seminar topic choices

[aquitori]

Quote: Originally Posted by jnorth I am totally offended by your personal views that are not those of any organization that you may belong to . Seriously though, rock bottomed ponds?!?! If you want to make a comparison then compare tosai to pot. They are like a gateway drug. You score a couple tosai and take them to a show. You take a couple hits on some honorable mentions. Then you've got the taste and get some higher grade tosai. You get a couple best in size 1 or 2 and then you hit a Baby Grand. Now you're done with tosai and you move on to bigger and drugs..er koi. You start buying two year olds looking for that young champ award. Next thing you know you're in Japan freebasing an 80bu Sakai Showa. Ok so maybe its a stretch but so is comparing rocks to tosai .

NICE!!! That sums it up for me...Tosai is like weed/pot/sticky green...Jim your the man, dont let anyone tell you otherwise!!! KOI-UNIT!!! HAHAHAHA

[Steve Nguyen]

if put myself in the shoes of someone who recently join the koi circus, I would like see them in this order.

1. tosai selections
2. tosai selections
3. tosai selections

reasons are as follow:

1. based on given 3 choices, I assume that you are target mostly newbies or semi-newbies to koi hobbyists
2. given those 3 choices, newbies would most likely interested in tosai selections since cost of high quality fish such as nisai and older are more costly.
3. experienced koi collectors would more incline to attend any of the given 3 choices.

Steve

Quote: Originally Posted by dick benbow if you had a chance to go to a seminar which one of these 3 would interest you the most? 1. pond building 2. koi identification 3. tosai selection

[Lam Nguyen]

I, too, agree with what Jim said. Yes, I agree that buying tosai may not be a good investment. But if one was to say that I had to purchase expensive nisai in order to be in this hobby when I first became interested then I don't think I would be here sharing my opinions with all of you today.

I was introduced to koi last year by my father-in-law who kept a few pond-grade koi in a 2,000 gallon pond. He brought me to my first koi show later that year and all I could remember was being glued to several vendors' tosai tanks. Even though I didn't have a pond then I still purchased lots of them and kept them in my father in law's pond.

Looking back at the experience puts a frown on my face as I didn't know anything about the different types of koi or conformation or quality. I just bought the brightest and most beautiful ones. Now I only have one koi from that purchase left in my pond and I have not bought a tosai in a long time. The experience also made me realize how much I have advanced in the hobby. Don't get me wrong, my knowledge is nowhere as advanced as your guys' and I still have lots to go, but this is the one thing I enjoy about this hobby. Just when you thought you have grasped something, someone somewhere somehow throws in a different view of the concept that challenges yours. I also appreciate how giving you guys are for sharing your guys' knowledge in this forum and others.

The bottom line is, yes I agree that nisai or older koi are better investments, but for those that are new to the hobby or those that want to know how a particular breeder's line develop then tosai development is a better way to go. While some hobbyists with rock bottom ponds may not want to advance in the hobby and continue to have rock bottom ponds, there are others such as myself who are eager and willing to learn everything about this hobby in hopes of one day be like the 'top dawgs' in this & other forums so that we could share our experiences and knowledge like how you guys have shared yours.

[dick benbow]

I'll be giving a tosai seminar at washington koi and watergarden saturday during the judging. The other two speakers will be talking on pond building and koi id.
Sunday I will Docen the Puget Sound Bonsai booth at the aki matsuri fall festival at bellevue community college.

It looks to be a grand and glorious weekend

[MikeM]

That covers all bases, Dick.

As to all the anti-tosai comments... I'd suggest the tosai sales are just as important to the hobby as having shows.

[Russell Peters]

Quote: Originally Posted by MikeM That covers all bases, Dick. As to all the anti-tosai comments... I'd suggest the tosai sales are just as important to the hobby as having shows.

You won't get an argument from me.LOL

[dick benbow]

is bewteen 11 and 12 noon. I promise to amend my introduction to be absolutely clear that tosai are those that were not kept by the breeder
and the chances of picking up a GC are slim to none!

[MacKoi]

Damn, when will everyone or anyone, learn that without a proper pond, it won't make any difference what kind, price, or breeder of koi you have, they will all spoil,stunt or die. I think Steve agrees with this idea but he does not want to hurt anyones feelings. Now before you water gardners or plastic ponders jump in, you must understand that I am talking to real Koi people or potentials. You must have a koi pond before you can be successful with Koi. Koi ponds start with a minimum of 3000 gal and are more than 2 ft deep and have more than a little black box filter. Ok , I have let off enough steam, but if you are pissed off, good! In answer to the original question, pond building, pond building, pond building. I hope this does not stop this thread. Lately, every time I reply, it is the last reply.I really do like most koi people and I like most Koi but some of either do very little for my peace of mind. Mac

[Dan Blatt]

Mac....the debate here isn't about a proper pond, as most here will agree with you 100 %. It all about a request for what topics in what order would respondents like to hear at a seminar. Tosai selection seems to be the overwhelming choice, here and on another board.
Majority rules...Just because a few think that what Dick was proposing is a waste of time, and he should change the subject matter, really means squat with those interested in what Dick has to say.
Heck..... Dick already filed a disclaimer above (lol)..."tosai are not kept by the breeder". Guess if they are for sale here....he's right, they were not kept by breeder. Secondly, GC's do not come from tosai sold here or elsewhere. I think most reasonable people would agree if someone thinks that, they belong to that elite group of those "who live among us", if you get my drift.
Mac....my main reason for posting these comments was so that this thread would not end on your comments. I hear ya.

[dick benbow]

The three seminars listed in this question are being covered at koi kollege at the Washington Koi and watergarden Show this weekend. The sessions are free and all are welcome to select the session that they feel best serves their priorities. Thank-you all for your input.