Preamble:
Every sport has its code of ethics. The sport of fishing is no exception; therefore, all participants shall display honorable,
ethical, sportsmanlike conduct in regard to the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo rules and their own competitive fishing.
- A copy of the overview, rules and regulations shall be kept aboard each boat and made available to each participant. Each participant shall read and thoroughly familiarize him or herself with the overview, rules and regulations. Any participant who violates any overview, rules and regulation of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo, whether intentional or not, could possibly disqualify him or herself and all other participants aboard his/her boat. A disqualification shall prevent a participant from collecting prizes for fish registered.
- All participants are subject to a polygraph test. Any or all that place in the money in the Jackpots (King Mackerel and Redfish) or species prizes may be required to take a polygraph test before awards on Sunday. Failure to submit to or pass a polygraph test will subject the participant to disqualification.
- Every participant must be registered prior to fishing. A participant is deemed to be anyone competing for cash prizes and shall include everyone aboard a boat, fishing from a pier, the surf, and/or a dock. The captain or owner of each participating boat shall see to it that every person aboard his/her boat has a Rodeo Ticket. A Captain may be any male or female over the age of 16 prior to the event.
- Any captains permitting a person on his/her boat to violate any rule of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo may cause all participants aboard his/her boat to be disqualified.
- The Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo is a Captain's Choice Tournament. Captains fish at their own discretion and accept full responsibility for their crew and vessel whether on land or in the water.
- All tickets must be properly completed with the required information at the time of ticket purchase. Only registered participants are eligible for prizes. Registration tickets must be presented at the Weigh Station when entering a fish for prize competition during the hours listed below. (Participants may be required to present acceptable personal identification when registering any fish into Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo competition, i.e. valid drivers license, employee ID cards, etc. Any registration ticket that appears to have been altered will not be accepted). TICKETS ARE NOT TRANSFERABLE OR REFUNDABLE.
- All fish entered must be caught within the territorial waters of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo. For offshore and inshore saltwater, the territorial waters of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo include all open and public waters from an east-west boundary from the Savannah River (North) 32N 01' 60" and an east-west boundary (South) 28N 24' 32" from Canaveral. All freshwater species must be caught on the St. Johns River or its tributaries.
- Official start time of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo is lines in the water at 6:00am on Friday, June 10th, 2011. See below for designated weigh-in deadline times.
WEIGH-IN DEADLINE TIMES:
Friday, June 10th
Scales open at 10:00 am
Must be in line to weigh:
All species and Jackpots: 7:00 pm
Daily Prizes on all species!
Saturday, June 11th
Scales open at 10:00 am
Must be inline to weigh:
All Freshwater: 4:00 pm
All Redfish Jackpots: 5:00 pm
All King Mackerel Jackpots: 6:00 pm
All Inshore and Offshore General Rodeo Species: 7:00 pm
Daily Prizes on all species!
Sunday, June 12th
Scales open at 10:00 am
Must be in line to weigh:
All Freshwater: 12:00 noon
All King Mackerel Jackpots: 1:00 pm
All Inshore and Offshore General Rodeo Species: 1:00 pm
Awards: Promptly at 5:00 pm - At the close of each day's fishing, those anglers who are in line at the Weigh Station, or identified by a Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo official as being docked as the weigh station closes, will be allowed to have their catch weighed and entered.
- The official Weigh Station is Metropolitan Park, Jacksonville, Florida and have your VHF radio turned to the official tournament channel, VHF 72, when coming to the tournament dock.
- All non-jackpot species can come to the event by truck or car, however, the angler who caught the fish must accompany his or her fish to the scale. All anglers must have his or her Rodeo Ticket on their person in order to weigh fish and have proper identification. Ticket(s) must be presented prior to putting the fish on the scale. Absolutely no person or persons can give a fish they caught to another ticket holder to weigh. This will be a part of the polygraph exam!
- All Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo winners will be determined by the largest fish entered in each category according to weight and are subject to limitations. If there is a tie, earliest fish weighed gets the win.
- All fish shall be weighed using platform or hanging scales, per the judge's discretion. Those fish requiring to be weighed by hanging scales will be lifted and weighed by the tail. In case of a tie in any category, the first fish weighed in that remains on the final board will be declared the winner.
- This is an angler tournament! In the interest of conservation we will encourage any participant not to weigh after their first fish is weighed. You can, however, bump your own weight if you continue to fish after your fish is weighed. An angler will be permitted to hold and win only one place per category at any one time but may place in more than one category simultaneously. If there are two or more anglers on board a boat, each angler can weigh the same species of fish. Cash and prizes for three places in each species. Any Rodeo Ticket holder can win (or place) in more than one species, but can only win one place per species. For each angler who weighs a legal fish in the Rodeo, their name will go into a drum with all other eligible contestants. At 5:00pm on Sunday, at the awards ceremony, a name will be drawn and that contestant will win the Rodeo's Grand Prize: a 21' Contender Boat, Mercury Outboard, and Loadmaster Trailer package. YOU MUST BE PRESENT TO WIN THIS AWARD and have photo identification.
