Quote from: sasquatch on August 12, 2019, 07:40:52 AM
I'm saving up for a guided leopard shark trip.

You're better than this Squatch. Dude works his butt off for his clients and they catch fish. You have no idea how much BS and Red Tape he had to go through to become a licensed fishing guide and start his own business or the amount of cash he laid out for gear. If you think guided leopard trips are a joke, why don't you ask the ten year old boy that just caught one bigger than he is? The look on that kid's face is priceless and for a lot of people who have no fishing experience, or no experience catching leopard sharks from the surf here in SoCal with limited time a guided trip is well worth the investment. And judging from the number of clients he has, it looks like people and the market place agree that there is a need for such a service.

Why doesn't anybody post here anymore?

Snark is a huge factor. Another is the simple fact that this site is not the best place to learn how to catch sharks, especially the really big ones.

So go ahead and make fun of hard working guys trying to make a living out of helping people enjoy and experience the sport we love. In the meantime, we'll be catching more sharks, bigger sharks, and setting more Land Based Shark Fishing history records here in California.   

Quote from: Latimeria on May 11, 2019, 09:11:53 AM
Chip, this is all "pure gold".  I can honestly say I have never met anyone like you in my entire life.  Normally, you have to hand a crazy person a weapon to hurt themselves, but you supply everything... including the entertainment! hahaha

If you think getting pissed off at having some asshole falsely accuse you of intentionally targeting a protected species is funny, wait until it happens to you.

Won't be so funny then.

And if you think condoning that behavior on a public forum is cool, then wait until you get sued for abetting slander and libel.

Now that would be really entertaining.

How many black sea bass have you caught? Aren't they a protected species? Are you intentionally targeting them and using shark fishing as your cover story? Since you've caught so many and continue to use the same equipment, does that constitute proof of an established pattern that you're targeting them? Or does the fact that you publicize your catches of protected species on this board mean that you actually promote the targeting of protected species?

Of course you cut your line immediately once you identified them right? You didn't break any CDFW laws by actually landing them, removing the hooks, and posing for a picture before releasing them did you? Because if you did, some self righteous jerk could document all of your posts and pics on this board as evidence and submit it to CDFW and the district attorney for prosecution.

Yeah Tom, that would be a f@cking laugh riot and you'd totally bend over and take it without defending yourself, right?

You're right, this is pure gold and entertaining.

Ha. Ha. Ha.

But what the f@ck, it's the weekend. Have a beer

Quote from: BenCantrell on May 10, 2019, 02:33:09 PM
Lol, Jesus. Chip, I don't need to be mouthy. I've been shark fishing for a grand total of 2 years, and I'm perfectly content with what I've caught and with what I've released. My ego isn't so fragile that I need to call other people pussies because they haven't been out intentionally targeting great whites, or jumbo sized sevengills or surf hammerheads or whatever your latest cover story is.

Whatever my latest "cover story" is?

f@ck you Ben. You have no right or moral authority to criticize me or my intentions.

I'm fishing for the biggest fish I can. I'm using rigs, gear and techniques that are designed to put the least amount of stress on whatever bites so it can be released as quickly and safely as possible. Everything I'm doing is completely legal. I've met and spoken to so many wardens now I've lost count and not a single one has ever had a single issue with what I'm doing or the equipment I'm using. I'm doing the same thing Chris is, but you accuse me of intentionally targeting great whites and say I have a "cover story" while Chris is a cool guy?

f@ck you.

That attitude is exactly why I and the majority of other big game fishermen don't participate on this board.

We'd love to post up a bunch of pics. But we can't anymore. Too many guys know where we fish or can figure out the spots from the pics. That, and there are too many self-righteous assholes like you that don't know what the f@ck they're talking about posting negative sh!t.

But that's cool, you and the rest of the pu$$ySoul wannabes can go right on enjoying your little circle jerk.

We'll just keep taking the intel

Quote from: Chris on May 09, 2019, 06:14:30 PM

Quote from: BackBayMan on May 09, 2019, 04:26:57 PM

Quote from: BenCantrell on May 09, 2019, 08:14:57 AM

Quote from: BackBayMan on May 09, 2019, 05:03:33 AM
If you ever grow a set, let me know, maybe I'll teach you how to catch real sharks 

Chip, does this count?

