I heard the same thing, but thru e-mail & phone calls, BASS told me that we could become BASS-affiliated, even though we're fishing from tubes. Their insurance policy will cover us (it's a $1 million liability deal, which is what Spring Lake requires). But, we won't qualify for Federation status as far as the Classic is concerned. I have an e-mail contact with BASS that I can pass on to you if you're interested.