UPDATED 3/1/23

BOTE and Mang

Present

 Ron Jon Beach ’N Boards Fest SUP & Kayak Fishing Tournament

  

Saturday, March 11, 2023

Where: South Pavilion at Cocoa Beach Aquatic Center  

4800 Tom Warriner Blvd., Cocoa Beach, FL 32931

Follow the signs to event parking located in front of the pavilion. There will be a marked-off area set aside for unloading purposes only. Use this area to unload your paddle craft and gear. Please do not park in the paddle craft unloading area. Everyone will be launching from and returning to the same launch point directly adjacent to the pavilion.

 

Check-In Time: 4:30am

Check-in will begin promptly at 4:30am under the pavilion. Feel free to show up even earlier to drop off and rig your paddle craft. At this time free mini muffins and cookies will be provided by Perkins Restaurant of Suntree, as well as bananas and Red Bull energy drinks for all registered anglers. At check-in, each angler will be given the official tournament ruler and assigned a wristband with your raffle number based on your check-in time. For example, if you are the fifth person to check-in, you will be assigned a wristband with the raffle number 5, the sixth person, the raffle number 6 and so on. Your raffle number will determine your launch time as well as act as a raffle ticket for the main raffle. There will be a staged start. The staged start times, return times, and correlating raffle numbers are as follows:

 

Numbers: 1- 25      Launch Time: 6:15am    Return Time: 2:15pm

Numbers: 26 – 50    Launch Time: 6:18am    Return Time: 2:18pm

Numbers: 51 – 75    Launch Time: 6:21am    Return Time: 2:21pm

Numbers: 76 – 100    Launch Time: 6:24am    Return Time: 2:24pm

Numbers: 101 -125   Launch Time: 6:27am    Return Time: 2:27pm

Numbers: 126 -150   Launch Time: 6:30am    Return Time: 2:30pm

 

Raffle Rules

The raffle prizes are exclusively available for registered entrants only. The raffle number you receive during check-in will act as your raffle ticket for the general raffle. For the general raffle, raffle tickets numbered 1-150 (representing a possible 150 angler field) will be randomly drawn, until all general raffle prizes have been awarded. You must be present to win, and you can only win once. There will also be a separate Grand Prize raffle. Each registered angler will receive one complimentary Grand Prize raffle ticket with their entry fee. Grand Prize raffle tickets will be available for purchase on-site the day of the tournament March 11th for $10 a ticket. Bring extra cash to purchase Grand Prize raffle tickets to increase your odds of winning. Grand Prize raffle tickets will also be sold (cash only) at a 50% discounted rate of $5 at Strike Zone Fishing in Melbourne. 100% of the money raised from the raffle will be donated to the One Lagoon Fund and Captains For Clean Water. We’re hoping to raise $9,500!

 

Rules Review and Q&A: 6:00am – March 11

At 6:00am, there will be a short review of the rules and a quick Q&A session before the first launch time at 6:15am. All paddle crafts will be inspected before launching. Anglers must have their own SUP, kayak or canoe for this tournament. No rentals will be available. NO MOTORS of any kind are allowed (electric, gas, propane, etc).

 

Launching

Before launching, all paddle crafts will be subject to search for anything prohibited in the tournament, including but not limited to: motors/engines, stashed fish, illegal nets, spearguns, etc. All anglers will launch from the same location which is located directly adjacent to the Cocoa Beach Aquatic Center pavilion. Anglers will start launching their paddle crafts based on the launch time marked on their wristband assigned at check-in.  The first group of 25 anglers will paddle into the designated staging area (marked off by floating buoys). An air horn will signal the start of fishing. A group of 25 anglers will launch every 3 minutes until all anglers have launched. In the event an angler is late or unable to arrive by the start of the tournament, they WILL BE ALLOWED TO CHECK IN LATE and begin fishing immediately but must return to the launch point no later than 2:30pm.

 

Returning

All anglers must return to the original launch point by their designated return time under their own power. Failure to return to the original launch point by the designated time will result in disqualification from all fishing categories. Upon return, anglers must check in with a tournament volunteer to record their return time. Anglers can then verify catches with the tournament director or one of the designated volunteers. Upon verification, catches will be posted to the species-specific leaderboards.

 

Measuring and Fish Documentation

All fish must be measured using the official tournament ruler which will be distributed during the check-in process the day of the tournament on March 11th. The tournament ruler may be taped to measuring or bump boards, as long as the integrity of the ruler is not compromised. Duct tape will be provided on-site to aid in this process. The fish and the ruler must be lying flat with the head of the fish in line with the beginning of the ruler and the tail lying flat (not pinched). The picture documenting the catch must clearly show the paddle craft, official ruler and the fish. The overall length measurement of the fish must be clearly visible. There is no minimum length requirement to enter any fish category. The tournament director will make the final ruling on any dispute or interpretation of the rules. Each angler may only enter one trout, one redfish, one sheepshead, one black drum, one snook and one catfish. However, multiple categories can be won by a single angler. In the event of a tie, the angler who returned to the launch location and checked in first would place higher.

 

Fishing/Tournament Territory

There is no limit/boundary to the fishing or tournament territory as long as you launch from and return to the original launch point. No help or relocation is allowed from any motorized boat, vessel, vehicle or engine. There will be a rescue jetski on-site in the event that an angler cannot return to the launch point on their own. Failure to return back to the original launch point under your own power will result in disqualification from all fishing categories.

