Where did everyone go?

[vegasandre]

I am bringing this perplexing topic up for some discussion.

First let me lay a tiny bit of groundwork.
a weird question:
How does one find out about San Diego SR and LR fishing in the first place?
And when they find out about it and are thinking of booking a trip , how does one find out information on what to do about it(tackle,techniques,logisitcs. etc)?
in the distant past here on the BD LR forum( and even on the old All Coast forum) there used to a lot of information shared here much wanted and some not.
even then I would say maybe 10-20% of our local incredible historic niche fishing industry patrons visited any of these forums for their info.
now it is like 5%.. (I know this because I ask people I fish with- went on a trip with 22 people recently and I was the only one on BD)
what do the other 80-95% non-visitors do for their fishing info?
do they:
-talk to friends/neighbors/work buddies..
-go to fishing shows
-read reports/tackle info(which are mostly outdated) on the boats individual websites
-do they follow instagram /fb pages/reports?
-what else are they doing?

in the way, way past there would be news stories all over the news and major publications:
-Albacore run hitting san diego..
-Bill Roecker meeting everyone at the docks
-LR boat makes first trip to :fill in the blank... (Frank said the #1 thing he remembers was all the news crew and people at the docks when he got back from that first trip to Clipp in 84')

so today:
If I wanted to bareboat a sailboat for 2 weeks in Greece and I had never been there - then what would I do?
If I wanted to go on a 2 week african safari - then what would I do.
If I wanted to skydive for a few hours then what would I do?
I would research..read..find forums..get as much info as I could to make the best decisions possible..

I guess maybe most just wing it..

So now that we have established that most of the fishing industry and the patrons don't read any of our forums..
(I don't understand why.. there CAN be more info here that could help anyone then anywhere else ..)
maybe no wants to read/research that much or maybe some feel that sometimes it's a pissing contest..or some are hesitant for whatever reason?
I have found most of my current strategies that I have adopted and some modified- right here..on this site..(and not from captains and crew)
for better or worse..
used to be a lot of comradarie here.

so where did everyone go?

where is WahooDad,, Fishy, and many many others that we have learned from and heard cool ideas and stories from over the years?
IDK.. maybe some of it was the sometimes drama and opinions and popcorn eating threads that scared many valued users away?

side note- A little drama is sometimes good!

maybe decreasing fishing grounds/destinations have added a bit of melancholy..?
anyway .. I appreciated most of them here. leaned a lot. molded and evolved..
maybe some lurk every now and then..but no activity..
wishing it was the glory days again.
but the glory days seemed to have past us by - maybe not so much in the fishing(local bft fishing is world best right now) but maybe in enthusiam..

 

[Cactus Chris]

I think this style of forum has largely been replaced by Facebook and other social media sites. That and none of us are getting any younger and lots of the people most passionate about the hobby are getting longer in the tooth. I think a lot of people just lurk BD without joining or participating too. It often comes up in Google search results for fishing questions

 

[Rocket Dog]

FB

I think this style of forum has largely been replaced by Facebook and other social media sites. That and none of us are getting any younger and lots of the people most passionate about the hobby are getting longer in the tooth. I think a lot of people just lurk BD without joining or participating too. It often comes up in Google search results for fishing questions

Agreed, FB has been a disruptor for sure. I think people like to share in micro groups with like-minded people and these last few years have exacerbated the issue.

 

[Yellowtail Dan]

I think a lot of the guys that were on here before have aged out of just got tired of a lot of the BS that comes with posting here sometimes. The Next gen guys are probably a lot more focused on their search patterns for information and probably spend a lot of time on You Tube watching things guys post vs having to read through pages of posts probably half of which have nothing to do with the original post.

Still a lot of great info here and guys that have a lot of great insight but but I do miss some of the guys that had been doing this for years and their posts. I stole a lot of great info from them and still do from some

 

[Steve K]

FB

Agreed, FB has been a disruptor for sure. I think people like to share in micro groups with like-minded people and these last few years have exacerbated the issue.

Many groups on Facebook targeting specific types of fishing and anglers. Unlike BD, where “that guy” can be derogatory, insulting, etc. with very little censorship by the management, a group moderator can bounce a poster in a heartbeat.

For example, David Rosenthal does a great job with So. Cal. Long Range Fishing. Every post gets viewed by the administrator(s) before showing up on the forum.

 

[Cactus Chris]

With services like Fish Dope there's not as much reason for people to need to network in other ways

 

[jer dog]

I am bringing this perplexing topic up for some discussion.