- All fish shall be kept in as good a condition as possible, preferably on ice, so the judge can make an accurate judgment as to its freshness. Redfish to be entered in the Redfish Jackpot must be kept alive in an authorized livewell, (See Redfish Jackpot Rules).
- Any fish deemed to be spoiled or rotten, may be disqualified. Any fish that has been shot, cut, mutilated, bang struck, frozen, or shows signs of unsportsmanlike handling may be disqualified. In addition, all fish entered may be subject to a Tory meter test. No fish will be accepted for registration that has been gutted or chemically treated prior to weighing. The official judge or his representative may at his discretion gut any fish presented. A marine biologist may be on hand to determine the freshness of your catch. Judges decision will be final.
- The participant must catch all fish entered into competition and it must be caught with a rod and reel or a pole and line. No participant shall be assisted in any way to land his or her fish except for help in netting or gaffing his/her catch. No exceptions are made. Flounder may NOT be gigged. Menhaden can be netted.
- Daily prizes will be awarded to the top fish in each category on Friday, June 10th and Saturday, June 11th only. No daily prizes for Sunday including daily T/W/T's.
- Jackpot Tickets must be purchased in conjunction with a Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo Ticket, one Jackpot Ticket per boat/team. Everyone on the boat/team must have a Rodeo Ticket. If a boat/team comes to the dock and any person on the boat/team, including women and/or children, does not have a Rodeo Ticket, the boat and/or team members will not be allowed to weigh. The largest Kingfish on board will be declared the Jackpot entry. Other King Mackerel caught on a team boat can be brought to the scale for individual King Mackerel category entry for the Contender Boat, Mercury Outboard, and Loadmaster Trailer drawing. For the Redfish Jackpot, both fish will count for the Redfish Jackpot and both fish will count toward the boat drawing.
- To promote conservation and in some cases comply with the State of Florida or Federal regulations, the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo judge will not accept an entry of any fish in the Rodeo categories that does not meet minimum length or slot limit requirements as specified. The Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo reserves the right to amend these lengths and/or remove any fish from competition, without notice, at any time in order to comply with federal and/or state requirements.
- All anglers must conform to local, state, and federal laws. All entrants coming to scale by boat must conform to all no wake zones and speed limits. Speeding tickets or citations issued will result in disqualification for that day. Everyone on board a tournament boat must have a valid Florida fishing license. Remember, you are returning to a Florida destination regardless of where you elect to fish. (Within tournament boundaries.) Unsportsmanlike conduct will result in disqualification without refund of tickets. Participants under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs will not be allowed to weigh.
- All fish entered, with the exception of Kingfish may be retained by the angler. The Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo reserves the right to hold all board fish for display purposes until official closing time of the day the fish is entered into competition at which time the fish must be claimed or forfeited. All fish registered are subject to scientific evaluation by conservation personnel on site. (i.e. removing the ear bone and/or fish skeleton). The angler must reasonably dispose of those fish not held by the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo.
- All prizes not claimed at the awards ceremony on Sunday, June 12, 2011 or at the SKA office 15 Garnett Avenue in St. Augustine, FL by June 25, 2011, will become property of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo. Recipient is responsible for all taxes on prizes won.
- The Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo Committee reserves the right to reschedule the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo due to weather. No refund of tickets will be made due to rescheduling. One day of fishing constitutes a tournament.
- Protests of any nature must be submitted in written statement form and personally turned in to the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo Committee / Tournament Director no later than one-half hour after the last fish is weighed along with a $200 fee. If protest is up-held, monies will be returned to protester. If protest is not up-held, monies go to the tournament.
- Ticket outlets are ticket sale representatives of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo and in no way act as an agent for or on behalf of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo. All rules interpretations shall come from the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo Committee or the SKA. (Ticket outlets cannot give rule interpretations.)
- Any matter not specifically covered by these rules may be decided by and at the sole discretion of the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo Committee. Information and/or rules in the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo website are for informational purposes only. The Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo brochure shall serve as the official rules. All decisions made by the tournament officials will be final.
- Disclaimer: The Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo is not responsible for typos within the awards package and rules, and reserves the right to amend or substitute prizes due to events beyond the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo's control.
- To contact tournament base call 386-801-3200 on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.
- ALL TOURNAMENT PARTICIPANTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR READING THE RULES OF THE TOURNAMENT!
RANDOM DRAWING RULES:
Any angler entered into the Jacksonville Fishing Rodeo must weigh an eligible species (fish must register a weight on scale) during the prescribed times of the event to be eligible for the random drawing at the end of the event. A part of your Rodeo Ticket will be removed and placed in a drum (one entry per ticket) when you weigh. MAKE SURE YOU FILL OUT THAT PORTION OF YOUR RODEO TICKET AND PRINT LEGIBLY. At the end of the Rodeo, the drawing will take place and a 21' Contender Boat, Mercury Outboard, and Loadmaster Trailer package awarded. YOU MUST BE PRESENT TO WIN! And present photo identification. Awards approximately at 5:00pm Sunday.