 

Fishing Rules

Fishing with live, dead and artificial bait is permitted. Any aid from motorized or electric vessels/motors is prohibited and will result in immediate disqualification; pedal or paddle power only. Rod and reel fishing only; spearfishing, netting, etc. is not permitted. Wading is allowed, but all photos of catches must include the paddle craft, official tournament ruler and fish. Multiple anglers are allowed to fish in the same paddle craft, but each individual angler must pay their own separate entry fee. In multiple angler scenarios, the angler who initially hooks the fish must land it solely on their own without any help or intervention. Assisting another angler with a catch results in the immediate disqualification of the fish caught. Interpretation and enforcement of these rules shall be left exclusively to the tournament director. In the event of a rule violation, the tournament director may impose such sanctions as deemed appropriate, including without limitation, disqualification, forfeiture of prizes, entry fee and prohibition from participation in future tournaments.

 

Foul Weather Contingency Plan

The tournament will run in all weather conditions except for lightning.  As soon as lightning strikes within six miles of the event site, the tournament will end or be delayed until it is safe to resume.  In the event of lightning strikes, air horns will sound, signifying lightning in the area.  All anglers must immediately stop fishing and return to the launch area.  Rescue boats/jetskis will be on-site to assist in returning anglers to safety.  In the event of lightning strikes, assistance from the rescue bots/jetskis will not result in disqualification from the tournament.

 

Fishing Categories & Payouts

Trout presented by Mount This! Fish Company:

1st Place — $500

2nd Place — $300

3rd Place — $150

 

Redfish presented by Dark Seas:

1st Place — $500

2nd Place — $300

3rd Place — $150

 

Catfish presented by Doug Hambel’s Plumbing:

1st Place — $500

2nd Place — $300

3rd Place —$150

 

Snook presented by The Fat Snook:

1st Place — $500

2nd Place — $300

3rd Place — $150

 

Black Drum presented by CG Acoustics:

1st Place — $250

 

Sheepshead presented by Florida Fishing Products:

1st Place — $250

 

Top Fly Angler presented by All Pro Land Clearing:

Combined length of personal biggest trout and/or redfish. No spinning or conventional tackle allowed on paddle craft. Fly gear only. (Both species do not have to be caught, and angler is also eligible to win traditional categories.)

1st Place — $500

2nd Place — $200

3rd Place — $100

 

Top Woman Angler presented by MANG:

Combined length of personal biggest trout and redfish (Both species do not have to be caught.)

1st Place — $500

 

Top Junior Angler (age 12 years and under) presented by YETI:

Combined length of personal biggest trout and redfish (Not all species have to be caught.)

1st Place — Yeti Roadie Cooler

 

Overall Champion presented by BOTE:

(Combined length of personal biggest trout and redfish. Must catch both species of fish to be eligible.)

1st Place — $1,000

2nd Place — $600

3rd Place — $400

Overall Champion Trophy made by Ashley Weber Art

 

Captains’ Party: Marker 24 Riverfront Grille

March 10, 2023 *** 5:30 – 7:30pm ***

1360 S Banana River Drive, Merritt Island, FL 32952

Follow the signs or volunteers’ instructions on where to park.  Some free beer and light appetizers will be available on first-come, first-serve basis.  Additional food and drinks will be available for purchase.  We will be holding 3 different raffles taking place at 6pm, 6:30pm, and 7pm.  Proceeds from the raffle will be donated to Captains for Clean Water and One Lagoon.  Raffle tickets are $5.  Grand prize raffle tickets are available for presale as well for $5 instead of $10 on tournament day.  The captains’ party is not mandatory.  An RSVP email will be sent out to all registered anglers.

 

Miscellaneous Info

On tournament day, all registered anglers will receive complimentary mini muffins and cookies from Perkins Restaurant of Suntree, bananas, Red Bull energy drink, pizza, water, tournament t-shirt and swag bag filled with free gear, including Salt Strong soft plastic lures.  Anglers 21 years and over will receive a ticket for one free beer.

 

THANK YOU SPONSORS!

Tobacco Free Florida – tobaccofreeflorida.com

BOTE – boteboard.com

Mang – manggear.com

YETI – yeti.com

All Pro Land Clearing – allprolandclearing.com

Mount This! Fish Company – mountthis.net

Dark Seas – darkseas.com

Florida Fishing Products – floridafishingproducts.com

Yo-Zuri – yo-zuri.com

Danco – www.dancopliers.com

CG Acoustics – cg-acoustics.com

The Fat Snook – thefatsnook.com

Doug Hambel’s Plumbing – dhplumbing.com

Salt Strong – saltstrong.com

Ron Jon Surf Shop – ronjonsurfshop.com

KScott Art – kscottart.com

Salt Life – saltlife.com

Salty Crew – salty-crew.com

Avid – avidgear.com

Captains For Clean Water – captainsforcleanwater.org

One Lagoon – onelagoon.org

Guy Harvey – guyharvey.com

Ashley Weber Art – ashleyweberart.com

Perkins Restaurant Suntree – perkinsrestaurants.com

Redbull – redbull.com

Costa – costadelmar.com

Hydroflask – hydroflask.com

Three Brothers Boards – threebrothersboards.com

Strike Zone Fishing Melbourne – strikezonefishingmelb.com

Captain Alex Hughey Fishing Charters – captainalexhughey.com

 

For any questions or additional information, contact:

Sean Strahlo — Tournament Director

Cell: (321) 604-0462

Email: saltyroots@icloud.com