There are several aspects of the Aim tournament format that I like.
First is the live release,if the fish was reasonably cooperative,we could measure,take photos in a minute, then back into the water and all of our fish went down immediately. Did all of our fish survive? I hope,they did!
Second is the "catch and measure" as many as you can format.There is no limit on how many fish are caught to arrive at your best 5.
Third has to be the no-cull format. No agonizing over,"keep or throw back". Cheating is less prevalent,I realize that a person could put a fish in their livewell and re-measure it again hour\s later and take chance on beating a very sophisticated comparison program.If they need to win that bad then have at it!
Fourth is the one day(Sunday) tournament,it is great! I fished Garrison after the DL Chamber tournament and Devils Lake after the Montana Gov Cup.I was fortunate my partner could pre-fish for those two and it worked out fine.
I personally appreciate the options that AIM and the other North Dakota tournaments offer me.Choosing which tournaments to do can be tough,however, I have the luxury of choices. My question is,which is better Satellite TV or rabbit ears?
On the "bigger is better" issue,I really enjoy my Nitro\300 Verado set up,it is fun to go fast and feels more secure in big waves.Do I believe getting there quick is an advantage? Absolutely! Just as important is fishing as long as possible,at the last three tournaments our big fish came late in the afternoon,so we fished to the deadline then hauled ash.
Boundarys are most important for safety reasons,we should be more concerned about fellow anglers returning home than where everyone fishes at.Though I also believe patrol boats monitoring us is a good idea.
Participating in the AIM circuit has greatly expanded my knowledge through observing and conversing with the other competitors,we compared notes and techniques and complained about the big ones that fell off,it has been awesome!
Thanks for the opportunity!
Mike Gibbs