CALIFORNIA BASS CONTENDERS
OFFICIAL TOURNAMENT RULES
The Tournament Director at the club meeting before the tournament will establish the official start time and additional tournament rules or off limits for each club event. No participant shall start fishing or leave the immediate launch area before the official start time. All participants shall start from the same location on the lake. Participants not present at launch time will not be allowed unless previously cleared with Tournament Director. It is the sole responsibility of each angler to be aware these official tournament rules stated herein before they can participate in any club event.
WEIGH-IN: Official weigh-in time shall be 3:00 pm unless otherwise specified. It is each participant’s responsibility to be aware of the weigh-in time. The Tournament Director will keep the official time. At least one partner from each boat must be at the weigh-in site at the weigh-in time and advise the tournament director or his assistant that their boat is represented. The penalty for being late to weigh-in is a disqualification. No points will be awarded for any disqualification. Disqualified members shall pay tournament fees. There are no pre-fish off-limits for team format tournaments unless otherwise specified at the time of tournament draw.
WEIGH-IN PROCEDURES: All fish must be presented to the tournament director or his designated assistant in a “Release Alive” container. (Heavy-duty plastic bag). Weigh-in will start when tournament director and one designated helper are present and ready. Each fish will be measured and weighed only by the tournament director or his assistant. A standard fish ruler such as Golden Rule will be used for the official measurement, or a flat belly board, with mouth closed and the tail swiped. The tournament director or his designate will be the final authority on length and weight. Each short fish shall cost the angler a one-pound penalty from his total weight and the short fish shall not be weighed. This penalty will not apply to the big fish qualification. Tournament fees will be collected before weigh-in starts. All prize awards will be presented at the next membership monthly meeting. There will be a 4oz penalty for a dead fish brought to the weigh-in. The tournament director will determine if the fish is dead. Zero tolerance: Any participant consuming alcohol or using any controlled substance including marijuana during tournament hours will be disqualified. All fish will be released unharmed except for a trophy fish which will be at the discretion of the angler.
PARTNER SELECTION PROCESS: You must be present at the tournament draw to participate in a club tournament. Absent members may be added to the tournament draw by prearranged notice to tournament director or any board member. Late entries will not be allowed.
The Tournament Director shall have full knowledge of all members fishing in any tournament before the day of the event or they will be disqualified. No two anglers may be partners for two consecutive tournaments. No boater shall fish two consecutive tournaments without a partner unless prior approval by the Tournament Director. Partners will be selected at the monthly club meeting before the tournament. All eligible boaters’ names will be placed in one hat and eligible non-boaters in another. Eligible anglers will be any active club member in good standing who wishes to fish in any club function. The tournament director will randomly draw names for each team. The remaining boaters’ names who do not have partner selections will be drawn in order. Late entries will not be allowed to enter the tournament after the tournament draw. To fill vacated positions the Tournament Director may designate, at his discretion, eligible boaters or non-boaters who did not enter the tournament draw. The boaters without partners will contact the TD after the last Sunday (before the tournament) deadline for approval of their guest pairing if none are available at the time contact is made.
Note: It is the responsibility of the non-boater to contact the boater no later than Sunday afternoon before the tournament to discuss meet up time and location. If an angler cancels after the Sunday deadline the appropriate non-boater fees shall still be paid to the boater before being eligible for participation in any club event.
LIABILITY INSURANCE: Any angler using their boat must have a valid copy of their boat insurance policy, with the angler name on the policy and a minimum of $300,000 liability insurance on record with the Vice President or Tournament Director before it can be used to fish in any club tournament. Failure to provide documentation will disqualify the boat from participating in any club event. As a result of the conditions and requirements of our club insurance policy, every member or prospective guest who participates in any club event will have a signed ‘Waiver and Release’ on file with the club before participating in any club function.
OTHER CONDITIONS: Any angler who receiving a citation during a tournament will be disqualified for that day. In a two day tournament, his weight will be disqualified for that day, any chance for big fish for that day and loss of points for that day. In a team format, both anglers will be disqualified. Boaters and non-boaters will wait no longer than 15 minutes for their partners to show up at the lake. The non-boater will be teamed with another boater without a partner. If all boaters are paired up the non-boater will fish with another team. If a boater leaves a tournament before the end of that tournament he must notify Tournament Director or any Board Member. Club membership dues must be paid before you fish a tournament or else you cannot fish in that tournament for points awards. An active member in good standing is any member who attended at least three meetings and three tournaments in the preceding season and has paid all of their dues and related fees on time. If no fish are caught in the tournament all prizes will be split between the general fund and the top five funds. No angler shall have more than the lawful state or lake limit of fish in their possession at any one time. Any boat that breaks down may transfer one partner plus eligible fish to another boat to meet the weigh-in deadline. All participants must wear a Coast Guard approved lifejacket when the big motor is running.
NOTE: Any protest must be submitted in writing to the Tournament Director no later than thirty minutes after weigh-in time. The Board of Directors will consider all protests and announce the final decision as soon as it is practical. The final disposition of points, prizes and awards will be withheld until a ruling is made if either element is involved in the protest.
EXPENSES FOR NON-BOATERS: Fees are too be paid directly to the boater before tournament begins.
Local Lakes: Half of the launch and parking fees plus an additional $35.
Mid-Local Lakes: Half of the launch and parking fees plus an additional $55.
Non-Local Lakes: Half of the launch and parking fees plus an additional $70.
Further than the Non-Local Lakes: Half of the launch and parking fees plus half of the gas fees.
Two Day tournaments: Half of the launch fees and parking fees for both days and half of the camping fees for Friday and Saturday plus double the non-boater fee. In the event a Two Day tournament is held at a local lake, only a one day non-boater fee is required.
Local Lakes:
- Puddingstone
- Silverwood
- Perris
- Castaic
Mid-Local lakes:
- Pyramid
- Piru
- Skinner
- Diamond Valley
Non-Local Lakes:
- El Capitan
- Lake Hodges
- San Vicente
- Lower Otay
TEAM FORMAT TOURNAMENT: Non active members and guest applicants are allowed to compete for prizes and awards in the team tournament format events due to the fact that your fish are shared weight with your team partner, provided the applicant has fished at least one prior event as a guest within the previous time frame allotted for applicants. All participating anglers MUST pay the regular member tournament fee to be eligible for prizes and awards. The Big Boat prize will be awarded to the team in first place. Both members in a team format will be awarded points as in a regular draw tournament.
COST FOR ONE DAY TEAM FORMAT TOURNAMENTS: Tournament fee: Total forty (40) tokens.
Fee Break Down:
7 tokens CBC General Fund
7 tokens Top Five and Lunker Award
11 tokens 1st Place
7 tokens 2nd Place
4 tokens 3rd Place
4 tokens Big Fish
COST FOR TWO DAY TEAM FORMAT TOURNAMENTS: Tournament fee: Total fifty (50) tokens.
Fee Break Down:
11 tokens CBC General Fund
7 tokens Top Five and Lunker Award
11 tokens 1st Place
7 tokens 2nd Place
4 tokens 3rd Place
5 tokens Big Fish each day (x2)
TWO DAY TOURNAMENTS: Team partners have an expectation to travel and lodge together for all two-day tournaments. It is the recommendation of the club that a boater and non-boater shall extend their partner first priority and make arrangements before considering secondary options. All anglers shall discuss splitting the cost for travel and lodging expenses before making any other arrangements. In the case of separate and/or secondary arrangements it is advised to have text or email communications to settle any after the derby dispositions.
The End!
