TOURNAMENT FEES, RULES & REGULATIONS (2024)
TOURNAMENT FEES / INFO
For the first tournament only, there will be an insurance fee of $10 per person in addition to the regular tournament entry fee of $80. This is a ONETIME fee to pay for our insurance coverage we carry as required. Anyone that participates for the first time throughout the remainder of the season for the first time will also be required to pay this fee as well. All tournaments after the first tournament will be $90 per team. If fishing without a partner, you are still required to pay the full tournament entry fee.
*Please be advised that tournament registration will be cut off at 5:45am for all tournaments. No one will be allowed to sign up after the 5:45am cut off.
LAUNCH FEES
Each team participating is required to pay for his or her launch fee. You can also purchase a season pass if you prefer. Season pass purchases will also give you access to Bull Run marina. Both season passes and daily launch passes are available at the main marina building and proof of having one or the other will be a tournament registration prerequisite before you may enter the event.
TOURNAMENT BLAST OFF PROCESS
Each team when registering for the tournaments will be given a boat number. This is how you will be identified at weigh in and also how you will determine when to take off. Registering for the tournament will be on a first come first serve basis and your boat number will be the number given according to next available on the sign up form. There will be a designated boat (randomly drawn) to announce the take-off. Boats are permitted to take off when their boat number is announced. There is a 1 minute interval between the take-offs.
TOURNAMENT PAYOUT
Each tournament payout is based on the total number of entry fees in that event. From the $55 tournament entry fee, $5 is removed from each entry to pay our user fee as required. This is to cover costs to open the park 2 hours early each tournament morning and make all the amenities available to us. Tournament payout will be based on the remaining $50 of the entry fee after park fees have been deducted. We will pay out 80-85% of the total tournament purse based on the number of boats participating. 80% paid out on all tournaments exceeding 25 boats and 85% paid out on all tournaments under 25 boats. The remaining 15%-20% will be held to pay out at our end of the season Fall Classic event. Included in the $50 is also our BIG FISH pot. Big fish for each tournament will be paid back at 100% per event based on the number of boats per tournament. We pay 3 places per tournament. (There's quite a few percentages being thrown at you. If you have any questions on how we are paying out each event, please see the Tournament Director for any clarification needed.)
REGULATIONS
These rules are set in place to make sure that we are able to run a fair and fun tournament. Most of these rules are common sense and probably do not need to be told to anyone. Let’s all just keep this simple, fair and fun for everyone
Everyone fishing a FHBC tournament will understand that they are individually responsible for understanding the rules and abiding by the rules at all times while competing and or involved in club proceedings. Violation to any of the club rules will be handled by the tournament directors and the individual(s) involved and the outcome of the rule violation to be determined by what is in the best interest of the club. All decisions made will be final.
No live/dead bait may be used in tournament competition. This includes but not limited to; night crawlers, earth worms, crawfish, shiners, minnows, goldfish or any form of live/dead fish. In addition to live/dead bait, no use of food or food or food derivatives may used for attractant in attempt to bait specific fishing areas.
Tournament limit will be 6 legal size (14 inch) Largemouth or Smallmouth Bass. You are permitted to bring only 7 fish to the scales for official weigh in. State law requires that no more than 5 (14 inch) Large or Smallmouth bass may be in possession by one person at a time. This being a team style event with 2 fishermen per boat, you could legally possess 10 fish in your livewell at once. You must however, cull down to 7 fish in your livewell before you enter the weigh in line. If you bring more than 7 fish to the scales, you will forfeit your largest fish in your tournament limit. Culling and removing cull tags must be done before you enter the weigh in line. The only cull tag allowed to be kept in the weigh in line is the one in your 7th fish to help identify the 6 you would like to put on the scales for official weight. Please note that if you are fishing by yourself, you must comply with the State Law of only possessing 5 (14 inch) fish and you are permitted to weigh in 5 fish
The tournament weigh master is the tournament director. The final weight to be recorded as official weight is not contestable and to be recorded as the weigh master calls the weight by a designated book keeper. Official weight is determined as the official scale settles on a weight and the small arrow on the scales appears which means the weight has settled and is locked. We will zero the scales before each team weighs. In the event of a tournament catch exceeding the weight limit of the scales, we will ask that the largest fish be removed and we will take the total weight of (5) fish, remove those (5) place the 6th fish not weighed on the scale and capture weight to be added to the weight of the first (5) weighed. The 6th fish not weighed cannot be placed back into the livewell between the time we weigh the (5) fish and when the 6th fish is weighed individually. This will result in the forfeit of the 6th fish. A big fish will also be weighed per team if applicable. All ties will be handled by dividing the places tied and splitting the money for that place equally. This will also apply to big fish ties. No short fish will be weighed. There will be a designated person to measure questionable fish. We will utilize a golden rule as our official rule. A fish will be determined as legal when the mouth is closed, pressed against upright section of the rule with the tail being swept across and the tail meeting the 14” requirement.
