Hardwater Havoc - North Central Division 2026 

January 9 - February 19, 2026

Official Rules

1. General Rules

1. This is a length-based fishing event to be held in the bounds of the north central division of the American Fisheries Society. Refer to the map attached to this event for the official boundaries. 

2. This is a hard-water–first event. Fish should be caught through the ice whenever safe ice conditions exist. When safe ice is unavailable, the event will allow open water fishing to preserve fairness and accessibility across the division.

3. Hardwater Havoc 2026 - is an online event run through the Angler’s Atlas website and the mobile app MyCatch. The app is available for both iOS (Apple App Store) and Android (Google Play Store).

4. Hardwater Havoc 2026 is open to students and supporting staff of any college or university in bounds of the north central division of the American Fisheries Society (school email address required for validation). If your school is not currently on the list please contact [email protected] to get it added.

5. This event is free to enter. 

6. Each contestant must have a valid State or Provincial fishing license or otherwise be exempt from needing one.

7. Catches must be submitted through the MyCatch app for approval.

8. 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.

9. Contestants must register for this event through the Angler’s Atlas website or the MyCatch app. We recommend anglers practice using the app before the event begins. Here is a link to some helpful videos to familiarize yourself with the app. 

10. You will receive an automatic email confirming that you have entered the event.

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

12. Protecting anglers’ privacy is a priority, and any location data collected during the event will not be released to the public. Our promise to anglers is “Secret Fishing Spots Stay Secret”. See below for further details.

2. Measurement Rules 

1. Eligible species include all freshwater fish species except small-bodied minnows (under 10 cm) from the Leuciscidae family.

2. This is a total length measurement event, not fork length. The total length of a fish is measured from the tip of the nose or jaw to the tip of the tail. The tail can be naturally pinched to the width of the measuring board.  

3. Each fish must be entered only once. Fish should be entered as soon as possible after catching and catches must be recorded at the fishing site.

4. The nose of the fish must be at the start or zero mark on all measuring devices.  

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

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

7. All fish must be measured with the right side down.

8. 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. This rule applies to the Measurement photo only. Gripper tools will be allowed.

9. If you measure your fish entry on a commercially produced bumpboard, these rules must be followed:

1. The nose of the fish must be visibly touching the bump end of the board; 

2. The fish must be placed on top of the board;

3. The entire fish showing the head and tail must be visible in the measurement photo. We must also see past the head and tail in the photo. 

4. Expandable (sliding) bump boards will be allowed if it can be shown in the length submission photo without a doubt that the board is fully extended.

10. If you measure your fish entry on a homemade bumpboard, these rules must be followed:

1. The measurement rules are the same as above.

2. You must provide a photo to the organizer of the empty board to verify proof of measurement accuracy, which includes a measuring tape alongside the bumpboard measurements for verification. This photo must be sent to [email protected]. 

3. Homemade bumpboards must have a solid edge or "bump" for the fish to be set against and it must line up with the 0 mark on the tape. 

4. Unverified boards will NOT be accepted

11. If you measure your fish using a tape measure, these rules must be followed:

1. The fish nose and the start of the tape must be aligned by placing both against a solid edge;

2. The fish's nose must be aligned with the zero mark on the tape;

3. The tape measure must be beside the fish, not on top of the fish or covering it in a way that obscures the measurements;

4. The entire fish showing the head and tail and past the tail must be visible in the measurement photo. 

5. If soft fabric or flexible measuring tapes are used a penalty will be applied to account for measurement accuracy. 

12. If an entry submission comes in where a measuring rule is not followed, the fish may still be approved but a length penalty will be applied. The penalty will apply to the observable length of the fish at the discretion of the Organizer. The set penalty amount will be 1 inch. The entry may also be rejected. 

3. Catch Reporting Rules

1. Catch and release is recommended but not mandatory if the regulations allow for harvest.

2. You must follow all limits pertaining to possession and bag limits at all times.

3. 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). 

4. 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.  

5. Our Catch Approval Team reviews and judges all fish. Once a submission has been approved, it will appear on the appropriate leaderboard(s). Entries will not show up immediately after you sync them.

6. Fish will be approved for length only to the last physical mark crossed. 

7. Event organizers reserve the right to adjust entries. They also have the right to ask for a picture sent to them of your measuring device.

