17^th ANNUAL BOATYARD BAR & GRILL OPENING DAY ROCKFISH CATCH & RELEASE TOURNAMENT

April 21, 2018

To benefit the Chesapeake Bay Foundation®, Coastal Conservation Association Maryland and the Annapolis Police Dept. Youth Fishing Camp

IMPORTANT:  The technique to submit photos and the Rules & Regulations have changed - full details below.

CAPTAIN’S MEETING:

Friday, April 20, 2018
5:00 – 7:00 pm

Boatyard Bar & Grill
400 Fourth Street
Annapolis, MD  21403

Pick up your Skipper’s Bag (event tickets, Tshirts), official current year measuring stick and tickets for Saturday’s party

Enjoy delicious Boatyard fare and listen to the fish-on sounds of Cuzzin' Mark & Sean!

 

CATCH & RELEASE TOURNAMENT AND MEASURE-IN:

 Saturday, April 21, 2018

Catch & Release Tournament:  Fishing begins at 5:00am - DNR rules apply

Measure-In:  Potential winners must sign in at the Judging Station prior to the 4:30 pm cut-off for an interview with the judges and to receive a certified measurement card to become eligible to win.  Please review the Rules below for specifics as they have changed.

 AWARDS AFTER PARTY:

Saturday, April 21, 2018

4:00 – 8:00 pm Party
5:00 – 8:00 pm Live Music – Jess McQuay Band
5:00 pm Awards

 

The Event

• Tournament Date:  Saturday, April 21, 2018

• Entry Fee:  $240.00 per boat for four anglers
                        $45.00 per additional angler

• Registration Payment Options
  • Online registration (highly recommended) - Click on the REGISTER NOW! button below.  Payment with credit card or PayPal only available online.
    
  • Mail or bring registration form and cash or check payable to Boatyard Bar & Grill at 400 Fourth Street, Annapolis, MD 21403.

• Captains Meeting and Cookout on Friday, April 20, 2018, 5:00-7:00pm:  at the Boatyard Bar & Grill, 400 Fourth Street (corner of Fourth Street and Severn Avenue), Eastport, Annapolis. www.boatyardbarandgrill.com , 410-216-6206. 

 Pick up your required official 2018 measuring stick at the Captains’ meeting, along with your Skipper’s Bag with tee shirts and other goodies, plus your tickets for Saturday’s party and awards ceremony. 

• Party & Awards Ceremony:  Saturday, April 21^st, 4:00-8:00pm, awards at 5:00pm, at the Boatyard Bar & Grill.  Food and beverages served for all registered participants with tickets. Additional tickets are available for purchase at the door for guests.  Band plays until 8:00pm.

• Angler Sport Center Gift Certificates and more prizes from sponsors will be awarded as follows:
  1^st Prize for Longest fish.  Plus, 1^st place angler’s name is painted on an outline of the winning fish and hung from a ceiling beam at the Boatyard Bar & Grill.
  2^nd and 3^rd Prize for 2^nd and 3^rd  Longest fish.
  Woman’s Prize for the Longest fish caught by a female angler.
  Youth Prize for the Longest fish caught by an angler under the age of 16.

• CCA MD Division prize:  $35.00 to enter-to-win when registering for this tournament, an Engel 50-quart cooler filled with cool stuff for the longest fish in the CCA Division. Includes a one-year CCA membership.

The Rules

 1.    Fishing Area According to Maryland Regulations: Chesapeake Bay from the Brewerton Channel to the MD-VA Line, excluding all bays, sounds, tributaries, creeks and rivers, except Tangier Sound and Pocomoke Sound. 

2.    Eligible Fish:  Striped Bass. 

3.    THIS IS A CATCH AND RELEASE ONLY TOURNAMENT due to DNR regulations for opening day tournaments, and in the interest of fostering the catch and release ethic. 

4.    All fish must be caught on hook and line. 

5.    Chumming, live bait and/or the use of eels is not permitted. 

6.    IGFA all-tackle rules apply.

7.    Measurement:  In order to have your fish judged, you must submit a clear and readable digital photo of your fish measured resting on top of the official 2018 measuring stick before the 4:30 p.m. cut-off via the iAngler Tournament app (or by email or in person).  If your fish is over 45 inches long, you must measure it along side of the official 2018 Boatyard Bar & Grill measuring stick.

The unique photo indicator symbol announced during the Captains Meeting must be visible in the photo.  (Ink it on your hand or on a durable card with a Sharpie).

8.   Potential winners must sign in at the Judging Station prior to the 4:30 p.m. cut-off for an interview with the judges and to receive a certified measurement card to become eligible to win.

You must also attest in person and on your honor that the fish to be measured was released alive into the water from which it came.

The judges reserve the right to interview any potential witnesses regarding the live release and method of the catch of any fish presented for tournament consideration.

