BLOG: Fishing forums - being In the know

Fishing, like many other sports, now has participants who like to communicate about their chosen passion on the internet, in between bouts of the real thing. Online fishing communities are abundant. You can literally spend hours surfing the internet discussing and researching just about any facet of fishing on related websites.

Fishing forums are a particularly interesting construct. They cover the gamut of fishing, their exponents posting an array of info and opinions, often while trying to glean that little bit of extra info that might give them an edge on the water.

For one reason or another, the armchair critic flourishes on fishing sites and their opinions are as diverse as they are assertive. Many fishos tend to think their methods are the best and get protective about new ideas, especially when suggested by fellow anglers who they have never met in person. An anonymous identity often means people on forums are more opinionated than they would normally be. This can create angst and to be honest, sees some people come across as just plain wankers.

I will say, there are some very good forums out there and finding ones that suit your personality and fishing style or location can be easy if you know where to look.

I have summed up the archetypes into three categories:

Know-nothings - These people continually try to push their ideas onto everyone while not realising that everyone on the site knows more about the subject than they do. They usually come off as arrogant and make little positive contribution. They are tolerated because they keep conversation alive and keep the post count ticking over. The only thing worse than a know-nothing is a dead forum!

Know-somethings - This group makes up the majority of the online community. These users are usually competent in catching their chosen species, are generally excited to see others catching fish and genuinely are a good bunch of guys. Their contributions are usually honest ones and they congratulate others on any small successes.

Know-lots - These guys are as rare as hen’s teeth. They actually know a stack about multiple aspects of fishing and freely give of their time and experience. They assist anyone who asks and direct others to their best spots and gun techniques. The norm here is that fishos who actually fall into this category are quite closely guarded and their secrets rarely get published on the internet for the world to see. For them the motto "who shares wins" is just a savvy tactic to poach their hard-earned knowledge.

As an experiment in social-virtual interactions, it’s interesting to see how our sport is evolving. As much as we hate to admit it, the power of the internet is driving popular culture. As a result, the speed that new techniques and lures hit the shelves and become employed by anglers is pretty amazing.

I recently did a poll on the top bream lures in the country and I was amazed at how many lures people named that I'd never heard of, and I make it my business to know about any new lures that catch fish! There might be a clue in that - for those prepared to sift through all the digital chit-chat there are sure to be gold nuggets of info to be discovered.

Are you an advocate of fishing forums or a cynic?