Times & Boundaries
1. All boats must sail from and return
to Cape May Inlet.
2. Boats
fishing 11 hour trips
(Day) are not permitted to clear the Cape May Sea Buoy prior to 12:00 AM
on each scheduled fishing day.
Boats fishing 22 hour trips
(Overnight) are not permitted to clear the Cape May Sea Buoy prior to 1:30 PM
on each scheduled fishing day.
3. For
Boats Fishing 11 hour trips
(Day) fishing begins at 4:30 AM on each scheduled fishing day. For Boats Fishing 22 hour trips (Overnight) fishing begins at 5:30
PM
on each scheduled fishing day.
No lines, chum, or bait of any kind may be put into the water prior to this
time.
4. For
Boats Fishing 11 hour trips
(Day) & 22 hour trips
(Overnight) fishing ends at 3:30 PM on each scheduled fishing
day. Any fish hooked prior to the
deadline may be played until boated or released, provided that said fish is
announced hooked on the tournament channel before the deadline.
5. Boundaries for the tournament will
be 125 nautical miles from the Cape May Sea Buoy.
6. Weigh-in
begins at 5:00 PM. All eligible fish must be available for weigh-in at Canyon
Club Resort Marina by 8:00 PM aboard the boat on which they were caught.
7. Each
boat must pick either one overnight trip or two day trips by submitting the
official Fish-Day Form prior to leaving the dock on the day selected. Said
forms must be either physically delivered by a member of the boat’s crew to the
dockmaster’s office at South Jersey Marina or Canyon Club Resort Marina OR
photographed and texted to the Tournament Director. The boat must be dockside
when the fish day is declared. Any boat not submitting the form will be assumed
to be laying on that day. Boats may not fish on a lay day unless all of their
available fish days have been used. Boats with mechanical problems or other
emergencies may use lay days to arrive late to the tournament so long as it is
with the advance permission of the Tournament Directors and they conform with
all other rules. To withdraw a Fish Day Form the boat must be dockside and the
Tournament Directors notified within three hours after fishing beginning on the
day selected.
Angling/Fishing
8. Participants shall comply with
I.G.F.A. equipment and angling rules with the following exceptions: A) A fish
may be hooked by someone other than the angler provided the rod is immediately
transferred to the angler after hook-up. From that time on, the angler must
fight the fish alone until boated or released. B) No harpoons, dart gaffs or
greensticks. C) Spreader bars with hooks ARE permitted. D) Fish may be
dispatched by gun or bangstick after they have been wired. The Tournament
Directors retain sole authority for interpreting and implementing the I.G.F.A.’s
rules.
9. There is no limit on the number of
lines or teasers.
10. All fish boated over 75 lbs. must be
reported over the tournament channel at the time of the catch.
11. There are 4 available “Day” fishing options
and 3 available “Overnight” fishing
options for the tournament. Boats may choose either 2 of the available days or
1 of the available overnights, captains’ choice; no weather committee. The
crew members of each individual boat will be solely responsible for the
decision as to which day or night to fish.
12. Anglers may not switch to another boat nor can anyone from another boat come aboard to assist in fighting or boating a fish.
Scoring/Prizes
13. Only
one day need be fished for the tournament to be considered official and prizes
to be awarded. 94% of Calcutta entries will be paid out.
14. Qualifying tuna species are Bigeye
and Yellowfin. Bluefin Tuna will not be eligible for awards in this tournament.
Qualifying shark species are Shortfin Mako, Thresher & Blue Sharks.
15. Boats may weigh up to 3 Yellowfin
and 3 Bigeye per fish day. Overnight trips will count as two fish days.
Participants will be given tags which must be securely attached to each fish
prior to being weighed and should include boat number and trip type identified.
16. Fractional weights will be rounded
to the nearest pound.
17. Up to 4 fish will be counted towards
each tuna stringer Calcutta. Up to 5 fish will be counted towards the “Fill the
Freezer” Calcutta.
18. In the event of a tie in the cash
prize categories, the prize money will be equally divided between those tying.
19. In
the event that all places are not filled the unwon prize money will be
proportionally divided among the winners of that prize.
20. In the event that no qualifying fish
are caught in a Calcutta, the entry fee for that Calcutta will be returned.
21. 35’ & Under Calcutta: If
no qualifying fish is taken in any category, the unwon prize money will be
equally divided among the winners of the other categories.
22. In
order to be eligible for awards, prizes, and calcuttas, fish must be caught in
compliance with all tournament rules. Said rules include conformance to state
and federal size limits and possession of a current NMFS angling, general or
charter/headboat category HMS permit.
23. All fish eligible for cash prizes
may be subject to examination by the Tournament Directors, consulting
biologists and/or Torrymeter, should there be any question as to the
“freshness” of the catch. It shall be the responsibility of the participant to
keep all eligible catches in suitable and proper condition until weigh-in. In
the event of any disputes arising from such examination, the decision of the
Tournament Directors shall be final. Polygraph examination may be required of
winning crews.
Administration
24. The designated tournament VHF radio channels
are 69 (Primary) and 71 (Alternate).
25. Registration is by boat rather than
by angler. Tournament Directors reserve the right to decline entry of any boat
or crew.
26. The
Tournament Directors and hosting facilities assume no liability or responsibility
for any damage or loss.
27. In the event of a boat disability,
contestants may transfer to another boat, not entered in the tournament, and
may fish in the name of the original, with the prior approval of the Tournament
Directors.
28. Allegations of violations of any of
the above rules may be submitted only by an official tournament registrant and
must be submitted in writing on the day of the alleged infraction. In the event
of such an allegation, the Tournament Directors will have the sole and exclusive
responsibility to investigate the alleged incident and to rule as to whether
any violation materially aided the angler, crew, or vessel, or otherwise
affected the outcome of the tournament. Any subsequent penalty will be solely
at the discretion of the Tournament Directors and shall be final. In all cases,
registrant and their crews agree to be bound by the ruling of the Tournament
Directors.