San Francisco Chronicle - 10/12/03

The hunter crept through the rocky foothills, sneaking from boulder to boulder, staying out of sight. He was armed with only a compound bow, hunting wild pigs in the lava-strewn foothills of Mount Lassen.

This was Arnold Schwarzenegger, many years ago. Wearing a tank top and shorts, his sculpted muscles protruding. In fact, his legs looked close to bursting, with the muscles so tight that at times he had difficulty walking, according to fieldscout John Reginato, who joined in the hunt, taking a few photographs that he shared with me. This hunt was many years ago, when Schwarzenegger was just beginning to gain prominence as a movie star.

It may provide a few insights on how So Schwarzenegger likes the outdoors, but how will the new governor-elect guide the state's Resources Agency, starting with top boss Mary Nichols, Fish and Game Director Bob Hight, the $15 million hole in the Department of Parks, as well as Boating & Waterways and Conservation?

Hopefully, his movies may provide a few clues.

For Nichols and Hight, who brought a Sierra Club agenda to the Department of Fish and Game, it should be "Hasta la vista, baby." When Schwarzenegger goes through department budgets line by line, and discovers money diverted from fishing licenses to pay for pet projects, like studying harbor seal mating in Elkhorn Slough, he might say, "Knock, knock -- you're fired."

Before he was elected, Schwarzenegger met with the leaders of the California Sportfishing Coalition in Southern California, and left with their endorsement. "Recreational angling has traditionally been part of the quality of life for millions of Californians," Schwarzenegger was quoted as saying. "As long as scientific measurements of fish populations show surpluses available for harvest, California anglers should be allowed the opportunity to be out on the water angling for those fish.

"A healthy sport fishing industry is in the best economic interest of California."

On that pig hunt years ago, Schwarzenegger joined several former Oakland Raiders, including running back Marv Hubbard, along with Reginato, something of an outdoors legend in Northern California, at Dye Creek Preserve east of Red Bluff.

"Arnold was somewhat reserved, but very affable, very respectful," Reginato said. "He hunted with a bow because in his training in Austria, they didn't provide ammunition for rifles. So he felt a lot more comfortable with a bow than a rifle."

The group used the spot-and-stalk method of hunting pigs: Spot a pig at long distance, often with a scope or binoculars, and then stalk the animal. It can take hours, requiring the stamina of an athlete, the skills of a detective and the patience of a safecracker, and even then it can end without a shot.

That's what happened on this hunt. Schwarzenegger never fired an arrow at a wild pig, but he experienced the passion of stalking in the wild.

Perhaps that is why he is so believable -- well, OK, pretty much believable -- on his hunt in "Predator'' (1986), tracking and setting a trap for an alien in a Central American jungle.

A similarly single-minded approach as Governor can be beneficial to California. The Resources Agency, from top to bottom, can be retooled at less cost and be more effective. The easy part is cutting loose the $100,000-a-year buddies of the coin-operated Gov. Gray Davis and their insider pals, many of whom got their jobs with large campaign contributions or by spearheading fundraisers. Many can be replaced without new hires, instead promoting career employees who are knowledgeable and have a life-long stake in getting results.

The next basic shift is with the Department of Conservation. Schwarzenegger could transfer endangered species, habitat programs, timber cut reviews, natural resources, stream alternation permits, oil spill prevention et al to Conservation and away from Fish and Game. That solves both problems, with the right people doing the appropriate job in Conservation, and creates a trimmed-down, self-funded Fish and Game to swallow its budget cuts without reducing fish hatcheries, game wardens and hunting programs.

In the Resources Agency, there is a long-term money paradox with the Department of Boating, which is flush with money and a $95 million budget from dedicated taxes from boaters, and the Department of Parks, which is in a $15 million hole. I predict Schwarzenegger will merge these departments, or figure out a way of getting Boating to help pay for Parks, at least at lake-based park destinations.

The number of lawyers at Fish and Game increased from four to 29 under Davis, according to a report. Their days should be numbered. In addition, if the legislature passes unfunded mandates, like the current program to map the ocean bottom without providing the money to pay for it, Schwarzenegger simply says no, that it is illegal to divert fishing license money to pay for a pet project.

What you end up with is not make-believe, but a real-life workable script for the Resources Agency that reduces the budget and increase efficiency. #