From the MDBass website:
I am forwarding an e-mail from a Maryland citizen that has become exasperated with tournaments upon the Potomac River. I share his concerns. There are too many and it does affect those of us that actually pay for the facilities. It also harms our fishery. Pennsylvania and New Jersey does not allow spawn-time tournaments in their states—they use our water and fish.
Pennsylvania charges us twice as much to fish their water as we do them.
The Chesapeake Bay Sportfishing license for nonresidents is much less.
A nonresident person pays $400 for s guides license while Maryland charges nonresidents $100.
This has to stop and I will lobby until it does. Our resource really isn't.
Ken Penrod
Dear Sirs,
I am writing this letter to you based on my past experience this last weekend, as well as many other weekends at smallwood state park. I am an avid bass fisherman (non-tournament angler) that utilizes the launching facilities there at the park for years, 12 to be exact. I am a tax paying Md. resident who also subscribes to the $75 annual park pass.
This past weekend as you know there were a lot of tournaments being launched from the marina, way to many in my eyes. I pulled in line with hundred's of others roughly around 4:30am, and I was near the end of the line. I noticed a lot of these boats were registered in PA and NJ as most are every weekend. This has always bothered me as their tax dollars do not pay for this facility, just their ramp fees. After waiting in the line on the state owned road for the other boats to slowly make their way to the ramp, I was told that all lots were full and there wasn't a place for me to park. I would have to launch somewhere else if I wanted to park??????? I, a tax paying citizen was denied access rights to a state owned and operated facility, because the park manager had allowed the out of state tournament anglers to buy out my parking areas for their use. I then was faced with the fact that I had to commute to the ramp at Slavins, Nanjemoy, Marshall Hall, or Piscataway Creek to enjoy a day on the water..... The water my state tax money goes to provide me access with. I had to pay to launch at another facility after I had waited in line for so long?
I began this past monday to plan out my weekend activities. Obviously my first thought was to head down to Smallwood State Park to utilize the marina that my state tax dollars provide, as well as my $75 annual park pass. I then realize that Wal-Mart's BFL is having a major tournament there this weekend, and more then likely I will be forced to not use the ramp that I pay for? I would also like to point out that a good majority of these anglers that will be attending this weekend will be from PA. I want to know why a State owned facility is willing to sell itself out to cater to non-Md. residents, therefore impeding access rights that the states residents pay for? Why do I have to wait in lines that last for hours behind residents of NY, PA, NJ, DE???? Do you, the park manager, as well as the regional manager not find that having this many tournaments one after the other is disgraceful to non-tournament anglers? Don't you think that these non-tax paying anglers are taking advantage of the states resources? I realize that there is probably an insane amount of revenue generated from these tournaments for the park, but to the expense of the states citizens? I am in no way condoning tournaments by any means.... But to allow 3 or 4 registered tournaments to operate from this facility at the same time on both days of the weekends, and sometimes including fridays is beyond crazy. The average weekend warrior family man cannot enjoy his tax paid access to his tax maintained river??? What happened to me last weekend was illegal! I was denied access for no reason other then the park managers inability to properly manage this facility........ Will the park continue to overbook with tournaments on a weekly basis? What governs your booking schedule? How do you determine how many tournaments are allowed to operate per weekend? What is in the plans to expand parking there so residents don't get the boot for non-residents? In all honesty, do you think there is a positive to allowing that much pressure on the marina and fishery other then revenue? I am more then concerned, I am disgusted!
Already heard the flack from this one.
What they don't get is, our presence is pouring LOTS of money into the local economy. They are TOTALLY ignoring that fact. They can not come close to making up the lost revenue from the community of turning tournaments away.
Let's say there were 50 boats at Mr Bass.
That's 50 rooms at let's say $75 per night, 100 dinners at say $25 each, food for the day, gas... I'd say we spent over $100 per day each on average. That's $10,000 per day. And lots of guys were there for more than 2 nights. I was there 4 because I stayed for Sunday's tournament too. I'm sure I spent more than $400 while I was there. If the average stay was 3 nights, that's at least $30,000 into the local economy.
Now about licenses. If someone from Maryland comes to PA to fish and buys a yearly license they pay $52.70. This entitles them to fish fresh water and tidal water in the Delaware Bay along the PA, NJ border and Lake Erie and several border lakes along the Ohio and NY borders and the Delaware River above the tidal basin.
If I go to Maryland and want to fish, they charge me $15 for a tidal water license and they charge me a reciprocal $52.70 to fish fresh water. So it isn't cheaper for me to fish Maryland if I want to fish everywhere.
Penrod has been beating this dead horse since the early 90's.........He thinks He has exclusive rights on the Potomac. He has made his money for years on the Potomac guiding these same " out of state " fisherman.
Pillager is right on with the $$$$$ angle...way too much money pours in from out of state tournament contestants to worry about any repercussions from a few locals complaining.