First let me lay a tiny bit of groundwork.
a weird question:
How does one find out about San Diego SR and LR fishing in the first place?
And when they find out about it and are thinking of booking a trip , how does one find out information on what to do about it(tackle,techniques,logisitcs. etc)?
in the distant past here on the BD LR forum( and even on the old All Coast forum) there used to a lot of information shared here much wanted and some not.
even then I would say maybe 10-20% of our local incredible historic niche fishing industry patrons visited any of these forums for their info.
now it is like 5%.. (I know this because I ask people I fish with- went on a trip with 22 people recently and I was the only one on BD)
what do the other 80-95% non-visitors do for their fishing info?
do they:
-talk to friends/neighbors/work buddies..
-go to fishing shows
-read reports/tackle info(which are mostly outdated) on the boats individual websites
-do they follow instagram /fb pages/reports?
-what else are they doing?

in the way, way past there would be news stories all over the news and major publications:
-Albacore run hitting san diego..
-Bill Roecker meeting everyone at the docks
-LR boat makes first trip to :fill in the blank... (Frank said the #1 thing he remembers was all the news crew and people at the docks when he got back from that first trip to Clipp in 84')

so today:
If I wanted to bareboat a sailboat for 2 weeks in Greece and I had never been there - then what would I do?
If I wanted to go on a 2 week african safari - then what would I do.
If I wanted to skydive for a few hours then what would I do?
I would research..read..find forums..get as much info as I could to make the best decisions possible..

I guess maybe most just wing it..

So now that we have established that most of the fishing industry and the patrons don't read any of our forums..
(I don't understand why.. there CAN be more info here that could help anyone then anywhere else ..)
maybe no wants to read/research that much or maybe some feel that sometimes it's a pissing contest..or some are hesitant for whatever reason?
I have found most of my current strategies that I have adopted and some modified- right here..on this site..(and not from captains and crew)
for better or worse..
used to be a lot of comradarie here.

so where did everyone go?

where is WahooDad,, Fishy, and many many others that we have learned from and heard cool ideas and stories from over the years?
IDK.. maybe some of it was the sometimes drama and opinions and popcorn eating threads that scared many valued users away?

side note- A little drama is sometimes good!

maybe decreasing fishing grounds/destinations have added a bit of melancholy..?
anyway .. I appreciated most of them here. leaned a lot. molded and evolved..
maybe some lurk every now and then..but no activity..
wishing it was the glory days again.
but the glory days seemed to have past us by - maybe not so much in the fishing(local bft fishing is world best right now) but maybe in enthusiam..

A lot of guys got older, and they can’t
Hang on the longer trips anymore.

 

[marlyn]

Almost all the guys on here 20 years ago are either gone or just lurk once in awhile,its definitely not the same site it used to be.Not knocking BD,there are alot of factors,times change,you have search engines to worry about(they will moderate you if you dont),many employees depend on them for jobs,facebook,instagram etc etc.
This used to be a little website with friends sharing information and talking smack like buddies in your garage,Now it is a corporation marketing to us.We are the product they sell.They should get it while they can because fishing and hunting are dieing sports unless something changes soon,less and less people doing it,over regulation,over moderation and high costs are keeping out young people.

 

[pacificscout]

Phuck FB!

 

[ripped]

Even if these guys can’t do the longer trips any more they’re still walking libraries that hold a wealth of knowledge you can’t find anywhere else.

 

[pacificscout]

You get the upmost more informative fishing information and realization on everything in life here on BD.
Plus , you might get a great deal on a used rod.

Period.!

 

[vegasandre]

Many groups on Facebook targeting specific types of fishing and anglers. Unlike BD, where “that guy” can be derogatory, insulting, etc. with very little censorship by the management, a group moderator can bounce a poster in a heartbeat.

For example, David Rosenthal does a great job with So. Cal. Long Range Fishing. Every post gets viewed by the administrator(s) before showing up on the forum.

Steve you are one of the originals and you have always been front and center here posting and asking and writing..
so you are always apreciated!

I agree with you on the FB thing..
but - here is this:
4 of my closest fishing buddies have never had a FB account. ever..
they avoid it like the plague.
myself- well I was on FB from the start... until I got Zucked and Hacked a few times..and lost control of my Blue Chum etc.. because of non responsive FB employees who do not even exist. ... but that is another story...
However . I do see the LR boats seem to be updating/increasing their FB posts while sometimes decreasing their own website reports.
maybe Starlink has helped.?
it is ever evolving.

