Sarley: How technology is changing fishing for those willing to embrace change
I was watching the Bassmaster Classic that was being streamed live on the internet. I called my wife over to my computer screen and asked her to take a look and tell me what she was watching.
The screen showed a rear view of an angler holding a fishing rod and looking at a very large television screen mounted on the floor of the boat in front of him. He was driving the boat using a foot pedal in front of him. That was all.
She said: “It looks like a guy is going fishing, but he isn’t doing anything with his rod. It looks like he is out for a boat ride and just watching TV on his screen. What is he supposed to be doing?”
There you go. That is the basis for all the arguments about forward facing sonar (FFS). Without debating the points about the effectiveness of its use or the ethical matters of it, my wife hit the proverbial nail on the head when I asked her to watch a guy fishing with FFS.
If you are a fan of tournaments, are you still interested in watching pro fishermen watch their televisions instead of fishing? I think this is boring and the death of pro fishing tournaments, especially those on TV.
The tourney organizations are in a quandary over this. They fear their viewers are going to get bored by what is on the screen. Some organizations are banning the use of FFS in certain competitions and others are banning it in some and allowing it to be used in others. It is confusing, to say the least.
If you have never seen what FFS looks like, you need to find some videos on YouTube. It is like watching underwater with a picture as clear as a bell, nothing like what traditional fish finders looked like. You can see what kind of fish are down there, what they are doing, and you can even see your bait on the screen. It’s scary. The screens mounted on fishing boats can be 50 inches or more and a unit will run you well more than $3,000.
I had a long talk with Oklahoma’s Josh Jones. He may be the best big bass angler and guide in the country. Jones gets between $1,000 and $2,000 a day for his work on the water, depending on the season and the lake. His rate of putting clients on 10-pounders is high and makes him worth the price.
We had a long talk about his use of FFS. He spends most of his day cruising around looking for monster bass. When he sees one he wants, then he figures out how he will get it to eat. If there are multiple fish on a spot, he has to figure out how to reach the monster he is after without arousing the other smaller fish. It is not easy.
Jones explained that he may only take up his rod and actually cast a lure 8-12 times a day. Yes, that is correct. A dozen casts in a day of fishing.
I asked Gary Klein, one of the best bass fishermen ever, about this. He told me: “I know that I could never fish that way and I’m sure you couldn’t either, but we can’t say he is wrong. The guy can fish as good as anybody, so who is to say he is wrong?”
Jones isn’t wrong. FFS isn’t wrong. I don’t use it. I can’t afford it. Just let me take a rod or two, along with a small tackle box with a selection of my favorite lures, down to my favorite pond and fish the way that makes me happy. You can do whatever you like.
I am done with talking about FFS and reading about people arguing about it. I just want to go fishing.
• Daily Herald Outdoors columnist Steve Sarley can be reached at sarfishing@yahoo.com.