Jesse's Hunting > Jim Matthews > Jan. 2000 - June 2000

Jan. 2000 - June 2000

SIERRA BROWNS, KILLER YELLOWTAIL, & BIG CATFISH -- matthews 28jun00

There hasn’t been a brown trout over 20 pounds caught from the Eastern Sierra Nevada in a long time. Once upon a time, the Twin Lakes out of Bridgeport would crank out 15-pounders each trout opener and 20-pounders were seen, if not caught, each year. Norman Annett of Mono Village at Upper Twin Lake has been trying to improve the plight of trout fishermen by raising and stocking trout in the lake and stream for the past six years. Mostly he stocked rainbow trout, like everyone else in the Sierra. “This year, I said the heck with the rainbows. The county is stocking Alpers’ rainbows and the Fish and Game is stocking its fish. I went with browns,” said Annett. In his three raceways, he figures he had 4,000 brown trout. Most are from one to 1 1/2 pounds, but a 1,000 of his fish are from three to seven pounds. He’s been stocking from 50 to 100 fish every couple of weeks, and all of the big fish in the raceways not planted during the season this year will be released at the mouth of the creek this fall after Oct. 31 so they can spawn naturally in the stream.

While the stocking program hasn’t produced a 20-pound brown and can’t for at least a few more years while those planted fish get huge in the lake. It has generated a lot of interest in the brown trout trophy fishery that many believe was disappearing. Three of the bigger browns -- 3 1/2 to four pounders -- were caught Tuesday this week, and Annett said the anglers were just elated. “Most anglers like the big browns over the rainbow trout. They’re just more elusive,” said Annett. Fishing is about testing an angler’s skill against a worthy quarry. It’s part of our primal makeup. That is why anglers like difficult fish and big fish.

BIG CATFISH, TAKE ONE: Two big flathead catfish were caught this week at the Colorado River. Clint Goddard of San Bernardino landed a 40-pounder while fishing an irrigation ditch near Palo Verde with a live tilapia. Homer Ford, also a San Bernardino resident, caught a 40-pounder at Picacho State Recreation Area in the Colorado River. “The one I lost was a heck of a lot bigger than this one,” said Goddard. Both anglers will tell you they believe there are 100-pounders in the Colorado, and honest fishermen will admit they don’t think a flathead that size could be landed. Since there’s no such thing as an honest fisherman, most of us will keep telling stories about the ones that get away. True stories, in the case of flathead catfish on the Colorado River.

BIG CATFISH, TAKE TWO: Clint Goddard fishes for catfish wearing a full-length wedding veil this time of year. It has little to do with romance, although he freely admits he likes catfish a lot. It’s about mosquitoes. Goddard’s wife fixed him up with the veil netting to keep him from getting chewed to pieces by hoards of insects that could carry away a 100-pound flathead.

CHECKING OUT WITH STYLE: Hunters and fishermen deal with death each time we go into the field. It is the nature of these activities and part of what makes them have such a powerful impact on our lives. These are not games, they involve living life to the fullest. Ron Fujii, a 57-year-old angler from Los Angeles, died of a heart attack last Saturday with his knees against the rail of the Shogun, a long range sportfishing boat out of Fisherman’s Landing in San Diego. Fujii was hooked to a large albacore, short-stroking the fish to the surface and the gaff when he was felled by the heart attack.

On the same trip, he’d landed an 89-pound bluefin, one that would end up being the second largest fish caught on the trip. Even more incredibly, he’d landed what will surely become a new world record California yellowtail. The yellowtail weighed 88.2-pounds and was landed on 60-pound test line at Alijos Rock. It easily beats the 80-pound, 11-ounce record caught by Brian Buddell in Nov., 1998, and listed as the record in the current edition of the International Game Fish Association record book.

I told the story to anglers all day Wednesday while making calls for the weekly fishing report. Everyone was saddened that such a young man died and felt great sorrow for his family, but to a person, they all thought it was a great way to go. He was out there living life to the fullest. A few years ago when my brother-in-law, R.G. Fann and I received word that our fly-fishing friend Ross Merrigold had died of a heart attack on the Madison River in Montana, we both asked the same question: Was it at the beginning of the day or the end of the day? Not that it mattered much for Ross, who fished daily during the summer, but we wanted to know that he’d had a good day of fishing the Madison, maybe catching a big brown or two, before collapsing into the river. What a way to go.

ILLEGAL SPENDING OF FUNDS, TAG FEES AND ANTIS -- matthews 21jun00

Back in 1993, Idaho raised the price of its non-resident hunting license to $101, and its deer tag to $228. At the time, the $339 price tag to hunt deer was the highest in the West. Before 1993, Idaho's non-resident quota of deer tags went on sale January 1 each year and they were sold out before May each year. Since 1993, they have never sold out the quota, and small annual cost increases now have the deer tag/hunting license selling for $363.50. The agency is strapped for cash. This year, Colorado announced that it will be raising the price of its non-resident big game hunting licenses for the 2001 season. Deer and pronghorn licenses will jump from $150 to $270, and elk and bear permits will soar from $250 to $450. Colorado receives some 60 percent of its budget from non-resident license fees, and it has been operating in a deficit for a couple of years. They had to raise the fees, they say. When I was going to Utah each year, the deer license was only $120, but it has since climbed to nearly $200. Wyoming, Montana, and New Mexico have all jacked up their non-resident prices in recent years. Jacked them way up.

The song is the same in all the Western states as in California: we have to raise the rates to cover costs. California has charged more for its resident hunting and fishing licenses than just about any other state for years, collecting piles of money. I'll be blunt and tell you what's really happening with this money: The state agencies -- especially here in California -- are illegally spending the money. State game agencies were designed to do wildlife work on hunted and fished species, and they are funded almost exclusively by hunters and fishermen's license dollars. These agencies are being burdened with more and more environmental tasks by state legislatures. I'm not suggesting that the work the state is asking the professional biologists to do is not important, but the state is not providing the funding to do the work. It is illegally coming out of hunting and fishing license dollars. The money from license fees is earmarked for specific tasks, and it is not being spent on those tasks.

The California Department of Fish and Game has a long track record of spending funds illegally, but it has never been prosecuted for the indiscretions because our legislators and attorney general mostly don't care. The DFG staff can't document how it has spent a couple of years worth of Upland Bird Stamp funds. Fees developers pay for review of their development plans are not forwarded from the city and county agencies that collect the money because the DFG has no oversight. But most critically, the Fish and Preservation Funds, hunting and fishing license dollars, are misused and assigned to do non-game or threatened and endangered species work. They are misused to do environmental assessments on developments. They are misused to do public outreach programs educating people about the needs of habitat or open space. All of these things are important tasks, but to use Preservation Funds to do them is illegal. Fish and Game preservation funds are being spent illegally and the management of game and fish species is suffering. These funds are even being spent on staff personnel who are anti-hunting and anti-fishing.

I have decided that much of this is by design -- both the illegal spending of Fish and Game funds and the increasing spiral of license fees. It works like this. The license increase spiral runs people away from the sport, so less money comes into the agency. More responsibilities are given to the state agency and less work is done for the constituency who supports the agency, so more get frustrated and quit supporting the agency by buying licenses, hunting or fishing on private ranches and clubs -- or dropping out of the sport entirely. The agency has to raise fees again, and even more people drop out of the sport. At the same time, agency staff who support traditional hunting and fishing management programs are assigned tasks that do not relate to their game training. Moral drops when a deer biologist has to work on toads, and people who do not hunt or fish are hired to do work on plants or non-game species to replace the biologist who leave for other positions out of state or in the private section. The new staff is funded illegally, but no one calls the DFG management on the carpet for the indiscretions. Hunting and fishing are belittled in the state legislature and on television as politically incorrect, so no one cares that the law is being broken. The new DFG staff also doesn't care much, since they don't hunt or fish either.

It is a concerted effort to get rid of the state game and fish agency and erode the base of support in hunting and fishing management programs. Sporting groups need to wake up and sue the state government for massive and long-term misuse of state Fish and Game funds and violation of dozens of laws and policies. It seems to be the only drummer that makes the DFG dance these days. It is the only music the legislature hears. It is the only way to stop the anti-management bias. The massive increase in license fees throughout the West is a good indication that the anti-hunting, anti-game management crowd is exporting its philosophy and tactics to other states. And winning. There's one simple solution. Sue them. Now.

Orange County NWTF fundraiser this Saturday

IRWINDALE -- The Orange County Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will have its second annual fundraiser banquet beginning 6 p.m. Saturday at the Alu-mont Furniture Manufacturing Banquet Facility. The fundraiser is to benefit ongoing turkey research in California and increase wild turkey population through the release of live-trapped wild birds from both within and outside the state. Cost for the event is $55 per person, which includes NWTF membership and dinner, or $100 per couple. The event will include a live auction, silent auction, and raffle. Alu-mont Furniture is located at 5400 Irwindale Ave., Irwindale. For more information, contact Kelly Paden at (714) 536-7480.

Snake avoidance clinic for dogs set for July 15-16 in Santa Clarita

SANTA CLARITA -- Robert Kettle, a professional herpetologist from Nevada and widely recognized as the leading expert in snake avoidance training for dogs, will be offering this training the weekend of July 15-16 at the Emblem Elementary School in Santa Clarita. The Santa Clarita Valley Chapter of Quail Unlimited has set up the Rattlesnake Avoidance Clinic, but the session is open to anyone in the general public who take their dogs into the field on hunts or hiking trips. Cost is $50 per dog and sessions are arranged over the two days by appointment only. For more information or to reserve a time slot, contact Bruce Kenyon at (805) 526-2073.

