EVENT INFORMATION AND OFFICIAL RULES – UPDATED 1/18/22

Registration to close at 3pm on Friday January 21st

FORMAT: Each angler is given lures to fish with for the tournament. You can only use these lures. POSSESSION of any other lures will result in the contestant being disqualified. Super glue, leader material, and simple speed clips or tactical clips will be allowed to be used one at a time as intended. No additional weight or weights or the use of any type of scent or dyes will be allowed. No floats or corks are allowed other than what may be provided and no scavenging/usage of any tackle found while fishing.

BOUNDARIES: Anglers will shotgun launch from  their choice of one of the four designated locations in St. Bernard Parish. Anglers may enter/exit the water at any of the four official launch locations throughout the day. If an angler wants to drop in at one marina and pull out at another, that is allowed. The approved launches are:

• Sweetwater Marina (Delacroix) – 6205 Delacroix Hwy, St. Bernard, LA 70085
• Campo’s Marina (Shell Beach) – 1301 Yscloskey Hwy, St. Bernard, LA 70085
• Pips Boat Launch (Hopedale Lagoon) – Hopedale Hwy (before the turn), St. Bernard, LA 70085
• Hopedale Marina (Hopedale) – 7600 Hopedale Hwy, St. Bernard, LA 70085

 

TIME: Lures will be handed out to all anglers from 5:30 AM until 6:00 AM at Last Stop Food Mart (4515 LA-46, St. Bernard, LA) on the morning of the tournament.  The official shotgun launch & lines in time is 7:00 AM. Due to potential for rough/challenging conditions, this change in time was made on safety grounds for the purpose of visibility. You may launch your kayak prior to 7:00 AM and stage within the immediate area of the launch, but DO NOT travel forth or begin fishing UNTIL the 6:00 AM launch horn is sounded. REMINDER: Be courteous, DO NOT BLOCK LAUNCHES.

OBJECT: The heaviest total bag of fish will win, anglers do not need to catch all fish. A slot Redfish will be measured with a closed mouth and a pinched tail; the longest point of the pinched tail shall touch the 16″ mark at a minimum length and shall NOT touch the 27″ mark at a maximum length. NOTE: The drying of redfish to make the fish shorter is NOT ALLOWED. For all other species, they will be measured with a closed mouth and a pinched tail; the longest point of the pinched tail shall at least touch the line at the minimum required length. target species are:

• 2 slot Redfish (16” to less than 27”)
• 2 Bass (12″ or greater)
• 5 Speckled Trout (12” or greater)
• 1 Flounder (11” or greater)
• 1 Sheepshead (12″ or greater

WEIGH-IN: The weigh-in will begin at 2:00 PM at Last Stop Food Mart (4515 LA-46, St. Bernard, LA). The weigh-in line will be cut off at 3:00:00 PM sharp. Upon your arrival at the weigh-in site, SIGN IN ASAP. Sign in time is a tiebreaker in the event of a tie. Sign-in will begin by 2:00 PM and will end promptly at 3:00:00 PM. Any angler not signed in by 3:00 PM will not be allowed to have their catch weighed. There will be no proxy sign-ins, a participant must appear in person and physically sign-in. An angler is allowed one “whoops” where the fish they submit is outside the tournament objective length (this fish will be rejected). A second fish submitted outside the tournament objective size will result in disqualification.

ANGLER OF THE YEAR / CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFICATION: The top 20 anglers on the leaderboard of Minimalist Challenge are eligible for qualification to the BCKFC Championship in November. To fully qualify, an angler must also have an additional paid entry to one of the other 3 qualification tournaments and be a paid club member in good standing with BCKFC.  

Points are awarded for Angler of the Year at each tournament with 1st receiving 300 points, 2nd receiving 299 points, 3rd receiving 298 points, and so on down the line. To receive points, an angler must weigh in at least a single legal fish and be a BCKFC member in good standing. The Angler of the Year points total represents the 4 qualifying tournaments plus the BCKFC Championship, less a drop of the worst placing tournament for each individual angler.

