have fun....... just my opinion

[Just Hook'n]

I fully support changes for the sake of the sport. I just don't agree that this will help.

I see this rewarding poor fisherman that get lucky rather than great fisherman who know their craft. Personally I don't mind getting my butt kicked by Dirty Dog, Phil, Kevin, etc etc. I just don't want to pony up $225 to donate my money to someone who fishes three times a year and gets lucky.

Edited July 16, 2011 by GLF
Edited post per request

[bmsstp4u]

I hope thats me, no I understand somewhat but ive fished tourneys that ya weigh the 5 biggest, at least you can catch ten and weigh five. Its all about the fun anyway...

Ive never fished the big red but were gonna try it this year.... Hope to see ya there

[Rob]

Not a big fan of the rule change to 5 fish at all. I fished the grand have and muskegon tournaments this year and had a blast. Anyone can get lucky and pull 5 fish. but to pull 10-12 fish 2 days in a role is more of a challange. I was thinking about fishing holland but not going to happen now. If I did I would only fish the 333

[Splinehead]

I guess that’s me and my family as well!!!!!!!!!!!! We have been fishing here out of Holland since 1983. We have fished some of the tournaments since 1997. Sometimes due to work we only get to fish two or three times a year.

The comradery and friendships that have been developed over the years fishing tournaments is the best part of fishing them. In the early years my wife and my two boys who were 10 and 14 at the time were the only family in the Grand Haven, Holland and South Haven tournaments. No, we never got "LUCKY" but we developed our program and do quite well even though we don't get to fish as often as others.

Edited July 16, 2011 by GLF
Cleaned up thread.

[Splinehead]

The tournament committee IS trying to get more fishermen (that’s fishermen not fisherman). The goal is to help the community and the Boys and Girls Club of Holland. The committee works very hard all year long to put on this show and have been very innovative through the first few years of the Big Red Classic. I for one commend the committee for trying to improve participation. I personally don't like the rule change either. However, when this is done they will go back and review the success or non-success of the rule change. We may or may not see it next year. I will take this oppertunity to thank the committee for their hard work.

One more thing, last year during the Big Red Classic my fishing team answered a MAYDAY call from one of you "better fishermen". This "better fisherman" had no business being 7 miles out in the six foot waves that were building that day. We basically lost 2 hours of prime fishing time pulling our lines, helping the "better fisherman" and working with the Coast Guard until the Coast Guard rescue boat got to the scene. Then it took another hour for us to relax and get back to our program. That boat was full of water and in big trouble 7 miles from Holland. Just remember, if you get in trouble, we might be the only ones around to help.

Don't forget, we enter the 333 as well. By the way, based on your posted 2011 catch, I don't see a "better" fisherman than us.

Edited July 16, 2011 by GLF
Cleaned up thread.

[nojmanloo]

Yes, the goal of the rule change was to get more participants. The Big Red Classic has been fortunate to have many wonderful businesses from the West Michigan community spend thousands of dollars to support the tournament through sponsorships. We all know how tough the current economic times are and it would be easy for these companies to save thousands and cut the Big Red Classic from their budgets.

The Tournament committee has an obligation to the sponsors to get has many participants as possible. Without sponsors there is no tournament. Over the past few years the number of boats has been declining (not just in Holland but in most other tournaments as well). So getting more participants is a priority. Good sponsors and more participants benefit everybody. It allows the tournament to pay 20 spots deep on the armature division as well as a competitive Pro payout.

I know the committee will be asking for feedback from all the participants this year and will be using that feedback to plan for next year’s event. So I would encourage everybody to fish the event, have some fun, maybe win some money or prizes, and then give some feedback. And if you really want your voice to be heard I’m sure the committee would appreciate some additional volunteers.

Jon

Ofishially Hooked

[GLF]

The BIG tournaments are a dying breed. You have to do something to bring some of the boats back into the tournaments, and I believe they(Big Red tournament committee) just did something!

A GOOD team will still have a better chance at winning, because they know how to target the bigger fish.

Edited July 16, 2011 by GLF
Removed quote

[Adam Bomb]

I dont fish many salmon tournaments, wont be fishing this event either, but i understand the rules for 10 fish tournaments, that trout make all the difference in those formats etc etc. But, IMO, it shouldnt matter whether its 5 or 10 fish in a tournament. The playing field is even for everyone. And if your a serious tournament fisherman youll be out prefishing several days in advance and know where and how to get the 5 big bites you need which gives you a HUGE advantage over those that might get out the day before the tournament to try and find the right fish. Most times in this scenario the angler will find fish, but more often than not, theyre just average fish and not the fish needed to win the tournament. IMO, going to a 5 fish tournament would make all anglers better big fish fisherman.

[GLF]

I went through and cleaned up this thread. A word was used in a post that others took offense to. Sometimes we type things and make a post without proof reading what we are saying.

I have the settings for this forums set so that after 5 mintues members are not allowed to edit their posts. If you realize after 5 minutes that you would like your post edited, please contact one of the moderators or myself asap.

I do not issues with discussion on this web site, but lets keep things in check!

[wild at heart]

I'm kinda on the fence on this one. I agree with Mark that this will tighten up the ranks and allows more guys to compete. Still, I think that the better fisherman will have an advantage chosing from their 10. Luck could win it for someone but anyone that can pull 5 15# for 2 straight days deserves to be in the hunt. Thats what a freind of mind thinks it will take, Id say 13# avg takes it. I salute the committee for trying and appreciate the $$$ changes for the ams. Im looking forward to it.