Santa Clarita Valley Chapter of Quail Unlimited to offer kids and women's hunter safety classes

SANTA CLARITA -- The Santa Clarita Valley Chapter of Quail Unlimited is offering a series of free hunter safety courses for juniors and women. The free junior classes are set for July 22, August 19, September 9, October 21, and November 11, while the women's only class will be August 12. All the classes are one-day, 10-hour classes, as required by the state Department of Fish and Game, and all include range instruction. All classes will be held at the Oak Tree Gun Club. The classes would normally cost $30, but they are being offered free to junior hunters under a funding program offered by Quail Unlimited and the National Rifle Association. For more information, contact Derek Fong at (661) 297-0876, extension 3, or e-mail Fong at derekfong@juno.com.

Annual Big Bear 3-D Archery Tournament set for August 12-13

CHERRY VALLEY -- The Cherry Valley Bowhunters have set August 12-13 as the dates for its 16th Annual Big Bear 3-D Archery Tournament, to be held at the Grace Valley Ranch, just off Highway 38 near Onyx Summit, in the San Bernardino Mountains. The event is Cherry Valley's largest fund-raiser of the year, and it attracts over 500 archers from most Western state to compete. The two-day event, with camping on site and other activities planned for the whole family, also functions as a kick-off for the archery hunting seasons throughout the West. For more information, contact Cherry Valley Bowhunters at (909) 797-3693.

BIG BASS CAUGHT AT PERRIS -- matthews outdoor column 14jun00

Most bass fishermen think February and March are the two months when you are most likely to catch a big, world-record class largemouth. That does seems to be the case, for the most part, especially here in Southern California. But bass anglers tend to forget that George Perry caught his world record fish of 22-pounds, four-ounces on June 2 back in 1932. Biologists like Larry Bottroff, with the San Diego City Lakes, believe that largemouths are in their peak condition during the summer when the water temperatures are ideal, food is plentiful, and their metabolism is cranking. While late winter fish might have egg mass to add weight, summer fish really pack on fat and muscle from their more vigorous lifestyle and ready food supply.

In the winter, the bass might eat just once a week. In the summer, they will eat daily and sometimes in large quantities. The summer bass also are more difficult to hook and land -- especially the really big boys -- or big girls, which is the more likely scenario. These bass are likely to be mostly nocturnal, when there is the least amount of activity on the water and darkness aids in their ambush of baitfish. A 15 to 20-pound largemouth in the summer will shear eight- and 10-pound test mono like thread, and probably even 17-pound test or heavier line. In winter, that cold water makes them a little more lethargic and hammers their stamina. This makes them easier to land.

Conditions all work against an angler landing a big bass in the summer. That is why it was a shock to learn that Bob Branch, an avid float tuber angler from Moreno Valley, landed a 17.2-pound largemouth bass from Lake Perris this past Saturday fishing in the launch area with a four-inch smoke grub. "I've fished 50 years for that fish," said Branch. "I feel real blessed and honored to catch her. "Does it seem funny to say that I feel honored by this fish? I know that the odds of a fertilized bass egg ending up as a 17-pounder have to be astronomically incredible. To think that I would catch that fish awes me. But I would rather have not caught the fish at all than have it die after I caught it," said Branch, who released the bass. Two other anglers in a boat witnessed Branch land the fish from his tube. Windell Tucker and Jesus Nava, both of Corona, offered to take Branch to the marina to weigh the huge fish before releasing it. "The fish might never have been weighed at all if it were not for these two guys," said Branch. "Anyone who thinks that professionalism and courtesy have flown out the window never met these two. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate these two gentlemen offering me the opportunity to weigh the fish."

After the quick weighing and a couple of quicker photos, the bass was hustled down into the marina and released there. "I spent about ten minutes making sure she had fully recovered," said Branch. "Funny, when she swam down and away, a bass about one-fourth of her size seemed to escort her down." In case you think the catch was a fluke, you should know that Branch is a regular at the lake. In spite of his proclamation that "even a blind hog finds an acorn now and then," Branch has fished Perris since 1989, almost always from shore, wading or from his float tube -- which is equipped with a sonar fish finder. Branch, who is an avowed jig-and-trailer fisherman, landed "at least 350 bass" just on Gary Yamamoto's Hula Grubs two seasons ago. While the 17-pounder wasn't caught on that particular bait, it was a four-inch smoke grub fished on a round leadhead in about 20 feet of water on the outside of a wed bed "just where I thought she'd be." The new bait he's been fishing is perfect for the extremely slow presentation Branch prefers to fish, and he believes the bait represents a bluegill nosing along the bottom -- a preferred bass food this time of year.

"I have discovered that this particular bait seems to catch bigger, though not necessarily more, bass," said Branch, adding that while the bait is only four inches long, it has more bulk than other baits that size. Branch, who's best bass at Perris before this monster was only a little over six pounds, said he lost a big fish in this same area last year. That fish took line and got under a cable before he snubbed the fish up. The line eventually frayed and broke on the cable while he tried to battle it back. This time around, Branch was able to steer the fish away from cover and managed to land the fish in about five minutes. Still he doesn't focus on the big bass. "I learned a long time ago that if you fish for big bass, you can forget little fish. But I just like having my line stretched." One of the biggest bass caught in California this year, the 17.2-pounder definitely stretched his line.

BRIEFLY: The Castaic Lake Mini Mart will be closing June 30. The Mini Mart, operated by Joel Justice, has been "bass central" for anglers fishing Castaic Lake for over a decade. More largemouth bass over 10 pounds were probably weighed on this store's scales than just about any place in the world. Justice said changes in management at the lake (mostly charging a fee for fishing tournaments) affected his business, and other opportunities in Arizona have led him to close the store. Because of future development plans for the property, it is unlikely the Mini Mart will be reopened. With the decline in the Castaic bass fishery, the closing of the Mini Mart truly marks the end of an era in this area.

The U.S. Forest Service has agreed to allocate a portion of money derived from the sales of Adventure Passes to work on water developments for wildlife on the four forests of Southern California, according to USFS spokesperson Jacqueline Leonard. The program, first announced in this column two weeks ago, was approved June 6. There will be four two-person crews hired to inventory and repair wildlife watering sites, mostly guzzlers and developed springs, on the Cleveland, San Bernardino, Angeles, and Los Padres national forests this summer and fall. The funding for this project is likely to become a permanent part of expenditures under the Adventure Pass program.

SMITH & WESSON CLARIFIED -- matthews column 7jun00

Smith & Wesson, one of the nation’s oldest firearms manufacturers, has been taking an immense amount of heat over an agreement it signed with the Clinton Administration in April. In return for agreeing to a number of restrictions on selling and manufacturing its handguns, S&W saw 21 of 26 lawsuits against them dropped by signing the agreement. Under pressure from federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD), these suits, which had been filed by politically motivated city and state representatives frustrated by their inability to pass ill-advised gun control legislation, were dropped. Why was HUD involved in the process? It is all part of an ugly story of federal extortion against legal gun makers, along with city and state agencies who were fear loss of HUD funding if they didn’t comply with the federal government’s requests (demands?). The five lawsuits that were not dropped are still pending because the five cities involved in those lawsuits had signed agreements with lawyers that effectively eliminated their ability to drop the case.

That means that S&W, and other makers named in these five lawsuits, will still have to battle these lawsuits through the court process. Mark Perry and Vic Garza, sales representatives for S&W in Southern California, said the gun companies are likely to prevail in every case, but the price is very high. It took four years and it cost S&W $5 million to win a New York-based case. “You do the math? How many of those can you afford to win at $5 million each?” said Perry, who said Smith & Wesson’s annual gross is only $60 million. “We were definitely getting ready to go out of business,” said Garza. “We could have just sold to the military and police [under another government-proposed alternative for dropping the lawsuits], but this company was founded on the consumer market and we didn’t want to give that up.” So the company executives made some hard decisions about consorting with the enemy -- at least for the short term -- or having to close up shop completely. That was the simple decision they had to make.

Many of the gun owner groups -- the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Gun Owners of America (GOA) -- were extremely critical of S&W for signing an agreement they saw, rightfully so, as violating the rights of gun owners. But the NRA contributed less than $2,000 to the legal fight that cost S&W $5 million to win in New York. “That’s the part that no one’s telling,” said Garza. In the days since the agreement was signed, many of the initial fears that those agreeing to sell S&W firearms would have to comply with the very strict sales codes for all of the guns they sold have not come to pass. S&W has made it very clear that the agreement only applied to Smith guns and not other guns sold by distributors or retailers. Once the “clarified” agreement came out on the S&W web site and was distributed to the industry, many companies like RSR Wholesale, one of the nation’s largest gun distributors, who had initially said it would not longer carry Smith & Wesson, changed its position.

Garza said that in Southern California, only two or three retailers have chosen not to sell S&W, and the major stores, like Turner’s Outdoorsman, will continue to carry their product line. The agreement, he said, really has little affect on California gun sellers or buyers because this state already has many of the restrictions already in place here. Both Perry and Garza said they weren’t happy with the deal, but understand that it was a last-choice alternative to going out of business. Their outrage was mostly directed at the government, on two fronts. First, they are angered that city and state governments would waste taxpayer dollars suing a legal gun maker producing high quality products to try to force their political agenda. It amounts to extortion. And second, that HUD -- which should have nothing to do with firearms issues -- would turn around and threaten a national lawsuit if makers didn’t comply with their list of demands. When S&W agreed to their demands, HUD was able to leverage the cities and states to drop their lawsuits, again extorting entities with lesser power and finances. HUD basically said, “we got what we wanted from the gun maker so you drop your suit or we’ll withdraw our funding from your city (or state).”

The initial reports of many cities and states mandating that their police agencies buy Smith & Wesson products, because of its signing of the agreement, have not come to pass. A lawsuit filed by other gun makers and the National Shooting Sports Foundation made most agencies’ legal staff realize they would lose in court if they pressed for elimination of the testing and competitive bidding process now in place and required by law. The agreement does not take precedent over law. Many people are still upset at Smith & Wesson, as a matter of principal. But the reality is that the agreement its management signed with the Clinton Administration can be ripped up and thrown away with a new president. The Clinton Administration is an example government gone awry on so many fronts -- that is the real message here.

