We're still looking for prizes from our sponsors :D (a little plug) but here are the general rules to the shore tourneys this year:

4 Leg & Year Long Tourneys - 2003



The Tourney will be broken up into two categories:


1st: Catch & Release 4 Leg with the largest fish measured by length :doh: with a minimum length of 36 inches. This part of the tournament, called the "Four Leg", will meet for 4 legs with 2 in late spring/early summer divided between Rhode Island and Massachusettes and with 2 in late summer/early fall, again divided between Rhody and Mass.

2nd: "Year long" tournament which will accept weigh-in slips from authorized Tackle Shops (prefferably from board sponsors but an official Mass/RI/CT/Maine weigh shop) OR a signed affidavit by a member of the message boards, in good standing of a caught and released fish. The minimum entered fish length is 40 inches - fork length.

For the "Four Leg", The largest overall fish of all of the "meets" will be the Grand Prize winner of the Grand Prize (TBD). Members will meet at one location and be drawn partners or grouped to fish the general vicinity. As members will be fishing in groups, the C&R fish must be signed off by a member of this site in good standing (throughout the course of the tournament) after length being measured by fork length (from jaw to fork of tail...) It is not necessary for members to be at each leg of the tournament but your chances obviously increase with the more meets you attend.

For the "Year Long", the largest fish will win a prize still to be determined. All affidavits must be filled out by by members fishing in at least pairs if fork length method is used or singly if official weigh in slip is used.


Rules:
Catch & Release is highly encouraged for the "Year Long" tourney but not required.
Catch & Release is required for the "Four Leg".

Members must be in "good standing" with Striped-Bass.Com. This means members must be registered and active for one week before tournament begins (or before participating in a particular leg) and have made a minimum of ten real posts (not simple posts to reach minimum). Good standing also requires member not be barred from the site for offenses listed in message board registration agreement.
Any exceptions must be approved by myself and/or Saltheart.

Catch & Release, whether with the largest fish measured by weight with a minimum
length of 40 inches fork length (36 for the 4 leg).

I have the pages online here: http://www.striped-bass.com/tourneys/sbtourney03.shtml

Any comments or questions please chalk 'em up here!

John,

I have a question about pairings. I am planning on attending the 1st leg but I have only fished Watch Hill and some of the breachways once or twice. Would I be paired with someone who knows the area or would it be completely random? For example, could I be paired with another person from MA who doesn't know the area well?

Thanks,
Steve

Steve, from the ones I've been to, we sort of BS during the food burning, and guys more or less say, "well, I plan on going here or going there, and I'm gonna throw eels or I'm gonna plug, or I'm gonna chunk, I'm staying for three hours, I'm fishing all night, there's only room for three cars at that spot, etc."

Then we just sort of go off with who ever wants to go to the same area and do the same sort of thing.....it's all pretty loose, and from what I've seen, for the most part, you're more than welcome to go with whomever, and the pairings just sort of natrually occur......:)

Steve,

Thanks for the info. Hope to see you there.

Steve

Originally posted by JohnR



1st: Catch & Release with the largest fish

[ measured by weight ] :confused:

with a minimum length of 36 inches. This part of the tournament, called the "Four Leg", will meet for 4 legs with 2 in late spring/early summer divided between Rhode Island and Massachusettes and with 2 in late summer/early fall, again divided between Rhody and Mass.



For the "Four Leg", The largest overall fish of all of the "meets" will be the Grand Prize winner of the Grand Prize (TBD). Members will meet at one location and be drawn partners or grouped to fish the general vicinity. As members will be fishing in groups, the C&R fish must be signed off by a member of this site in good standing (throughout the course of the tournament)

[after length being measured by fork length] :confused:

(from jaw to fork of tail...) It is not necessary for members to be at each leg of the tournament but your chances obviously increase with the more meets you attend.



now I'm :confused:
Which is it, weight or length? for the catch and release four leg tourney

Slip,

It has to be at least 36" in order to weigh it for the tourney. It is by weight.

Steve

Aw, guys, I think Johm just made a boo-boo there....we've been thru this in the past, and I am pretty sure he meant length, since not everyone has a scale handy to weigh the fish, especially for the 4 leg C&R.....

Perhaps he meant, in the unlikely event that there is a tie for the biggest fish with identical fork length measurements, that the winner would be determined by a weight estimate using the length/girth formula......

But I could be wrong........but am pretty sure that's what he meant....there was a long discussion both last year and the year before about the impracticality of using the weight method......

So, John?

This is how I remeber it.

John of course will have to post to clarify what's official.

After much discussion and two years of trying , I think this is the way we did it.


***************************************
Four Leg

Only shore caught striped bass count. Must be caught on rod and reel in a legal fashion (open season , etc)

Four legs starts Friday night at 6PM and ends Sunday night at 6 PM. Only on the four weekends announced.


Measure length overall , tip of nose to tip of pinched tail , just like the legal way of measuring a keeper. Measurements to nearest 1/8th of inch.

All fish entered in the four leg must be released.

If there is a tie for length , referee method is weight. Actual weight wins over estimated weight.

If someone has no scale , length and girth formula used to estimate weight.

weight only matters if tie for length.

minimum length is 36 inches. All fish must be witnessed by member or sposor tackle shop.

Year Long


same everything only minimum length is 40 inches and fish may be kept. Year long starts when fishing is legal in the state where caught or when first 40 inch fish is caught. Year long ends Dec 15.

In case there is anything we forgot or screwed up , the judges (John R and Saltheart) decisions are final.
*****************************
How's that sound?

This year is FORKED length, not tip length.

This need some attention from the "chief cook and bottle washer"! :)

Ooops - sorry guys, a little clearing up here :)

Four Leg:

Only shore caught striped bass count. Must be caught on rod and reel in a legal fashion (open season , etc)

Four legs starts Friday night at 6PM and ends Sunday noon. Only on the four weekends announced.

Measure length overall , tip of nose to tip of pinched tail , just like the legal way of measuring a keeper. Measurements to nearest 1/8th of inch.

All fish entered in the four leg must be released.

If there is a tie for length , referee method is First Caught . Weight is not being used in 4 leg because being harder to measure.

Minimum length in the 4 Leg is 36 inches. All fish must be witnessed by another member or sponsor tackle shop.

Year Long

Same everything only minimum length is 40 inches and fish may be kept or released when viewed and measured by another member in good standing. Year long starts when fishing is legal in the state where caught or when first 40 inch fish is caught. Year long ends Dec 15.

In case there is anything we forgot or screwed up , the judges (John R and Saltheart) decisions are final.
*****************************

Sounds good! Can we archive this for future reference?

Yup, and I'll update the Tourney Page... Thanks Man!

You can count on me for a large batch of plastic for prizes, every order I pour I add some stock, so I've got plenty ready to go. John, I've been setting aside some really sweat stuff for you, but you have to come fishing to get it:).

Count me in for a custom

Cool!

And

Cool!

Thanks Guys!