At the end of all 4 qualifying tournaments, at least the top 2 anglers in angler of the year points (who have not qualified through the normal top 20 at MC or top 15 at the other qualifiers) will gain entry into the championship via wildcard. If there are still less than 40 anglers qualified for the championship after the initial 2 wildcards are earned, up to 3 more wildcard places may be awarded to the next highest Angler of the Year points earners (who have not qualified yet) so that a minimum of 40 anglers qualify for the championship. 

ENTRY FEES: The entry fee is $42.75 per participant.

• $30 of each entry is paid out to the winners.
• $10 of each entry is held for the Championship Event.
• $2.75 of each entry is used for PayPal transaction fees

100% of the event purse is split to pay out the individual awards.

1-30 Paid Entries = Three (3) places paid out
31-50 Paid Entries = Four (4) places. paid out
51-75 Paid Entries = Five (5) places paid out
76-100 Paid Entries = Six (6) places paid out
101+ Paid Entries = Seven (7) places paid out

Minimum payout = $50 with cash differentials provided by BCKFC.

NATIVE SLAYER PROPEL MAX RAFFLE PRESENTED BY PACK & PADDLE: All Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club members in good standing at the time of registration will be given 1 free raffle ticket + the opportunity to buy a 2nd raffle ticket for $10 which will give them the chance to win a Native Slayer Propel Max 12.5 in a drawing held at the 2022 Bayou Coast Championship on November 19, 2022. At each Championship qualifier tournament that a member in good standing registers for, they will receive a free raffle ticket plus the chance to buy a second. The most raffle tickets a member can acquire in any one qualifier tournament is 2 tickets. The raffle winner does not need to be present to win. Non-members will not be eligible for this raffle

BIG RED AND MULE TROUT: There will be an option during registration to enter the Big Red, Mule Trout, or both calcuttas. Entry will be $5.00 per category and the winners for each respective category will take all. Winner is determined by weight. Redfish must be a tournament slot Redfish (tournament slot defined above) at the time of weigh-in. Speckled trout must be 12″ or greater.

YOUTH DIVISION: *** There is a FREE youth division for anglers who are 12 years of age or younger *** Enter by sending an email to [email protected] or send a Private Message to BayouBound on the forum.

PADDLE/PEDAL CRAFT ONLY: This event allows human powered craft only.  Trolling motors, sails, gas engines, and “mother ships,” are not allowed.  Your pedal or paddle craft must be human powered and includes tandem kayaks, canoes, pirogues, and paddleboards.   A participant is allowed to wade fish or fish from the bank but ONLY if they remain within 100’ of their LAUNCHED paddle craft. An angler may pull their kayak partially out of the water to wade fish or fish from the bank anywhere, but may only launch/pull entirely out of the water at one of the four approved launch locations.  Launched is defined as your paddle/pedal craft being off of your vehicle/trailer and that a portion of the craft is in fishable waters.

PRIVATE LAUNCHES & PRIVATE FISHING AREAS: The four above launch locations are the only permitted launches for this tournament. Fishing behind gated areas of the marsh is not allowed unless the angler has arranged for all other participants to also fish the area that day AND has made that possibility known to all by posting appropriate information on our forums at least one week in advance.

WATER COURTESY / ENCROACHMENT: Do your best not to disturb someone else’s fishing area, by encroachment, or noise. An angler officially establishes his/her fishing area by having their craft anchored in place.  If you come upon an angler in an egress area, as quietly as you can, ask which side he or she would like you to cross at. A good rule of thumb is that if you can both cast to a common point you’re too close. Respect others and use the golden rule.

PROTESTS: All protests must be made in writing and delivered to a tournament official within 30 minutes of the official end of the weigh-in. The tournament director is the final authority in all considerations.

CHEATING/FOUL PLAY: All anglers are encouraged to report violations.  Cheating and contest fraud in a fishing tournament is a crime in the state of Louisiana.  BCKFC will enforce a zero tolerance policy with regard to cheating.

POLYGRAPH EXAMINATION: All participants, by signing up, agree to take a polygraph examination if requested. Any participant can be asked to submit to a polygraph examination. No explanation shall be required from the hosts of the tournament as to why a specific individual is asked to submit to a polygraph examination. Refusal to submit to or failure of a polygraph examination will result in disqualification from the tournament, forfeiture of any and all prizes / awards, and potential banishment from all future BCKFC events.  No refunds for tournament fees will be granted for person(s) refusing to submit to or failing a polygraph examination.

