2024 Miramichi Striper Family Fishing Frenzy Tournament

Presented by BIG RIGS AND TACKLE

May 3 - June 1, 2024

Official Rules 

1. Getting Started

A. The 2024 Miramichi Striper Family Fishing Frenzy is an online tournament presented by Big Rigs Tackle and run through Angler’s Atlas website and their mobile app MyCatch.

B. Anyone can participate in the 2024 Miramichi Striper Family Fishing Frenzy and it is for all ages. Registration is only for individual registration. For those without a personal cell phone (such as children) the participant will need to register under their own name and account.

C. There will be an Adult Division with a $40 entry fee and a YOUTH DIVISION (under 16 years of age) entry fee of $20. Participants can only be registered in one (1) of the divisions: Individual or Youth.

D. If you enter the event after the tournament starts, you must wait 2 hours before you can submit a fish for entry. 

E. 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.

F. Everyone entering the event must 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 event on the app using the same login email and password that you used to register in the event. If you previously have had the app, we suggest doing a check to see if there are updates or simply reload the app.

G. All contestants must register for the tournament via this URL: https://www.anglersatlas.com/event/750/2024-miramichi-striper-family-fishing-frenzy-tournament-2024

H. You will receive an automatic email confirming that you have entered the tournament and that your payment has gone through.

I. Practice using the MyCatch app ahead of time

1. Watch all four videos available at this link to familiarize yourself with the app: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1Yp9OqZ6saBgaKklT5jh6DkuTbai3NeJ

2. Test the app before you go out fishing (note: the app allows you to record fish for your own personal logbook while not in an active event. Some features will appear slightly different when you are not in an active event, so please make sure you watch the YouTube videos at the link above).

J. By participating in this event your name may be publicly visible.

K. 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 section 6 “Data Privacy and Fisheries Research” below for further details.

L. A great resource to refer to is our How To Register For A Event video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7o3PzcIoGo4&t=8s

2. Catch Reporting Rules

A. Striped Bass is the only eligible species. 

B. This event is catch and release only.  Harvesting fish will result in disqualification. Eyes must be clear of debris and show signs of life -- pictures with eyes covered in photos will not be accepted. To ensure the best chances of survival for the fish, all participants are to handle fish safely. This is to encourage the health of our fish and the fishery. 

C. 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). Catches must be submitted through the MyCatch app for judging anytime during the event times - see section 3.

D. 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.

E. 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 - you may also have the tail pinched. All catches will be approved to the last physical line on a measuring device. If it extends past a mark but there are no physical lines to confirm the true length, the last mark it crosses will be used. If a fish is longer than the angler's bump board, the longest measurement on the board will be counted.

F The measurement entry photo must be taken from a birds-eye view looking down on the fish.

G. The mouth is allowed to be open, closed, or anywhere in between, so long as the fish meets the other above requirements.

H. All fish must be measured with the right side down (the right side of the fish must be facing down or touching the board) and the left side of the fish facing upwards.

I. 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

J. Blatant abuse to fish or the resource is reason for disqualification

K. 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.

L. 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. Send photos of empty homemade bump boards to [email protected]

M. If you measure your fish using a tape measure, the measurement rules are as follows. The fish nose and the start of the tape must be aligned by placing both against a solid edge. The fish's 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. Do not use fabric or flexible measuring tapes. *Rapala roll out tapes will be treated as a tape measure*

N. If an entry submission comes in where a measuring rule is not followed, such as the nose is not touching the bump or at the zero mark, the fish may still be approved but a 10 cm length penalty will be applied. The penalty will apply to the observable length of the fish at the discretion of the Organizer. The entry may also be rejected. 

O. A photo that does not clearly show the overall length of the fish, including head and tail, on the measuring device 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.

P. Tournament organizers reserve the right to adjust entries

Q. During the entry process you will be prompted for a second photo, often called the Hero Shot, which is optional for this event. 

R. You will also be prompted with a third option which is a video release of your fish and this is also optional for this event. 

S. The app will work without WiFi or any or strong cell service. If you submit a fish without any or strong enough service, the app will tell you that the fish has been recorded, and that it will sync up to the server once you return to service. Every fish you log (whether in good service or not) will appear in your app’s Log View (2nd icon from the left at the bottom). If you have fish “awaiting sync,” it will indicate this here. The submissions will eventually come through on their own once you return to service, but you can help speed up the process by “manually syncing” those pending logs (see how here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YU-AwLc8OLY) once you’re in service. The logs are time/date/location stamped to the moment that they were taken, so even if the submission is delayed, the time on that submission will still be accurate.

