RRWT decision to move was not made lightly

Dear Editor,
The RRWT feels that it is necessary to respond to the inaccuracies in Bill Godin’s letter in the January 28 edition of the Rainy River Record.
First of all it was not a quick decision. The decision to change dates has always been under consideration since our date was changed after the first year of the Tournament. It has been an issue discussed each year and in fact, the possibility was mentioned during our closing ceremonies last year. The committee felt after two consecutive years of decline in terms of number of fish being caught and the total weights, action had to be taken.
The Committee sent out an information letter in November to all contestants and any organizations that could be affected informing them of the date change and requesting feedback (including Mr. Labelle). As of the writing of this letter, only a small number of contestants stated an objection to the date change.
We again mailed the letter as soon as the decision was made so that all (including Mr.Labelle) who may be affected would have plenty of time to respond accordingly.
We also had a meeting with the organizers of the Pumpkin festival. They agreed to change dates and we look forward to working with them to the benefit of both events as we have in the past.
Secondly, your assessment of our committee as having “a bad attitude“ is absurd. The members of the committee have donated hundreds of hours to make this tournament the success it has become. We value and respect the dedication of our volunteers and fans and the generous support of our sponsors. This decision was made in good faith and for reasons we believe is important for this event and Rainy River. We were not so naive as to believe that the change of date would not upset some of our contestants; we live with that concern every time we make any decision regarding this event. However, we can’t let the threats of a very small minority deter us from doing what we feel is necessary for this event given the various circumstances we face each year.
It is very unfortunate that the change back to our original weekend conflicts with Mr. Labelle’s tournament. Mr. Labelle was our 2001 Tournament Champion and we want to wish him great success with his Bass Tournament this coming fall.
Your decision to attack our committee in such a public manner is very disappointing to our committee. You may choose which event you want to participate and support and we wish you the best of luck regardless of your choice. Also, we want to thank you for you past support of our event. However, maybe in the future you could choose to join our committee and help to build this event from within instead of publicly criticizing a decision while you misrepresent the facts surrounding that decision.
This letter represents the only public comments concerning this matter we will be making. The RRWT committee is now looking to the future and focusing our efforts on our 5th Annual event, which is being held September 26th - September 28th.
–Brent Anderson for,
Rainy River Walleye Tournament Committee