The judges also reserve the right to examine the embedded metadata of any photo image to confirm the validity of a claim.  Photos with edited or missing metadata may be disallowed at the judges’ discretion.

9.     Winners:  Largest fish will be determined by length measured from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail.  In case of a tie, the fish measured first will be the winner.

Put the 2018 measuring stick on the deck of your boat. Lay the fish on top of the measuring stick with the snout of the fish on the zero mark and the tip of the tail on the higher number.  Include the entire fish in the photo.

You are responsible for getting the snout of the fish exactly on the zero end of the measuring stick. The judges cannot allow any adjustment for a snout that appears to be past the end of the stick. It helps to jam the measuring stick against a vertical surface such as a bulkhead or the side of the cockpit to ensure that the zero mark (end of the stick) and the snout of the fish are even.  (A photo illustrating this technique is included in your registration packet).

If your fish is longer than 45 inches, place it beside the measuring stick instead of on top so the judges can confirm the date on the stick.

In case of fish longer than the stick, the first angler who submits a certifiable photo of a fish longer than 48 inches will be declared the winner. The next fish over 48 inches will be declared second and so on.  All ties will be determined by check-in time stamp with the earlier check-in winning.

It is helpful in the judging process to have two or three photos of your fish on the measuring stick, clearly showing the length.

10. Calcuttas:  As a courtesy, the Boatyard Tournament judges will provide certified measurements of fish entered in private Calcuttas. You will need to visit the judging station to obtain your certified measurement card.  Calcutta managers must provide a complete list of participants to the judges via email (BYTourney@gmail.com) prior to 7:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 21^st.

11. Fishing Hours:  Legal fishing begins at 5:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 21.  You must submit your photo via iAngler Tournament, email (BYTourney@gmail.com) or in person at the Catch & Release Tournament Judging Station next to the Boatyard Bar and Grill by 4:30 p.m. to have your fish entered.

12. Safety:  All participants and guests of participants are responsible for their own personal safety and the security of their personal property and expressly assume any and all risks to their personal safety and well-being as a result of their participation in the catch & release tournament.  It is a pre-condition of participation in the Boatyard Bar & Grill Fishing Catch & Release Tournament that all participants shall release and hold harmless the Boatyard Bar & Grill, Chesapeake Bay Foundation®, Coastal Conservation Association Maryland or the Annapolis Police Department Youth Fishing Camp and any sponsors from any and all claims, losses, costs and expenses, personal injuries, wrongful deaths and property damage, whatsoever, arising from or during participation in the Catch & Release Fishing Tournament.  By electing to participate in the Boatyard Bar & Grill Catch & Release Fishing Tournament, all participants agree to, and grant this release of liability and shall not be permitted to withdraw or disavow that release of liability.

 

 

This year we are using the iAngler Tournament smartphone application:

 www.iAnglerTournament.com

It’s easy.

1)    Register for the tournament online by clicking on REGISTER NOW! below.

2)     You will receive a COUPON CODE in your registration confirmation email after successfully registering your team.

3)    Go to www.iAnglertournament.com  and register for a FREE ACCOUNT using your CAPTAIN’S NAME.  Use an email address that you have access to via smartphone when on the water.

4)    Search for the 17^th Annual Boatyard Bar & Grill Opening Day Rockfish Catch & Release Tournament and use the COUPON CODE provided in your registration confirmation email to bypass any payment. 

5)    Next, download the FREE iAngler Tournament smartphone app & log in to your account via your phone.

6)    The evening of April 20th, during the Captain’s Party, we will announce by text, email and in the parking lot a photo-indicator symbol to draw on your hand or on a blank card which must show legibly in any fish photos to be considered for judgment in the tournament. (Use a fat, black Sharpie pen.)

7)    You will use the app via smartphone to submit photos of fish measured against the official 2018 Boatyard Tournament measuring stick.

8)    Be sure to include the NAME OF THE ANGLER in the COMMENTS section of your submission and select CAPTAIN, FEMALE, or YOUTH division for each catch.

9)    If you DO NOT have a smartphone or have technical difficulties while on the water, you may submit your photos to the judges no later than 4:30 at the Boatyard Bar & Grill.  The judges are prepared to accept entries via email at  BYTourney@gmail.com if you prefer.

We encourage you to use the iAngler Tournament app. It’s much better than email.

The app maintains the leaderboard in real time and will compile the entries with oversight from the judges, who will confirm the fish lengths and other elements to keep the contest fair and legitimate. 

iAngler Tournament questions? Contact David Sikorski via email  information@ccamd.org or 443-621-9186.

 

 Fish Photo Email Address:  BYTourney@gmail.com
Leader Board Facebook Updates at Boatyard Bar & Grill
Social Media Tracking:  #BYTourney and @BYTourney