Fishing

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As far as being a sport, I guess you have to define sport. To me, for it to be a sport, all participants must be there willingly. So, even if no athleticism is required, as for an event like poker, I'm OK with calling it a sport, because presumably everyone who is there wants to be there. As for something like fisihing (and ditto hunting) I can't imagine that the contribution the fish makes is all too willing.

Now I don't have a problem with the ethics of fishing. We've been catching and eating fish for countless millenia. That we have refined and improved our methods is immaterial to the question as a whole. I like sea food, and I don't have a problem with people catching and eating fish. Heck, there are many areas in the U.S. where they have hatcheries where they raise fish, and they later put them in lakes, rivers, etc., with the intent that they will be caught.

 

we own land in the provinces so when I was younger we used to go out and have family outings there. maybe it's because i haven't been deep-sea fishing or whatever but I found fishing to be booring

 

Deep sea fishing is a ton more fun than fishing in lakes, ponds, or rivers... tougher fish, tougher fight.

 

I'm sorry, but sitting around for hours waiting for a fish to take your bait is a good description of boredom to me. I'm not against fishing, but it's not something that I find the least bit fun or interesting. But each to their own, I guess.

 

Damn straight, HB. If I wanted to stand up to my nethers in freezing cold water for hours on end with no chance of reprieve, I'd go to the beach at Weston-Super-Mare.

But seriously, there are much better ways of enjoying the countryside. Go for a walk, go camping, wrestle bears... don't just stand there staring into muddy water, for the love of God! Nowt so queer as folk, as they say.

 

Fishing is fun. My son recently got a Cub Scout belt loop for fishing. For the record we do catch and release, but that is only because we would have no idea what to do with the fish after we caught it and he hates seafood. Maybe they teach that in Boy Scouts.

 

If you grow up fishing small, swift streams for brook trout in Northern New England like I did, it's hardly a boring experience. Sometimes it's a monumental challenge just to work your way up stream through brush and rocks just to get to the next "hole" where there might be fish. Make too much noise, cast a shadow or drop your bait clumsily and you spook the fish and they won't go for anything. I'll never forget the day that I walked into a yearling black bear who was heading downstream as I was heading upstream (needless to say, fishing was cancelled for the day...I wonder if my gear is still there...)

Many a fond memory began with gathering nightcrawlers in the dark to hit the fishing spots just as the sun was rising. It truly takes skill, finesse and knowlege. As BTA has already said, an entire days fishing can be wasted just because you didn't know what color or shape lure to use.

I never did enjoy much "boat fishing" where you sit around in a bassboat all day and hope your beer cooler doesn't get empty before the sun goes down...but people who do that aren't there to fish anyway.

When you factor into other skills that are related like rod making and fly tying...there's no way that you can't consider fishing a sport.

 

There's nothing wrong with "sports" fishing, as long as it's done in a resposible way. The same goes for industrial fishing, unfortunately the fishing industry is often short sighted and over fish. Thus decemating the fish poulations and shooting themselves, as well as everyone eating fish, in the foot.

On a side note, I'd be careful in eating fish from lakes or rivers close to industrial areas. Due to biomagnification and -accumulation of toxins fish are veritable toxic waste.

 

There's nothing wrong with Blinkie.

 

No, I can definitely say that fishing is not a sport. Just because it requires skill, doesn't make it a sport. Cabinet-making requires skill but that's not considered to be a sport in any country I know of.

 

OK - so movie directing is now a sport? And stamp collecting? And colouring competitions? And snakes and ladders? And Counter-Strike? You've got to draw the line somewhere, otherwise everything becomes a sport.

 

Dictionary.com defines "sport" as...

It seems like fishing would certainly fall into the third definition.

HB, In the US we have fishing tounaments, usually for bass, where fishermen compete with other fishermen to catch the most number of fish and the largest fish. Seems to me that this kind of fishing would even fall into the first definition.

Now fishing would never be considered a "spectator sport", which may lead to some of the discrepancy in how various members here view it...although some of the larger tournaments will draw crowds to watch.

 

I would certainly call fishing tournaments and such for sports and if you take it seriously enough to compete then it's most cerainly sport, but I think most people fish just as a passtime are not exactly competing in it, so I would not call that kind of fishing a sport.

 

And some fishing is certainly althetic. Try reeling in a 900 pound tuna. Usually takes 4 or 5 people taking 5 minute shifts for a few hours to reel one of those puppies in. And even a large sea bass is physically exerting. Fighting one of those for 10 minutes strains your body.

 

I prefer George Carlin's definition of a sport myself: If it doesn't have a ball it's not a sport.

Along those lines....

If you can drink beer while participating it's not a sport -- it's recreation.

If it involves killing another creature it's not a sport -- it's survival.

 

T2Bruno - I like your definition better than the dictionary.com one. The dictionary one would include my jokey examples like Counter-Strike or even driving a taxi (you compete against other tax-drivers to get the most fares). Just because you compete against someone, and there are rules doesn't make something a sport, in my opinion.

 

Well, you can't drink beer and drive a cab legally, so... it's a sport!

 

I just posted the relevant portions to this post.

If some external force is required to participate, it is not a sport. Watching cars go around and around is not a sport -- NASCAR and Formula 1 are events, not sports (driving a cab is called a JOB).

I love to watch horses race, but it's not a sport. If the creature doing the primary athletic function of the event is not able to understand the benefits of winning, it is not a sport -- horse racing and dog racing are gambling venues, not sports.