First, Most, Biggest

Fishing tournaments are a funny thing—anathema to some, raison d’être to others. The Flyfish Journal’s editorial crew falls decidedly closer to the anathema end of the spectrum, but after invitations to a couple of tournaments in mid-2023—the Cheeky Schoolie Tournament in Cape Cod and the Schmoots Clooper Invitational carp tournament in eastern Washington state—the two were surprised to find that perhaps they do have a competitive bone somewhere in their bodies (however small). It turns out the sweet smell of victory is varied as a field of wildflowers. In these tournaments participation trophies are the true grand prize. Jason Rolfe and Copi Vojta sat down for a post-piscatorem when the dust had settled in an effort to make sense of this new “competitive” landscape and share a few reflections on the value these events hold for the futures of our fisheries. 

Copi Vojta: When I first started flyfishing as a teenager, I had one other friend who also flyfished. We’d get dropped off at a lake by one of our parents and picked up at the end of the day. Usually, things would start with the two of us agreeing on a $5 bet for the first fish, most fish and biggest fish. First, most, biggest. I usually lost, as my friend was a better angler than me, or just luckier. Being out-fished and losing paper-route money sucked, even if in the name of fun.

As I aged out of these friendly bets, I lost any competitive spirit toward fishing I had. Competition and fishing didn’t jive for me. Fast forward 10 years into my shop rat days and I realized organized fishing competitions were a thing. Still not for me, but I was learning about more and more of them, and their popularity. Now it’s come full circle: I’ve been to two fishing “competitions” in the last year—the Cheeky Schoolie Tournament in Cape Cod and the Schmoots Clooper Invitational in eastern Washington—and in spite of myself I had a good time... 

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