*No late entries accepted by mail after May 9th; they should be brought to the tournament, the Boys and Girls Club of Alachua County or one of the three Captain's meetings in Steinhatchee.
See entry form. Enter by mailing completed entry form no later than May 9th with a check, credit card, or money order made out to Boys and Girls Club of Alachua County to: Reeling for Kids, c/o Laura Javidi,
Tournament Schedule
This year’s tournament fishing days are Friday and Saturday, May 16th & 17th. Entrants may fish one or both days competing for awards. Refer to the Prize Guide for specific category awards.
Friday Fish of the Day Jackpots
Boats fishing both days of the tournament will have the opportunity to win special prizes for fish weighed in on Friday. The boat weighing in the heaviest legal grouper will win $500. The boat weighing in the heaviest legal kingfish will win $500. The boat weighing in the heaviest legal trout will win $500. The boat weighing in the heaviest legal cobia will win $500.
The winning fish on Friday are also eligible for the Tournament’s other prizes and can be counted toward the Master Angler categories.
Basis of Awards
Eligible fish categories are listed in the Awards guide. Other than the Friday Jackpot Awards, a boat/entrant can be a winner in only one place within a category, but can win in multiple categories. Awards are based on a 75 boat tournament. (Subject to change if less than 75 boats) Awards will not increase if there are more than 75 entrants. Winners will be subject to on site polygraph examination. This is a boat tournament, however all cash and merchandise awards will be made to the tournament entrant and a valid SSN is required to receive awards. Checks will be paid out by the Boys and Girls Club of Alachua County.
Types of Awards
Cash and merchandise will be awarded to category winners. All winners must be present at the awards presentation Saturday evening to receive their awards. Exception due to hardship will be made at the discretion of the Reeling for Kids management. If an exception is granted, it will be the sole responsibility of the winner to arrange for pickup of all merchandise awards at their own expense within 30 days after the awards presentation.
Ties
All boats will be assigned a tournament number. This number will be recorded on the weigh-in slip. In the event of a tie, the boat with the earliest dated registration shall be declared the winner. The loser shall assume the next lower position in the category.
Fishing Rules
This tournament will be fished in accordance with the Department of Natural Resources rules for size and catch limits for the state of
Reeling for Kids management reserves the right to modify/change the rules prior to any tournament.
Master’s Category
The Master’s Category was created to recognize fishing prowess. The Offshore and Inshore awards will be won by the boat with the heaviest combined weight of one fish from each of the identified species. It is not necessary to catch each identified species in order to win…for example: A 20 pound grouper and a 20 pound amberjack would have a combined weight of 40 pounds. A 10 pound grouper, 10 pound kingfish and 10 pound amberjack would have a combined weight of 30 pounds. The heavier combined weight (40 pounds) would win even though only two of the targeted species were caught.
Fishing Hours
Official Time: All times given represent Eastern Daylight Time in Steinhatchee, Florida occuring May 16-17, 2008. Tournament fishing hours begin (First Lines in the Water) at 6:00am, Friday, May 16, 2008. Fishing in all divisions continues without interruption until 3:00pm, Saturday, May 17.
Offical Weigh Station hours are 2:00pm-4:40pm, Friday, May 16 and Saturday, May 17, 2008. Friday's Fish of the Day Prizes will be determined after the close of weigh-in on Friday, May16 at the Offical Weigh Station. Friday FOD Prizes will be awarded at the Tournament Awards Ceremoney.
Tournament Awards Ceremony will be held Saturday, May 17, 2008 after the Weigh-In has completed, at the Tournament Headquarters located at Sea Hag Marina in Steinhatchee.
ALL FISH WEIGHED-IN MUST BE CAUGHT FROM ENTERED BOATS DURING OFFICAL FISHING HOURS. NO FISHING FROM ENTERED BOATS DURING NON-FISHING HOURS, THIS WILL BE PART OF THE POLYGRAPH EXAMINATION.
Check-Out and Check-In
Entered boats may leave from your port of choice between Dekle Beach to the north and the Suwannee River on the southern end. Departure can be anytime after midnight on Thursday, May 15th. Fishing times are clear: "Lines In" is at 6:00am on Friday, May 16, 2008. Fishing may continue through 3:00pm on Saturday, May 17, 2008. All lines must be out of the water at 3:00pm on the 17th. All fish must be brought by boat to be weighed-in at the official tournament Weigh Station at the Sea Hag Marina in Steinhatchee. To ensure rules are observed, departure times, lines in and lines out times will be questions asked of the boat Captain on the polygraph.
