RESPONSIBILITY

•	All entrants and guests of the tournament are participating at their own risk.

•	In no way is the City of Bradenton, its council members, employees, volunteers, its successors or its assigns, patrons, or the Tournament Committee, its Board of Directors and Officers or Fire Charity Fishing Tournament Committee Members liable for injuries or property damage because of participation in the tournament.

ELIGIBILITY

•	All sports fishermen (male and female) are eligible to participate.  This event is open to amateurs, licensed captains, certified divers, and free divers.

•	Any participant under the age of 18 years must have a release form signed by their legal guardian.

•	Any person convicted of a fishing violation is ineligible to participate for five years following the date the criminal offense occurred. All requests for pre-tournament determination of eligibility should be submitted, in writing, to the committee by 5:00 p.m. EST on Thursday, June 6, 2024.

•	All offshore vessels intending to target highly migratory species are required to obtain the federal stamp prior to commencement of fishing.

BOATS/REGISTRATION

•	The number of entries will be limited, and registration may be closed without further notice. Qualified entries will be accepted on a first come/first served basis. Registration will take place on the iAngler website.

•	There will be a non-refundable entry fee of $150 for Juniors, $300 for Inshore Amateur, $400 for Inshore Open, $400 for Spearfishing, $500 for Near Shore, and $500 for Offshore through June 7, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. EST.

•	Any boat registering after 5:00 p.m. EST on Friday, June 7, 2024, will be required to pay a late processing fee of $50.00.

•	All boats should meet Federal and Florida safety regulations for their size.

•	The official tournament radio channel is VHF Channel 72; all official tournament information will be broadcast on this channel only.

•	All boats will be assigned a tournament number card which must be always displayed in a prominent place on the vessel.

•	Any vessel operated in an unsafe and/or unsportsmanlike manner shall be ineligible to receive prizes.

•	Please note that Federal Maritime Law holds the captain of the vessel responsible for the actions of his/her boat, its wake, and its crew.

•	EACH TEAM MUST PROVIDE A WORKING PHONE NUMBER FOR CONTACT FOLLOWING WEIGH-IN SHOULD A POLYGRAPH EXAMINATION SUMMONS BE REQUIRED.

GENERAL

•	Florida Fish and Wildlife (FWC) regulations must always be followed. It is the captain’s responsibility to understand and ensure their team’s compliance to these regulations.

•	Tournament rules and regulations must be clearly understood as they will be strictly enforced. It is the captain’s responsibility to understand and ensure their team’s compliance with these rules and regulations.

•	The major rewards of the Tournament will be healthy competition, fun and fellowship. We expect all participants to uphold the highest standards of honesty and sportsmanship in the competition.

•	Each entrant should select a "boat buddy" to assist in the event of mechanical failure or breakdown.

•	Any and all participation by persons who are not a crew member and passenger of the entered vessel, including but not limited to: (1) The spotting of fish; (2) Reserving locations, (3) Procurement of bait (except purchasing of bait from valid saltwater product license holders); (4) or otherwise assisting the entered vessel or anglers in any way so as to provide an undue advantage, is prohibited.

•	Only baitfish are allowed on the boat prior to tournament start.

•	Competitors in the spearfishing division may not exceed the recreational diving limit of 130 feet or 30 NM, whichever is less.

CAPTAINS' MEETING

•	A mandatory tournament briefing will be held at 6:00 p.m. EST, Friday, June 7, 2024, at Rossi Park (452 3rd Ave W, Bradenton, FL 34205).

•	The purpose of this meeting is to review the Tournament rules and regulations, and present last-minute rule adjustments. All attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions.

•	Any decisions, rulings or announcements made at this meeting take precedence over all other tournament rules.

•	One team member must register their team in person at this meeting. Each team will receive a "goodie bucket” which will include two lunch tickets for Sunday and two tournament shirts. The meeting will be followed by a Captains dinner and cash bar.

•	An early Captains’ meeting will be held at 12:00 p.m. EST on Friday, June 7, 2024, at Rossi Park for Near Shore teams. Spearfishing and Offshore teams that choose an early departure may also attend.

•	Attendance by at least one team member to one of the two meetings is mandatory. Registration will not be considered complete unless the captain has completed check in of his or her team.

AWARDS

•	An outdoor ceremony for the Near Shore division will be held Saturday, June 8, 2024, at Rossi Park, at approximately 4:00 p.m. EST.

•	An outdoor ceremony for Juniors, Inshore Amateur, Inshore Open, Spearfishing, and Offshore divisions will be held at Rossi Park on Sunday, June 9, 2024, at approximately 5:00 p.m.

•	Payment of awards of $1,000.00 or more may be postponed up to two days following the tournament at the discretion of the committee.

•	Awards ceremony start times may be adjusted due to entry participation and weather delays.