Double it and then you can start to talk

I'll raise

What's the matter Ben, not so mouthy or morally self rightous now? What about the rest of the pu$$y hypocrites on this board?

Look, if you want to fool yourselves into thinking you're a bad ass shark fisherman, that's your business. What you catch and post can be a lot of fun on the smaller gear. Just don't criticize the guys that actually are fishing for the big ones. At least when they hook something they have the equipment to end the fight as fast as possible to minimize stress on the fish.

And here's one last thought, if you care so much about the animals and shark fishing, you shouldn't be posing for trophy pictures with them, you should be posting pictures of them swimming away after being released as soon as possible.

Quote from: BenCantrell on May 09, 2019, 08:14:57 AM

Quote from: BackBayMan on May 09, 2019, 05:03:33 AM
If you ever grow a set, let me know, maybe I'll teach you how to catch real sharks 

Chip, does this count?

Double it and then you can start to talk

Quote from: Latimeria on May 08, 2019, 05:47:11 PM

Quote from: Eric H on May 08, 2019, 03:40:17 PM
Ben ran chip off

Quite honestly Eric, I can't believe you trolled the troll from under the bridge? Pretty impressive. 

If you ever grow a set, let me know, maybe I'll teach you how to catch real sharks 

Quote from: Eric H on May 08, 2019, 03:40:17 PM
Ben ran chip off

More like I got tired of hypocritical pussies 

Quote from: Pinoyfisher on December 05, 2018, 10:04:18 AM

Quote from: BackBayMan on December 02, 2018, 07:11:47 AM
What you missed is that this site jumped the shark.

It used to be about land based big game fishing. Now it's about land based sort of big game fishing.

And catfish tournaments.

That's why none of the cool kids post here and all you get are the same six old guys posting the same old sh!t with a couple of noobs tossed in here and there.

This site is good for grabbing some intel on conditions and making bait, but that's about it as far as real land based big game fishing is concerned.

Namaste.

Aww... come on Chip, minus some of the very few members that may have rubbed you the wrong way, you know you miss us. You aren't going to find a forum like this for our side of the coast with mostly like minded individuals to share stories, techniques, and just basically support each other in our fishing goals and personal life. I do get your comment about "true land based big game fishing", but our waters are fairly limited in that arena to begin with. If it were up to me, my posts would only be about sharks and maybe a giant bat ray or 2. Alas, it isn't, but I do enjoy catching the other things too as fishing isn't just a way to decompress for me.  To be honest, my grinner fever was started by some of these guys. Don't be a complete stranger, I enjoy your posts and the camaraderie.

Tom's post says it all.

QuoteIt was just Ben calling out Chip for targeting certain sharks by trying to use loop holes when he knew what he was doing.  Chip's mind was made up and no one was changing it.  Nothing escalated, but Chip just stopped posting here after that.

If true, I would be guilty of a federal and state crime. As a result, the safest thing for me, all the other big game fishermen, and this site is to not post. The "very few members that may have rubbed me the wrong way" make up about half the very few members who still post here. And what they fail to realize is that there are people who want to ban all fishing. If we don't stick together, they divide and conquer. It doesn't start with an outright ban, it starts with a small restriction. And then another. And then another. And...

This is how you lose personal liberties and freedoms. We live in a f@cking nanny state run by crazies.

So we go dark. We don't share. If you don't know, you don't know.

Which is really sad because this site was started as an alternative to another site that went the same way. Look at your site's stats. 15 people online. 1 user. 23 people online so far today, but the only posts are from the same old guys. There's no new blood and nobody is really sharing and it's because of this site's attitude. You can pick up some tips and techniques, but those are mostly for beginners. If you really want to learn, you're going to have to meet people on the sand and earn their trust. I used to reach out because I wanted to give back for the help I got. I don't do that anymore, and that's what's really sad.

The truth is if you want to catch the bigger models consistently you have to do things differently. The result of that, and all fishing for that matter, is that you're going to have by catch. The members of this board have made it plainly clear that they are not willing to accept this and that they are happy fishing for sort of big game. Which is cool, it's just not my thing. Catching the really big ones is hard. You have to do some crazy sh!t. It's not for everybody and that's probably a good thing.

