ao B8 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, May 4, 2005 MARGARET SPEIRS -SKEENA ANGLER so 2 _ ROB BROWN” - Debait debate ome 15 years. ago, I took a job ina make _work program with the “Youth Corps,” an initiative designed to provide employment for earnest.high school grads and provide ‘some education.and job experience outdoors. At one point in the program’s educational phase, we were standing on the bridge that crosses Alwyn Creek on one of the rare days when the stream was clear. As we peered into the‘ pool just below the bridge, I asked the youth crew if they could see any _ fish. They said they couldn’t. I asked then if they thought there were any or many fish there. Maybe ~ some, they replied, but not many. - They were sure of that. . When that consensus had been reached, I pulled “acontainer of salmon roe that I’d. purchased earlier ‘that day to bait our minnow traps, tore a small clus- ter from the skein and dropped it into the pool. As the kids watched attentively, clouds milk ~ swirling like smoke and bleeding into the water. from the unfertilized salmon eggs, I continued to . drop eggs from the bridge. A few kids pointed anda . ‘couple of others exclaimed, “Did you see that?!” as 12-inch trout emerged | from the shadowy depths to — snatch an egg. Another trout appeared and another and another until the bathtub sized pool was filled - with cutthroat trout of all sizes, slashing shark-like © at the roe. My objective was to demonstrate the’ amazing fecundity of a small stream so that when, later in the - day, I showed them a Stream. Of, the, sanié size, that, had been destroyed. ‘thanks. to. “joggers. who’ d, tom . “away its forest cover and dragged their machinery through it, they might appreciate the enormity of the loss. In retrospect I suspect that, the lesson they learned was the most effective way to catch fish is with roe. Roe, goo, stink, eggs, bait - whatever you call it — makes fishing so easy that fishing with it can no longer reasonably be called sport. If I walked into a pool on one of our steelhead rivers, threw handfuls of bait into the water until it - was saturated with scent, then fished through it with a fly, I’d catch more fish than I would have had I. not done so. Se 4 This technique of attracting fish. with scent is - called chumming. If a conservation officer saw me doing it, he’d seize my fly rod, take the bait as evi- dence and charge me. Yet gear fishermen are doing ‘the same thing when they drift roe through a riffle, -tun or pool, and they. are presently allowed to do so. even on catch and release streams with depressed populations of fish. Even if the mortality associated with the use of roe and baits like. ghost shrimp, prawns and dew worms wasn’t far higher than that associated with the use of artificial lures, bait would still kill more fish because it catches more of them. It’s true that there are some skilled anglers who still cling to bait and whose toll on target fish and on accidentally caught fish is very low. Unfortu- nately these men are few in number. When you al- ‘tow bait for all on certain waters you provide the opportunity to use it to less skilled, less vigilant and less ethical fishers as well. As a consequence. the toll'on undersized fish, juvenile fish, non target fish and ripe fish that are best left alone is immense and | unnecessary. In a progressive, positive move that’s long over- due, the provincial fisheries staff has served notice "|. that they intend to ban bait in this province. Predict- ably, the BC Wildlife Federation which purports to be the organized voice of the sportsmen and women in this province, is lining up to oppose its imple- mentation. Based on such actions as its recent support of fisheries minister, Geoff Reagan’s, refusal to list two nearly extinct races‘of sockeye under the Spe- cies At Risk Act, the Wildlife Federation should change its name to the Get a Life Federation or, perhaps, the Deadlife Confederacy. The BCWF ‘mouths the word conservation but proves over and over again by its actions (and inaction) that its self- serving raison d'etre is to conserve only enough game to-satisfy its committed members’ need to slaughter. | There are conservation issues aplenty these days: fish farms, oil Pipe lines, ,grand schemes. for coal bed methane developments, to name a few. Yet the putative voice for the concerned sports person, the vaunted: BCWF, deems blocking a provincial bait ban a priority, The BCWF mouthpieces will trot out the bogus argument that banning bait will adversely affect kids when their real motivation is the fear that their members won’t be able to catch as many fish with- out it. In doing this they will do a disservice to all the good things the BCWF did for wildlife in the past — and they were considerable — and discredit the memory of some real conservationists, men like Lee Straight and John Carter. c fo} “J Olympic time “ BRIAN JOHNS, Olympic swimmer and 400m individual medley world record holder in the 25 metre pool, visited town for a training camp with the Terrace Bluebacks, Kitimat Marlins and Prince Rupert swim club on April 29. He participated in some dryland training with the swimmers at Veritas i in the morning, then answered questions in the afternoon before demonstrating his technique | in the pool. 638-7283 LAST YEAR'S Adventure Challenge winners competed for an entire month to claim victory. This year’s challengers will tackle all five events in one weekend. only outdoor adventure sports series is tougher than ever this year, challenging participants to take on five | grueling events in