I do remember we could of filled up BD LR only 16 day chater trips trips easy with only us back in the day- if we chose to of had one. (8-10years ago)
it is weird.

 

[Mickeyfin]

Many groups on Facebook targeting specific types of fishing and anglers. Unlike BD, where “that guy” can be derogatory, insulting, etc. with very little censorship by the management, a group moderator can bounce a poster example, David Rosenthal does a great job with So. Cal. Long Range Fishing. Every post gets viewed by the administrator(s) before showing up on the forum.

You got that right. David is a friend and talented fisherman still working in my former industry.
He’s doing local CI trips lately

 

[surfgoose]

Personally, I got into the longer trips a couple of decades ago when I got to board and tour through several of the original Long Range boats down at the San Diego Day At The Docks. The boats would all rest and refit during March and April. I personally will never ride a boat that I haven't physically checked out.

But for the past half-dozen years, even as the fleet has expanded, the boats are running spring tuna hunts and don't show up at the Day At The Docks. And a video tour on YouTube is NOT the same thing as being able to actually try out a bunk to see if it will fit you, if you can tuck your belly into a galley table, if you will hit your head on an overhanging deck every time you have to run to the bow on a wahoo.

I don't do the long trips any more. I'm 76 now and still vertical, but as I remind my wife, like Indiana Jones said, "It's not the years, it's the mileage." So it is a real blessing to be able to play with big fish in our backyard area on short runs. And the money matters a lot more when you stop working and have no more coming in.

I love reading the reports here on BD, and will contribute what I can. It is a joy to see the sport and industry continually evolve and be open to new tactics and ideas. And as long as BD supports the Forums, I'll be reading.

 

[screamingreel]

I am bringing this perplexing topic up for some discussion.

First let me lay a tiny bit of groundwork.
a weird question:
How does one find out about San Diego SR and LR fishing in the first place?
And when they find out about it and are thinking of booking a trip , how does one find out information on what to do about it(tackle,techniques,logisitcs. etc)?
in the distant past here on the BD LR forum( and even on the old All Coast forum) there used to a lot of information shared here much wanted and some not.
even then I would say maybe 10-20% of our local incredible historic niche fishing industry patrons visited any of these forums for their info.
now it is like 5%.. (I know this because I ask people I fish with- went on a trip with 22 people recently and I was the only one on BD)
what do the other 80-95% non-visitors do for their fishing info?
do they:
-talk to friends/neighbors/work buddies..
-go to fishing shows
-read reports/tackle info(which are mostly outdated) on the boats individual websites
-do they follow instagram /fb pages/reports?
-what else are they doing?

in the way, way past there would be news stories all over the news and major publications:
-Albacore run hitting san diego..
-Bill Roecker meeting everyone at the docks
-LR boat makes first trip to :fill in the blank... (Frank said the #1 thing he remembers was all the news crew and people at the docks when he got back from that first trip to Clipp in 84')

so today:
If I wanted to bareboat a sailboat for 2 weeks in Greece and I had never been there - then what would I do?
If I wanted to go on a 2 week african safari - then what would I do.
If I wanted to skydive for a few hours then what would I do?
I would research..read..find forums..get as much info as I could to make the best decisions possible..

I guess maybe most just wing it..

So now that we have established that most of the fishing industry and the patrons don't read any of our forums..
(I don't understand why.. there CAN be more info here that could help anyone then anywhere else ..)
maybe no wants to read/research that much or maybe some feel that sometimes it's a pissing contest..or some are hesitant for whatever reason?
I have found most of my current strategies that I have adopted and some modified- right here..on this site..(and not from captains and crew)
for better or worse..
used to be a lot of comradarie here.

so where did everyone go?

where is WahooDad,, Fishy, and many many others that we have learned from and heard cool ideas and stories from over the years?
IDK.. maybe some of it was the sometimes drama and opinions and popcorn eating threads that scared many valued users away?

side note- A little drama is sometimes good!

maybe decreasing fishing grounds/destinations have added a bit of melancholy..?
anyway .. I appreciated most of them here. leaned a lot. molded and evolved..
maybe some lurk every now and then..but no activity..
wishing it was the glory days again.
but the glory days seemed to have past us by - maybe not so much in the fishing(local bft fishing is world best right now) but maybe in enthusiam..

Hi VA,

Things do evolve and change over time. People move on. LR trips are not getting any cheaper. With MX islands closed and Bluefin so close, many are making other choices and do not report on it here. I receive new questions directly via email all the time. I am still working full-time and my free-time is precious so I have less time for BD. BD is more loaded with ads, but it is free so I will not complain! I am also in the process of writing another book about our beloved recreation. It will be another 2+ years before it is completed. It really comes down to there are more options for data available now. I still love it and know many others who do too!