Pier and Surf fishermen are encouraged to participate in this tournament!!!
FRESHWATER LARGEMOUTH BASS:
- Contestants may fish anywhere on tournament waters (St. Johns River and its tributaries) accessible to the public by boat, except areas designated as "off limits" or "no fishing" by private ownership or local, state, and federal officials. Contestants may not fish within 50 yards of a competitor's boat, which was in a location first.
- Fish can be brought to the tournament site by boat or by truck or car dead. There is a 6-ounce (.38 pound) penalty for a dead bass. We prefer to weigh them alive, and then return them to the St. Johns River. You can bring your boat to the launch ramp across the river from the park and re-launch providing you can keep your catch alive.
- Artificial lures and/or live bait may be used.
- Legal methods for catching fish are rod and reel.
- All fish must be caught within tournament hours.
- Every possible means must be made to ensure a live release.
- Use of circle hooks are encouraged for easy catch and release.
- Injured or altered fish may be disqualified.
- Only one place (first, second, or third) in Largemouth Bass species will be awarded per registered angler. However, you can place in other species and/or win the Friday and/or Saturday daily prizes.
- Tiebreaker: All ties will be broken by earliest weighed-in.
- All winning anglers may be asked to be polygraphed.
- It will be the captain's responsibility to return the weighed fish back to his or her boat to release either in the river or at a position they feel best for the fish.
- Please bring your catch to the scale in appropriate water filled bag. Do not remove the water from the bag as you will be required to return the fish to your boat's well or release it in the river.
- Everyone on the boat must have a $40 Rodeo Ticket. Each person must show their ticket to tournament officials at the dock before getting off the boat to weigh.
GENERAL TOURNAMENT ENTRY: $40 plus sales tax
JACKPOT RULES:
The purpose for all Jackpot Ticket holders to have a Rodeo Ticket is:1. You will have a chance for the random drawing for the Contender Boat, Mercury Outboard, and Loadmaster Trailer package, if you weigh an eligible fish.
2. You also can win or place in other species categories.
REDFISH JACKPOT RULES:
Jackpot ticket $175 (per boat + sales tax)Everyone on board must also have a $40 Rodeo Ticket.
- Tournament Anglers and Tournament Staff must attempt to release alive all redfish that are caught, including those fish that are weighed in.
- Each two person team of tournament anglers may possess no more than two (2) live redfish in their boat's live well or recirculating tank at any one time.
- All boats used in the tournament must contain live aerated live wells that are at least 2.4 cubic feet or 18 gallons in capacity. Boats that do not meet the minimum livewell requirements will be disqualified from participating in the redfish tournament.
- No other species may be maintained in the same livewell with any redfish.
- Any dead redfish possessed by a two person team of tournament anglers may not be discarded. A dead redfish is considered harvested and will count towards their daily bag limit.
- There will be a penalty of 6 ounces (.38lbs) for each dead fish weighed.
- Jackpot contestants may fish anywhere on tournament waters accessible to the public by boat, except areas designated as "off limits" or "no fishing" by private ownership or local, state, and federal officials. Contestants may not fish within 50 yards of a competitor's boat, which was in a location first, and anchored. (An anchored boat is a boat held in a stable position by a line attached to a weight; push pole, power pole, etc. with the trolling motor in the up position.)
- Legal Redfish length, 18" to 27". All redfish are measured with a pinched tail.
- Artificial lures and/or live bait may be used.
- Legal methods for catching fish are rod and reel.
- All fish must be caught within tournament hours.
- Every possible means must be made to ensure a live release.
- Use of circle hooks with live bait is encouraged for easy catch and release.
- Injured or altered fish may be disqualified.
- Only one prize will be awarded per registered Captain (TEAM).
- Only two legal fish may be counted per boat per day.
- Tiebreaker: All ties will be broken by earliest weighed-in.
- All winning captains may be polygraphed.
Every person on board a Redfish Jackpot boat must also have a $40 Rodeo Ticket and present your jackpot ticket and rodeo ticket to tournament officials before they get off the boat and then they can proceed to the scale. Your Redfish will be entered into the Rodeo portion of the event for the biggest fish. Earliest Redfish weighed breaks ties.
KINGFISH JACKPOT RULES:
Jackpot ticket $375 (per boat + sales tax)Everyone on board must also have a $40 Rodeo Ticket.
- Contestants may fish anywhere on tournament waters accessible to the public by boat, except areas designated as "off limits" or "no fishing" by private ownership or local, state, and federal officials.
- King Mackerel Jackpot entries must come to the scale by boat. You can transport your fish on your boat over land and re-launch your boat at either of the two launch ramps in downtown Jacksonville.
- Everyone on board must have a Rodeo Ticket and they must be presented at the dock to the tournament officials before they get off the boat. You must bring your jackpot ticket and rodeo tickets to the scale with the fish for all on board, you will not be allowed to weigh without the tickets.
- All King Mackerel participants: SKA rules to apply. SKA rules available online at www.fishska.com