DEAD FISH CANNOT BE WEIGHED in the tournament.
Tournament weigh in times will be announced before the start of the tournament. You must be docked or floating just off the bank in front of the weigh in area at no more than an idle to be considered not late. All participants that return after the stated weigh in time will be penalized ¼ pound per minute up to 15 minutes. Anything over 15 minutes will result in a disqualification from the event.
You are required to have some form of a water recirculating livewell. An onboard livewell or cooler conversion will be the only acceptable forms of livewell allowed for our tournaments.
No fishing within 100 yards of another competitor without their consent. At no point, unless of an emergency may 2 team boats be allowed to be gunnel to gunnel.
All official weight will belong to the boat owner. If two members decide during the season that they want to partner, they will be required to take the lesser of the two teams total weight.
Fishing with more than one rod is prohibited. No trolling allowed.
All livewells must be checked by a designated official before you can enter the tournament.
The use of two-way communication or cell phones during a tournament with intent to aide in locating or catching fish is prohibited and will result in disqualification. Emergency use is allowed.
Tournament teams that sign up as a team cannot have one of the team members leave the tournament for any reason during competition hours and return to competition during the day. If for some reason, a member of the team needs to leave for an emergency, it must be cleared by one of the tournament directors and deemed to be an emergency. In the event that an emergency decision has been made by the tournament director, the remaining half of the team can choose to stop fishing, dock their boat and remain at the park awaiting weigh in later that day. Or, they may choose to continue fishing, but will be forced to cull their fish down to (5) and only be permitted to weigh (5) fish for the tournament. Anyone registering for the tournament and fishing by themselves will not be permitted to have anyone come aboard their boat during competition hours to allow for them to weigh in (6) fish for the event. Violations to this rule will result in disqualification.
At no point are any tournament participants allowed to cross the orange barriers that restrict access to the lower dam area during tournament competition. Violations to this rule will result in disqualification from the current event as well as immediate dismissal from fishing the remaining tournaments for that tournament season.
We are given permission by NVRPA to hold our tournaments. Please respect their employees and their rules.
Proper ramp etiquette must be used when launching and trailering your boat. Do not tie up the ramp for longer than it takes to launch your boat or put it back on the trailer. Do not organize your gear, load or unload gear when on the ramp. This is what the parking lot is for. If you are not launching your boat, or trailering your boat, all participants must be either in line to do so or parked in a designated parking spot. Please lend a hand to help with others as they launch/trailer to speed this process up.
All tournament participants must observe a code of conduct and the applicable rules as put forth by the tournament directors. Anglers shall, at all times, conduct themselves in a manor becoming of anglers that will not reflect unfavorably on FHBC, its members or representatives. Anglers shall use their best effort to demonstrate professionalism and integrity in support of bass fishing and the bass fishing community. Anyone violating the conduct codes set forth will be suspended from competing in FHBC events, permanent ban from competition or any other combination thereof deemed appropriate by FHBC tournament directors.
No participant participating in a tournament or outside of tournament hours will be permitted to transfer and Largemouth or Smallmouth bass of any size from one spot to another with or without intent to purposely stock a fishing hole or area. The exception to this rule would be culling your catch during competition. Violations to this rule will result in disqualification.
The Tournament director may change or update rules without notice when deemed necessary for the benefit of the club and the tournaments.
This is a public body of water and needs to be treated as such. Please use care when operating your boats. Watch your wakes around other boats and especially around the various marinas on the reservoir.