- Jeff Burroughs

 

[Intrepid Fan]

Personally, I got into the longer trips a couple of decades ago when I got to board and tour through several of the original Long Range boats down at the San Diego Day At The Docks. The boats would all rest and refit during March and April. I personally will never ride a boat that I haven't physically checked out.

But for the past half-dozen years, even as the fleet has expanded, the boats are running spring tuna hunts and don't show up at the Day At The Docks. And a video tour on YouTube is NOT the same thing as being able to actually try out a bunk to see if it will fit you, if you can tuck your belly into a galley table, if you will hit your head on an overhanging deck every time you have to run to the bow on a wahoo.

I don't do the long trips any more. I'm 76 now and still vertical, but as I remind my wife, like Indiana Jones said, "It's not the years, it's the mileage." So it is a real blessing to be able to play with big fish in our backyard area on short runs. And the money matters a lot more when you stop working and have no more coming in.

I love reading the reports here on BD, and will contribute what I can. It is a joy to see the sport and industry continually evolve and be open to new tactics and ideas. And as long as BD supports the Forums, I'll be reading.

Oh God! I am 74 and still do long range trip. I do 8 to 10 trips with ease. 15 is a little tougher, but still doing a 15 day this year. As long as my health is good I hope to be able fish long range for another 5 years.

 

[hucklongfin]

You got that right. David is a friend and talented fisherman still working in my former industry.
He’s doing local CI trips lately

Did he run the west coast angler site?

 

[Mean Gene]

I think this style of forum has largely been replaced by Facebook and other social media sites. That and none of us are getting any younger and lots of the people most passionate about the hobby are getting longer in the tooth. I think a lot of people just lurk BD without joining or participating too. It often comes up in Google search results for fishing questions

I'm on FB a lot, but as far as a discussion platform goes, compared to forums like this it sucks balls. I think a lot of folks use it because they have the attention span of a meth addict.

I got into long range fishing through the invite of one of my supervisors at work. First trip was a 6 day on the Searcher LOTS of years ago, but man was it awesome. These days you can Google anything and come up with more information than you could ever read.

 

[Cactus Chris]

I'm on FB a lot, but as far as a discussion platform goes, compared to forums like this it sucks balls. I think a lot of folks use it because they have the attention span of a meth addict.

I got into long range fishing through the invite of one of my supervisors at work. First trip was a 6 day on the Searcher LOTS of years ago, but man was it awesome. These days you can Google anything and come up with more information than you could ever read.

I agree this is a better platform for good discussion but yeah attention spans and convenience are definitely determining factors for who is going to be interested in coming here and getting to know who is who and who is good, who is full of shit, etc. On FB it's mostly a bunch of random people I don't know and I have no idea who is who

 

[Bill W]

Nothing beats being on the water. I gotta book a trip.

 

[surfgoose]

Oh God! I am 74 and still do long range trip. I do 8 to 10 trips with ease. 15 is a little tougher, but still doing a 15 day this year. As long as my health is good I hope to be able fish long range for another 5 years.

And more power to you! You always write excellent reports and give good replies to questions.

 

[jer dog]

I miss grumpy

 

[Mike Nall]

A lot of guys got older, and they can’t
Hang on the longer trips anymore.

Ha ha ha ha most of the guys on “long” trips are old, thats the bread and butter of the industry.

“No such thing as too old” Bob Michener

 

[Bill W]

When you are 69 there is no wasted effort.

 

[hagridfish]

How I got started.
A guy I worked with subscribed to W. O. N. He would leave the paper on the break room table for anyone who wanted to read it. Needless to say, I did everything but eat the newspaper. It took several years and a divorce before I started really looking hard. I would call the boat offices, and ask a million questions. Finally settled on the Q-105. Great people at that time. Dena was so helpful, as well as John Klein. They created a customer for life. Long story, stuff happens, and the W. O. N. Did an interview with Ken Corbin of Kens Custom Reels. So I called him one evening. He was busy and swamped! Said he would call me back in a couple of days when things slowed down. And he did!!! Ended up going to San Diego for a long weekend a couple of weeks later, and brought all my reels with me. He basically told me I should put them on the mantle. Nothing useful for this type of fishing. So he set me straight. Got me a Pro-gear 454 to use as my 40 lb rig, and a 7’ seeker rod to match it. Ken is still my go to guy. He knows more about this stuff than most of the people working on the long range boats.