T. Catches that are submitted will be reviewed for approval at least once per day during the week. Our Catch Approval Team made up of trained biology students will be reviewing and approving all fish. Once the submissions are reviewed and approved, they will appear immediately on the appropriate leaderboard(s). DO NOT EXPECT to see entries show up immediately after you log them.

U.  All decisions on length’s verified by Angler’s Atlas and its team will be considered final.

V. A great resource is the MyCatch video that shows how to complete an entry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS65wMakQHA

3. Tournament Location and Times

A. All fishing must take place inside legal fishing waters of the MIramichi River, NB. Any fish caught outside the boundaries will automatically be rejected.

B. The tournament runs from May 3rd 12:00 am through to June 1st @ 11:59 pm 2024.
C. All catches made within the start and end times must be synchronized with the Angler’s Atlas server within the event times to qualify. Participant photo entries of their catches must be submitted and received by 11:59 pm on June 1st, 2024 to be eligible for any prizes.
D. At the discretion of the tournament director, tournament days may be shortened, postponed or canceled due to unsafe weather or water conditions.

4. Categories, Awards & Prizes

A. Only registered 2024 Miramichi Striper Family Fishing Frenzy participants may collect cash & prizes

B. The prizes awarded will be the following:

Adult Division:

• Adult Division - Overall Longest Striped Bass Entered - Prize to be announced prior to start of event (TBD)

• Adult Hidden Length Prize for each week (4 total) - Prize to be announced prior to start of event (TBD)
  

  • Adult Division - Overall Smallest Striped Bass Entered - Prize to be announced prior to start of event (TBD)

   

Youth Division

• Youth Division - Overall Longest Striped Bass Entered - Prize to be announced prior to start of event (TBD)

• Youth Division - Overall Smallest Striped Bass Entered - Prize to be announced prior to start of event (TBD)

• • Youth Hidden Length Prize for each week (4 total) - Prize to be announced prior to start of event (TBD)

 

C. Awards will be announced on or by June 5th, 2024 and anglers will be contacted directly using the contact information provided in the tournament registration process.

D. Prizes will be accepted as awarded

E. In the case of a tie, the tie break will go to the person who entered the tied fish first. If a tie still exists, the tie break will go to the person with the highest number of fish reported.

5. General Rules

A. 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 2024 Miramichi Striper Family Fishing Frenzy fishing tournament event rules. The events Organizing Committee makes the rules. The 2024 Miramichi Striper Family Fishing Frenzy tournament officials shall administer and enforce the rules. Unless otherwise noted, failure to abide by the rules will result in disqualification. All rules pertain to both Individual and Youth divisions.

B. Fish may be angled from a boat or from shore.

C. Only striped bass caught by the participant may be submitted by the participant - using fish caught by someone else will be considered fraud and reported to RCMP/Miramichi Police Force for possible criminal charges. This is an individual tournament, so you cannot enter as a partnership or team.

D. 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.

E. All federal, provincial, coast guard, angling and boating regulations must be adhered to.

F. It is the responsibility of the angler to know all the regulations and to obtain all angling licenses and related permits. 

G. Promoters and organizers assisting in the tournament operation are not responsible for death, injury, damage, liability, theft, fire or any loss to any contestants.

H. 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.

I. Disqualification from the tournament also disqualifies the participant from receiving any prizes and entry fees paid will not be returned to the participant.

J. All rules have loopholes. It is our intention to provide a FUN, honest sportsmanlike tournament. In the interest of good sportsmanship, contestants are reminded the spirit of the rule will prevail in all judgments.

K. All questions or concerns relating to the rules of this tournament are to be referred to The Organizing Committee and they shall be the only ones to interpret the rules. 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 the Angler’s Atlas Catch Team and the Organizer of the event. They can be reached by email at: [email protected]

L. Any contestant has the right to protest another participant if they feel the rules have been broken. The protest must be filed in writing with the Organizer no later than 30 minutes after the close of tournament fishing hours. If possible, please provide a form of verification to the Organizing Committee (Picture, witness, etc). 

M. Any participant  that has been disqualified by the Organizing Committee has the right to file a protest. The protest must be filed in writing no later than 30 minutes after being notified of the disqualification. 

N. A three-person protest committee shall be appointed by the Organizer. The protest committee will convene to hear both sides of any protest and gather any evidence. The decision of the protest committee shall be final in all cases.

O. All participants must follow boating safety regulations in your jurisdiction.

P. All photo and video 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?

A. 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.

B. Every research team we work with must sign a data sharing agreement that sets the terms of use for the data.

C. Data is anonymized before it is provided to the researcher.

D. Researchers agree not to share the data with anyone else.

E. Researchers cannot use the data for any purpose other than the research specified in the agreement. 

F. 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. 

G. Angler’s Atlas may release data to a law enforcement agency if compelled to do so under court order.

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]).