Naw, the sign belongs on the idiots in Olympia.  They earned it!

As a club we should have a voice in what happens with "OUR" fish in this state. Clubs have a much stronger voice than individuals, isn't that part of the reason we're in a club? How about it board of directors? Use your pull!!!
Has there been any other suggestions made to the WDFW?
1) How about making largemouth catch & release only on these waters.
2) How about a more restrictive slot limit for these waters. ie: Largemouth from 0" - 24" cannot be kept. Can be retained and released alive from a livewell.
This would protect them from all the meat fishermen.
WBC, it's still early in the year. Another "better" suggestion could still be sold to the WDFW if it would benefit all user groups better.
Mark

Well......the plot thickens.....the folks at Mardons at mardonresort.com have posted the no largemouth ruling on their site and have stated that the Tournament Directors themselves were the ones who ASKED for this blight to be placed on the largemouth at Banks...........hmmmmmm...................will we ever get a straight answer?.......

I will give you another twist.  Remember the old saying the "squeaky wheel gets the grease"?  Having been a government employee for the past twenty-two  years has afforded me many opportunities to work with federal, state, and other local agencies, including DFW, WDNR, Corps of Engineers....the list is long.  I have developed relationships with many folks in decision making positions and can tell you this.....This rule, though we have all been told is science based, do not for a second think that is true.  Someone has been chirping about the alleged decline in largemouth population and propogation for many years to someone at a high level.  I recall hearing about this four years ago at a spring tourney at the Tri-cities.  The anglers that targeted smallmouth were upset becaue they lost to largemouth fisherman and that the LM were easier to catch and they should not be allowed to be caught and that the permit should reflect that.  I thought nothing of it, but my point is that there are political winds within our own group of warmwater fishers.  Just another thought over coffee in the morning.  That is how rules get changed.  Knee jerk reactions are the order of the day in Olympia across the board.  What DFW staff does is when they get heat to make a rule change, they figure out a way to justify it to the very folks that pay their wages.  THAT IS HOW IT WORKS!!!  If Western really wants to change how things happen, we better raise our dues and start paying for a lobbyist in Olympia.  If we don't, we need to live with the wacky rules that get put out by the department, which are not based on science (has anyone seen a copy of the study that preceeded the rule change?  Nope..), but political pressure.  Do not be surprised when our tournaments will soon be limited to only certain bodies of water in teh state during the spawn.  That is next.  Maybe we should start having squawfish tournaments....

Kirk

OK, my brain hurts from all the stuff....but some little acorn of "reason" has been hammering away at me for over a month and I just realized what it was....

How in the H@## can the Federation back this restriction on Banks for the Jamboree???? THEY ARE THE ONES NOT RELEASING THE FISH PROPERLY - NOT US!!!!!

They take the fish back out in the barge every evening and release them, if they are not putting them back in Largemouth waters, why are we being penalised for their inefficiency??

So.....was there a letter that memebers were signing or could sign to protest the Banks restriction.......? If there is/was a letter.....I want to add my name on the protest! Is there a meeting in Oly we can go to as a CLUB and GIVE OUR COLLECTIVE VOICE???

Everytime I've talked to Gary (twice), and everytime I hear a story from someone who has talked or listened to him, his story changes.  It is my opinion that Gary has become a pawn for some of the birdbrains in Olympia.
For example on the two occasions I talked with him he cited two differant people as being responsible for the information upon which the change in rules was based.  One person was from the F&G office in Euphrata.  The next time we talked at the Monroe show, that person with an entirely different name, was from the Olympia F&G office.
Compare that story with what he stated happened at the lake drawing meeting in November and you have THREE differant stories.  Now we have the no-wake bouys for water turds (PWC's)surfacing again. 
Do you think the folks who own Sun Banks Resort are going to stand for no wake bouys in Osborne Bay very long?  Hmmm
Something smells fishey, and it is certainly not a LM bass from Banks Lake.
I would just like to get the straight story and find out what kind of information or study the ban was based on.  Moreover, I would really like to see someone with a warmwater education background put in charge of the warmwater progarm as opposed to a "Slimer" guy.
My .02 cents.

SMITTY