If you ever want to take a shot, you know where to find me...

What you missed is that this site jumped the shark.

It used to be about land based big game fishing. Now it's about land based sort of big game fishing.

And catfish tournaments.

That's why none of the cool kids post here and all you get are the same six old guys posting the same old sh!t with a couple of noobs tossed in here and there.

This site is good for grabbing some intel on conditions and making bait, but that's about it as far as real land based big game fishing is concerned.

Namaste.

Quote from: Pinoyfisher on July 30, 2018, 01:49:51 PM

Quote from: BackBayMan on June 15, 2018, 04:13:39 PM

Quote from: Latimeria on June 14, 2018, 08:10:33 AM

Quote from: BackBayMan on June 13, 2018, 04:14:19 PM

Quote from: Pinoyfisher on June 12, 2018, 01:13:37 PM
I'd be interested in the tip lights.

Talked to Spencer and he's out of tip lights, but he's ordering more. I'll let you know as soon as they're available

I'm interested also.

Cool, I'll let you know as soon as there available

Well??

Check your text messages.

Thanks for your opinions, here's what you can do with them.

And for those of you who may have missed it, or not had it air in your area, the video was shown on the evening news. The coverage was pretty positive and mentioned the safe release of the shark. If you watch the second video, you'll see how happy the woman was when she saw it swim away like a champ

We can't take an adversarial stance and attack people who are not as educated or experienced as we are. That will only lead to them becoming defensive and attacking us even more. We need to educate the public so that they know the truth and help fishermen new to the sport to conduct themselves properly, like true fishermen, so that we can continue to enjoy our favorite activity and protect our wonderful fishery.

Or, you know, you can go fish for catfish

Quote from: BenCantrell on July 26, 2018, 01:42:05 PM
Landing fish that we have been told not to land can be used as fodder for the anti-fishing folk.

Ben, you're out of line bro. The rules and regs say we must immediately release the fish once we identify it as a protected fish. You weren't there, I was, and you couldn't identify what it was until it was 10' away in the shore break.

Yes, at that point to comply with the letter of the law you should cut the line.

But, I have spoken with a number of DFW wardens in the field that all say privately that at that point they want you to remove the hardware if you can do it safely for the fish and the fisherman. To a man they have all said they want us to apply common sense and that they are not going to site anybody for landing and assisting the fish. They all also mentioned having a serious problem with pier fishermen that don't have licenses that hook into a large black sea bass or great white that are afraid to take the fish to the beach to release it because they are afraid if they step foot on the sand they will be cited for fishing without a license. Again, to a man all of the DFW wardens have said they would never do that and they wished fishermen would use some common sense.

If you do decide to land the fish to remove the hardware, do not stop to do anything but remove the hook and return it to the sea. No pictures. No measurements. Just land it safely as quickly as possible and return it immediately.

The agents in the field are the ones who are going to make the decision as to whether or not you are going to get a citation. And if they all tell me they would prefer me to handle a given situation a certain way, then I'm going to do everything within my abilities to meet their request.

This is a situation every land based big game fisherman should think about and decide for themselves what they are going to do before it happens so they know how to react should they face it.

Everybody cool yer jets.

I have contacted the reporter and invited her to come meet us and learn what's really going on so we can get the truth out there.

I also explained to her that by doing these posts the way she does, she is actually causing more people to fish for them because guys see the pics, get excited, naturally want to catch one too, and she has provided them with location and time of day. We all know that means more guys that don't know what they're doing that are going to pose a threat to the fish, themselves, and swimmers.

She will be busy with the US Open of surfing for the next couple of weeks, but we'll touch base again after that and try to arrange a time for her to actually come out and discover what's really happening.

We need to educate everybody involved, not attack the uninformed.

Quote from: Latimeria on July 24, 2018, 11:10:30 AM
I can't post any pics yet as I am taking pics on my phone, but a good amount of cats have been caught.  The weirdest was thinking I was casting to a carp and having a 3# cat take it on the sink!

Casting to a carp?

Oh, how the mighty have fallen