[Twill23]

I praise the tournament committee for trying to get more people into the sport. The sport of salmon fishing is something i firmly believed is taken for granted. It won't be there forever.

The Big Red Classic has only been around 15 years, so its not like its a long running tournament. It's changed multiple times throughout the years. The tournament is a non profit organization aimed at providing a significant contribution to the Boy's and Girl's club....

It's a catch 10 fish tournament. This isnt a catch 6 weigh 5, single division tournament like the Michigan Brown Trout Festival has been for 37 years.. Solid fishermen SHOULD still be able to pull those larger fish consistently. There are several divisions!

In my personal opinion, if your going to sit out a tournament because you feel anyone could win it, than your not confident in what you do, and should start revising the way you fish, and the species you target.

[ekbelt]

The Big Red Classic 2011 is only one week away! Early signup's are looking good!

If you haven't signed up yet, check out the website for all the new things for 2011 including the Catch 10 Weigh 5 format. You won't go hungry as we have a chicken dinner Friday night, Pig Roast Saturday afternoon and Quincy Street Brats on Sunday afternoon.

Online Signup will stay open until Wednesday night at midnight, and late fee's will be waived if you signup online! The late fees will apply if you signup in person at the captain's meeting.

Feel free to email with any questions you might have! [email protected]

http://www.bigredclassic.com

Hope to see everyone on next Friday night!

[Far Beyond Driven]

Sure any one can catch 5 fish, but then, if you only need to weigh 5 fish, would you be trying to catch any 5 fish or would you target big ones?

I've always done really well in big fish tournies by not trying to catch a lot of fish and sort out a big one, but rather by fishing to catch big fish. We had a weigh 10 tournament with payouts for the top 10 fish one time, and we came in with 4 fish. But we had the fish #1, 2, 4, and 7 and our box weighed more than the winning box, which was mostly 4# kings, and we ended up with more loot than the winners. But at 10 points a fish we weren't even in the top half of the pack.

I would be more prone to enter a weigh 5 for the opposite of the reasons posted - I would stand a better chance against the people that fish all the time and have great networks and can stay on top of the fish. This makes it easier for the people who either have a day to pre-fish or come in blind.

[Far Beyond Driven]

Obviously 5 fish were pretty hard to come by this weekend. All the people that thumped their chests and said they would not enter as it was going to be too easy should have as they surely would have smoked the field.

[Just Hook'n]

I stand by my decision. Yep the fishing was tough, but I see the field did pretty well, with over half catching 5. I prefer getting beaten (which I do often) by the few (half dozen or less) that figure out how to catch 10.

Just my opinion.

[Line Dancin]

Sure any one can catch 5 fish, but then, if you only need to weigh 5 fish, would you be trying to catch any 5 fish or would you target big ones?

I've always done really well in big fish tournies by not trying to catch a lot of fish and sort out a big one, but rather by fishing to catch big fish. We had a weigh 10 tournament with payouts for the top 10 fish one time, and we came in with 4 fish. But we had the fish #1, 2, 4, and 7 and our box weighed more than the winning box, which was mostly 4# kings, and we ended up with more loot than the winners. But at 10 points a fish we weren't even in the top half of the pack.

I would be more prone to enter a weigh 5 for the opposite of the reasons posted - I would stand a better chance against the people that fish all the time and have great networks and can stay on top of the fish. This makes it easier for the people who either have a day to pre-fish or come in blind.

I agree with this. I dont have the time to prefish for a tournament. This gives people who show up friday night and never fished a port to at least have a chance. Its one big reason i dont fish money tourneys any more. Why should i donate my money to the guys that fish all the time. I may as well throuw them 2oo bucks and go home. At least in this everyone has a bit more of a chance. I fished Jimmys boat and we just got lucky with the 27lb fish that got us into the prizes. He also took off a couple days from work to fish so did a couple other guys. This means a whole team having to be able to use vacation time. Granted everything changed from friday to saturday and there were no fish where they were. I dont have the luxury of having a job that has a lot of time to get off with just getting back to work so my vacation days when i do get them right now have to be used for things other than just fishing. I may even enter my boat next year in this tournament. The others i still wont bother with as i dont have the time to take off at least three days before each one to prefish.

edit

If more of the tournament trail was like this i may fish a few tournaments. I like the rule and hope they dont pitch it or i wont be in it next year.

[Just Hook'n]

You're making my point, but disagreeing with the opinion.

I would LOVE to lose to Jimmie, who went out ahead of time and caught 12 on Thursday and 11 on Friday and put the work in and deserves to win.

That is a fisherman who knows, works and respects his craft.

I realize that the fishing changed, that's fishing.

I also agree with your opinion about staying out of the tournaments because you don't fish enough to compete with the guys that are out all the time. This is why we have smaller events, like WMFL and others. These are GREAT ways to get into a competitive event for a little bit of money and have a great time. I highly encourage these formats.

I just don't like the big money events being weigh 5. I don't think I'm alone in my opinion, but others have chosen to abstain from the post, which I understand completely.

OH, and I DO like boobs and butts. Just throwing it out there so you don't think I'm a complete moron.