just one weekend. , The Terrace Standard and Hawkair Ad- venture Challenge 2005 is upping the ante over years gone by hosting one action-packed weekend of racing — a major departure from previous years that saw events spread out over four weekends each summer. “Athletes will still battle it out for points, bragging rights and huge prize packages,” says organizer and founder. Sarah Zimmer- ‘man. “But this year their endurance, stamina “and overall fitness will truly be put to the test because they won't have a week to recover | between events.” Last year’s*third annual event saw more than 160 people take part in open water swimming, downhill mountain biking, trail running, rock climbing and endurance bike riding. All the events are the same with the ex- ception of the downhill race which has been scrapped in favour of a new — and very challenging — event called the All Seasons Source for Sports Psycho Cycle. That event combines road biking, hiking and downhill riding all in one super-tough race. Another change on the menu this year is the introduction of a team category which will ’ permit teams of four to register. Each team member will be required to compete in one - of the first four events and all members must compete in the final race - the Eight Hours of Onion Lake endurance biking race. The door is wide open for new challeng- ers to compete for the top spot in one of four categories: men’s open, women’s open, a ju- nior division for people 13-16 and a youth division for children 12 and under. Competitors accumulate points at each event and the person with the most points FILE PHOTO Adventure Challenge goes ‘psycho’. ~TERRACE’S in each category at the end of the series is crowned champion. And due to an overwhelming demand, the men’s and women’s results will be subdi- vided to recognize the masters division win- ners. To qualify as a master you must be 35 or older. “The men and women will still compete in their own divisions, but we’ ll be awarding additional prizes to the top masters.in both -- those groups,” says Zimmerman. Most of the events are sports anyone can try and the Adventure Challenge encourages ‘people of all skill levels and ages to partici- pate. Though athletes are: permitted to. register in single events, the secret to success is com- peting in as many of the five disciplines as possible in order to accumulate much-need- ed points. The 2004 champions, (men’s open), Emily Janes (women’s open), Jesse Sheasby (junior) and youth co-cham- pions Dawsen Leblond and Sheldon Smaha each competed in all five events, thus accu- mulating more points than competitors who missed events. ' For most of the winners that means taking on sports that aren't necessarily their forte. The Adventure Challenge is ,designed | specifically to get people trying new sports in some of the most stunning locations the Terrace area has to offer. Whether it is taking in the view fram the top of a rock face, splashing around beautiful _ Lakelse Lake or competing in the pristine en- vironment of the Onion Lake ski trails, each event is held in a breathtaking location. So, are you tough enough to take the chal- lenge? Questions? Contact organizer Sar- ah Zimmerman at 638-7283 or email at newsroom @terracestandard.com Evan Stephens a | So many events... HERE’S THE weekend schedule of this year’s Adventure Challenge: July 1 triangular course: at ‘Lakelse Lake. Juniors-.swim.one 500-metre race. Kinsmen Kids Kamp, located on First Ave. at Lakelse Lake. @ Event Two: The Skeena Valley Runners Club presents the 29th annual King of the Mountain foot race. Runners complete an 8.5 kilometre course which weaves its way up and over the stunning Terrace Mountain trail. Start time is 2 p.m. at the Terrace arena, July 2 2 Event Three: Azad Adventures’ outdoor, rock climbing competition at the Chist Creek forest recre- ation site across Hwy37 from Onion Lake. Climbers test their skills on progressively more dif- ficult routes. This is a timed event. This is a top-rope event, which means climbers are secured by a rope at all times. _ Incase of rain the event will become a bouldering competition on pre-established routes at the boulder- 9 a.m. @ Event Four: All Seasons Source for Sports Psy- cho Cycle to take place in Terrace. . Riders will begin at the Terrace arena, ride up to the _ Terrace Mountain trail head, carry bikes to the top of _ the trail, complete a short downhill course then ride on the road to Northwest Community College. This is.a tough event that tests endurance, versatil- ity and fitness. Start time is 4 p.m. from the Terrace Arena. July 3 m@ Event Five: McBike’s Eight Hours of Onion Lake endurance mountain biking event. Riders can compete solo or in teams of up to four people in an effort to see who can ‘complete the most laps around a six kilometre course. Event starts at 10 a.m. ‘and finishes at 6 p.m: Each individual rider accumulates 5 points per lap regard- less of whether they are competing solo or on a team. Grand prizes are awarded immediately following this event at the Snow Valley Nordic Ski Club’s warm- ing hut at the Onion Lake cross country ski trails. @ Event One: Ruins Board Shop’s open | water «J swim. ‘Adults swim ‘two“laps ‘around the 750-metre “T lap and the youngest competitors are challenged to a The races start bright and early at 8 a.m. at the ‘ing cave at Azad Adventures i in Terrace. Start time is Score Board Totem Saddle Club Percentage Days. April 24. Rider Horse Score Greg Wilson Allister 64.6 Phantom Amanda Tamara 64.2 Babossa Chip Nancy Ben 66.4 Hogue Shelby Snider 63.8 PW stare Se ta egeee We Seer SOO OS