WEIGH-IN

•	All teams must check in with the Weigh-In Committee by the deadline for their division at Rossi Park.

•	Saturday, June 8, 2024: Near Shore division boats must weigh-in by 2:00 p.m. EST.

•	Sunday, June 9, 2024: Junior division boats must weigh-in by 12:00 p.m. EST. Inshore Amateur and Inshore Open division boats must weigh-in by 1:00 p.m. EST. Spearfishing Division must weigh in by 2:00 p.m. EST. Offshore boats must weigh in by 3:00 p.m. EST.

•	All photo and/or video submissions must be uploaded to the iAngler platform PRIOR to the division weigh-in time. Team number must be shown, and measurement board returned (as applicable by division) at time of weigh-in.

•	All weighable fish must be weighed in at Rossi Park. All fish must be brought to the weigh-in station by the boat on which they were caught, and all members of the crew must be present at that time. All boats must be in the water to weigh-in fish.

•	Weigh-in will be conducted in the order in which boats check in. Fish being weighed shall be placed on the dock by one member of that boat's crew. The boat must be removed from the dock area immediately after the weight of the catch is verified. No mutilated fish will be eligible.

•	Final determination of species will be made by the Weigh Master and/or Tournament Committee. The Weigh Master and/or the Tournament Committee reserve the right to disqualify or disallow any fish based on their discretion.

•	Whether weighing in fish or not, you must check-in, in person, at Rossi Park via registered vessel in accordance with your division weigh-in time as stated above in the rules.  Any team that does not check in (weigh-In) at Riverside Park will be disqualified. YOU MUST CHECK IN BY VESSEL AT DESIGNATED WEIGH-IN LOCATION AND TIME PER THE RULES. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT THE COMMITTEE PRIOR TO YOUR DESIGNATED WEIGH-IN TIME EXPIRATION.

TAX LIABILITY

•	Anglers are responsible for any income tax liability accrued by virtue of winning cash or prizes in this program.

POLYGRAPH

•	Winners may be required to submit to polygraph examinations, which may not be performed until Sunday evening or Monday.

•	Payment to winners may be delayed until polygraph testing is completed. All teams are subject to examination by a third-party polygraph testing.

INCLEMENT WEATHER / CANCELLATION

•	In the event of inclement weather, a decision will be made by the Tournament Committee as to whether to delay, postpone or cancel the tournament at the Captains’ Meeting, prior to the start time of the tournament.

•	Entry fees are non-refundable.

•	Pay-outs and awards may be adjusted at the discretion of the Tournament Committee.  All pertinent information will be given at the Captains’ meeting in this event.

PROTEST

•	All protests must be submitted to the Tournament Committee in writing accompanied by a signed $250 check no later than 15 minutes after contested team has weighed in. If the protest is found to be legitimate by the Tournament Committee, the $250 fee will be refunded. If protest is not found to be legitimate the $250 fee will not be refunded.

•	All winners and all crew members may be subject to a polygraph examination.

•	All participants will be required to submit for testing immediately at the request of the committee.

•	The Tournament Committee reserves the right to inspect any boat entered in the tournament at any time.

TEAM EVENT

•	This is a "Team Event". Each team may have no more than six (6) crew members per vessel, including the Captain and Mate.

•	Only the Captain and registered crew members are eligible to fish.

•	Crew member substitutions will be allowed provided that the captain and proposed substitute appear before a Tournament Committee person at the docks of Riverside Park.

•	In extreme situations, substitutions may be reported to the committee by email: FIRECHARITYSUBS@GMAIL.COM.  ALL EMAILS MUST INCLUDE BOAT #, TEAM NAME, SUBSTITUTE’S NAME, TIME & LOCATION OF DEPARTURE, AND TIME AND LOCATION OF RETURN PARTICIPATION. If protested and email is not found, the team will be disqualified.

RULES BY ANGLER DIVISION

JUNIORS

•	All anglers on the vessel must be under 18 years old as of the weigh-in date and will be limited to fishing inshore. The Junior division is competing only within themselves, and are not competing against the general, overall tournament.

•	Parents or legal guardians are required to sign an affidavit for every junior angler confirming knowledge of the rules and authorizing participation.

•	All other Rules and Regulations of the Inshore Amateur and Inshore Open Divisions apply to the Junior division except they may receive assistance from saltwater products license holders in the procurement of bait.

INSHORE AMATEUR/INSHORE OPEN

•	Should a participating team include one or more individuals that actively hold, or have held within the past five years, a captain’s license and have carried passengers for hire, they are required to participate in the Inshore Open division.

•	Teams who do NOT have members with active or recently active captain’s licenses as described above may choose to participate in either the Inshore Amateur or Inshore Open divisions.

NEAR SHORE

•	Near Shore division is restricted to boats with a maximum of 700 horsepower.