RELEASE OF LIABILITY AND COVENANT NOT TO SUE: A waiver, release of liability, and covenant not to sue are part of the entry form.  It is required that all contestants take responsibility for themselves while participating in event activities.  Please DO NOT let your competitive nature push you into doing dangerous things. You must agree to the Waiver to participate. The Waiver is in the online registration page linked below.  BE SAFE, BE SEEN, AND WEAR YOUR PFD!

DEPTH FINDERS: Depth finders / fish finders are allowed.

COMMUNICATION: Cell or electronic communication “to and from” non-tournament anglers during tournament hours will not be allowed except if it is not fishing related (Example: your wife, work, etc.).

BAITS: Only the hooks/baits/lures provided by the tournament directors may be used by anglers. See the “FORMAT” section at the top of the rules for specific information related to tackle.

PFD REQUIREMENT: You must properly wear a U.S. Coast Guard approved PFD while in your kayak during all BCKFC events. Failure to comply with this rule during competition could result in disqualification from the tournament. Disqualification will be determined by the Tournament Director based on investigation of any specific incident.

RULE CHANGES: Interpretation of rules is exclusively left to the Tournament Directors and BCKFC Officers. The decisions of this group are final in all matters and are not subject to appeal.  Please do your part in not providing a reason to place them in a position where they must make rulings, decisions, etc. Keep it simple, keep it clean, and when in doubt…do the right thing.

PARTICIPATION AND ELIGIBILITY: Participation is open to anyone 18 years of age or older.  Minors are eligible to participate with a parent or legal guardian.  That parent or guardian, not BCKFC, is responsible for the safety and well-being of that minor.  All participants represent that they are physically and mentally competent and fit and able to participate.  By entering, all participants agree to assume ALL risks of personal injury, death, and damage to or loss of property and further agree to indemnify and hold BCFKC, its officers, members, agents, and sponsors harmless from and against any and all claims, liabilities, and causes of action resulting directly or indirectly from participation.

LEGAL FISH: All competitors must check in with legal fish as per LDWF regulations to be eligible for awards and prizes. All fish presented at time of weigh in must meet BCKFC tournament size requirements. Any fish presented to weigh-master that does not meet minimum/maximum size requirements will not be accepted as a tournament entry. A replacement fish will be allowed but has to be in your physical possession. You are not allowed to leave your position at the weigh table. If a second fish is presented and does not meet minimum/maximum tournament size requirements it will result in an immediate disqualification of the angler from the tournament. All gross negligence of the minimum/maximum tournament size limits will result in an immediate disqualification and the BCKFC weigh-master and Tournament Director will have final decision. Any attempt to enter fraudulent catch, exchanging catches, tampering with catch, or to hamper or threaten any official of the tournament will result in immediate disqualification. Only authorized persons will be allowed in the sign-in and weigh-in stations.

All fish must be properly maintained for consumption. Fish that are not properly iced and/or kept “fresh” will not be accepted for the weigh-in.

DO NOT intentionally alter the length of a fish by “air-drying” any portion of the fish. The entire fish must be kept in an appropriate cooler or kept on a stringer while alive. Do not keep dead fish on a stringer. Do not cull dead fish. You are allowed to “take” (kill) ONLY five redfish per day between 16″ and 27″ (with one of those allowed to be over 27″). You are allowed to “take” (kill) ONLY 25 speckled trout at 12″ or larger. If you cull dead fish, you may be guilty of exceeding your daily limit. Exceeding your daily limit is a disqualifier. If you cull fish that are “weak” and will probably not survive, you would be committing an unsportsmanlike act. Please be responsible and do the right thing.

Each participant must catch their own fish. You may not give fish to another participant. You may not net a fish for another (adult) participant. Youths should hook and retrieve their own catch. A parent/guardian may net fish for them and may handle the fish once it is netted.

DRONE/UAS USAGE: Tournament participants are not allowed to use unmanned aircraft systems (drones) during the tournament day to scout for fish, spy on other anglers, or any other means that may be viewed as benefiting/advancing their fishing.

CLICK HERE TO REVIEW THE WAIVER & RELEASE OF LIABILITY

TICKET INFORMATION: STOP, READ THIS!

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