Missouri Smallmouth Alliance Meeting

[Chief Grey Bear]

I was looking for you Chief any reason other then a beautiful day to go fishing?

I thought long and hard about coming Gary. Let me level with you on a few things that are my opinions/thoughts or what have you about the MSA. This is not a slam on the MSA, its leaders or its members.

When Matt first showed up recuiting members, I looked for a reason to join. I couldn't find one. I looked over the web site and did not like what I saw. I didn't see anything that looked to me like something was really being done to improve the smallmouth. What I came away with from the site was that for my money I could put up some signs, work a stream team and do some fishing with other members. To me, that is a bass club not an organization that is truely fighting for the smallmouth bass.

I read that the MSA works with such oganizations as the MDC and CFM and others but it never states what type of work is done. I look at the calander of up coming events, and I see fishing trips, guest speakers, and the such. I just don't see much accomplished for an organization that is 18 years old and is comparing itself to Trout Ulimited.

I just don't see the MSA as being in anywhere near the same league of TU. Not yet anyway. It can be though. I have made a number of suggestings for the MSA that I truly think would make it a stronger more viable organization. But when I read the MSA forum, I see this:

"One of the items on our to do list is creating some signage for our 2010 St. Louis Boat and Sports show booth."

I really thought I would h ave saw some new zest and zeal and maybe even taking this to a new level. But it just doesn't look like it. I hoped I would see a call to the membership to come together to brainstorm on some ideas and maybe discuss those that had already been presented.

Anyway, I know I was pretty frank with this post but like I said at the begining, I am not slamming the MSA, it is just some of my observations. And maybe I am seeing it all wrong. I am really one your allies not an adversary.

[ness]

"There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why? I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?"

[Flysmallie]

I thought long and hard about coming Gary. Let me level with you on a few things that are my opinions/thoughts or what have you about the MSA. This is not a slam on the MSA, its leaders or its members.

When Matt first showed up recuiting members, I looked for a reason to join. I couldn't find one. I looked over the web site and did not like what I saw. I didn't see anything that looked to me like something was really being done to improve the smallmouth. What I came away with from the site was that for my money I could put up some signs, work a stream team and do some fishing with other members. To me, that is a bass club not an organization that is truely fighting for the smallmouth bass.

I read that the MSA works with such oganizations as the MDC and CFM and others but it never states what type of work is done. I look at the calander of up coming events, and I see fishing trips, guest speakers, and the such. I just don't see much accomplished for an organization that is 18 years old and is comparing itself to Trout Ulimited.

I just don't see the MSA as being in anywhere near the same league of TU. Not yet anyway. It can be though. I have made a number of suggestings for the MSA that I truly think would make it a stronger more viable organization. But when I read the MSA forum, I see this:

"One of the items on our to do list is creating some signage for our 2010 St. Louis Boat and Sports show booth."

I really thought I would h ave saw some new zest and zeal and maybe even taking this to a new level. But it just doesn't look like it. I hoped I would see a call to the membership to come together to brainstorm on some ideas and maybe discuss those that had already been presented.

Anyway, I know I was pretty frank with this post but like I said at the begining, I am not slamming the MSA, it is just some of my observations. And maybe I am seeing it all wrong. I am really one your allies not an adversary.

A lot of people have this feeling about MSA. I agree 100% with Chief.

[Guest]

Well, you can't really judge an organization by strictly what you hear. Come to a meeting Chief and Flysmallie, talk to other dedicated anglers about what you think needs to be done, after that decide if you would like to join or not. If you don't think we are doing enough, join up and help us out, it is a member driven organization so the more members we have, the more we can get done. I joined the MSA last year and I think it is a great organization who's members dedicate time and money to make better fishing statewide. The blue ribbon panel works directly with the MDC to further regulations, educate anglers, and each member does so with there own time and money. It is a national organization that has chapters in many states, as well as three chapters in Missouri.

Our Mission:

Through volunteerism, to assist in the creation, promotion and maintenance of world class Smallmouth Bass habitat and fishing in Missouri and to educate the public as to the importance of and the significance of catch and release fishing for Smallmouth Bass everywhere

We work to achieve our mission in several different ways:

•Through advocacy. We work with other conservation organizations such as the Conservation Federation of Missouri, the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, Missouri Votes Conservation, the Nature Conservancy, and the Ozark Fly Fishers and other stakeholders to encourage governmental agencies to adopt rules and regulations which help benefit, conserve, and protect our Missouri river and stream smallmouth fisheries.

