Well, thanks for the feedback guys! I knew #2 would be difficult but we did want to attract the best of the best that enter contests hence the name "National Finals". Not everyone qualifies for the National Finals, right Craig? Personally, I would not have any interest in conducting just another coyote calling contest open to anyone. There are plenty of them. This one is high stakes and related directly to reduction of livestock loss and / or fawn drop areas.
Right now, between Myself, Heids, Dogcaller, Craig Hamilton, Leonard and others, we could easily put together a list of callers that consistently rise to the top in the various contests. Heath, Lolly, Stoddard, Schmidt, Krogman, Kennedy, Bouman, Huston, Perault, Hindman, Denke, Hicks, Richadson, McAllister, Sterling, Eggers, and a few others that I may have forgotten are the SD names that I know that would qualify. That wasn't too difficult. It could be by invite based on the knowledge of the contests that we have been in. By invite, it would be more difficult to cause hard feelings. Between Dogcaller, Heids, and Myself, we know who consistently makes it to the top in Rawlins, Cortez, and St. Francis. I think that wouldn't be to tough based on invite only.
You see in order to get some outside prize money based on livestock damage reduction you would need to be able to provide coyote hunters that would kill a high percentage of the coyotes they call. To deliver, we need the best callers that enter contests. Ranchers are not going to support this for a team that sees 24 coyotes and kills 3. We have to do it right the first time.
In regards to guides, I really didn't like that idea myself either. I do think we need to draw for areas 2 days in advance to prevent baiting and to level the playing field. Maybe we could try it without guides the first year.
Leonard, regarding rules, I meant we would send out a list of ideas for rules well in advance of the contest and allow contestant input on the rules to establish the final rules based on that input. For example if the majority felt that they wanted 1 pickup and /or 1 4wheeler per team then that would be the rules.
Sorry Leonard, I am going to campaign hard for total weight as a tie breaker. I have lots of guys in my corner on that one. LOL! We did beat a team out by 1 pound once and they weren't nearly as upset as a team that was passed by another team on the way to the checkin and lost to them based on that. Killing more adult coyotes generally shows more skill than killing younger coyotes. Particularly in a calving situation. Territorial adults are the problem animals. To call in 3 and pick the biggest one requires additional stategy. I hate the check in time tie breakers. It gives a decided advantage to the teams closest to town and to those who drive fast.
If the majority of those surveyed liked the check in time tie breaker, that would be the rules. Period! Majority rules! I would print the quoted pros and cons of each system in the survey.
Dogcaller, you going to jump in here? Wiley E
[This message has been edited by Wiley E (edited 03-08-2001).]