Shooting Sports Fair draws 10,000 people over weekend

NORCO -- While final numbers were not in, attendance to this year’s Raahauge’s Shooting Sports Fair here this past weekend was generally thought to be up over last year, according to Mike Raahauge. Nearly 10,000 people attended the show last year. “There were a lot more families and kids,” said Andy McCormick of Turner’s Outdoorsman, co-sponsor of the fair with Raahauge. “It was definitely not just a guy-type of thing at all.” “Kids 14 and under got in free, and there must have been at least 2,500 kids over the three days,” said Raahauge. Raahauge said the National Rifle Association “knocked ‘em stiff. They signed up like 500 new members.” The Second Amendment Sisters, the antithesis of the Million Mom March, collected over 2,500 signatures on their petition supporting gun rights.
Two of the most popular events at the show were the five-stand and sporting clays ranges, open to shooters at bargain prices where the newest shotguns could be fired. Raahauge said that over 25,000 shotgun shells were fired at just those two ranges over the three-day event. Estimates are that over 100,000 rounds of ammunition were fired show-wide, and Joel Depoli, who ran the air gun booth for kids, said over 50,000 BBs were shot. “Imagine that, all those rounds fired and not a single injury,” said McCormick. “People who are not around firearms would probably find that simply amazing.”

California Waterfowl Association Los Angeles banquet June 23

STUDIO CITY -- The Los Angeles County banquet for the California Waterfowl Association will be held Friday, June 23, at the Sportman’s Lodge here. The fundraising event is to benefit wetlands and waterfowl habitat throughout the state. Event tickets are $65 per person, $95 a couple, or $35 for a junior (17 and under), and the price includes a CWA membership, dinner, and a hat. The event will include a raffle and auction of sporting art, hunting accessories, and firearms. The Sportsman’s Lodge is located at 12833 Ventura Blvd. in Studio City. The event begins with a no-host bar at 6 p.m. with dinner at 7:30 p.m. For more information, contact Frank Zebell at (714) 893-2082.

Inland Empire NWTF banquet set for July 8 in Rancho Cucamonga

RANCHO CUCAMONGA -- The eighth annual Inland Empire Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will have its Super Fund Conservation Dinner and Auction Saturday, July 8, at the Veteran’s of Foreign Wars hall here. The fundraising event will benefit wild turkey research and relocations in California. Event tickets are $55 per person, $80 a couple, or $25 for a junior. The price includes dinner and membership in the NWTF. The event will include a raffle and auction of sporting art, hunting accessories, and firearms. The Veteran of Foreign Wars hall is located at 8751 Industrial Way in Rancho Cucamonga. The event begins at 6 p.m. with dinner at 7:30 p.m. For more information, contact Mike Carnakis at (909) 466-1128 or Ryan Long at (909) 981-9905.

SALTON SEA DERBY, SHOOTING SPORTS FAIR, MORE -- matthews 31may

I would have covered all bets that not a single one of the 50 corvina caught, tagged and released at the Salton Sea would have been caught again during the $1 million Salton Sea Memorial Weekend Fishing Tournament. The Salton Sea is one of the most prolific fisheries in the world, and the idea that any one of 50 fish could be caught seemed almost funny when mixed in with the millions of other fish in the sea. But there were over 800 anglers entered in the event, and it turned out that more than one of the tagged fish was caught. Thiet Trong Do of Santa Ana landed a yellow-tagged fish that earned him $500 in cash. While it was the only payout in the event, two other tagged fish were caught before the event began, and two others were landed by anglers who were not registered to participate in the event. One of those fish caught by a non-entrant wore a green tag, one of 20, that would have qualified the angler to draw for the $1 million grand prize.

Gary "Mack" Brenegar, a business owner in Salton City who dreamed up the idea of the tournament, said "we accomplished what we wanted. We had lots of good press about the Salton Sea and what a great fishery we have and how beautiful it is out here." All the marina operators and resort owners reported the biggest crowds they've seen at the sea in years. "We had large crowds throughout the weekend. We're still tallying the figures, but it may have been the busiest for us in some years," said Steve Horvitz of the Salton Sea State Recreation Area. So what's next at the Salton Sea. Well, two things. First, Brenegar is planning a team tilapia derby for Labor Day weekend. A 100-percent payback event, where the four-person team that catches the most poundage of tilapia wins first place. Second, with promised K-Mart sponsorship and national publicity for next year's $1 million event, Brenegar believes people will come from across the nation in hopes of maybe getting the million dollar fish. He figures most of them will be happy with the balmy climate and great fishing they'll find at this salty desert lake. That what the whole point in the first place: make people realize this place is worth saving.

A.C. Plug Update: For the many of us who have followed the continuing saga of Allan Cole and his A.C. Plug, I have good news. Allan called this week just back from a visit to Luhr-Jensen's Ensenada lure-making plant. Cole signed a contract last year with Luhr-Jensen to manufacture and market the A.C. Plug, arguably the most productive big fish lure ever designed. Cole was thrilled that Luhr-Jensen was committed to making the plug correctly and in a variety of paint jobs and sizes. The new Luhr-Jensen plugs will be available on the marketplace in September, once-again available to the national fishing market. The lure design is just too productive to fade away.

Hands-On Gun Show: The Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair is this weekend in Prado Basin. This is the third annual version of this revived event that first began here over 20 years with a concept that flew: Have an event where people interested in firearms could not only see the latest products, but also shoot them. For over a decade, the annual Shooting and Hunting Sports Fair held at Raahauge's each spring became a driving force in encouraging hunters and shooters to participate in their sports during what is normally considered the off season. It became a warm-up for hunting season. A tune-up for target shooters who may have laid off too long.

The fair also functions as an introduction to firearms for many people because the environment is friendly, safe, and most-of-all fun. They are brought to the sports fair by neighbors and friends, or just show up after hearing about it on the radio. After a day of watching exhibition shooting and trying a variety of different types of guns under tutelage and supervision, it is hard not to get hooked on the shooting sports. Admission to the show is $12 for adults per day, and parking is free this year. There is a $5 fee for preferred parking, with all of the proceeds for this parking fee going to the California Sporting Goods Association to battle anti-gun politicians. You can pick up a $2 off admission discount coupon at all Turner's Outdoorsman stores. On Friday, all women and kids get in free, and kids 14 and under are free all days of the event.

There will also be a National Rifle Association booth outside the show grounds, and if you sign up for NRA membership, you will gain free admittance to the show. Show hours are noon to 6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. For more information or directions, call Raahauge's Shotgun Sports at (909) 735-7981. Come on out and visit. I'll be out there all three days pedaling my hunting newsletters.

Primative archer and flintknapper campout this weekend in Wrightwood

WRIGHTWOOD -- The Primitive Archer and Flintknapper Campout, a free event for buffs of long bows and flint arrowheads and spears, will be held this weekend at Indian Springs Ranch just out of Wrightwood. The event begins 9 a.m. Saturday and it will feature lots of flintknapping (chipping flint into arrowheads and spear points), primitive bow making, atlatl and dart making, and "lots of other primitive tech stuff going on all weekend." This year the World Atlatl Association will hold an international standard accuracy competition (ISAC). There will also be a friendly primitive bow competition, where participants donate prizes like bow staves, arrow shafts, flint, soapstone, earth-pigments, and other raw materials. There's a growing number of flintknappers, primitive archers, bowmakers, and atlatlists who attend this event each year, and the public is welcome.

Indian Springs Ranch is located on Lone Pine Canyon Road. To reach the ranch, take Interstate 15 to Highway 138. Travel west on 138 approximately one mile to Lone Pine Canyon Road. Turn left (southerly) and follow this road approximately five miles. Indian Springs Ranch is on the left side of the road. There will be a sign marking the entrance to the ranch and signs posted for the campout. For more information, e-mail Tom Mills at paleoaleo@aol.com.

First-time hunter wins $1,000 Pig-O-Rama at Tejon Ranch

LEBEC -- Mike Jones, a first-time hunter from Santa Ana, won the $1,000 grand prize in the Tejon Ranch Pig-O-Rama held Friday through Sunday of Memorial Day weekend. The grand prize was awarded to the biggest pig taken during the 2 1/2-day event, and Jones shot a 229 1/2-pound field-dressed boar. It was Jones' first big game hunt. Game manager Don Geivet said the hunt took place under about the worst conditions imaginable with 100-degree heat all three days. In spite of those conditions about 50 percent of the 50 hunters entered in the event killed pigs. "That was not the success rate I'd hoped for, but it's not bad," said Geivet. "The guys who are good pig hunters and worked hard all killed pigs."

Geivet said that over 200 hunters called wanting to participate in the event, but that this first hunt was limited to just 50 hunters. The hunting access and entry fee was just $300, plus the $25 insurance fee. This is lower than the ranch's normal hunting fee for wild pigs. Geivet said they may do another Pig-O-Rama late this fall or early winter. "Most everyone who participated in this first hunt couldn't wait to do it again next time," said Geivet. The Tejon Ranch offers guided and unguided hog hunts. For hunters who prefer to hunt on their own, there are a pair of two-month seasons each year. The first unguided season runs from February through March, and the second is May through June each year. You can purchase a one-hog permit for either of the unguided seasons for $500, while a two-hog permit is $800. The guided hunts cost $600 for one pig. You can add a second pig for $300 more. Success rates have been 100 percent for the guided hunts.

For more information about the hunting program at the Tejon Ranch and future Pig-O-Ramas, contact Don Geivet at the Tejon Ranch Company, P.O. Box 1000, Lebec, CA 93243, or call (661) 663-4208 or (661) 663-4209.

