Starvation Walleye Classic Application & Rules

Application/
Rules

Download 2008 SWC Entry Form (pdf)

Download 2008 SWC Rules (pdf)

The 2008 Starvation Walleye Classic
Official Tournament Rules

Registration/Fees/Requirements
1. Participation and eligibility. The Yuba tournament organization has no restrictions as to race, gender, creed, or color. All tournament contestants must be over 16 years of age. Any applicant under the age of 18 must submit to Tournament Officials written consent and release of liability from a parent or guardian. Tournament Officials will make any and all determination of eligibility, and reserve the right to refuse entry to any individual or team.
2. Teams. Each team will consist of 1 or 2 team members. Only registered team members will be allowed to be in a boat on tournament days. A contestant may fish alone without a designated partner but must pay the full team entry fee and, according to Utah fishing regulations, can only weigh one (1) fish over 24 inches per day.
3. Registration/withdrawal. Unless previous arrangements are approved by the Tournament Director, all entry fees must be paid before or at the rules meeting on the Friday preceding the tournament. Teams withdrawing one week or more prior to the tournament will receive a refund less a $50 cancellation fee. Teams withdrawing after this time forfeit their entire fee.
4. Aquatic nuisance species certificate. All tournament contestants are required to have in possession a certificate of completion of the free 100th Meridian Initiative aquatic nuisance species online training (www.100thmeridian.org/certificate.asp). This is Utah law, and violators will be disqualified.
5. Licenses/permits. Each contestant must have in possession a valid fishing license. Contestants wanting to fish with two rods must have in possession a valid Utah Two Pole Permit. Licenses and permits can be obtained online at www.wildlife.utah.gov. Penalty for violation is disqualification.
6. Insurance/liability. It is the sole responsibility of the boat owner to carry proof of adequate public liability insurance covering boat occupants. Contestants must be able to provide proof of insurance when requested by Tournament Officials.
In signing the entry form, all contestants agree to hold harmless any and all promoters, tournament directors, agents, and organizations assisting the tournament or sponsors. Furthermore, all contestants agree to waive all responsibility for death, injuries, damage, liability, theft, fire or loss of any kind to entrants. No unsigned entry form will be processed for competition.
7. Boat/equipment. Each tournament boat must be a minimum of 16 feet in length with a minimum 10 horsepower main motor unless approved by Tournament Officials. Motors may not exceed the BIA horsepower rating for the boat. Each boat must be equipped with a functioning aerated livewell. All boats must comply with applicable laws regarding equipment (See the brochure, “Highlights from Utah's Boating Laws & Rules.”)

Tournament
8. Restricted lake access. During the time period beginning 1/2 hour before the rules meeting on the day before the tournament and ending after the weigh-in on the last day, tournament contestants, representatives, relatives, etc. shall only be allowed on the lake during designated tournament hours unless specifically authorized beforehand by the Tournament Director.
9. Rules meeting. Tournament hours, special rules and rule changes, order of blast-off, and other information of vital interest to contestants is announced at the pre-tournament rules meeting the evening before the tournament begins. All teams, unless excused by Tournament Officials, are required to attend this meeting. Teams in violation will be started last on all tournament days.
10. Soliciting information. No contestant may solicit or receive information from any non-contestant during the tournament or the period of restricted lake access.
11. Pfd use/boat markings. Each contestant must wear and fully secure a Coast Guard approved personal flotation device (PFD) whenever the boat is operating above wakeless speed. Boats must display the identifying marking provided by tournament officials at all times.
12. Cell phones/two-way radios. Cellular telephones, CB and marine radios are allowed in boats, but may be used for personal or emergency purposes only. Any boat-to-boat communication using these devices is prohibited except in an emergency
13. Tackle, bait and methods. Bait, tackle, and fishing methods that are legal according to state fishing regulations will be allowed.
14. Encroachment. When faced with a situation involving fishing in close proximity to other boats or fishing in or through water actively being fished by another team, teams are asked to communicate in a courteous and civil manner. If a problem arises teams are strongly encouraged to take steps to come to a mutually acceptable solution. This applies to tournament and non-tournament boats.
15. Bag limit/size limits/measuring. The tournament limit per team/per day is 10 walleyes. No participating boat may have more than this in possession at any time during the tournament. All walleyes presented for weigh-in must be a minimum of 12 inches in length. Fish are measured laying on a flat surface, from the tip of the closed mouth to the end of the relaxed tail fin. Each team may have in possession only one walleye 24 inches or more in length for each team member.
16. Culling. Replacing a live, previously caught fish with a larger caught fish is permitted during a fishing day. When a team has reached the prescribed daily tournament limit this must be done immediately. At no time during tournament hours may contestants continue to fish while possessing more than the tournament limit. Culling of dead fish is not allowed.
17. Running lights. All running lights must be on and operating at the time of morning check-in at the launch ramp. Any boat without lights operating properly will lose their flight placement, must blast-off last and will not be allowed to blast-off until, in the judgment of the Tournament Director, travel without running lights is safe. At minimum, running lights must be left on until arrival at the boater’s first fishing stop.
18. Morning check-in/blast-off. All boats must check-in with the Tournament Director before the start of the day’s launch. The Tournament Director will check running lights, live wells and for all required safety equipment. Once in the water, all boats will wait in a designated area for their assigned boat number to be called. Then the boats will proceed in single file through the wake-less area until it is safe to come up on plane. Any team that does answer the call of their boat number for any reason, including being late, not paying attention or boat problems, will lose their place in line and will have to take a place last in line.
19. Breakdowns/emergencies. Tournament participants are not permitted to leave their boat or touch another boat, except in an emergency or in the event of major equipment failure. In the case of a breakdown, a team may accept a tow with any other boat on the water. While in tow, the team accepting assistance is not permitted to continue fishing. However, the contestants rendering assistance may continue fishing.
In an emergency, a team may elect to have one team member stay with the disabled craft while the other team member rides to the weigh-in site in another tournament boat with the day’s catch. The team member remaining behind may not continue to fish. Fish may only be transported to the weigh-in in a tournament participant’s boat.
Testing of a participating boat during restricted lake access times is allowed when necessary to deal with boat-related problems, but must have prior approval from the Tournament Director. Any attempt at fishing is not allowed.
20. Afternoon check-in. All tournament boats are required to check in at the end of the day at the designated area to make sure all contestants return safely, regardless of whether the team has fish to weigh that day.

