Are They Kidding?

I cannot quite, figure, how they're going to do this, but I've just read where the Illinois School Association is working their little hearts out to.........."Make Bass fishing an Interscholastic Sport" for their high schools!
I teach, fly tying/ casting, to high school kids on a volunteer basis and I love doing it. Tying, as it were, makes sense in the degree it is somewhat artistic, (or can surely be, with Salt Flies, as we all know), but it's not a "Letter Sport", like the ball sports and swimming, etc. are of course.
I don't know, why as I said- this article hit me as so funny, but it did!?! I just can't see...............some 6'6"-325# kid, walking down the school's main hallway, with a Bass Team letterman's jacket on, bragging to his buddies about "Just lettering in Largemouth"!
Are they going to have a "Cheerleading Squad"? Young, no doubt female, cheerleaders, decked out in 3wt. neoprenes, trying their best to lead the shore side fans in cheers and rallies, using wood framed nets, instead of pom-poms!?
"Interscholastic", if I'm not too mistaken, also means "To compete against, other like schools, within the same district". WHO is going to buy these teams their $25,000.00, 300HP, Bass Sleds, trucks to pull them with, not to mention the rods, lures, ad infinitum?
No, as the article stated....... "it's not a fly fishing idea, they're talking; "Like the Bass Master's Pros do it", type bass fishing!
Sorry..... but it was just too funny, to place all the ideas, of say, interscholastic football into the same idea as bass fishing. :-D

 

[salvelinusfontinalis]

GO DONEGAL HIGHSCHOOL!

NATIONAL BASS CHAMPIONS!!!!!! :-D

i find that idea ridiculous also

 

[jayL]

Daniel Boone will own all of you. Go blazers!

Even though we have no football or baseball team, I hope that Drexel gets a fishing team. I'd be all over that.

 

[tomgamber]

Boise schools have Rodeo teams. Why not bass fishing if you have the resources.

 

Well, I'd suppose, because the high school rodeo teams are generally tied into the National High School Rodeo Assoc.
However, perhaps unfortunately or not, there's not a LIKE association, for bass fishing for high school age students?
Maybe, they could tie into Bass Masters, youth programs somehow but unlike rodeo, (as I can see it, anyway), where does something like this eventually stop? In, high school rodeo, you ride a bull, rope, etc. But, if Bass fishing is started............. when does "Interscholastic Salmon Tournament fishing, earning your Steelhead letter and maybe a letter in Bone fishing", begin?
Personally, I find it GREAT that someone wants to get kids, perhaps, off the streets and interested in ANYTHING, besides video games and such that are NOT otherwise perhaps physical enough to play football or baseball, etc.
But, I only posted this, because of the way the article made it so dominant that; "Bass Fishing To Perhaps Become a Letter Sport for Interscholastic Sports in Illinois High Schools"!
NOT to use too many quotation marks, now, but "the visions of this, when compared to a Friday night football game" just became too funny to me!

 

[jayL]

Don't fret about the quotation marks thing, my man. Mo was just pointing out how your style makes your posts read much more candidly... Don't change your style based on that.

 

[tabasco_joe]

I believe there are already college bass teams. I sort of remember there was a Big Ten Bass tournament last year.

 

[pete41]

This is an activity that any kid could be involved in, so far better than sitting around watching jocks and jockettes doing their thing.
Money better spent.