CWA dinner banquet set for Friday, June 23

STUDIO CITY -- The California Waterfowl Association will be hosting a fundraising dinner and banquet Friday, June 23, at The Sportsman's Lodge in Studio City. The event begins at 6 p.m. and dinner will follow at 7:30 p.m. Cost to attend the event is $65 per person or $95 per couples. Juniors 17 and under at $35. CWA is a non-profit group dedicated to protecting and enhancing California's wetlands. For more information, contact Frank Zebell at (714) 893-2082.

ADVENTURE PASS MONEY -- matthews column 24may00

The U.S. Forest Service is on the verge of allocating a sizable chunk of money from the Adventure Pass account to directly benefit wildlife on the four forests of Southern California, according to Jacqueline Leonard, a public relations specialist with the Angeles National Forest. If this first step proves successful, it could lead to a windfall in wildlife funds through matching agreements with private conservation groups and the state Department of Fish and Game. This first step, however, is about is about water for wildlife. The U.S. Forest Service is in the process of setting up four two-person crews to inventory and repair wildlife watering sites. One crew would be devoted to each of the four forests. They would work on doing a complete inventory of gamebird guzzlers, big game drinkers, and developed springs and setting up a repair and maintenance schedule to be carried out this summer and fall. The funds for this project could be approved as early as June 6 and on-the-ground work begun almost immediately after that.

Those of us who hunt and watch wildlife on the forest have been huge critics of the agency for letting the hundreds of guzzlers, drinkers and springs fall into disrepair -- many of them to the point of being completely dry. This effectively eliminates wildlife from vast areas of the forest. In Southern California, water is the critical factor in maintaining populations of wildlife. Habitat, that is otherwise ideal, cannot support populations of wildlife if they have no water sources. That will begin to change if Leonard gets her way. “I am committed to making it happen,” said Leonard. “The bureaucracy is slow-moving, but I present a proposal on June 6 for this program.” She said both the Angeles and San Bernardino national forests are already behind the proposal, and it should be able to hit the ground running this summer.

The plan to use Adventure Pass money to improve the plight of wildlife on the forests has its roots in annual pass sales. Leonard said that Turner’s Outdoorsman sells more annual passes than just about any seller (only Big 5 sells more). And all of those passes sold at Turner’s stores are sold to hunters and fishermen. Leonard starting talking with this huge constituency group and found one of their biggest concerns was the neglect of wildlife and habitat on the forest. She also found that sporting conservation groups like Quail Unlimited were willing to match U.S. Forest Service funding dollar for dollar to double the amount of on-the-ground work that could be done. And their volunteer network could increase the value a hundred-fold. If the Department of Fish and Game jumps on this bus, the amount of positive work that could be done for wildlife could be staggering -- perhaps even unprecedented in scope.

The DFG is on the verge of killing a wildlife habitat crew program funded out of Upland Bird Stamp monies (the stamp is required of all hunters who hunt upland birds and doves). The DFG program for Southern California was budgeted for just two years. But the DFG didn’t fill all the positions on the crew until the beginning of the second year. It took over a year to requisition and fund the necessary equipment purchases. By then it was already rumored that the crew was destined to be disbanded and staff started taking other positions, leaving vacancies. The habitat work that could have been done by the crew on state lands (where it was directed they do their work) was stymied by the lack of management plans for these places. The official kill date of this program is July 1.

That means the $500,000 in equipment purchased for habitat improvement work -- vehicles, water tankers, tractors, and other equipment -- will be sitting idle because the agency didn’t have the foresight to see that the program would take longer than two years to get off the ground. The DFG has basically wasted a huge chunk of our upland stamp monies. Or it is about to waste the money. It could salvage the program. The DFG needs to step forward and join in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service to do wildlife work on the federal lands were most of the state’s hunters spend their time. The Adventure Pass money paired with DFG Upland Stamp habitat crew funding, along with the money and effort from hunter conservation groups, could mark a new era in cooperation and really get things done for wildlife on public lands.

Many of us who publicly supported both the Upland Bird Stamp and Adventure Pass when they were first proposed caught a lot of flack from people who thought they were just going to be another tax without any benefit back to those of us paying out the cash. Using these monies to fund water maintenance on our local public lands for wildlife is exactly how many of us envisioned the money would be spent. It can happen now. You might even be able to help speed the process with a few, well-placed calls to your local state and federal elected representatives. With the USFS ready to come on line with this great program, it is the state DFG that needs a kick in the butt to get on board.

SHOOTING SPORTS FAIR: -- 24may

`Hands-On' Shooting Sports Fair to be held June 2-4 at Raahauge's

NORCO -- We take it for granted that when buying a new car, there will be a test drive involved so we can actually see if the beast handles and has the pep that we like in our vehicles. We want to make sure the seat is comfortable while we're operating the car and not just sitting in the showroom. When buying a new firearm, a lot of us go through months of anguish worrying about whether or not a certain new gun is actually what we want. We drive our local gun shop dealer a little batty, showing up once or twice a week to get fingerprints all over the new shotgun or lightweight revolver, peering through the sights, checking its fit in our hands. If we could just step out back behind the gun shop and shoot a box of ammo, the deal would be cemented in our minds much quicker. The 2000 version of the Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair to be held June 2-4 at Raahauge's facility in Norco is your opportunity to test drive the gun of your dreams. The Sports Fair remains the largest hands-on gun show in the nation where you can actually shoot the firearms on display. This is the ultimate test drive because you can shoot dozens of different firearms at the same place.

Virtually all of the nation's major firearms makers will be in attendance, and it offers gun enthusiasts a unique opportunity to not only handle the products, but also to shoot them under supervised conditions to see how the guns will perform on the range and in the field. New shooters can get practical instruction and learn the fun of the shooting sports. Just some of the reasons to attend the event:

-- You are thinking of getting one of your kids his or her first shotgun for the dove opener this year and to use when they tag along with you to the shotgun range each weekend to shoot sporting clays. Here you will have the opportunity to let the kid try out a whole host of different stock-size and gauge guns to see which ones fit them the best and minimizes the recoil factor.

-- You've read about the new short-barreled Smith & Wesson or Taurus titanium handguns in .41 magnum or .44 Special and the idea of such a light, powerful gun appeals to you, but you weren't sure if you could handle the recoil or muzzle blast from such a light gun. Well, here you can shoot a couple of cylinders-full of ammunition and make an informed decision

-- You will want to stop by the California Sporting Goods Association's booth and spin the wheel of fortune a time or two. "You'll get a nice prize worth more than the $5 donation to spin the wheel, but more importantly, you'll be contributing to a war chest to battle the anti-gun politicians and the anti-gun media blitz we've been seeing this year. Watch for pro-gun billboards on a freeway near you and pro-gun commercials coming to your Southern California television set, soon," said Andy McCormick of Turner's Outdoorsman.

-- Knowing that bird season is coming up, and remembering how your arms ached when lumbering after chukar with your 7 1/2-pound Model 870 pump, you will want to heft and shoot a whole host of double-barrel -- both the over-and-unders and side-by-sides -- in 20 and 28 gauge. Some of the new guns weigh between five and six pounds. The average chukar hunt involves something over 5,000 steps during the course of the day, and your legs are effectively lifting that shotgun with each step. Cut two pounds off the weight of the gun (or your gut) and that's five tons less you'll have to lift during the course of a chukar hunt

-- Or you might want to go just to shoot a genuine, restored Gatlin gun, cranking out a 20, 50 or 100 rounds. (we don't want to know what you're imagining when you do that.) Maybe you just want to shoot the new Ruger .454 Casull to say you've fired the world's most powerful handgun round. Maybe you have an elk hunt scheduled for this fall and want to actually shoot one of the new Remington Model 700 .300 Ultra Mags before buying one. Or do you want to test the new Marlin .450 lever gun to see if it truly lives up to its billing as the ultimate bear and pig gun. In addition to the opportunity to shoot just about any firearm made today, the Sports Fair will have a whole host of shooting related activities, seminars, demonstrations and displays that have made many visitors decide to come back for a second day when they found they couldn't do and see everything at the show in a single day. Three of the most popular aspects of last year's show will return for 2000. The Turner's Outdoorsman Women's and Youth Shooting Booth allows women and youngsters an opportunity to shoot .22 rimfires and 20 gauge shotguns while getting instruction in gun safety and shooting techniques. It's a good first stop for families before heading to other shooting stations.

The kid's air rifle booth was a blast for both kids and adults. Joel DePoli, who has run the booth, has expanded the booth size so the lines don't get too long and the kids can shoot even more at this free shooting booth. John Cloherty, one of the most versatile trick shooters who uses rifles, handguns and shotguns, will put on daily shooting exhibitions that include creation of the half-acre salad in a dazzling display of shotgun shooting. Admission to the show is $12 for adults per day, and parking is free this year. There is a $5 fee for preferred parking, with all of the proceeds for this parking fee going to the California Sporting Goods Association to battle anti-gun politicians. You can pick up a $2 off admission discount coupon at all Turner's Outdoorsman stores. On Friday, all women and kids get in free, and kids 14 and under are free all days of the event. There will also be a National Rifle Association booth outside the show grounds, and if you sign up for NRA membership, you will gain free admittance to the show. Show hours are noon to 6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 6. For more information or directions, call Raahauge's Shotgun Sports at (909) 735-7981.

SHOOTING SPORTS FAIR: JOHN CLOHERTY FEATURE -- 24may

John Cloherty sees the world through rose-colored glasses.

