Sweet Release

The big story at bass tourneys? The ones that get away

Ray Scott had a problem. The founder of the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (BASS) wanted to raise the profile of his tour, but those postevent piles of fish rotting on docks weren't helping his cause. So, in 1972, he introduced "catch and release" to BASS tournaments, which mandated that, to be counted, fish had to be kept alive during and after contests. Thirty-five years later, the challenges of keeping the fish splashing remain the same: hooking and handling, of course, but also regulating water temperature and quality and oxygen supply. The Magazine cast around the Bassmaster Legends event in Little Rock, Ark., last August to see how the show's real stars are treated. As the 15-event 2007 Bassmaster series kicks off this month, one thing is certain: The fish have never had it so good.

1. LIVE AND BE WELL
The fish spend most of the time between being caught and being released in a 42-gallon "live well" located at the rear of each angler's boat. At hot, summer events like the Bassmaster Legends, wells are iced in the morning to keep the water inside at a fish-friendly temperature 5° to 10° F cooler than the surface of the lake. Added oxygen and noniodized salt maintain the chemical balance of the bass. Basically, the well is a revitalizing day spa for fish. Good thing, too: An early catch can spend up to eight hours on the inside.

2. AIRED OUT
When the fishing is over, event staff meet the anglers at the docks, ready to refresh the water and add more oxygen to the live wells. For the weigh-in, the fish are transferred to a bag or tray and brought onstage. At televised events, this is the money shot, with fans screaming as their favorite anglers hoist their haul for the cameras. When all are in, BASS staff try to limit a fish's time out of water to less than a minute. And what encourages the competitors to play nice? "Dead fish" penalties, which dock weight for bringing in bass that are swimming with the fishes—in a bad way.

3. THE LOVE BOAT
After weigh-in, BASS staff rush each fish to an 800-gallon tank full of chilled, oxygenated H20 aboard one of four "live release" boats that travel the BASS circuit. (Two usually work an event.) At some tourneys, a holding tank is kept under or behind the stage, so the fish are swimming stress-free mere seconds after being weighed. In Little Rock, the catch of the day faced a 10-second journey to the relative piscine pampering of the live release boat's tank.

4. CATCH YA LATER
When it's time to return the fish to their rightful homes, they are set free at several points in the lake to ensure balance in the habitat. In Little Rock, the live release boat made three or four stops at the end of each day, depending on the size of its load. When the Legends tournament was over, of the 223 fish that had been caught, all but seven lived on to take the bait another day, a survival rate in line with the 97.3% of most pro events. "Fish care impacts everything we do, from tournament scheduling to choosing venues," says Chris Horton, conservation director at BASS. "We really put the fish first." Now, about that hook …

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