Just read your post on the NZACA FB page , I totally agree with you , apart from the boundaries thing but you know that. I have made several attempts to put some dynamite under the NZACA s collective bums with no luck . Go for it they obviously listen to you .
Re: Good luck Chad
Posted by Chad on 25/4/2013, 2:45 pm, in reply to "Good luck Chad"
This is what Phil is relating too. I sent this into the NZACA. Why wait for change....... I mean well and tried to be constructive. Boundarys are debatable, I know that, but there are some good points in it also...................
Looking from the outside in, it is very easy to judge, and get the wrong impression, so excuse my ignorance if all avenues have been explored prior and I am off base. I would like to bring to your attention a few key points, points that if I had the time to join the NZACA board and try to make a difference to something I care about, I would.
My first point, and probably the most important. The NZACA is a body that seems to be dwindling, numbers dropping, people unhappy and a bit of an "old boys club". Some of you won't like this, but by that I mean - the old boy at the club meeting who objects to everything and there is never any progress, well imagine a room full of those buggers and we have a picture of what Tthe NZACA board looks like from the outside. Things are changing, positions are moving and we make do with who steps up, I know that, and it's great to see, but this is how the NZACA is reflected to the public.
In my opinion there is not enough advertising. The NZACA is a non-profit organisation that would get allot of advertising at the drop of a hat, provided the pitch was right and relations were built in the right places. The NZACA should be always shown in a positive light, instead, after most Nationals, the negatives are highlighted ( except for the last one!). This has taken a step forward, but more positives need to be highlighted for this body to progress. What positives? Well it starts at a club level, the foundation, and builds it's way up. Why do we join clubs? Because we want to fish with others as keen as ourselves and build on our knowledge. When part of a club, what will be the benefit's in joining the NZACA? We have records to achieve, and the pinnacle is the National event held once a year. Is that it? It is also allot more than that, but people don't know that because there is never any updates apart from a webpage that no one visits?
For the NZACA to get any bigger, any better, progress and achieve it needs to start looking at a monthly update in the NZ Fishing News and other fishing related publications. Even if its 100 words, tell people what you do, advice people of change, tell us what you stand for, explain to us the calendar year. . . . . You have all of these fantastic tools at your disposal, yet they are not being used! I know full well, that if you approached a fishing mag to do this, there would be no issues, I know that if you approached guys like Kane Wriggleworth, Gary Kemsley, Bruce Basher, myself or any other writer, we would help you, but you don't. These are the most simplest of things to conceder. People don't go to your webpage.... Take your web page to them! Ask Grant Blair from the NZ-Fishing.Net forum for a special thread NZACA based news. 1000s of people go through there, it's all at your finger tips, promote yourselfs!. Communications the most simple tool, yet this is not being achieved. I say this with hand on hart, if you want to succeed, this really does need to be addressed, its not rocket science. But like I said, this all starts with clubs, clubs advertising for members in the local rags! Club Captains of clubs stepping it up, getting hold of the local rags, giving a weekly report, sending in a picture of the best fish from the weigh in, making a big deal about how awesome their catch was, show casing what a club is about, real simple stuff. Clubs gain members, more people get involved in the NZACA. I know this is easy for me to sit back and throw stones, and I usually would keep quiet on a matter like this, but I genuinely care about it.
Second point, the Nationals main event. One of the biggest draw cards for me personally is being able to make choices, choices that make fate in the outcome of the competition my own. Small boundary's restrict choice, and add an element of luck, it stops you from using your knowledge of an area and forces you to do the same as everyone else. The boundary this year is sandy beach, and you can drive it in just over an hour depending on traffic, choice is restricted as most of the boundary is much the same. Conditions along that entire stretch will not change, if it is terrible at Matata, it will be terrible at Papamoa, and so forth. The Nationals is planned over a year out on selected days, days that could be terrible, or the weather could be fantastic. With the selected boundary I don't believe it has been well thought out at all. Opening up the boundary will not only open up choice, and remove the element of luck, but it will also open up opportunities for those who like to fish rocks. This will increase numbers in attendance as you are catering for more people. Secondly, opening the boundary to say the Motu river mouth, to Tairua, also increases the chances of NZACA success in having fishable areas in different conditions. Because as it stands, its very limited, and its regular that that entire coast is a write off. At least opening it up gives you east and westward areas that will be sheltered in different conditions, that way, only a northerly can limit the competition to having to fish in a bloody harbour.
Chur Wairoa Hawkesbay
Take Nothing For Granted
Re: Good luck Chad
Posted by Hangler on 25/4/2013, 9:01 pm, in reply to "Re: Good luck Chad"
Chad, we may see things differently on some subjects, but differences can, if managed properly, lead to consensus. I applaud you for your letter. When secretary of the Pania club I put much of what you have written about the silence of the NZACA in a personal address to the AGM of the association held in Stratford some thirty-eight years ago. I wasted my breath then, exactly, as I fear, you may be wasting your time now.