Scoring
21. Weigh-in. Fish presented to Tournament Officials at weigh-in immediately become the “official catch” of the contestant and become the possession of the Tournament Officials to measure, weigh and record as such. A contestant cannot touch the fish while the official takes the measurement. A team may only present fish to weigh that are caught by members of that team.
22. Scoring penalties. Contestants are required to do all in their power to protect and preserve their daily catch. A team presenting dead fish, as judged by Tournament Officials, will have two-tenths (.2) pound penalty subtracted for each dead fish. Deliberate rough or careless handling of fish while culling is grounds for disqualification. Anyone attempting to weigh in fish less than 12-inches will be assessed a one (1) pound penalty for each undersized fish and will not be able to count any under-sized fish in their tournament limit.
A team arriving late for weigh-in will be penalized one (1) pound for each minute late up to 15 minutes. Teams over 15 minutes late will be penalized their entire weight for the day. Late arrival for afternoon check-in eliminates a team from any big fish prize for that day’s fish.
23. Standings/ties. Final standings in an event will be determined by the actual weight of walleyes submitted for weigh-in by a team in the tournament period minus any penalties. Standings will be ranked with the heaviest total first and the rest in descending order.
In case of a tie, the team weighing the greater number of fish will prevail. If there is still a tie, the prize money for the position will be added to the prize money for the next position(s), split equally among the teams that are tied, and the position shall be considered a tie. (Example: In a two-way tie for fifth place, each team would receive half the combined cash awards for fifth and sixth places and be considered tied for fifth place.)

General
24. Spirit of the rule. The intent of this tournament organization is to advance the sport of walleye fishing in Utah in an atmosphere of good sportsmanship and fair play. Tournament Officials may alter or change these rules at any time if circumstances deem necessary. Interpretation of the rules shall be left exclusively to the Tournament Director, and all decisions are final.
25. Disqualification. Any contestant or team found to be in violation of these tournament rules or local, state, or federal fishing or boating regulations will be subject to disqualification. A disqualified team or individual forfeits its entry fee and any team prizes or winnings associated with the team’s participation in the tournament.
26. Protest policy. Only registered contestants and tournament officials have the right to protest the actions of another team or contestant. Any protest must be submitted in writing no later than one hour after the day’s fishing ends. A $50 protest fee must accompany the protest. If the protest is found to be valid, the fee will be returned to the person making the protest. If not found valid, the fee will not be returned. The Tournament Director will make the final decision on any protest using any means he/she sees as necessary, including the appointment of a committee, and can only consider what is stated in writing in the protest submission. Statements will be taken from all parties involved and a ruling by the Tournament Director will follow as soon as possible.
Anyone observing a suspected infraction is urged to avert a problem by alerting the would-be offender. KNOW THE RULES!
27. Sportsmanship. All tournament participants shall practice good sportsmanship and treat others with courtesy at all times on and off the water. Unsportsmanlike conduct and cheating will result in disqualification.
28. Tournament protection rule. Any act or inflammatory statement by a contestant during the pre-fishing or tournament that is, in the opinion of Tournament Officials, detrimental to the tournament, to any of its sponsors, to permitting agencies or their officers (such as rangers, fishery biologists, etc.), or damaging to organized fishing, may result in disqualification.
29. Use of alcoholic beverages and narcotics. Participants may not have in possession or be under the influence of alcoholic beverages, barbiturates, marijuana, or any other illegal or controlled substance during tournament hours unless prescribed by a physician. Violators will be immediately disqualified.
30. Awards presentation. Attendance at the awards presentation is an act of respect for others, and contestants are asked to consider this as part of their commitment to the tournament.