Your thoughts? Posted From my emails from Santa Ana River Lakes.

[theangler]

THEY’RE AT IT AGAIN--------Lets deny Bernard Lopez, the STATE OF CALIFORNIA record catch of a 24.09 pound Rainbow Trout, caught February 19, 2002 at Santa Ana River Lakes.<br><br> Outdoor Writers must live in Perfectville, where all fish are spawned in pristine mountain streams, grow to record size and only the most perfect fishermen are allowed to claim a record. These Writers, from Perfectville, want to deny Mr. Lopez the record because the fish was “stocked”. They also point out the fish was not “wild”; “There is something fishy about making this a record”, was one of their headlines. Well, Mr. Lopez is not from Perfectville and Santa Ana River Lakes is in the real world, modern day 2002, State of California, where almost ALL FISH ARE STOCKED. Are these Writers unaware of the fact that the California Department of Fish and Game own, operate, spawn and stock almost every lake, stream and river in the State of California? In fact, their needs for stocked fish exceed their own capabilities of production and they are forced to purchase additional fish from Private Hatcheries, like Mt Lasen Trout Farm and others. This is also true of the State’s need for catfish, as they look to Private Hatcheries to supplement their needs. Are these Writers also unaware of a fact that even the “wild salmon runs” would disappear if it were not for Federal Hatcheries like the Coleman Hatchery, in Northern California? You see the salmon have lost much of their “wild” habitat to dams, water diversion and farming utilization. So Hatcheries collect female salmon, strip their eggs, hatch the fish and stock the salmon back into the streams.<br><br> Then there is the issue of, ------ when does a fish become wild? Is it the day the fish is turned loose from the captivity of the hatchery’s “fish run”, to run free in the lake or stream? Possibly. Or is it after two days, two months, a year or two, or is the fish never wild, if it was “STOCKED”? Unfortunately, fish do not carry tags that identify the date of their stocking, or for that matter, a tag that says, “I’m a wild fish”.<br><br> No, Writers from Perfectville, want to deal with unrealistic scenarios, create controversy and write all the negatives. Just like the Olympics, the big headlines are, “Canada denied gold due to cheating Judges, Russia may pull out of the Olympics, etc. etc”.<br><br> No Writer has even tried to write about the skills of Bernard Lopez or published an in depth interview. Bernard is one of the finest fishermen that fishes Santa Ana River Lakes. I’d put my money on him any day. In fact Bernard put his own money on his chances to be the record holder. When the Management of Santa Ana River Lakes, advertised they would stock fish that could break the current State record, Bernard went out and purchased a State Fishing License (a requirement of DFG to be recognized) because he knew he had the right stuff to be that Record Holder. He didn’t need a fishing license to fish Santa Ana River Lakes, but he put his own money up for his chances at claiming the record. No one has written about his skills in landing a 24 pound fighting fish, that nearly spooled him twice and took 30 minutes to bring to the net. Oh yea, a 24 pound fish, on 3 pound test leader. No one writes about his additional skills as a fisherman, how he almost always gets his limit, even if others are not so lucky; or how he was good enough to be chosen, as one of the Crave Pro Staff Members; or how he very rarely goes fishing, unless his young Son, Michael, is his favorite fishing companion. I guess these Writers feel that unless Bernard lives in Perfectville or has several thousand bucks to go to Canada or Alaska, Bernard, or no Southern California Fisherman, should be allowed to record a record fish. For that matter, it must surely be an unforgivable sin for Santa Ana River Lakes to stock huge trophy fish and give anglers the thrill of landing a huge trophy Rainbow Trout for a maximum cost of $16.00 or less.<br><br> The Department of Fish and Game requirements for recognition of a new record are as follows: (Form FG737)<br>1. The fish must be legally taken under the provisions of a current, Valid California sport fishing license.<br>2. The fish must be examined by an employee of the California Department of Fish and Game.<br>3. The facts regarding the capture must be recorded on a form FG 737 (CALIFORNIA INLAND WATER ANGLING RECORD VERIFICATION). This form must be signed by a permanent Department of Fish and Game employee. (In signing this form the employee is conditionally certifying the authenticity of the record.)<br>4. Following the conditional certification, the new record application must be reviewed and approved by the California Department of Fish and Game Inland Fisheries Division. In the event of any dispute regarding the authenticity of any application for any reason, the determination of the Inland Fisheries Division shall be conclusive.<br>5. Photographs of the fish are strongly recommended but not necessarily required. Nor do we require that the fish be killed as part of the authentication process. However, the employee signing the form FG 737 should inform the prospective new record holder that in the event of a dispute regarding species, size, or other information related to the legitimacy of the record, the fish may be required for ultimate resolution of the dispute. It is the responsibility of the angler to retain the fish in a condition for possible further examination until the new record has been officially acknowledged.<br><br>BERNARD LOPEZ HAS MET EVERY ONE OF THESE REQUIREMENTS. There were over 15 people who witnessed him catch and land the fish. The fish has been examined by a DFG employee and the Form FG 737 has been submitted to Fish and Game. Please note, there are no words of restriction, amplification or rejection, concerning “stocked” or “wild” fish.<br><br>THE RULES WERE SET, AND MET!!!<br><br>PLEASE VOTE: 1. Mr. Lopez should be given his record.<br><br>2. No, deny Mr. Lopez his record, even though he qualified under all current requirements of the California Department of Fish and Game.<br><br>YOU CAN VOTE AND LEAVE YOUR OWN COMMENTS FOR OTHERS TO SEE BY CLICKING THE LINK BELOW.<br><br>http://www.fishinglakes.com/record.htm<br><br>PLEASE NOTE, we will tabulate your votes and comments and submit them to the Writers and Department of Fish and Game.<br><br>Thank You!<br><br>[laugh] How about a good laugh?<br><A HREF="http://www.bigfishtackle.com/comics.htm " target="_new">http://www.bigfishtackle.com/comics.htm </A> <br><br>Mike H