Party Boat pool "irregularity"?

[bulletbob]

Originally Posted by tombanjo

If you spent as much time standing up for yourself at the scene of the "crime" as you did writing this then maybe you would have won and set a good example for your son.

On an unfamiliar boat you:

1. Ask the mate to switch the fish

2. Check the other fish for foreign objects

3. Check the scale

If the mate resists any of this, scream bloody murder to the captain and threaten you'll go public with it.

As I said, at that instant, i didn't think much about a "crime"...
More confused until an hour or so later when I started to think more about it.

Secondly, the boat was not really "unfamiliar" to me.. I go out out on it once or twice a year, for the past several years.. always liked the main captain, seemed like a decent guy. However, the mate was one in a procession- like many boats, they never seem to be there all the time over several years.

I would be hesitant to ask for weights in a fish etc, its just not really how i am wired, and checking personally is a good way to get a fist in the face.
Checking the scale?.. how exactly?... Its not my property, and I am pretty sure most captains would not want a guy they don't know handling it...

As i said, past several years, I have seen a LOT more good fishermen, lots of old timers like me included, refuse to enter the pool.. Might be a pattern here that I should be aware of..
Most people are more aggressive to defend themselves in matters such as this than I am, and might well be more cynical and less trusting. I am typically quieter than most in situations like this, trusting those that are running the business to do the correct thing.. thats my weakness for certain, I can offer no real defense, except to say that next time , IF I enter a pool, I will ask at least that the mate level the scale with both fish, and possibly reverse them... bob

[tombanjo]

Originally Posted by bulletbob

As I said, at that instant, i didn't think much about a "crime"...
More confused until an hour or so later when I started to think more about it.

Secondly, the boat was not really "unfamiliar" to me.. I go out out on it once or twice a year, for the past several years.. always liked the main captain, seemed like a decent guy. However, the mate was one in a procession- like many boats, they never seem to be there all the time over several years.

I would be hesitant to ask for weights in a fish etc, its just not really how i am wired, and checking personally is a good way to get a fist in the face.
Checking the scale?.. how exactly?... Its not my property, and I am pretty sure most captains would not want a guy they don't know handling it...

As i said, past several years, I have seen a LOT more good fishermen, lots of old timers like me included, refuse to enter the pool.. Might be a pattern here that I should be aware of..
Most people are more aggressive to defend themselves in matters such as this than I am, and might well be more cynical and less trusting. I am typically quieter than most in situations like this, trusting those that are running the business to do the correct thing.. thats my weakness for certain, I can offer no real defense, except to say that next time , IF I enter a pool, I will ask at least that the mate level the scale with both fish, and possibly reverse them... bob

Someone said I was a bit harsh. People who pull this shit get me pissed off so it wasn't really directed at you. The pool is gambling. They used to shoot people for cheating. Things may have calmed down a bit since then but the cheaters count on the inherent intimidation those in charge have built in plus the challenge of bringing the confrontation of the accusation. Ever been faced with someone coming back at you aggressively shouting, "You calling me a liar?!!" Most back of searching for a more diplomatic solution at that point rather than saying yes, I am. Balance scales are easy to check. Make sure each arm is exactly equidistant to the center. It's an old trick easily thwarted by insisting on switching sides.

[bulletbob]

Originally Posted by tombanjo

Someone said I was a bit harsh. People who pull this shit get me pissed off so it wasn't really directed at you. The pool is gambling. They used to shoot people for cheating. Things may have calmed down a bit since then but the cheaters count on the inherent intimidation those in charge have built in plus the challenge of bringing the confrontation of the accusation. Ever been faced with someone coming back at you aggressively shouting, "You calling me a liar?!!" Most back of searching for a more diplomatic solution at that point rather than saying yes, I am. Balance scales are easy to check. Make sure each arm is exactly equidistant to the center. It's an old trick easily thwarted by insisting on switching sides.

For my part there was no offense taken..your replies are typically always well thought out. As stated, I have learned quite a bit on this thread from the enlightened insight of other NJF members..
Next time out [in 4 or 5 months], I plan on asking the captain about repositioning both pool contending fish and centering the scale with both fish, and if it would be a problem with him on his boat.. That will be done in the morning as part of my early morning conversations with the captain, as I am usually one of the first on the boat..
I am not one for angry confrontation with strangers, especially those younger, faster, stronger, and more full of piss and vinegar than myself.

In a younger day I was much different, but have become much more docile than when I had access to raging torrents of testosterone.

I recall way back when as a younger fisherman, some captains would announce the dollar figure of the pool, and I think it should still be done today.. I also can recall the days when the mate walked the deck calling for pool fish, would hang any fish you handed him, and always center the scale, and it ALWAYS moved one way or the other.. this was not done that way at all, . In retrospect the fault was 100% mine, I should have said something right then and there, accusatory or not.
Its no big deal really, just something I wanted to discuss and get some opinions from others on a good fishing forum in the throes of mid winter doldrums... Your opinions are valid as always, and certainly well appreciated... bob

[Rocky]

Who is in charge of certifying these home made scales anyway?

[Down Deep Sportfishing]

Originally Posted by Rocky

Who is in charge of certifying these home made scales anyway?

El Chapo

[bulletbob]

A few years ago, I was on a NJ charter boat, that runs open very often.. actually more open boat dates than charter... Boat can handle maybe 12-14 people fishing at max.. anyway, as we left the dock the captain pretty much disavowed any pool arrangement, saying in effect, "if you guys want a pool, fine, you're on your own, set it up among yourselves- I want no part of it" -
thats a paraphrase of course, but that was the message he gave us, his customers on that particular day in May about 4 years ago .. Being mostly a larger head boat patron, not so much smaller 6 pack charter type boats i was somewhat surprised.. however i can understand where he was coming from... bob

[Duffman]

Bullet......nice thread and covo startrer........ya right man.......jan/feb what else to debate???