Fishing is one of the largest participant sports in New Zealand, and it continues growing, which suggests a healthy, secure future. I fear the association waste so much time on things they will never change, they forget the ordinary angler.
The basic question must be why are there so many people taking a rod and line and going fishing, and yet so few are interested in joining either clubs or the NZACA? I have long held the theory, the association and clubs were so tied up in politics, the very subject most people go fishing to get away from.
I could continue on this line of thought with information I have gleaned over a lifetime of fishing. There are subjects that arrive on this message board I find distressing. To a new comer to the sport they could be forgiven for wondering why they bother. There is still the overriding portrayal the only fish that matter are snapper and Kingfish. Neither are frequent visitors to local beaches, sadly most of the other fish that are caught are almost portrayed as vermin or rubbish.
To the complete novice, the person who has just bought his or her first combo surfcasting outfit for the princely sum of $90.00, the first red cod, barracuda or yellow eyed mullet is a success story, and could be the making of a future club member. Have you any idea how elitist it reads when that novice reads the fish he of she was so proud of, falls into the categories listed above.
Everything you have written about promoting our wonderful sport is correct, however, I suggest an urgent need to look a little closer to home to make a start on promoting clubs and the NZACA. A snapper or kingie will always be viewed as a special fish, how about starting off by viewing all catches as fish and cut out the impression given that certain fish are little more than rubbish with nothing more than nuisance value?
I know on many anglers who enjoy a trip to the beach with their surfcasters, who are also very happy with their beach deployed long line. You mention in your letter the need for sponsorship; and where better to start than local sports shops. Well please accept this advice in the spirit it is given. Many sports shops are getting totally pi**ed off with the moans they are continually hearing emanating from senior members of this website. Long line gear makes up a fair portion of their sales that keeps them in business, Tackle Tactics, the owners of this site, feature long line equipment in their webpages. I suggest that to continue with these seemingly never ending line of moans and continual whingeing and sponsorship you seek is very likely to dry up.
Hell we have only been banging our heads against that brick wall for about 10yrs. Your turn Chad. I did offer a few years ago to be a trade consultant to the NZACA to keep them up with trends and new tackle, but I wasn't taken up on my offer. I felt that sort information would have been usefull . The NZACA could have also pulled in another sponsor with the line testing but that was overlooked as well. Sometimes you have to wonder.
Re: Good luck Chad
Posted by Rex HB on 25/4/2013, 10:24 pm, in reply to "Re: Good luck Chad"
I dont know much about the NZACA (and I'm a member) but I do know that if you want to get noticed you have to put information out there. Has the NZACA got or have they considered creating a media liason position. Press releases etc are an important part of getting a profile.
Re: Good luck Chad
Posted by Phill on 25/4/2013, 10:28 pm, in reply to "Re: Good luck Chad" Tackle Tactics
Rex, we can't even get our local club listed on the website. On that note are all the clubs listed on the website current , me thinks not.
Again we are all walking around with this mindless thinking that we as a body are doing nothing. Yes we are behind in the website. This has now been finally adressed. All clubs will recieve the contact to update their information. I have heard all the same carry on for the last five years I have been involved and I have taken a lot of it on board. For two years I have been part of the group invoking change. Fact; there are some who are pushing a barrow only to meet there own goals. Get over it. I agree there is a lot of what Chad has raised is of significance and worthy of discussion and I will see that it is discussed but there is also a lot of misdirected perception. That is sad. I resent being called a grey headed old man. But I am not concerned one little bit about that perception. I am happy to raise any issue and the NZACA body is always open to reasonable constructive discussion. Their meetings are not a closed door affair. If you wish to raise anything reasonable you only need to make it known so you can be heard. On that matter I am openly happy to discuss anything reasonable with anyone personally. This constant bagging of the NZACA is fastly becoming a yawn.
Oh and Rex I have taken the position of the NZACA Media Liason Officer although it needs to be ratified at the next meeting. I'm sure my shoulders are big enough. The Association agreed that this is a necessary requirement, a Media person not big shoulders.
Re: Good luck Chad
Posted by Phill on 25/4/2013, 11:27 pm, in reply to "Re: Good luck Chad" Tackle Tactics
Well there's a positive, good on you . When was that going to be public knowledge. That's the sort of information that should be on the NZACA website.
I have only put my hand up to take it on this afternoon although I have been considering it since our meeting last Saturday. I am sure once it ratified it will become public knowledge. Sadly some of the positives achieved to date were to be published in one of the bigger fishing mags but unfortunately was overlooked by them. Not our fault. We are trying to get out there. A boat dont go forward unless we all row in one direction.
Re: Good luck Chad
Posted by Phill on 25/4/2013, 11:45 pm, in reply to "Re: Good luck Chad" Tackle Tactics
If someone holds their hand up to do something grab it before they think about it and change their mind. In my experience get used to being let down by the magazine people they are generally useless .
on 25/4/2013, 1:30 pm