NORCO -- John Cloherty buys aspirin by the hundreds but he doesn't use them to ease the pain of headaches. In fact, he might give a few headaches as he shoots the aspirin out of the air with a .22 rifle. But he also likes to blast clay targets in flight with his revolver, and he prefers making his tossed salads with a shotgun. While some people might see this activity as a bit odd, Cloherty is seeing the world through rose-colored glasses -- both figuratively and literally. The 45-year-old Pasadena resident has the reputation as one of the finest exhibition shooters in the West, reviving the era when all of the major firearm manufacturers had traveling road shows with trick shooters who used shotguns, rifles and pistols in their often incredible displays of marksmanship. It's like living a dream for the long-time shooter and hunter.

"This career has developed well past my wildest dreams," said Cloherty, who will be returning the weekend of June 2-4 to the place where his career was launched 13 years ago. "I watched Dan Carlisle, one of the best exhibition shooters in the world, perform here. I was just amazed, and 10 minutes later I decided I wanted to learn how to do some of those tricks." Cloherty had watched Carlisle, an Olympic medalist in shotgun shooting, at the Raahauge's Shooting and Hunting Sports Fair. This year, Cloherty will return to the Sports Fair as the headlining exhibition shooter at this annual event. And he's adding some new twists to the succession of outstanding exhibition shooting programs that have been a benchmark of this show since its inception. "I'm trying to bring a wider range of guns into my act than has ever been done in recent years,'" said Cloherty of his daily performances. "Using shotguns, rifles, and handguns hasn't been done since the 1920s and 30s." Cloherty, who set a world record at the Sports Fair for the most clay targets broken in one hour at 4,551, also sees his exhibitions as a benefit to the shooting sports and gun ownership in general.

"This is a way for all people to see that those of us who like to use guns are not insane whackos in a tower some where. We are just people who like to go out with their guns and have fun," said Cloherty. He uses the booming growth of sporting clays shotgun shooting, as an example of a tremendously fun and safe sport that can be enjoyed by the whole family. The Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair, which was the first firearms show in the nation that was a hands-on affair, allowing those attending the show to both look at and shoot the latest in firearms, has never had an exhibition shooter that used anything other than shotguns in his program. Cloherty uses a .22 rifle to break a succession of smaller targets in the air, finishing with Alka-Seltzer and aspirin tablets. He also uses a .45 auto handgun to break aerial targets. But shotgun shooting is his specialty. His trademarks are a brilliant-colored gun and an over-the-head shooting style. He can also break targets shooting between his legs like a football center, while holding the gun upside down. He calls this stunt the "quarterback's nightmare."

The perennial favorite of his program is something all of the shotgun exhibition shooters call the "quarter-acre salad." There is something about watching cabbages and watermelons explode that delights an audience. Attendees of the Shooting Sports Fair have watched Dan Carlisle, John Satterwhite, and Tom Knapp do their versions of the salad in the past. Cloherty says "I do believe that I'm 10 times messier than anyone who does it. It just has gotten messier and messier over the years. I go through a supermarket now and wonder, `how would that blow up?' Everyone loves it." Cloherty brings more than a visual element to the show. He has found that shotgun-exploded onions add a wonderful aroma to the program. In fact, it brings tears to your eyes. But for Cloherty, who wears rose-colored shooting glasses, they are tears of joy because it has allowed him to turn his avocation into a career.

SHOOTING SPORTS FAIR: HARRY BOYLE MINI FEATURE -- 24may

`King of Quack' to give daily seminars at Shooting Sports Fair

NORCO -- Harry Boyle, described as "the king of quack" for his prowess with a duck call, will be giving daily seminars at the Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair June 2-4. The northern California-based hunter said his wide-ranging seminars will cover everything from beginning duck calling to advanced calling techniques for whitefront geese, which Boyle calls "the filet mignon of the sky." He'll discuss dogs, decoys, and shooting techniques with steel shot and the new non-toxics. Boyle, designer with the P.S. Olt Company of the "California Call" and many instructional audio tapes, made his mark in the field with ducks as judges of his experience and -- judging by the results -- stands atop the duck calling elite list. In 1991, the release of "Working Birds" presented by the California Waterfowl Association drew national attention to Boyle, and the tape is still one of the top videos in the nation. A veteran of years as a featured and popular headliner speaker at the International Sportsman's Expos, Ducks Unlimited, and California Waterfowl Association shows, Boyle is a licensed and bonded guide in California, owner of several duck clubs, a director emeritus of the California Waterfowl Association, and winner of the coveted Gold Teal Award given by Ducks Unlimited for having donated in excess of $500,000 to Ducks Unlimited over the years. He was also named "Best in the West" by Western Outdoors Magazine in 1985.

Known as an aggressive, open-water caller, Boyle has developed a simple five-step process for calling successfully, and it is this process he will be teaching at the Sports Fair. "My system won't win a duck calling contest," said Boyle, "But it will win every time in the field with the ducks doing the judging." San Francisco Chronicle outdoor writer Jim Freeman simply called Boyle, "the Benny Goodman of duck calling." Boyle will conduct at least one seminar each day of the Shooting Sports Fair. Hours are from noon to 6 p.m. Friday, June 2, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 3, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 4. Admission to the show is $10 for adults per day, and parking is free this year. There are $2 off admission discount coupon at all Turner's Outdoorsman stores. For more information or directions, call Raahauge's Shotgun Sports at (909) 735-7981 or (909) 735-2361.

SHOOTING SPORTS FAIR: SEMINARS ROUNDUP -- 24may

Free seminars, demonstrations highlight the 2000 Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair

NORCO -- The seminar and exhibition slate at the Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair is worth the price of admission, according to Mike Raahauge, organizer of the event.
"You'd normally have to pay more than the price of admission to the fair to see any of these exhibitions or attend a seminar by these people," said Raahauge of the June 2-4 event held at his ranges here.
Here's a listing of the daily exhibition and seminar slate:
-- John Cloherty will give shooting exhibitions that feature his rifle, handgun, and shotgun shooting skills. His claim to fame is the creation of the "half-acre salad" with his shotgun, and he set a record for the most clay targets broken in one hour at 4,451 at a previous Shooting Sports Fair.
-- Harry Boyle, the "King of Quack," will be giving daily seminars on the A to Z of waterfowl hunting. Boyle, who works for Federal and Benelli, is best known for his incredible duck calling skills.
-- The Safari Club will have its portable, hands-on moving exhibit called the "Sensory Safari" at the fair. The mobile trailer features an exhibit of donated animal mounts, skulls, skins, and horns and provides a unique opportunity for children and the sight-impaired to experience the size of a grizzly bear, the shaggy mane of a lion, or the teeth of an alligator.
-- Gil Gera, known as "Cisco" in the Cowboy Action Shooting Society, will give a fast draw exhibition.
-- Steve Puppe of Hunter Specialties will give daily seminars on turkey calling and hunting and elk calling and techniques.
-- Ken Sakamoto of RCBS will give seminars on reloading for both beginners and veteran reloaders, showing new products and giving tips to make quality reloads.
-- Paul Caccatori of Starlight Kennels will be giving daily seminars on hunting dog selection, training and care.
-- Jim Matthews, guns and hunting editor at Western Outdoor News, will be giving seminars on both hog hunting and upland bird hunting in Southern California and the West and the resources available to hunters.
-- There will be a quail calling seminar put on by Quail Unlimited. The group will also show hunters how to make their own calls.
-- The Shooting Sports Alliance will have a shooting booth where they will show and demonstrate Steel Challenge Race Guns and allow the guns to be shot.
The Shooting Sports Fair is open from noon to 6 p.m. Fris to two trout and 15 bluegill. The bluegill are starting into a good bite with fish to 1-8 reported. For more information, call (760) 240-1107.

MILLION MOM MARCH -- matthews column 17may00

The Million Mom March has come and gone, and a lot of what I saw and read from the mothers interviewed in the march echoed what gun owners have said for decades about firearms, their use, and safety. The one phrase you heard a lot was "common sense." That is exactly what gun owners and the National Rifle Association has been preaching for decades. Unfortunately, gun control advocates who organized the march don't use common sense when approaching the firearms debate. There were a lot of analogies to MADD, Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, and commentators suggested that the Million Mom March would have the same impact on common sense measures on firearms.

The difference is that MADD has almost exclusively targeted people who misuse alcohol and automobiles, while the gun control advocates are targeting those using firearms legally. If MADD had approached the drunk driving issues the same way the Million Mom March folks are approaching the gun control debate. This is what we would have seen from MADD. Booze Locks: All alcoholic beverages would be sold with locking devices so kids couldn't get access. We probably also should have a law that mandates that beer kept in the `fridge be stored in a smart-locked section, which only could be opened by the authorized user. One Bottle Per Month: Since we all know that most drunks get that way because they drink too much, all buyers would be restricted to designated size serving of their favorite hard liquor per month (see below).

Container and Packaging Sizes: No more six-packs. A person can get drunk drinking a six-pack. All beer can only be sold in two-beer clips. Wine can only be sold in four-ounce containers, and hard liquor in shot-size containers. And remember, no more than one per month. Ban All Cheap Booze: Since we know that only street bums and teenagers buy cheap alcohol, leading to increases in teenage pregnancy and venereal disease, all cheap alcohol should be banned. License and Registration: All people buying alcoholic beverages would have to become licensed and registered, taking a 10-hour course in alcohol safety, storage, and legal consumption, and then pay an annual registration fee so they could buy alcohol. This would allow us to monitor those buying alcohol to make sure they didn't exceed their monthly allowance and tax them to pay for the bureaucracy created to enforce these laws.

Sue the Manufacturers: Lastly we should sue the alcoholic beverage companies for reckless marketing that encourages promiscuous behavior, drunken driven, and violence that leads to increased health care costs, unwanted babies, botched abortions, and a staggering number of traffic deaths each year. This type of logic is the "kill the messenger" mentality that simply doesn't work against offenders and only restricts the law-abiding.

