The ink barely dried on Chris Johnston’s Bassmaster Elite Angler of the Yr test and already the low season is off to a contentious begin. Because the season concluded final month, the times following the Elite Collection occasion on the St. Lawrence River had been stuffed with drama surrounding skilled anglers’ opinions on ahead going through sonar. Clark Wendlandt, one of many older anglers on tour, took to social media to sentence FFS, whereas Ben Milliken, who simply completed his rookie season, took his professional FFS opinions to the Baitman Reside podcast. In each situations, the remark sections ran rampant with backlash and emotional opinions from different professional anglers.
To be frank, it was all a bit ugly to look at.
However in case you take a step again, it’s straightforward to see that the skilled excursions had been working out of time to handle FFS expertise and make their stances clear on a problem that’s been dividing skilled and newbie anglers alike for years. So it wasn’t a lot of a shock when, on Wednesday, BASS lastly introduced new guidelines in regards to the expertise anglers can — and may’t — use in competitors.
BASS stopped in need of banning FFS from competitors, as a substitute opting to restrict the variety of transducers and whole inches of display screen allowed on boats. This compromise has managed to anger FFS proponents in addition to the anti-FSS crowd, who argues that these restrictions aren’t sturdy sufficient.
These rule adjustments had been introduced on the heels of the Nationwide Skilled Fishing League’s assertion Monday that it might be banning FSS outright from apply and competitors. The tour is far smaller than BASS and fewer well-known, however it’s the primary professional event collection to institute an all-out ban on FSS.
Each these rule adjustments will go into impact for the 2025 season. Right here’s what all this implies.
Bassmaster’s FFS Rule Adjustments
To achieve its determination, BASS reviewed the findings of its personal expertise committee and event outcomes, in addition to the opinions of conservation companions, business leaders, and each Elite Collection professional. Right here’s what they decided.
One Transducer Rule
BASS will probably be limiting the variety of reside sonar transducers to at least one, and that transducer have to be mounted to the trolling motor on the bow of the boat. Anglers can not use a number of transducers to encompass their boat (beforehand there was no restrict) and it additionally outlaws merchandise just like the RailBlaza Reside Pole 30 Fish-Finder Mount, which permits anglers to regulate their transducer individually from the trolling motor.
Most of 55 Inches of Display screen
BASS will even restrict opponents to a complete of 55 inches of display screen, together with bow and sprint head items. The group cited security issues as the primary purpose for this determination. Beforehand, anglers had been capable of run as many entrance graphs as they needed, a development that resulted in a number of huge screens on the bow of the boat. In some circumstances, anglers had been working so many massive screens that it was almost not possible to see immediately in entrance of the boat. (It ought to go with out saying, however not having the ability to see over your bow is a recipe for catastrophe.)
One Trolling Motor
BASS additionally added a rule that anglers could solely have one electrical motor mounted to their boats. Whereas utilizing multiple trolling motor is rare, some professionals have been discovering other ways to fish by mounting trolling motors to their shallow water anchors, a setup referred to as crappie brakes. These “brakes’”mean you can extra simply management the again finish of your boat, which may be useful when making an attempt to place for a forged or in case you see a fish on FFS and have to cease the boat in a rush to maintain the fish inside your transducer beam.
New Schedule
Lastly, BASS introduced it would diversify its Elite Collection schedule by including new lakes to its lineup and eliminating previous standbys. The group mentioned that “whereas reside sonar expertise will stay a constant software used on the very highest stage of aggressive bass fishing, expertise and a deep-seeded understanding of fish habits, motion and patterns will even be wanted for fulfillment shifting ahead on the fisheries scheduled.” This modification seems to handle criticism that BASS was purposely deciding on lakes the place FFS ways would reign supreme. Whatever the FFS controversy, I’m excited to look at new anglers break down new lakes as a substitute of reviewing the identical 15 to twenty lakes we’ve grown accustomed to seeing the final 5 years.
Rule Adjustments Have Prompted Even Extra Outrage Amongst Followers
Followers have been clamoring for BASS to make a name on FFS for years. Now that the group truly has, nonetheless, many followers are nonetheless pissed off.
FFS proponents say BASS’ determination was brash. It’s pointless to restrict expertise that each angler had the chance to study and leverage. It doesn’t matter how superior FFS will get so long as all opponents have entry to it.
In the meantime, anti-FFS followers additionally appear unhappy. The choice doesn’t go far sufficient to get rid of expertise that has modified your entire expertise of professional bass fishing.
I can admire each arguments. Personally, I’m happy with BASS’s determination. As a fan — and a aggressive angler — watching professionals catch fish with all that limitless tech was not enjoyable. A part of that’s as a result of I don’t like watching somebody watch a display screen all day, but in addition as a result of it didn’t really feel like a stage enjoying discipline to me: I may by no means afford to rig up my bass boat like that. Six graphs up entrance, 4 graphs on the console, a number of transducers hanging from each angle, and tack on crappie brakes? We had been witnessing using tens of 1000’s of {dollars} in electronics to catch bass. Deep down I do know that form of gear isn’t mandatory, however it was starting to really feel like the one technique to stay aggressive. Now, although, the prospect of pared-back tech within the 2025 Elite Collection has me excited to tune in once more.
In the meantime, the Nationwide Skilled Fishing League’s determination to fully ban “reside forward-facing sonar” was extra decisive. The NPFL even took a preemptive stab on the BASS ruling by stating, “Limiting transducers or screens or solely permitting the expertise on sure days or hours are half measures which will quiet some opponents of the expertise, however they’re unlikely to scale back its affect.”
To me, the NPFL’s determination was extra of a publicity stunt than something, and this FFS ban couldn’t have come at a greater time for the group. Though I’ve written earlier than about how professional excursions would by no means ban FFS, I wasn’t counting the NPFL amongst them. This basically unknown tour determined to make a reputation for itself by banning FFS in hopes of pulling a brand new crowd to look at their occasions. And it’s true that when this information broke, professional anglers and followers alike took to social media to unfold the phrase that “FFS has been banned!”
Now, to be truthful to NPFL, the league has been capable of hold lights on for a number of seasons now. However most of us professional bass fishing followers don’t actually contemplate NPFL on the identical stage because the Bass Professional Tour and the Elite Collection. Whereas anglers from the highest two excursions do generally drop in to fish the NPFL occasions, a lot of the massive gamers aren’t involved with this decrease stage of competitors.
Last Ideas on FFS Restrictions
Whereas the anti-FFS crowd has made its stance completely clear in remark sections, I don’t anticipate these followers to chop ties with their favourite professional excursions and flock to NPFL as a substitute. Nonetheless, I’m intrigued sufficient to maintain tabs on the tour subsequent 12 months, and I’m additionally curious to see the affect the FSS ban has on the tour and its anglers in the long term.
As anglers and followers await the ultimate phrase on FFS utilization and expertise limitations from the ultimate holdout — the Main League Fishing governing physique — it’s secure to say that it’s been fairly the entertaining low season to this point. MLF has not signaled if or when it would change its FSS rules, however it will likely be attention-grabbing to see if these current bulletins immediate them to make a name. I’m to see how these rule adjustments affect viewership amongst fishing followers. However for now, we’ll wait and see if these adjustments can shrink the indeniable divide that FFS has brought on inside our ranks.