1. Getting Started

1. The IOWA Winter Stocking Ice Fishing Challenge is an online tournament run through Angler’s Atlas website and their mobile app MyCatch.
2. Anyone can participate in the IOWA Winter Stocking Ice Fishing Challenge and it is for all ages. Registration is currently only able to support individual registration. For those participants sharing a mobile device, participants must login to their own account to submit their catches.
3. This event is free to enter. 
4. Catches must be submitted through the MyCatch app for judging anytime during that period.
5. In order for catches to be sent properly, you must use the same login email and password for both the Angler’s Atlas website and the MyCatch app.
6. All contestants must register for the tournament via this URL: https://www.anglersatlas.com/tournament/538/iowas-winter-stocking-ice-fishing-challenge-2022
7. You will receive an automatic email confirming that you have entered the tournament and that your payment has gone through.
8. Once accepted into the tournament, download the free MyCatch mobile app which is available for both iOS (Apple App Store) and Android (Google Play Store) and login to activate the tournament on the app again using the same login email and password that you used to register in the tournament. (https://www.anglersatlas.com/mycatch)
9. Protecting anglers’ privacy is a priority, and any location data collected during the tournament will not be released to the public. Our promise to anglers is “Secret Fishing Spots Stay Secret”. See below for further details.

2. Catch Reporting Rules

1. Eligible species include Rainbow Trout. 
2. In order for each catch to qualify, a photograph of the fish on a measuring device must be taken using the MyCatch app (ie. photos cannot be uploaded from a photo gallery or other source). 
3. All contestants must have GPS/location services enabled on your cell phone for their catches to qualify. Your location data will be protected. For more information, see details below.
4. This is a total length measurement tournament. NOT fork length. See pic for reference. The total length of a fish is measured from the tip of the nose or jaw to the tip of the tail with the tail pinched.
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6. The nose of the fish must be at the start or zero mark on all measuring devices and the total length is taken where the longest length of the tail crosses the measurements on the measuring device
7. If you measure your fish entry on a commercially produced bumpboard, the measurement rules are as follows. The nose of the fish must be visibly touching the bump end of the board, the fish must be placed on top of the board and the entire fish showing the head and tail and past the tail must be visible in the measurement photo.
8. If you measure your fish entry on a homemade bumpboard, the measurement rules are the same as above BUT you must provide a photo to the organizer of the empty board to verify proof of measurement accuracy. Unverified boards will NOT be accepted.
9. If you measure your fish using a tape measure, the measurement rules are as follows. The fish nose must be aligned with the zero mark on the tape, the fish cannot be on top of the tape measure or cover it in any way, and the entire fish showing the head and tail and past the tail must be visible in the measurement photo.
10. The photo must be taken from a birds-eye view looking down on the fish.
11. The head of the fish must be on the left side of the photo, with the tail on the right. Fish must be measured right side down (the right side of the fish must be touching the board)
12. A photo that does not clearly show the overall length of the fish, including head and tail, on the ruler WILL NOT BE SCORED. More than one attempt to get a valid scoring photo is allowed. The app will prompt you to either accept the photo or retake a photo.
13. The mouth is allowed to be open, closed, or anywhere in between, so long as the fish meets the other above requirements
14. There are to be no fingers placed in the gills or mouth of the fish. Any fingers in the gills or mouth of the fish will disqualify that fish.
15. A second photo, often called the Hero Shot is to be used as a hero shot and is optional for this event.
16. A third option is a live video release of the fish and is optional as proof of releasing the fish in this event.
17. For species diversity categories, the photo must show the entire fish so it can be identified by tournament organizers.
18. The app works out of cell range, and catches will synchronize with the server once the user opens the app when back in cell range, or via a wifi signal. Photos are date, time, and location stamped to the moment that they are taken. If the catches are not synced by the prizing deadline, they will not qualify for prizes.
19. Catches that are submitted will be reviewed for approval at least once per day during the week. Once the submissions are reviewed and approved, they appear immediately on the appropriate leaderboard(s). DO NOT EXPECT to see entries show up immediately after you log them.
20. A great resource is the MyCatch video that shows how to complete an entry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqwbAFFQE-w&list=PL1Yp9OqZ6saBgaKklT5jh6DkuTbai3NeJ&index=1