What the Million Mom March supporters could do is support on-going efforts by the guns and hunting groups to reduce accidents and crime. The Moms should support the following two things: 1) Safety education. Our children need to be taught about firearms and how dangerous they can be when misused. The NRA's Eddie Eagle program is a prime example of how gun owners have stepped forward to push safety. Our hunter safety programs, mandatory in all 50 states today, have reduced hunting and gun accidents dramatically. But more could be done, and non-gun owning Moms could sure help educate the non-gun owning public. This includes advocating that firearms owners store their firearms securely with gun locks (which are already supplied with over 90 percent of all new firearms sold) or in gun safes.

2) Enforcing laws on misuse of firearms. There are already very good laws on the books that make parents responsible for firearms misused by children or family members in accidents or the commission of a crime. There are add-on penalties in most states for criminals who use firearms in crimes because of the huge potential for serious injury or death if the firearm is used. The Million Moms need to get behind these laws just as MADD has pushed for increased enforcement of drunk driving laws and more stringent penalties. They also need to get after the Clinton Administration and Congress to mandate enforcement of the Brady Bill so convicted felons who try to buy a gun legally are re-arrested for violation of their parole. Only a handful of the hundreds of thousands felons turned down by the background check law have been prosecuted.

These are common sense approaches that have a proven impact in reducing accidents and crime. Mandating the sale of safety locks and licensing and registration have no practical applications in this regard. If the Million Mom March organizers take this "common sense" approach, it will be effective in helping achieve the same goals hunters and shooters have long advocated to make our society safer. If they stick to the anti-gun agenda, it will be just more political rhetoric that won't save lives.

GPS SCRAMBLE, HUNTER LIGGETT, AND MORE -- matthews -- 10may00

As of Monday this week, the federal government is no longer scrambling the signals from Global Positioning Satellites (GPS), meaning the accuracy of hand-held GPS units will increase up to 10-fold, making them accurate to 50 to 125 feet. Differential GPS (DGPS) units will offer accuracy to within a few feet or less. I have been playing with GPS units for several years and believe they have great utility for people who spend much time outdoors. The problem was that their accuracy was often pretty dismal due to the military scramble, and a competent map reader with a compass could plot a more accurate location than the one given by a GPS unit, especially when paired with new mapping software run on home computers that will give you a latitude and longitude readout for any given point on a map. All that has changed this week.

Now you can take a GPS reading from a favorite backcountry campsite and pass that information on to a friend with his or her own GPS unit and know they’re going to find the same perfect spot where you pitched your tent. I dug out an ancient hand-held unit that was never very accurate. (In fact, one of the first coordinates I saved on it was for my house. Those coordinates put my house over a quarter mile away on the wrong side of a freeway when plotted on a map. That was only partially because of the military scramble.) But with the scramble gone, the reading it gave was within about 50 or 75 feet of true. It will now be possible to record and pass on accurate readings.

The uses are really pretty unlimited for hunters, fishermen, backpackers, and anyone who does things outdoors away from roads. With DGPS you can sit your fishing boat right a tiny rockpile time after time, or direct a bird hunting partner to a hidden guzzler you found out in the East Mojave. It will really shine on water or on flat ground where map-reading skills become far more difficult or moot. In the past, you felt lucky if the GPS coordinates from a unit got you within a couple hundred yards. The reality was that an original poor reading, amplified by the military scramble when trying to get back to that spot, would have you more than a quarter-mile away. The units will have more utility and less novelty now. Chalk one up for the federal government that agreed that “selective availability” (SA), the scrambling, was no longer necessary for national security.

FORT HUNTER LIGGETT CLOSURES: One of the most popular and productive public land hunting areas for wild pigs in California may shut down the hunting program. Fort Hunter Liggett on California’s Central Coast is going through a series of cutbacks that will close the campground and store at the base. Ironically, the cost-saving measure will be closing down operations that make money for the base. Ah, the wisdom of government. Vic Robinson, who has run the campground and store concession, said the base brass are insisting that the hunting program will continue but he fears that without the campground and check-station at the store, the program will dwindle and perhaps close completely. Robinson said they always sold more than $1,000 worth of permits per weekend, and that there is outrage among civilian users of the base that the campground, boat rentals, and store will be closed.

Just as a hunting footnote, there have been over 20 wild hogs taken on the base since the first of April, even with many of the major hunting areas closed because due to training. There is no public land area in the state that approaches this kind of success. This is another strike against the federal government.

NON-TOXIC RIFLE AMMO: It is increasingly looking like the federal government -- the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Forest Service -- will be pushing to have jacketed lead bullets used for big game hunting banned in at least portions of Southern California. The voodoo science they tout that endangered condors have died after eating big game animals wounded and lost by hunters. Never mind that most big game is not lost. Never mind that most rifle ammunition penetrates completely through game. Some biologist with sketchy data speculated that it was a hunters’ slug that poisoned some condor so they want to ban all lead ammunition where condors live. Since it’s a well-known fact that condors have died after drinking break fluid that has leaked from a vehicle, we can only expect that vehicles using brake fluid will also be banned from roads that go through condor habitat. So here’s another strike against the feds. One step forward, two steps back. Sigh big with me right now, will you?

Crowley Lake opener survey shows increase in fish sizes.

Two mild winters in a row produced a banner year-2000 trout fishing season opener at Crowley Lake, according to a state Department of Fish and Game two-day lakeside survey. Curtis Milliron, DFG fisheries biologist in Bishop, said fingerling and subcatchable trout stocked in recent years had ample opportunity to gain size on an insect-rich diet during relatively mild winter months. The warm weather conditions provided larger nutrient quantities than the zooplankton browse usually available during cold months when ice covers the lake and insect populations are largely dormant. Just prior to the April 29-30 season opener, Milliron forecasted anglers would harvest a higher than usual number of trout limits, and fish larger overall than the norm; predictions that proved largely correct once angler survey figures were calculated. "Size of fish increased 15-20 percent from last year, and the catch rate was right on target," Milliron said. Average rainbow trout caught during the opener was 14.25 inches long and weighed 1.1 pounds.

A total of 10 DFG fisheries personnel interviewed 876 anglers during the weekend. They calculated 4,354.75 hours of angling effort expended for an estimated 1.02 fish per hour catch rate at Crowley. Approximately 19.7 percent of trout in the greater-than-15-inch size range were caught this year, nearly double the 10 percent average last season. In years past, prior to Eagle Lake trout introduction at the lake, the average catch of these larger fish was just in the three to five percent range. Milliron said Eagle Lake trout have accounted for a sizable number of fish taken in the 15-inch-plus category. The biologist said a large number of rainbow and Kamloops trout were hooked by anglers fishing Crowley Lake tributaries such as the upper Owens River, McGee Creek, Hilton Creek, Whiskey Creek and Crooked Creek. "Catch rates in the lower section of the upper Owens River were outstanding," said Milliron, "and should be very good throughout the season -- especially in June when trout return to Crowley after spawning."

Milliron estimated 470 boats and 5,000 anglers fishing Crowley this year on the Saturday morning opener. Last season, approximately 500 boats and a total 5,500 anglers were counted. Crowley Lake trout fishing season extends through July 31 with a five fish daily limit, and 10 fish possession limit following two or more days fishing. The Crowley season then reverts on Aug. 1 to a two-fish daily and possession limit through Oct. 31. During the August through October season, only artificial lures with barbless hooks may be used, and an 18-inch total length size limit is in effect.

Lake Powell hosting $1 million tagged striped bass this month.

PAGE, Ariz. -- A single tagged striped bass in Lake Powell could be worth $1 million if caught by an angler during a tagged fish promotion ongoing through May 24. There are also be 19 other tagged stripers worth vacation packages as part of a Lake Powell Resorts and Marina promotion. The concession is hoping to generation interest in striped bass fishing to help reduce the numbers of fish in the lake. Nearly one million striper fingerlings were planted at Lake Powell 25 years ago. Since then, the population has grown to an estimated 2.5 million fish. There is no entry fee to fish in the event and only a valid Arizona or Nevada fishing license is required of those who fish the competition. If an angler catches the $1 million fish, he will be awarded with annual installments of $40,000 over 25 years. Contest details are available at www.visitlakepowell.com or by calling (800) 945-LAKE (5253).

WON Striper Derby set for May 12-14

LAKE HAVASU CITY -- Now entering it's 17th year, the Western Outdoor News Lake Havasu Striper Derby is set for May 12-14. The derby is a two-person team event fishing for striped bass on Lake Havasu. The headquarters hotel is the Nautical Inn Resort and Convention Center. More than $70,000 in prizes and trophies will be awarded, including a grand prize drawing for a fully rigged bass boat. The boat will be given away via drawing to one lucky contestant. Contestants don't even have to catch a fish to be eligible to win the boat. This annual derby attracts nearly 500 anglers each year and most are able to catch stripers on baits and lures. Lake Havasu has the one of the highest populations of striped bass of any waters in the nation. For more information and entry forms on the biggest striper derby in the country, call Kirk Sumida at (888) 966-4665, extension 30.

Team bass tournament set for Lake Isabella this Saturday

LAKE ISABELLA -- The first-ever WON BASS Open Team Tournament on Isabella Lake will be staged this Saturday, May 13, a joint event of the Central Coast and Mother Lode Regions of the WON BASS team tournament circuits. "Fishing has been absolutely awesome this year at Isabella with double-digit fish being taken and a couple of fish even hit the 16-pound mark," said Sid McDonald, tournament director. "This tournament could produce some all-time record weights for a team tournament." WON BASS membership is not required for this event, said McDonald, and there will be a $120 entry fee per two-person teams. There also will be option pools of $20 for big bass, $25 side option and $5 wild card option. Isabella Lake will be off-limits to tournament anglers for the five days preceding the tournament. For complete information about the tournament contact Sid McDonald at (559) 251-4983. Anglers also can pre-register for the event at Village Tackle, 6424 Lake Isabella Blvd. in Lake Isabella, starting at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 12, resuming from 3:30 a.m. to the tournament start on Saturday morning. Information also is available by calling Dave Priest of Village Tackle at (760) 376-4170. The tournament start will be held out of launch area 19, with the weigh-in at French Gulch Marina.

