Tournament Rules

1. ENTRY FEE: $800.00 per boat on or before 5 PM on July 6th (after 5pm, July 6th: $900.00). Maximum 6 anglers per boat. NO REFUNDS.

2. DEADLINE FOR ENTRY: Early registration must be received on or before 5 PM, July 6, 2011. Final registration will be held on Thursday, July 12, 2012 under tent at the Ocean City Fishing Center from 3pm – 7pm.

3. CAPTAIN’S MEETING: Thursday, July 12, 2012 at 8pm at the Ocean City Fishing Center. At least one representative from each competing boat MUST be present.

4. TOURNAMENT DATES: July 13, 14 & 15. Boats may fish only 2 of the 3 days of this tournament. Boats must declare a Lay Day by filing An Official Lay Day Report in person at the Ocean City Fishing Center NO LATER THAN 10am OF THE LAY DAY – NO EXCEPTIONS.

5. FISHING HOURS: Start at 7:30am. (no lines in the water before). End at 3:00pm (all lines out of the water). Boats can leave either the Ocean City or Indian River Inlet. Vessels may leave at any time, but no lines in the water until 7:30am.

6. BOUNDARY LINES: The boundary limit will be 100 nautical miles from the Ocean City sea buoy.

7. WEATHER: Captain’s choice. Participants enter tournament at own risk and discretion and accept full responsibility for their boat, crew and anglers.

8. TACKLE AND BAIT: All tackle IGFA rules apply unless stated otherwise. NO CHUMMING, CHUNKING OR WIRE LINE ALLOWED. Eight lines per boat maximum. Spreader bar allowed, fire & spider lines permitted. No greensticks allowed.

9. TROLLING TOURNAMENT: Boat must stay in motion.

10. ELIGIBLE FISH AND AWARDS: Eligible species are BIG EYE (Thunnus Obesus), YELLOW FIN (Thunnus Albacores) and BLUE FIN (Thunnus Thynnus). Participants are eligible in two categories, but a competing boat can win in only one category. There will be three available category purses (prize money amounts) in each of the two categories. At least 60% of all entry fees collected will be divided into the six prize amounts. Fish must weigh a minimum of 30 pounds each.

11. WEIGHING IN: All fish entered into competition must be present to weigh in each day by 7:30pm EXCEPT FOR SUNDAY, JULY 15th, WHEN WEIGH-IN WILL CONCLUDE AT 7pm. Fish entered at weigh-in must be accompanied by an Official Catch Report. All fish must be weighed in by an Official Weighmaster at the designated scales to be eligible. In the event of weight ties in either category, this prize money will be divided equally between the tied participants regardless of the time of day caught. The weighmaster is the official time keeper of the tournament. Weight of fish will be rounded to the nearest full pound, with any amount reaching 1/2 pound and up being rounded upward to the next full pound amount. All boats are allowed only one weigh-in opportunity per day.

12. STRINGER FISH: Stringer fish may, in addition to the Ocean City Fishing Center, also be weighed in at Sunset Marina Friday, July 13th and Saturday, July 14th only. All trophy fish must be weighed in at The Ocean City Fishing Center.

13. ALL VESSELS: All vessels must maintain 100 yards distance from any scallop boats

14. ANGLERS: Anglers are allowed to truck fish into the Ocean City Fishing Center. A captain and a mate can be counted as anglers as long as there are only 4 or less anglers onboard the vessel.

15. OTHER OFFICIAL RULES:

Decisions of the Tournament Committee as to winners shall be final. Any protest must be made in writing and must be presented at Tournament headquarters by 7pm on the day of allegation. Protests must be accompanied by a $250 deposit which will be refunded if the protest is upheld. Otherwise, the deposit will be forfeited.

Fish entered into competition are subject to a Tory Meter test. Winning anglers and crew members agree to submit to a polygraph.

Fishing by any one boat either day or partial day constitutes a tournament. If totally canceled by an ACT OF GOD or natural disaster, available purse monies will be added to the 2013 Ocean City Tuna Tournament. There will be NO REFUNDS.

All catches must be iced and maintained properly. No mutilated fish will be scored.

The Tournament and its sponsors are not responsible for the conduct, personal injury, damages or negligence on the part of any participant.

The Tournament reserves the right to inspect any boats entered in competition without notice.

The Tournament is held in compliance with any applicable laws governing the State of Maryland or the United States of America.

The Tournament Committee shall have the right to rule and decide on any dispute. Participants entering this Tournament agree that the decision of the Tournament Committee shall be final and binding in any matter requiring their action.

As a qualifying event for the IGFA Offshore Championship, the 1st Place team in the Largest Fish Division will each receive an invitation to compete in the Offshore Championship.

Questions? Email tunatournament@ocfishing.com

Eligible Fish

Atlantic tunas belong to the family Scombridae. Recognized as some of the largest and fastest predators in the oceans, these fishes are designed for speed. Atlantic tunas are well equipped for sustained, rapid locomotion. Their fusiform bodies and lunate tails minimize drag as they move through the water. Small dorsal and ventral finlets minimize turbulence, allowing the tail to propel the fish forward efficiently. Dorsal and pectoral fins also retract into depressions in the body, forming a clean silhouette to cut through the water.

Enhancing the visible characteristics that facilitate locomotion are internal adaptations that stoke the metabolic engine. To satisfy the high oxygen demands of their swimming pace, tunas employ a respiration mode known as ram gill ventilation. This system requires that the fish swim continuously, mouth open to pass sufficient water over its gill surfaces. Ram gill ventilation may be less energy-consuming than the more common respiratory mechanism requiring active pumping of water over the gills.

Another distinction of tunas is their capacity to maintain a body temperature higher than the surrounding water. An elevated internal temperature results from the conservation heat generated by active swimming muscles. This adaptation allows these endothermic animals to expand their geographic range and to dive into deeper, colder waters in pursuit of prey, a decided advantage in the hunt for food.

Opportunistic feeders, tunas consume fishes, cephalopods, and crustaceans that are seasonally available. As apex predators, tunas have few predators’ themselves-humans, primarily, along with billfishes, some sharks, and toothed whales.

Tunas are fairly fecund and relatively long-lived. A spawning bluefin tuna, for example, produces about 30 million eggs, and even though there is high natural mortality among juveniles, adults can live 20 years or more.

More Information at http://www.octunatournament.com/