•Through action. As members of Stream Team 509 we participate in Missouri Stream Team’s adopt-an-access, cleanup, and water quality monitoring programs.

•Through education. We help educate the public about our native Missouri river and stream smallmouth bass through our “Free the Fighter” Signs which we’ve posted and maintain at more than 130 river and stream accesses through the Missouri Ozarks and by participating in outdoor education programs.

You don’t have to be a smallmouth fishing fanatic or even an experienced angler to join the MSA. If you love to fish, hike, hunt, farm, watch birds, photograph, paint, float, paddle, or just generally support wild and natural Missouri, then we have some common interests. We all know that quality air, land, woods, and water benefit every living thing in Missouri. We’d love your support. Check out what we have to offer and contact me if you have any questions.

Matt Wier

President, Missouri Smallmouth Alliance

wierfish@yahoo.com

[Gary Lange]

I have read some interesting speeches and with some I totally agree. I am getting a Chapter of the MSA started here in Southwestern Missouri. I am just getting my feet wet and don't really have much knowledge of the area and the Smallmouth Streams and what may be needed. I welcome everyone to step up and be heard. What is needed if anything and where is a good place to start. I am from Illinois and moved here in 2005 and have been fishing Table Rock Lake since I got down here. I was a member and am still a member of the Illinois Smallmouth Alliance and served as the Chicagoland Regional Coordinator for several years before retiring to the Ozarks. Lets get together sometime and talk about what is needed or what you would like to see accomplished as I am open to your ideas because I am in training now and looking for questions the need answers.

[Dan Kreher]

As with any volunteer-based, grass-roots organization it can only be as successful in serving its mission and reaching accomplishments as is the commitment of its membership and their willingness to participate. I am one of the founding members of MSA joining it back in April of 1992. During that time, myself and many others have served in a variety of capacities including chapter president, program chairman, treasurer, membership chairman and I now serve as the Chairman of the chapter's Blue Ribbon Advisory Panel (more on that later).

That being said I cannot disagree that the MO Alliance, and even the very successful Illinois Alliance, are as significant an organization as is the well-funded Trout Unlimited enterprise. TU provides a great model for us as a conservation-based fishing organization but its resourcs far surpass those at our disposal. But, they were small once too. I'd have to say that the trout fishing lot of fishermen seem to be somewhat more collegial than are stream SMB fishermen. Maybe it's the places they fish -- trout guys can be comfortable among a group of other anglers within a trout park or on a popoluar stream while SMB guys seem to frequent those out of the way places and tend to keep them all to themselves. Regardless, in trying to reconcile the differences in participation between trout-fishing groups and our SMB fishing organization, this issue has continued to trouble me.

However, let's look at what we do have going for us. The St. Louis chapter has about 275 members currently and a large 'alumni' contingent as well accumulated over the past 18 years. Try as we might we do suffer membership turnover annually as folks either cannot come to meetings, forget to mail in their modest $20 dues or lose interest in the organization. I guess that's why you get a dozen or more magazine renewal notices for Field and Stream each year -- it's hard to keep an annual subscription type business going strong. And, while making signs for the STL Boat Show may seem like a silly project to some, our efforts at the show this year produced nearly 40 new members -- an all time high. Offering that great SMB book by MSA member Chuck Tryon didn't hurt either of course.

The SEMO chapter is getting some things going and despite a poor 'spring fever'-related turnout in Springfield last weekend all on this board know there are many conservation-minded SMB anglers in that part of the state that are interested in the protection and improvement of SMB fisheries. And who wouldn't like an opportunity to catch more and larger fish aided by the more widespread implementation of quality-based fisheries regulations and better stream habitat? Those are just the kind of things that MSA has been fighting for throughout its history.

So as not to be discouraged in SWMO, back in the mid-1990s the MO Alliance had about 25 members from that area who were active enough to support a "MOSASA" chapter (forget exactly what the acronym stood for) who met at the Springfield Nature Center for several years. Unfortunately, due to the death of one of its leaders and the burn out of another, the chapter there eventually faded away. Certainly with Springfield being a growing sportsman's mecca, I know that the makings of a great chapter still reside there. An experienced guy like Gary Lange, formerly a regional honcho for ISA, is going to need some help getting things going though. So, if folks really want to make a difference I invite you to get together (in person prefarably) and decide how to best fulfill MSAs mission in your own manner and in your own region. Being part of the statewide MO Smallmouth Alliance is central to that but your chapter will only become what you are able to make of it.