3. Tournament Location and Times

1. Tournament boundaries are within the limits of the State of Iowa. Eligible waterbodies for this tournament are: 

• Ada Hayden Lake (Ames)
• Bacon Creek Lake (Sioux City)
• Blue Pit (Mason City)
• Big Lake (Council Bluffs)
• Heritage Pond (Dubuque)
• Jefferson County Park Pond (Fairfield)
• Lake Petocka (Bondurant)
• Liberty Centre Pond (North Liberty)
• Moorland Pond (Fort Dodge)
• North Prairie (Cedar Falls)
• Ottumwa Park Pond (Ottumwa)
• Prairie Park (Cedar Bend) (Cedar Rapids)
• Sand Lake (Marshalltown)
• Terra Lake (Johnston)
• Wilson Lake (Fort Madison)
  

4. Awards &  Prizes

1. Prizing for this event is supplied from participating retailers and partners, and will be listed on the website.
   
2. Awards will be announced on or by February 18th, 2022 and anglers will be contacted directly using the contact information provided in the tournament registration process.
3. In the case of a tie, the tie break will go to the person with the highest number of fish reported.
4. Tournament organizers reserve the right to adjust entries.
5. Anglers have up to 60 days to claim their prize. Anglers that do not claim their prize within this period forfeit their prize

5. Other Rules

1. By registering and participating in the tournament, all participants agree to abide by the rules and regulations they have received as set out in the IOWA Winter Stocking Ice Fishing Challenge Event Rules 
2. Harvesting fish is allowed for this tournament. Please indicate which fish are harvested in the released slider in the app. 
3. Anglers can only submit catches that they have caught themselves. This is an individual tournament, so you cannot enter as a partnership or team, and under no circumstances can you share fish with any other angler. Anglers are free to fish alone or with other tournament or non-tournament anglers, but each registered angler may only enter their own fish on their own app.
4. All fish entered for this event must be caught via angling i.e. using hook, line, rod and reel. At no time will fish caught by non angling (i.e. use of traps, trap nets or cages) be allowed to be entered. Usage of a landing net to land a hooked fish is allowed.
5. Each contestant must have in their possession a valid fishing license for their respective jurisdiction or be exempt under regulations of their jurisdiction.
6. Each contestant must conform to the fishing rules and regulations that are in place for the jurisdiction in which they are fishing.
7. Promoters and organizers assisting in the tournament operation are not responsible for death, injury, damage, liability, theft, fire or any loss to any contestants.
8. Any angler found to be cheating will be disqualified from the tournament. Angler’s Atlas also reserves the right to ban anglers from competing in future events.
9. In the event of disqualification, any paid entry fees will be forfeited and not refunded.
10. All rules have loopholes. It is our intention to provide an honest sportsmanlike tournament. In the interest of good sportsmanship, contestants are reminded the spirit of the rule will prevail in all judgments.
11. All questions or concerns relating to the rules of this tournament are to be referred to the Organizer or their designated Authorized Tournament Protest and Appeals Committee. Their decision will be final in all cases. No other person can be considered a spokesman for the rules during the tournament. The contact person for this event is Shayna Hamilton and can be reached by email at [email protected]
12. Any contestant has the right to make a protest against another contestant by contacting an Organizer through email and must be completed and presented within 1 hour of the close of the tournament. Their decision will be final in all cases. A $50.00 dollar protest fee may need to accompany the protest. The fee will be returned if the protest is found to be valid.
13. To ensure the best chances of survival for the fish, all participants are to handle fish safely. Blatant abuse to fish or the resource is reason for disqualification
14. All COVID-19 Public Health orders and Gathering Restrictions at the time of the event must be followed by all participants
15. All photo submissions may be used by MyCatch by Angler's Atlas for future use.

6. Data Privacy and Fisheries Research

“Secret Fishing Spots Stay Secret” — This is our primary commitment to anglers who report their catches through MyCatch. So what does this mean in practice?

1. Angler’s Atlas does not release MyCatch GPS data to the public. It is treated as confidential and is provided to fisheries researchers under strict conditions.
2. Every research team we work with must sign a data sharing agreement that sets the terms of use for the data.
3. Data is anonymized before it is provided to the researcher.
4. Researchers agree not to share the data with anyone else.
5. Researchers cannot use the data for any purpose other than the research specified in the agreement. 
6. Exact location data cannot be published as part of the scientific research. Instead, it has to be generalized to a larger region so the location cannot be reverse engineered. 

These data privacy rules are designed to protect our angler’s private data, to conserve the fisheries, and to make sure we maintain a trusting relationship with our anglers into the future. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to reach out to Angler’s Atlas President directly by email ([email protected]).