•	Near Shore division vessels may fish all waters seaward of the Florida mainland within the area defined by the following coordinates: 28° 10’ N latitude to the north, 27° N latitude to the south, 83° 30’ W longitude to the west.

•	The captain must ensure the vessel has a fixed, operational electronic device (GPS unit, chart plotter, etc.) capable of recording and displaying a graphic representation of the vessel route throughout the tournament. This rule ensures a means of compliance with the geographic boundaries for this division. A continuous track from the vessel’s start point to the tournament weigh-in must be shown to a committee member upon request.

•	If a team’s standing is challenged via protest and adequate documentation is not immediately available for inspection by a committee member, tournament disqualification is possible. No team shall be required to divulge coordinates of fishing locations to another participating tournament team.

SPEARFISHING

•	Spearfishing boundaries are limited to 30 Nautical Miles and/or a depth of 130ft, whichever is less.  GPS Track must be cleared on Friday prior to the start of fishing.  GPS will be verified upon arrival at weigh-in. Captains are subject to polygraph.

JUNIORS/INSHORE AMATEUR/INSHORE OPEN/NEAR SHORE/SPEARFISHING/OFFSHORE

•	The tournament will be comprised of separate divisions that will compete within themselves: JUNIOR, INSHORE AMATEUR, INSHORE OPEN, NEAR SHORE, SPEARFISHING, and OFFSHORE.

•	The captain must register for their desired division before the close of the Captains’ meeting. No change of division will be allowed, under any circumstances, after the Captains’ meeting. Teams may only participate in one division.

FISHING TIMES

JUNIORS/INSHORE AMATEUR/INSHORE OPEN

•	Dates of the tournament will be June 8 through June 9, 2024. A Bimini Start (shotgun) at approximately 7:30 a.m. EST on Saturday, June 8, 2024, will signal the beginning of the tournament.

•	Each boat with its Captain and entire crew must be recognized by an official tournament committee boat prior to the start. Committee boats will display tournament flags and be in the starting area thirty (30) minutes prior to the start.

NEAR SHORE

•	Dates of the tournament will be June 7 through June 8, 2024. All Near Shore teams are required to attend one of the Captains’ Meetings (12:00 p.m. EST or 6:00 p.m. EST) on Friday, June 7, 2024. Vessels may depart after meeting has concluded.

•	Any boat that has not checked in by the time of the shotgun start shall contact the tournament committee for check in instructions before they begin fishing. Any boat that does not check in prior to fishing will be considered ineligible.

SPEARFISHING/OFFSHORE

•	Dates of the tournament will be June 7 through June 9, 2024. All offshore/spearfishing vessels are required to attend ONE Captains’ Meeting at 12:00 p.m. EST OR 6:00 p.m. EST on Friday, June 7, 2024. Vessels may depart after attendance at either meeting and may begin fishing any time thereafter.

•	Relevant iAngler submissions must be uploaded to the iAngler platform PRIOR to the official weigh in time.

•	Offshore division fishing must cease at 12:00 p.m. EST on Sunday, June 9, 2024. Fish hooked prior to 12:00 p.m on this date may be fought to the finish. Fish hooked after this time will not count toward final scoring.

•	Any boat that has not checked in by the time of the shotgun start shall contact the tournament committee for check in instructions before they begin fishing. Any boat that does not check in prior to fishing will be considered ineligible.

FISHING AREAS

•	Fishing teams may venture as desired. However, only boat ramps in Manatee and Sarasota counties may be used.

•	Trailers may not be transported to another ramp without your boat and complete team.

•	If you are wade fishing, the boat must be at anchor. The anchor must remain set until all anglers are aboard.

•	Spearfishing division is limited to 30 nautical miles and 130ft maximum depth, whichever is less. GPS track must be available for verification at weigh in.

TACKLE-CLASSIFICATION

•	All line classes may be fished during the event. Fish must be caught by hook and line and on conventional rods and reels. Spinning, casting and fly tackle are acceptable. Deep Trolling devices are acceptable only if attached to a rod and reel. Electric reels are prohibited.

•	Power heads and rebreathers are not allowed.

•	For those who wish to have their fish qualify for IGFA World or State records, specific IGFA rules must be checked prior to the tournament. Please notify the committee of any potential State or World records at time of weigh in.
SPECIES AND SCORING

JUNIORS/INSHORE AMATEUR/INSHORE OPEN

•	Eligible species are listed on the point schedule. A point system based upon the type and size of fish will be used to determine the winning team.

•	Any evidence of image manipulation will result in disqualification.

•	The six highest-scoring fish, two maximum per species, will be automatically selected to generate a participant’s final score. If less than six fish are submitted, the highest scoring fish will be used, two maximum per species, to generate a final score.

•	Fish length will be assessed based on tail placement and rounded to the nearest whole inch (below half inch mark will be rounded down, at or above half inch mark will be rounded up).