Polygraph
Winning teams WILL BE polygraphed to ensure rules and fishing hours are observed. All participants in tournament are subject to a polygraph at the request of the Reeling for Kids management. Failure to successfully pass such an examination will result in automatic disqualification of the boat and all anglers and forfeiture of any awards. This is at the sole discretion of the Reeling for Kids management.
Weigh-in
The official weigh-in station is where all fish considered for awards must be weighed in. All fish must be fresh caught that day. Fish must remain on and be removed directly from the entered boat by weigh-in station personnel. Fish will be weighed with at least one participant of entered boat in attendance. All fish must be of legal size to be considered in this tournament.
Only one fish per category may be unloaded to be weighed in. It is the responsibility of the fishing team to determine which fish they want weighed. The weigh master reserves the right to hold and examine internally and externally any fish weighed in as a tournament catch to determine if the fish is eligible for an award. Any fish that has an unnatural material in or on the fish will be disqualified.
Fish caught by junior anglers must be properly identified by a tag provided by the tournament prior to unloading at the weigh dock. It is the Captain’s responsibility to make sure this rule is observed and no exceptions will be granted once the fish is on the dock.
Weigh-In Mulligan
An additional 30 minute Mulligan can be purchased to extend your weigh-in time from 4:30 to 5:00pm each day. Mulligans are $50 if purchased before May9th and $100 from May 9th through May 15th. No Mulligans will be sold after the Captain's Meeting on May 15.
Communications
The tournament VHF channel will be 72. The Weigh-In Station will broadcast official tournament time and other important information via channel 72. It is recommended all boats monitor channel 72 during the day. Channel 9 will also be monitored by local marinas.
Disqualification
If any boats come together or if anything is passed between boats or docks for any reason after the official start of that day’s fishing and before each boat has weighed in, then such boats shall be disqualified. However, as safety is of prime importance to the operation of the tournament, exceptions may be granted by the Reeling for Kids management for emergencies, but only to boats granting assistance and not to boats receiving assistance in such case.
Protests
All protests must be presented in writing to the Reeling for Kids tournament director at the weigh-in station on the day of the alleged infraction, within one hour after the closing of the weigh-in station. A $100 cash deposit, refundable if the protest is upheld, must accompany protest. The Reeling for Kids management will make all decisions, and their decision is final. If the protest is not upheld, then such deposit will be forfeited to the tournament.
Amendments
The statement and rules contained herein may be amended by additional verbal instruction and/or printed matter distributed by the Reeling for Kids management.
Weather Conditions
The Reeling for Kids management reserves the right to terminate the tournament day because of unsafe conditions at sea. If due to bad weather, we are unable to fish one of the tournament days, the remaining day will constitute a tournament. If both days are not fishable, the event will be postponed to a future date yet to be determined. Entry fees are not refundable. Regardless of the Tournament Committee’s decision, it is the individual Captain’s responsibility to determine the suitability of his/her craft for the conditions.
Weigh-in Time
Weigh-in station officially opens at 2:00 p.m. and closes at 4:30 p.m. both days except for boats already in line. Boats with fish to be weighed in must be visually checked in by 5:00 p.m. by management stationed at the Fiddler's
*A Mulligan can be purchaed to extend the weigh-in time to the purchasing team until 5:00pm.
Sportsmanship
All participants will exercise good and courteous sportsmanship whether at the dock, underway, or fishing. Violaters will be subject to disqualification at the sole discretion of the tournament committee without refund.
Optional Tournament within a Tournament (TWT)
Entry fees and winnings under this division are in addition to the Tournament Awards. This is a separate TWT available only to participants whose boats are already entered in the Tournament. Only the entrant of the Tournament Within a Tournament (TWT) may claim the winnings at the awards presentation held on Saturday. All rules pertaining to the Tournament shall apply to the Tournament Within a Tournament. If you enter each category, you may win in each category. Sign up by mail with your entry or at the official Tournament Within a Tournament table at the Captain & Anglers Party.
The entry fee is $100/boat for offshore category fish (grouper, kingfish and amberjack) and $100/boat for Trout. The total entries in each TWT category will be divided as follows: 50% to first place, 20% to second place and 10% to third place, with 20% going to the Tournament charity.
Based on 50 entrants in the offshore category, the winner would pocket $2500, second place would be $1000 and third place would be $500….this calculation is provided for illustrative purposes only. Actual payouts will be based on the number of participants.