I realize that everyone has a lot on their plate (I'm avoiding paperwork in my office as I type this), but your efforts can clearly help create a viable conservation organization that can have an effect on the resource. The larger the geographic base and membership of MSA, the more influence we will have with fisheries managers and the MDC in Jeff City. Despite our relatively small size they do recognize MSA as the only serious SMB conservation organization in the state and are definitely interested in what we have to say.

On the regs front, a contingent from our BRAP committee (myself, Norm Leppo and Al Agnew) gave an in depth presentation to the Regulations Committee of the MDC this past Monday calling for changes in stream SMB management in the state. Our presentation, which I will make available on the MSA website shortly, outlined the current state of stream SMB management here in MO. This includes the outdated and ineffective statewide regs of 12"MLL/6 fish creel as well as the successful special regs areas and the biological results of the White Paper effort. With that as background, we proposed several management changes including an increase in the statewide MLL on stream SMB to 15" and a reduction in the daily creel limit to 3 SMB. We also essentially proposed a doubling of the number of miles of SMB waters under special regs to about 750 miles in total including both 15/1 and 18/1 limits on specific stream reaches. This marked a first step in getting new regs on the table with the MDC and we are prepared for a long process here if necessary.

Likewise, we will be presenting these proposals in resolution form at the upcoming annual meeting of the Conservation Federal of MO at Lake of the Ozarks this weekend. After committee review, these resoltions may then be voted on by the CFM membership in attendance and, once ratified, will be presented as formal recommendations to the MDC. We are hopeful that one or more of our proposals will make it through this screening process. Again, this is but a step in the process towards the expansion of quality regs.

So, while it may indeed have taken MSA awhile to get to this point, we feel that the timing has never been better to drastically improve stream SMB management regulations in an effort to achieve world-class SMB fishing status. Our participation in MSA, support of its mission and cooperative conservation efforts over the years are what have enabled us to achieve a level of credibility in the MDC's eyes and have provided us with the forum to really make a difference for all who like to chase those brown bass in Missouri's rivers, streams and creeks.

We need angler support more now than ever to achieve these goals.

[Gary Lange]

Very nice letter Dan and it gives prospective members some idea of what the MSA is doing and has done. I appreciate your taking the time to write on the forum and I am sure we will be meeting soon.

[Dan Kreher]

No problem. I realize that some anglers get skeptical when asked to join a club. "What's in it for me?" or, "What do I get for my money?" are understandable concerns. Given the prevoius posts on the Forum on this topic, I'd hope that skeptics can now answer those questions for themselves. Not to belabor it, but, heck, that SMB book by Tryon is worth $20 all by itself.

Once folks come to realize that there's no 'them' involved; it's all 'us' is when they become really invested in something. SMB anglers its up to us to be protectors of the resource. Jump on board and let's get something done!

I would like to go fishing someday again though. Look forward to meeting you, Gary, and we'll keep everyone posted on the BRAP efforts with the MDC.

[eric1978]

On the regs front, a contingent from our BRAP committee (myself, Norm Leppo and Al Agnew) gave an in depth presentation to the Regulations Committee of the MDC this past Monday calling for changes in stream SMB management in the state.

How receptive did the Regs Committee seem to be to those recommendations? It's great you guys got to present your ideas to them.

[Chief Grey Bear]

Well, you can't really judge an organization by strictly what you hear. Come to a meeting Chief and Flysmallie, talk to other dedicated anglers about what you think needs to be done, after that decide if you would like to join or not.

With all respect siusaluki, my only sources of info was the MSA web page, forum, Bronze Back News, and postings from MSA members here.

I think the MSA has made it very clear that they don't care for my due money or input. I got my rejection letter for joining the forum from them today. Its nice to know that Matt and company can post about you and you can not either agree with them or defend yourself.

But let me make a couple of other points. I don't believe that the smallmouth are in the peril that some members of the MSA would have you believe. Postings by the "guru" may be some evidence of that. Al's year end report wasn't to shabby either.

I don't believe that the answer to bigger smallmouths lies soley in changing the regs. I think most MDC biologist will agree that there are many other factors, as I have stated before, that play role and must all come togther to accomplish that.

But lets just say that the stars all aligned, and everything was perfect and we had the "World Class Fishery", wouldn't that make our streams more crowded with anglers from all over the US? Is that what we really want? An increase in fishermen crowding out waterways. Would that make it "World Class"? I think the streams in SW Mo are already world class in that I can fish all day and not see anyone. I can catch plenty of fish. And I can catch a few fish every trip that anyone would be proud to reel in. And the scenery is beyond words.

Anyway, that is just some ramblings. I mean no harm.