•	Fish must be submitted by uploading a digital photo to the iAngler Tournament platform.

o	Photos must be clear enough to accurately identify species.

o	Photos must include official tournament card with boat number.

o	Photos must be taken directly above fish, not at an angle.

o	Fish should be LEFT SIDE UP on official tournament measuring board with nose at the zero (0”) mark.

o	The entire fish must be visible in the photo.

o	Fish tails MAY be pinched while on the measurement board.

o	No hands allowed in any picture.

•	In the event of a tie, the first team to weigh in shall be awarded the highest place award. All fish weighed in must be iced, whole and have an appearance of freshness.

•	A Leaderboard may be visible on iAngler for a portion of the tournament.

•	Location services must be turned to the “ON” position on the angler’s mobile phone for the duration of the tournament. Data embedded in photos uploaded to iAngler will ONLY be accessed by the Tournament Weigh-In team if necessary. This information will NOT be shared publicly.

NEAR SHORE/SPEARFISHING/OFFSHORE

•	Eligible species are listed on the point schedule. A point system based upon the type and size of fish will be used to determine the winning team.

•	Each boat will be limited to weighing in six (6) fish. The six fish selected and entered by the captain at weigh-in may not include more than two (2) fish of any one species.

•	In the event of a tie, the first team to weigh in shall be awarded the highest place award. All fish weighed in must be iced, whole and have an appearance of freshness.

TARPON

•	One Tarpon, 36" or larger, shall be allowed per Inshore and Captains boats. All Tarpon must be released alive.

•	A digital image must be submitted via the iAngler platform which shows the Tarpon lip gaffed or otherwise reduced to the angler's possession and official tournament number and provide a perspective which indicates the fish is at least 36" in length.

•	Each team will be allowed to submit only 6 pictures, total. Possession of the leader in the mate's hand is not sufficient to prove that the tarpon has been reduced to possession.

•	Tarpon must be caught from navigable waters, not from bodies of water which are essentially land locked. 60 points will be awarded per Tarpon.

BILLFISH RELEASE

All billfish (Blue marlin, white marlin, swordfish, and sailfish) receive standard point allotments.  An Atlantic HMS Angling Permit is required; permit number must be included on entry form.  Points will not be awarded per pound.  This tournament committee strongly encourages the release of billfish.  An official billfish catch and/or release will be credited after the following occurrences take place:

●	All tackle including leaders must comply with IGFA Regulations. However, line size and minimum fish size will not apply to weigh in billfish for this tournament.

●	The swivel touches the rod tip for the first time, or the mate takes control of the leader.

●	Minimum size for sword/sailfish is legal minimum size per state regulations. Tournament committee will provide a yardstick.

●	The billfish and your boat’s “Official Tournament Number Card” are clearly pictured in a self-developing photograph, digital picture and/or video submitted on the iAngler platform.

●	The species and your boat’s “Official Tournament Number Card” must be clearly visible in your photograph, digital picture, or video well enough to identify the species of billfish and your boat’s “Official Tournament Number Card”.

●	The Tournament Committee will not provide any special equipment with which to photograph, video, or upload said media.

●	All boats submitting released billfish entries must also submit an affidavit signed by all occupants of the vessel, which attests to:

o	The time of day caught.

o	The name of the angler who caught the fish.

o	The species of fish; Up to Two (2) Billfish maximum

o	The fact that all aspects of the tournament's Rules and Regulations were always adhered to.

LIONFISH

•	Lionfish have no point value. We request you spear as many as possible, keeping them intact. Fish will be collected and donated for research.

ELIGIBLE SLAMS and AWARDS

JUNIORS, INSHORE AMATEUR & INSHORE OPEN

●	Trash Can Slam - These fish are separate from the fish submitted via photos on the iAngler platform. Trash Can Slam entries must be weighed in by 1:00 p.m. EST on Sunday, June 9, 2024, and include one of each of the following species: Catfish, Jack Crevalle, and Ladyfish. One award across all three divisions will be given to the team with the highest combined weight of all three fish.

INSHORE AMATEUR
●	15th Place will be awarded to the Inshore 15th team in points; team must be present to win. If 15th place is NOT PRESENT at the time of award, the prize will be forfeited. 
JUNIOR, INSHORE AMATEUR, INSHORE OPEN, NEAR SHORE, SPEARFISHING, & OFFSHORE

•	1st, 2nd, and 3rd Place Awards will be given in each division to the Teams with the first, second, and third highest total verified points.

•	PFC Nicholas Panipinto Memorial Award – $1,000 will be awarded to the Team who catches the cobia with the highest verified points value across all divisions.

•	First Responder Award – Teams that include active first responders will be noted at Tournament check in. The Team with the highest verified total points will be awarded $250 and have possession of the Fire Charity Fishing Tournament Firefighter Trophy for until the start of the 2024 Tournament.