Welcome aboard Smitty,...you'll love this site!! Mini and I fish the MBCF circuit (he does more than me, but I have fished them a few years ago,...now I do the Greater North Tournament Trail and the MBCF State Championship)but my advice to you would be two fold....first,...join a club that also is affiliated with the Federation...fish those tournaments as a "boater", where you can hone your boating skills as well as your fish locating skills....you'll make GREAT friends and you'll learn alot even if you're only fishing with and against 15-20 other people. THEN,..after you've done the club thing,...or even while you're active in the club,..THEN I'd fish with the MBCF as a "non-boater" for the first year...You will learn even more, and you'll get a taste of what it's like to fish BIG water in much bigger tournaments...believe me, there's a HUGE difference between anglers in the Federation and those in Clubs....the Federation guys are much more serious and they take a lot more risks, involving longer runs....fishing harder for shorter periods of time and moving around a lot....there's a lot more strategy involved in fishing BIG water, than you'll experience fishing the inland lakes that clubs usually prefer. You're much better off to get a taste of the big leagues by being a "rider" and asking a lot of questions,...learning and watching and spending more time actually "fishing" than trying to deal with boat control, huge waves and all the other "distractions" that usually happen when you're the "boater". I would fish a club as a "Boater",...and fish the first year in the MBCF as a "rider"....the GNT trail that Mini and I fish is a TEAM trail, so we each have partners that we fish with,...but that would be a good alternative to the MBCF also...you'll get to fish bigger water,..as a boater,....with a buddy that you're comfortable with and you'll get the best of both worlds!!...There's a lot of options available, so this winter, at the boat and fishing shows....spend some time talking to LOTS of people and get as much input as possible and then make a decision.....but the Greater North Trail is REALLY cool.....good water (St.Clair, Saginaw Bay, Erie,..and in 2003,..Sandusky Bay too)...PLUS it's a great family atmosphere and with out a doubt,..it's the best trail going in SE Michigan. Feel free to email me or Mini anytime and we'll help you get started in the right direction. We're both on the Pro-Staff at the BPS store too, so we'll be doing seminars this winter and during the Spring Classics.....lot's of ideas and tips on what to do and what to use in our home water....you'll learn A LOT!!
Hope to see you there,...again..feel free to contact either of us and we'll be glad to help. Regards..
Mac