8. The app will work even when out of cell range, however for catches to qualify they must be synced with Angler’s Atlas server. To learn how to submit a catch into the event you can watch this MyCatch video for more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS65wMakQHA

4. Event Location and Times

1. Event boundaries include all of the bounds of the north central division of the American Fisheries Society, but apply to freshwater species only. See the map attached to this event

2. The event runs from Friday January 9, 2026 starting at 6:00:00 am Central time through to Thursday February 19, 2026 at 6:00:00 pm Central time.

3. All catches made within the start and end times must be synchronized with the Angler’s Atlas server within the event times to qualify. It is the Anglers responsibility to ensure all catches are synched by the 6:00 pm Central time February 19, 2026. 

5. Awards & Prizes

1. Prizes - Prizes for the event will be distributed in accordance with the prizing categories below. In addition, weekly challenges will be held throughout the event, each with its own prizing. Challenge details and prize amounts will be announced each Friday morning at 7 am Pacific time on the MyCatch app event feed and our @mycatchsports social media accounts.

Overall 1st Place Longest Walleye 

Overall 1st Place Longest Northern Pike

Overall 1st Place Most Species Entered

Overall 1st Place Most Fish Entered

Overall 2nd Place Most Fish Entered

Overall 3rd Place Most Fish Entered

2. Fish do not show up on leaderboards until they have been approved by the Organizer’s team. To check if your fish was uploaded successfully, check the Log View of your app (2nd icon from the left at the bottom).

3. A participant can only win one prize placing per prize category.

4. In the case of a tie, the tie break will go to the first fish recorded by time. If a tie still exists, the tie break will go to the person with the highest number of fish reported.

5. Awards will be announced following a review process on or by Friday February 27, 2026. Anglers will be contacted directly using the contact information provided in the event registration process. Any cash prizes are awarded through PayPal or Amazon e-gift Card, and paid out after the conclusion of the event.

6. Anglers have up to April 30, 2026 to claim their prize. Anglers that do not claim their prize within this period forfeit their prize.

6. Other Rules

1. By registering and participating in the event, all participants agree to abide by the rules and regulations they have received as set out in the Hardwater Havoc 2026 event rules.

2. All fish entered for this event must be caught via angling i.e. using hook, line, rod and reel. Fish caught by non angling (i.e. use of traps, trap nets or cages) is not permitted. Usage of a landing net to land a hooked fish is allowed.

3. Anglers can only submit catches that they have caught themselves.

4. Each contestant must conform to the general sport fishing rules and regulations that are in place for the jurisdiction in which they are fishing.

5. All federal, state or provincial and local laws must be abided by. 

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

7. All questions or concerns relating to the rules of this event are to be referred to the Organizer. Their decision will be final in all cases. No other person can be considered a spokesman for the rules during the event. The contact for this event is the MyCatch Team and can be reached by email at [email protected] (please include the name of the event in your email).

8. The interpretation and enforcement of the rules is at the sole discretion of the Organizer. The event Organizer may change rules or impose sanctions as they deem appropriate, including but not limited to disqualifications, forfeiture of prizes, and prohibition from competing in future events.  All decisions made by the event Organizer are final. 

9. Abuse of event officials and volunteers will not be tolerated.

10. Any angler found to be cheating will be disqualified from the event. Angler’s Atlas also reserves the right to ban anglers from competing in future events.

11. 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 one hour of the close of the event. The Organizer’s decision will be final in all cases. A $100 dollar protest fee may need to accompany the protest. The fee will be returned if the protest is found to be valid.

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

13. All participants are expected to follow high standards of sportsmanship, courtesy, safety, and conservation. Any participant who displays poor sportsmanship, violates these rules, or brings unfavorable publicity to the sport of fishing could be disqualified. 

14. Participants are responsible for their own safety, actions, and property at all times.

15. This is primarily an ice fishing event. Practice ice safety at all times! Fishing is only allowed on a minimum of at least 4 inches of ice. Only walk and fish where it is safe to do so.

16. All photo and video submissions may be used by Angler's Atlas or our event partners for future use.

17. SASKATCHEWAN ONLY: Due to Saskatchewan's Competitive Fishing Event rules, this event is restricted to a maximum of 24 Saskatchewan anglers. 

7. 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 a 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. 

7. 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, Sean Simmons, directly by email ([email protected]).