Hemet Valley Chapter of Ducks Unlimited hosting its 20th annual banquet May 13

PERRIS -- The Hemet Valley Chapter of Ducks Unlimited will be hosting its 20th annual fundraising banquet Saturday, May 13, at Harrison Hall in Perris. There will be over 20 guns raffled, along with other prizes, and a live and silent auction. Individual dinner tickets, which include an annual DU membership, are $50 per person or $75 a couple. Juniors (or greenwings) are $35. For more information or to order tickets, contact Slim or Glenda List at (909) 654-1450.

Quail Unlimited's National Celebrity Sporting Clays Tournament set for May 20-21 in Norco

NORCO -- The Quail Unlimited Dub Taylor National Celebrity Sporting Clays Tournament will be held May 20-21 at Mike Raahauge Shooting Enterprises in Norco, attracting shooters from across the nation. There is a 200 target event for Saturday and Sunday (May 20-21). Shooters can register in the National Sporting Clays Association's registered division for $250 or the non-NSCA Hunter's Division for $75 to shoot the 200-target event. Each registered shooter will receive eight boxes of Winchester ammunition, target, admission to Saturday's shooters' party, and a regular membership in Quail Unlimited. There is also a small gauge tournament on Friday (May 19) with an entry fee of $50, which includes two boxes of ammunition and targets. The event is for 20 and 28 gauges only. Entry forms or more information are available from Raahauge's at (909) 735-7981.

Raahauge's hands-on Shooting Sports Fair 2000 set for June 2-4

NORCO -- The Raahauge's Shooting Sports Fair 2000 will return to Mike Raahauge Shooting Sports June 2-4. The event is one of the only hands-on gun shows in the nation where participants can shoot most of the firearms on display. The hands-on show will feature virtually all of the major firearms makers in this country -- Ruger, Remington, Winchester, Browning, Marlin, Savage, Mossberg, Beretta, Weatherby, Taurus, and others -- where those who attend the show can shoot the newest hunting, target shooting and self defense guns on the market. In addition, there are a whole series of seminars each of the three days of the show on gun safety, hunting, dog training, trick shooting, and general shooting techniques. Admission is $12 for adults, and $2-off coupons are available at all Turner's Outdoorsman locations. All kids 14 and under are free. For more information, call Raahauge's at (909) 735-7981 or (909) 735-2361,

CWA dinner banquet set for Friday, June 23

STUDIO CITY -- The California Waterfowl Association will be hosting a fundraising dinner and banquet Friday, June 23, at The Sportsman's Lodge in Studio City. The event begins at 6 p.m. and dinner will follow at 7:30 p.m. Cost to attend the event is $65 per person or $95 per couples. Juniors 17 and under at $35. CWA is a non-profit group dedicated to protecting and enhancing California's wetlands. For more information, contact Frank Zebell at (714) 893-2082.

PREJUDICE AND FIREARMS -- matthews column 03may00

When racism was a common belief in this country, when slavery was accepted by our government, people with black skin were often considered less than human. This made it easier to justify the bias in the minds of those who held racist beliefs, made racist laws, and enforced those laws. It is a type of bias based in ignorance that we are still battling in this nation. On many fronts. Today, white gun owners are gaining a new understanding of prejudice and bias because we are so often belittled and ridiculed by politicians and in the media with an absence of rational thought or facts. Black, Asian, Hispanic, and Jewish gun owners just see it as more prejudice by their government and a media that has lost its way.

This type of prejudice can happen because gun owners are members of the NRA, which the media and anti-gun politicians use as a four-letter word, or we belong to a gun club (probably called a "militia" to make it sound more sinister). We're no longer neighbors or co-workers or soccer coaches. It is a bias against gun owners as a group, and the assault is against the implements that we use for sport and self-defense. The gun, just like black skin, is somehow bad in and of itself to those who are prejudice. They cause us to do bad deeds, to be less than human. Just like gore-filled children's video games cause our kids to commit acts of violence against other children. Just like movies are to blame for anti-social behavior. Using this same logic, we can draw these correlations: It is marriage licenses that lead to divorce. Swimming pools lead to the deaths of children who can't swim. Beer companies are to blame for drunk driving deaths. And condoms are to blame for teenage pregnancy. Laugh darkly if you want, but the logic is the same, and just because it's not your ox that is being gored by the media and government right now, doesn't mean your day isn't coming.

Based on the huge media play of the recent story about a correlation between higher beer taxes (therefore higher beer prices) and a reduced rate of youth venereal disease, it is only a matter of time before we see legislation or other regulation that will tax and regulate beer manufacturers for their "unscrupulous" manufacturing and marketing programs that somehow promote youth venereal disease. Are you laughing? Such lawsuits against gun companies, all making a legal products to extremely high quality standards, are cropping up everywhere. Legislation that would ban certain types of ammunition, magazines, or firearms are introduced daily. Some politicians have become so emboldened as to suggest total bans on handguns. It is the "Kill the messenger" syndrome, where politicians can't effectively deal with youth gang violence or repeat criminals, so they blame the implements the criminals use in their illegal activities -- the guns.

If the government is successful in this effort to extort an industry and outlaw a Constitutionally guaranteed right (and over 95 percent of learned historical scholars agree that the Second Amendment is talking about the individual's right to own firearms), other assaults will follow. Already, there are steps being taken against makers of legal over-the-counter and prescription drugs, the television and movie industries, computer companies, and automobile manufacturers. It is discrimination, pure and simple. Politicians will argue their actions are for the good of society, but that was the same argument used to keep racism alive for decades, and that was the driving force behind prohibition. Both racism and prohibition are societal and political failures based on flawed logic.

Those who argue for mindless gun control also do so on flawed logic and without supporting facts. There are simply no peer-reviewed studies that show restrictions on firearms lead to fewer deaths, either suicide or murder or accidental deaths, or less crime of any kind. None. Gun control proponents like to use correlation, as though it were causation, comparing apples and oranges. They will compare gun-restricted cultures like Japan or Sweden to the United States, for example, and try to come up with a correlation about how fewer guns mean less crime. Gun advocates, however, will point out that when you compare similar cultures (Australia to the United States, for example), the correlation shows that fewer guns in law-abiding citizens' hands leads to higher crime rates. Criminals know their victims are unarmed. History also shows us that when individuals have means to defend themselves, there is both less crime and less threat from governments to enslave the population with unjust laws and a heavy hand enforcing them.

You need to pay close attention to your rights the government is incrementally subverting. Whether you are a gun owner, a smoker, a beer drinker, or merely someone who eats meat or drives an SUV, you are being targeted by legislation that will restrict your rights for no rational reason. Don't put your head in the sand. Don't ignore the cross burning in your front yard -- and you don't want be disarmed when that cross is burning.

SIERRA TROUT OPENER NOTEBOOK -- compiled by Jim Matthews 26apr00

Trout season opens Saturday in the Sierra Nevada after being closed since November 1 last year. As usual, Crowley Lake will be the focal point for thousands of anglers who head north for a little spring fishing. There's a simple reason for that: It has the best fishing in the region. "Crowley was awesome last year, and it's going to be even better this year," said Curtis Milliron, a DFG fishery biologist in Bishop who also happens to be an avid fisherman. The fishing will be better than normal for two reasons. First, the lake is one of the most heavily planted waters in the state, but it generally receives small fish that grow to large sizes in the lake by feeding on the abundant natural forage -- mostly midge larvae. Second, a mild winter that saw virtually no ice cover ever form on Crowley allows for the fish to feed actively all winter in the slightly warmer water and they get bigger.

On years when ice covers the lake, the average trout from Crowley is around 12 inches, and on years when the lake has been ice free, the average fish is around two inches bigger. There are three strains of rainbow trout planted in Crowley Lake. The Coleman-strain fish are the most heavily harvested by anglers who fish in deeper water and troll. The Kamloops-strain are the brilliant-colored trout that stay close to the shorelines and are stacked up in the streams spawning for the opener. And the Eagle Lake rainbow is the trout that doesn't usually get caught the first year or two it's in the lake. No one knows why, but these are the bruisers that are in the 18- to 24-inch range and will weigh over four pounds. You get a big one, it's likely an Eagle Lake trout.

TONS OF TROUT PLANTED: There will be over 100,000 catchable trout planted in 47 different waters for this year's trout opener. The mild winter and open roads allowed the DFG stocking trucks to reach virtually all of the popular Sierra destinations.

GAS PRICES -- OUCH!: Anglers traveling north for the trout opener this weekend will find gas prices ranging from a low in the $1.80 per gallon range to the $2.10 range in some of the out-of-the-way places. This is at least 50 cents a gallon more than most stations were charging last year this time.

WATCH OUT FOR BEARS: The Sierra locals take the bears for granted. Steve Gomez at Kittridge Sports in Mammoth Lakes said he'd seen three or four different bears already this year around town. "They're definitely out of hibernation," said Gomez. Karen Koble at Lower Twin Lake Resort out of Bridgeport said they had their first bear in a dumpster 2 1/2 weeks ago, and "one broke into the back of our truck and there wasn't anything in there to eat." They live with the animals and try to keep garbage in bear-proof containers. For campers, the same advice would be good -- and don't leave food around where you will be sleeping. A bear accustomed to people isn't shy about opening up the side of a tent with it's claws and taking a Snickers bar out from under your pillow. Even if your head is on the pillow. The bears also like fresh trout.

