General Rules
CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE COPY

4th Annual STURGEON BAY OFFSHORE CHALLENGE

Ladies Tourney August 15th, 2008

Offshore Challenge August 16th & 17th, 2008

Open To all Anglers.....

When you submit your registration fee, you are required to read and understand all rules pertaining to your specific event and the General Rules. Ignorance is no excuse! Questions, call Capt. Fred at (231) 723-7975 or (231) 645-8366. Captains Meeting is held to insure all participants are clear on rules and their interpretation. This is why we encourage the whole team to attend the meeting. Tournament Trail General Rules may apply when appropriate.

CAPTAINS MEETING - Rules amendments or changes may be done at Captains Meeting prior to each tournament. We would suggest entire team attend. One person from each team is required at Captains Meetings. Meetings will be held at 7:30pm, and both will be located at Sawyer Park Boat Launch. Ladies Meeting is Thursday August 14th and the Challenge Meeting is Friday August 15th.

FINAL PAYOUTS - Posted at the Captains Meeting for each specific tournament is based on registration and will supersede ALL previously posted possible payouts. Once final payouts are posted there can be no refund of registration fees.

AWARDS CEREMONY – Will begin ASAP after weigh in calculations are completed.

BAD WEATHER - 4 hours of fishing is a completed day. If only 4 hours of a 2-day tournament can be fished it will be considered complete. If we cannot fish the 1st day of a 2-day tournament by 11:00 AM because of weather, tournament will be canceled for the day. Fishing will be allowed for the rest of the day. On the 2nd day, we will wait until 11:00 AM to cancel (due to weather). After fishing min of 4 hours the 1st day of any 2 day, event, no fishing will be allowed for the remainder of that day. Committee is the final authority on weather decisions. If Tournament is called because of bad weather, you will have 1 hour to return to the Harbor. Boats who return more than 1 hour after tournament has been called off will not be allowed to weigh for that day. Monitor channel 9 for safety and emergency information. If tournament is called off before a minimum of 4 hours is fished, the whole day will be canceled. Min 4 hours fishing required to weigh-in. If due to unforeseen circumstance, any event is canceled in its entirety, a refund check for 90% of the registration fee will be mailed within 14 days. 10% of the registration fee will be retained to cover Tournament expenses.

TOURNAMENT TIME - 6AM - 1PM each day. All events will begin and end in Sturgeon Bay. Boats will leave from within ½ mile max outside the pier heads at 6AM and be inside the pier heads by 1PM each day. Failure to be inside pier heads by 1PM disqualifies team for that day. No fishing after 1PM on Aug 16th, unless tournament has been canceled for the day before minimum 4 hours of fishing. Spotters will be in place to announce exact time boats are inside pier heads. Any boat outside pier heads at 1:01 PM will be disqualified immediately. Listen to Channel 72 beginning at 12:45PM for exact count down to 1PM each day. Absolutely no fishing prior to 6 AM. All fishing must be done in Lake Michigan.

PIERHEAD FISHING - No fishing inside a line between the outer most part of any Pier heads or harbor entrance.

NUMBER OF RODS - Maximum number of rods allowed in the Sturgeon Bay Offshore Challenge will be 9 Rods. Extra Lines in the water at any time, disqualifies the team.

RADIO & BOAT SIZE - The boat must be at least 16’ long and equipped with a Marine radio. Vessel must also be equipped with all safety equipment to satisfy state law. Monitor Channel 72 for tournament info. Tournament Control will monitor Channel 9 throughout the day in case of an emergency or situation that requires immediate attention. All tournaments will start and end on Channel 72.

WISCONSIN LAWS- All Wisconsin Fishing Laws must be observed. WDNR violations on tournament day will disqualify the team without refund regardless of outcome. Gaffing fish will not be allowed.

WEIGH IN PROCEDURES & SCORING – Weigh-in for all events will be at Sawyer Park. Coolers must only contain the fish you are weighing (tournament limit). We will finalize weigh-in procedure at Captains Meeting. Please drain coolers before weigh-in. Excess water or loose ice will result in 5 lb deduction of total weight for that day. Extra fish or fish under legal size limit will be disallowed, PLUS a penalty of one fish (10 Points) will be deducted from your catch for each extra or undersized fish you have. Block or Bagged ice only. Weigh-in slips must be signed before leaving the scales. Check your weigh slip before you sign. After signature re-weighing is not allowed and no changes can be made. Weigh slip will be utilized until after payout of prizes. After that weigh slips will no longer be kept.

SCORING - 1 Point per pound, 10 Points per fish using our certified tournament scales. BIG FISH Exact weight of fish will be used for these weights.

TIE BREAKERS - When points and pounds are used, total weight will break ties. If still tied, biggest fish will be used if that weight is available for all boats involved. If not, prize will be split. BIG FISH prizes will be split. Place prizes will be added together (ex 2nd & 3rd) and then split.

TOURNAMENT FLAGS – Tournament flags or Team numbers (if provided) must be displayed during each tournament. Secure them carefully. Failure to display your flag or numbers during any event you are registered in may result in DQ.

LIMITS – Sorting will be allowed. Ladies/Kids Division will weigh their best 5 Fish. Offshore Challenge will weigh their best 10 Fish/Day. You can only bring your limit to the weigh in. YOU MAY NOT BRING EXTRA FISH TO THE SCALES.

CAPTAIN & CREW - A Captain for each team must be designated and identified on registration form. The number of fishermen may vary. The same fishermen do not have to fish both days. The registered Captain must participate both days, unless arrangements are made through the tournament control.

DISABLED BOATS - Boats must return under their own power. No boat may come in direct physical contact with another boat for any reason unless authorized by Tournament Control. Physical contact will result in disqualification for both teams. Obviously boats in distress, dangerous or life threatening situations must be dealt with accordingly. Disabled boats that arrive late will not be able to weigh. Once tournament begins you cannot change boats for any reason.

TOURNAMENT COMMITTEE - A committee will be selected at each Captain’s Meeting from the tournament participants. This committee will preside over the tournament and handle judgments on weather conditions, disputes, disagreements, or violation of rules. Your participation in this tournament indicates your acceptance of this procedure and your agreement that the decision of the tournament committee will be final. Immediate action for non-compliance of tournament rules will be the jurisdiction of the tournament committee regarding the event in question. When you elect to fish in this event you agree by your signature to abide by the policies, rules and decisions set forth by the tournament coordinator and selected tournament committee.

POLYGRAPH EXAMINATIONS - All participants who weigh fish and are eligible for cash and prizes may be required to submit to a polygraph examination. Failure to comply will result is immediate disqualification and forfeiture of any and all cash and prizes.

CHEATING - Cheating will not be tolerated. Anyone caught cheating will be banned for life from all Tournament Trail events and their names sent to all Great Lakes Tournament Officials. A reward of up to $1000.00 is offered for information that results in any team being disqualified for obvious cheating.

PROTESTS - All protests must be submitted within 1 hour after posted tournament fishing time ends each day.

BOAT INSPECTIONS – Boats shall be within the Sturgeon Bay area 1.5 hours prior to tournament start time and be available for random inspection.

QUESTIONS? - Contact Capt. Fred, Tournament Coordinator, at (231) 723-7975 or (231) 645-8366 (cell).

The 4th Annual Sturgeon Bay Offshore Challenge is an official Lake Michigan Tournament Trail event.

CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE COPY OF GENERAL RULES

CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE COPY OF OFFICIAL REGISTRATION FORM

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