Read with interest a piece on Bassin’Fan the other day about Major League Fishing. Why with interest? Because it piqued (not peaked) my interest a bit.
I mean, I’m a bassin’ cynic just like you. Seen it all, done a bunch of it, just give me time to fish and some good tourneys to read about – plus new baits and gadgets – and I’m good. Do…not…need…gimmicks, which is what this MLF (an unfortunate acronym) seemed to me to be at first.
But based on a judicious filtering of some of the quotes in that article, I’m curious:
> Tommy Biffle broke off an 8-pounder, for which he had to endure a 1-minute penalty. “You can’t re-tie, you can’t eat, you can’t do anything for that minute, and it goes by like an eternity,” Duckett said. “You have to just sit there and anguish over that horrible moment.”
I kinda love that.
> Mike Iaconelli hooked a 4 1/2-pounder with less than 10 seconds left in a period and failed to get it into the boat before time ran out. “The (onboard) official counts down those final seconds and the rule is that the fish has to be within the perimeter of the gunnels for it to score. Ike tried to heave it in, but it was 20 yards out. That fish didn’t score and he had a complete meltdown, but that’s the game – you either beat the clock or you don’t.”
I like that too. And Ike? Meltdown? On camera? Get out. (Love ya, man.)
> KVD: “It made it more competitive to me and more intense.”
Uh, can KVD get more competitive and intense without shooting an eyeball across the deck?
> Hack: “I loved the down time between periods – it was like having a halftime and it gave you a chance to critique the last period and figure out what changes you needed to make.”
That does sound kinda cool if they can show that.
But
> Will that translate to the small screen? I’m thinking of rock concert videos. Some great performances have been captured on film and video, but the end product sucks. Not saying that’ll happen for the, uh, MLFs, just a concern.
> The bottom line is will I/we want to watch this again and again and are we going to want to watch them enough to subscribe to the Outdoor Channel.
> These folks also apparently want this to be fun to watch for a non-fishing audience. Possible?
More
> WTH? In that category is this line from the Bassin’Fan article: “Results of the Challenge Cup won’t be made public until January, when it will be offered online on a pay-per-view basis for $2.99.”
So lemme get this straight: For derbies practically no one knows anything about and haven’t seen yet based on a format that’s too long to describe in an elevator ride from the top to the bottom of the Empire State Building, people are going to want to pay 3 bucks to see the final standings? Am I missing something here?
> Ish said about the tourney: “It’s a feeling I want over and over again – it’s almost like a drug.”
Er, what drug is that there Ish? I assume we’re talking over the counter here, right man? (lol)
> Hack again: “The other deal that’s great is the no-limits – you just catch them as fast as you can, then throw them back and try to catch another one. You don’t have to fool with fish in your livewell and you don’t have to cull. You just keep catching them.”
I find that concept kinda…hilarious!
> Re: the photo: Type in MLF on YouTube and you get Mutant League Football.
11 Comments
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Dan Roberts
December 6, 2011 at 11:11 pm
I’m extremely excited about this whole deal. I have a hard time getting into other televised sports (except football of course, I’m a red-blooded American too) and most other fishing shows are uh… I’ll just say it… well they suck. They might be educational (somewhat) but they don’t feed my televised competition needs. Of course it’s just speculation at this point but I think the $3 pay-per-view will be very much worth it. But just like everyone else who reads this, I love this sport… so I’m willing to pay-to-see but I can’t see many people who aren’t into fishing watching much MLF.
Dwain
December 6, 2011 at 11:58 pm
Just glad it is only $3 because i’d probably have to pay whatever they came up with for a price lol very excited to see this thing.
Chad Keogh
December 7, 2011 at 12:01 am
I can’t wait and I’ll be plunking down my $3 if it’s available to watch in Canada too.
admin (mostly Jay)
December 7, 2011 at 8:17 am
Did I misunderstand this $3 thing. Thought Ir ead it’s to see the results only, not actual vid, but maybe I or Bassin’Fan got that wrong….
Brian
December 9, 2011 at 2:08 pm
Found this little snippet of info from Boyd:
“The pay-per-view is going to cost $2.99 an episode. What you’ll be buying for $2.99 is something that’s never been offered on any video or how-to program. You’ll watch the pros FIND fish. Most people can catch them. The game is all about finding them. And that’s what the pros do that almost no one else can: find them in a hurry. If you’ve ever fished a tournament, you know that’s probably worth more like $299 instead of $2.99”
Jared Burgess
December 7, 2011 at 7:44 am
they are obviously trying to highlight the little drama there is in competitive fishing and i thinks its gonna be kinda fake or hollow. our sport is what it is…not very exciting to watch, like golf. The hard core fans will watch but the gen public will pass, even with the added drama. heck, to even understand the drama they have created, you will need some tournament fishing knowledge. when i talk to Jon Q Public, they almost always picture fishing as fishing from the bank with a bobber. i think the gap is too big…
but yeah im interested to see what its like!
Shaggybass
December 7, 2011 at 9:35 am
In an interview on Bass Talk Live Boyd said that there will be way more video on the Pay Per View then the accual TV show!
admin (mostly Jay)
December 8, 2011 at 12:59 pm
Thanks for the info
Scotty Melvin
December 7, 2011 at 1:24 pm
Not sure it’s going to be a big hit, but i give them credit for trying something new. If anyone is interested I did an interview with KVD last month on my radio show, and he talked about it. Here’s the link. I apologize to Jay if this is out of line, but thought some fishing folks outside Kalamazoo might be interested in what KVD thought.
http://soundcloud.com/scottybudmelvin/scotty-bud-melvin-chats-with
admin (mostly Jay)
December 8, 2011 at 1:00 pm
No worries at all Scotty Bud.
Alex Voog
December 14, 2011 at 11:39 am
I can’t wait! I hope this really takes off, not only for the anglers and fans, and not just because I love the OUTDOOR CHANNEL so much and I gold prospect with the Massie family that owns it, it’s also that I’m a small stockholder of “OUTD”…. :-}