GO WATCH THE DEER: With the snow off the lower elevation areas early this year, the deer herds that winter in the Owens Valley have begun moving back up into the mountains. There is a huge staging area from Convict Lake to Mammoth Lake on the flats on the west side of Highway 395, and anglers who want to see lots of deer can drive the dirt roads in this area and see literally dozens and dozens of deer early and late in the day.

INTERNET DELUGE: More and more of the resorts and business in the Sierra are gaining a presence on the Internet with their own web pages. Here are some good one's for anglers: The Trout Fly is Mammoth Lakes has a great site for fly-fisherman at www.thetroutfly.com, and a counterpart store in Bishop is Brock's which has a web presence (with a great fish report) at www.fbn-flyfish.com/brocks. The Convict Lake Resort can be found at www.convictlakeresort.com, and brown trout headquarters, the Lower Twin Lake Resort, has a site at www.lowertwinlakesresort.com. And lastly, you can get all you need to know about Crowley Lake from www.crowleylakefishcamp.com.

SNOW AND ICE UPDATE: Virtually all of the major waters in the region are ice free and there is almost no snow below 7,500 feet, only patchy snow up to the 8,500 feet elevation. At mid-week, all of the June Lake loop was ice-free, Twin Lakes at Bridgeport were ice free, Convict, Crowley, Bridgeport, and the Twin Lakes in Mammoth were also free of ice. Only the upper elevation lakes still carried rotten ice -- including Mary and Mamie in the Mammoth Lakes. What does that mean for anglers. Good access to most Sierra waters and good fishing in major lakes that have been open all winter or at least since early in the year.

BIGGER TROUT EXPECTED FOR OPENER: Anglers attending the year 2000 Eastern Sierra trout season opener this Saturday can expect to hook more than average numbers of large, trophy size trout this year. Chris Boone, manager at the state Department of Fish and Game Hot Creek Hatchery in Mammoth Lakes, said a mild 1999-2000 Eastern Sierra winter provided a greater than usual number of large, Coleman strain broodstock rainbow trout available for planting in waters north of Bishop. "Normally when we enter our rainbow trout spawning season, November through January, the snow is deep and lakes frozen in the high country, so we plant most excess broodstock in southern Owens Valley waters. But this year, because it was so mild right on through January, we were able to stock broodstock fish throughout the Eastern Sierra," said Boone.

Approximately 7,000 trophy-sized rainbow trout, each from four to seven pounds in size, were planted last winter in 17 waters north of Bishop. Crowley Lake, the upper Owens River, Bridgeport Reservoir, Convict Lake, Topaz Lake, Lundy Lake, Ellery Lake, Trumble Lake, both upper and lower twin lakes at Bridgeport, and Virginia lakes received the trophy trout. Hot Creek Hatchery broodstock fish were also stocked in the four June Lake Loop lakes: June, Grant, Gull and Silver. Since March of this year, Hot Creek Hatchery personnel have been busy planting surplus fingerling rainbow trout at Crowley Lake. Vern Carr, assistant hatchery manager at Hot Creek, said more than 145,320 fingerling trout were stocked at Crowley. Carr estimated the fish would grow to catchable size in time for the 2002 Eastern Sierra fishing season opener. Tiny fingerling baby trout range from two to four inches in length, and can grow to catchable size in Crowley Lake within two years' time.

PLEASANT VALLEY RESERVOIR GETS BONUS TROUT: Pleasant Valley Reservoir gets bonus trout: A year-around, shore-fishing-only lake for decades, Pleasant Valley Reservoir was opened to float tube anglers for the first time in 1999, increasing angler interest considerably, according to Department of Fish and Game observers. In an effort to step-up fishing opportunity and thereby accommodate the considerable rise in angler pressure, 5,000 six-inch-long, sub-catchable Eagle Lake strain rainbow trout were stocked for the first time last year at Pleasant Valley, along with ongoing catchable size rainbow trout plants, and an additional 5,000 Eagle Lakes are scheduled for planting in October. Jim Eichman, DFG Fish Springs Trout Hatchery manager in Big Pine, Inyo County, said both plants are intended to duplicate a successful experiment at Crowley Lake where Eagle Lake trout supplies a significant increase in Crowley's large-trout production.

Eagle Lake fish typically fail to show in Crowley anglers' creels until the third year following introduction. Unlike other trout strains often landed within a year of planting, Crowley Eagle Lake fish most often grow 18 to 24 inches long before anglers land them, often some three years following the initial plant. DFG biologists are not certain why Eagle Lake strain trout can avoid anglers' lures for so long at Crowley, but the hope is that trait will duplicate itself at Pleasant Valley. Eichman urged the few anglers who land small Eagle Lake trout at Pleasant Valley this season to release the fish. Allowed a little more time to grow in the nutrient-rich reservoir, biologists anticipate fish in the two to three pound size range may soon appear in sizable numbers. Eagle lake fish are distinguished from other rainbow trout by their fewer and larger side-body spots, Eichman said. "Next year we'll mark Eagle Lake trout by removing the adipose fin making it easier for anglers to identify those fish," said Eichman. A trout adipose is the small fin on the back located between the large dorsal fin and tail.

In addition to Eagle Lake sub-catchable trout plants, more than 1,000, half-pound catchable size rainbow trout are stocked weekly in Pleasant Valley Reservoir waters during every month save July and August, along with ongoing weekly stocks of eight, 2 to 4 pound trophy trout. Sub-catchable brown trout planted in past years can also be found in the lake. An additional 10,000 pounds of surplus subcatchable trout, each fish approximately six inches long, was stocked in March. Pleasant Valley Reservoir, a 115-surface-acre lake situated behind a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power dam, is located approximately seven miles north of Bishop along the east side of Highway 395 in Inyo County.

FORGET THE DRIVE?: The operators of Santa Ana River Lakes and Corona Lake think a lot of anglers would rather stay close to home than trek to the Sierra this weekend. This week's press release from the lakes says, "Gas is $1.75 a gallon. It takes six hours to drive there. You get gouged for winter motel or condo rates. The reality is that you can catch more, bigger, and more beautiful trout close to home." Lake operators brag that during their Sierra Grand Opening event, which runs Thursday through Sunday, there will be more trout over eight pounds caught this week at SARL and Corona than are caught in the entire Sierra Nevada for the whole fishing season. They are also boasting they have the most beautiful trout -- the Lightning Trout, a golden-hued rainbow trout selected for a rare color trait. Both waters' lake records are in jeopardy with the plants of trophy fish already made this week. The lake record at Santa Ana is 23.2 pounds, and the Corona Lake record, which stands at 21.7 pounds, nearly fell last week when a 21.5-pounder was caught. Well over 100 trout topping 10 pounds are expected to be caught from SARL and Corona, and Sierra angler will be lucky to see one or two trout that size caught for the opener. There is also a tagged trout event ongoing at the two Southern California waters where one angler could win a $1 million.

SMITH & WESSON AND GUN CONTROL -- matthews 19apr00

For about the past year, I had been saving my change so I could buy a titanium Smith & Wesson .44 special. But with the events of recent weeks, I've decided that the handgun I wanted to purchase as super-lightweight snake gun for fishing trips and a general outdoor, hunting, and tote-along sidearm won't be the S&W. When the change tally is enough, I'm going to buy the new titanium Taurus instead, or one of the other models out there. In fact, I doubt I'll ever buy a Smith & Wesson. Ever. Why? I simply can't forgive them for what they've done.

Smith & Wesson signed an agreement with the federal government that would make it exempt from the rash of government-sponsored, taxpayer-funded, political lawsuits against gun makers. (All of the lawsuits have lost in court when finally heard, but which have run several small gun makers out of business because they couldn't afford the litigation costs.) It has also resulted in a windfall of S&W sales to politically-controlled law enforcement agencies that are now giving S&W preference over other makers because they have agreed to rules that affect all law-abiding purchasers of firearms. You and I. Just some of the restrictions include the following: gun locks will be provided with all guns; no guns will be sold with clips that hold more than 10 rounds; all handguns have a visible indicator when a round is in the chamber; guns sales will be rationed; mandatory testing will be required for purchasers, and S&W agreed to use a portion of their income each year to develop "smart gun" technology (where the gun can only be fired by its owner). The company has also pledged certain behaviors on the part of licensed gun dealers, such as refraining from selling legal, but politically incorrect, semi-automatic rifles and ammunition magazines, a prohibition on selling firearms at any gun show where any legal private sale is conducted, and a requirement to include anti-gun propaganda with every firearm sold.

Virtually all of these restrictions have been proposed as national legislation and failed in Congress. But S&W rolled over and signed this agreement. The National Rifle Association's James Jay Baker, its chief lobbyist, said the S&W agreement was "a futile act of craven self-interest. In their rush to liquidate an inconvenient asset, executives at Tomkins PLC (the British firm which owns S&W) are jeopardizing an entire U.S. industry and undermining a Constitutionally guaranteed right. Lawmakers and citizens should be outraged at this unwelcome intrusion into the legislative process," said Baker, noting that Tomkins PLC has made it widely known it would like to sell the U.S. gun maker.

The Gun Owners of America (GOA) calls the disastrous accord the Clinton & Wesson agreement, and points out that dealers who agree to S&Ws terms of sale would have to agree to the restrictions on all firearms they sell. The GOA says the Clinton & Wesson agreement stipulates that participating gun retailers cannot sell any firearm until they receive definitive notice that the transferee is not a prohibited person under the 1968 Gun Control Act. Background checks to make sure the prospective gun buyer is not a felon or known spousal abuser take only a few minutes. Currently, if the FBI has not given a definitive "yes" or "no" reply on the background check, the dealer may proceed to consummate the sale at the end of 72 hours. Under the Clinton & Wesson agreement, the purchase can not go ahead unless the FBI changes its "delay" response to a definitive "yes" or "no." You could be denied the right to own a firearm through continuous "delay" responses, and the FBI could be asked to "delay" all checks under