Gainesville Offshore Fishing Club, Inc.

Gainesville, Florida

Rules and Regulations

 

General

1.  All club members are responsible for their safety and the safety of their boat and passengers.  Members must determine the conditions under which their boat can be operated safely.  An organized GOFC activity, such as a Tournament or Funament, is not an endorsement by the GOFC of safe conditions for any particular boat.

2.  All Federal, State of Florida, and local (for example, County) rules and regulations are always in force and take precedence over GOFC rules and regulations.  The GOFC Board may grant specific exceptions to GOFC rules and regulations, but exceptions will not be granted for Federal, State, and local rules and regulations.  The Board will review its rules at the beginning of each year and publish any changes in the Newsletter and at meetings.

Fishing Contests

1.  There are several different contests sponsored by the GOFC.  In each contest entrants will be ranked and prizes awarded.  These contests include:  the Tournaments, Funaments, and Annual Competitions (the Ellett Award, and other awards could be rewarded, etc.)

2.  Fish may be entered in the contests in one of three different categories:  the Big Eight, the Other Three, and Unusual.

a)  The Big Eight shall consist of the following species: spotted sea trout, Spanish mackerel, king  mackerel, redfish, sheepshead, grouper, cobia, and flounder.

b) The Other Three shall consist of the following species: bluefish, dolphin, and tripletail.

c)  Unusual species shall include all other (legal to take) species.

 

3.  Legal Fishing Area:  Club members may turn in fish caught from boats that put out from Homosassa to a line marking the entrance of the Fenholloway River, and out to a depth of 200 feet.

4.  Member Eligibility:  Any GOFC member in good standing (current dues paid), unless suspended by the GOFC Board, shall be eligible for GOFC contests.  The Board reserves the right to suspend any member without cause from any contest.  Specific eligibility for specific contests and awards is defined further below.

5.  Fish Entry Conditions:

a)  All fish entered must be whole and still in skin and/or scales.

b)  All fish must be legal and meet all Federal, State, local, and GOFC rules and regulations

c)  All fish must weigh a minimum of one pound, except for the Unusual category: these entries may be less.

d)  All fish must be caught on hook and line/rod and reel.

e)  All anglers must hook, fight, and bring to the boat each fish on their own.

6.  Fish Entry Documentation: 

The Board recommends that members document all entries with a weigh slip and entry form as described below.

 

Weigh slip:  this should be a written document with the name of the angler, the date the fish was caught, the species of the fish, the location where the fish was weighed, the weight of the fish and the signature of the person who weighed the fish.

 

Entry form:  This is an official GOFC entry form, available at our monthly meetings. One entry form must be completed for each fish you want to enter. You must be present to enter a fish.

Where there is a family membership, one of the family members may enter a fish for the others in that family.The grace period to enter a fish at monthly meetings is three months.  For example, a fish caught in February can be entered at the February, March, or April meetings. However, all fish caught in September and October must be entered no later than the November meeting (Ellett Auction).  Fish caught in November go towards the next year's contest.   Only fish caught since the last monthly meeting will be eligible for the monthly fishing contest.

 

Note:  At GOFC Tournaments and  Funaments, entry form and weigh slip documentation will be handled by GOFC Board members or representatives. All other entries for fish caught outside of Tournaments and Funaments must be handled by individual members.

 

The Board requires members to document the following fish with a weigh slip and an entry form:

a)  All entries in the Unusual and Other Three categories.

b)  Big Eight entries as described below.

 

trout:  equal to, or over 4 pounds

cobia: equal to, or over 25 pounds

sheepshead:  equal to, or over 8 pounds

flounder:  equal to, or over 3 pounds

Spanish mackerel: equal to, or over 5 pounds

king mackerel:  equal to, or over 25 pounds

grouper:  equal to, or over 15 pounds

redfish:   equal to, or over 6 pounds    

Weighing required by the Board for the above fish shall be done in the following manner.  For fish entries below the above weight limits, non-certified scales, including “hand helds” may be used. A weigh slip is not required.  For fish at the weight limits or above, the weighing must be done on State Certified scales or GOFC approved scales and a weigh slip is required for submission.  If a fish weighing above the appropriate limit is turned in without a weigh slip and the Board decides to accept it, the weight of the fish will be reduced to one ounce less than the limit weight.  Thus if you catch a 37 pound king and turn it in without a weigh slip, the Board may give you credit for a 24 pound, 15 ounce fish.

c) Club Records.  A member who suspects that a fish, of any category, may qualify for a club

record, should take extra pains to thoroughly document the fish. (This would be even more

important if an IGFA record is possible.)  Photographs, witnesses, and careful weighing on

Certified scales   should all be part of this process.  The Board recommends icing the complete

fish until you find out where it stands with regard to a record.

7.Youths:

Anglers are considered a youth until the contest year after they turn 15.

8.Monthly Fishing Contests:

At each meeting, all entries are announced and the top fish in each   category for both adults and youth is recognized.  Each entry must be submitted with a GOFC entry form as noted above (and with a weigh slip, if required) and members may submit as many as they wish.  These entries will also be counted in the Annual Contests.  Any angler who turns in a new species in the Unusual category, or who submits a club record for any species will also be recognized at that meeting.

 9. Annual Fishing Contests:

  Once each year at the December Awards Banquet, awards will be given as follows.

 

Largest Fish:  First, second and third place given (adult and youth) for the largest fish in each of the Big Eight category.  First place given (adult and youth) for the largest fish in each of the Other Three category.

 

Outstanding Angler: Each angler (adult and youth) who enters one of each of the Big Eight species.

 

The John Ellett Award:  The three men and three women with the highest point totals for the year. These points are calculated for the Big Eight species only.  The largest fish caught by any member for each species is assigned 25 points.  Each smaller fish of a species receives points based on the size (weight, or length for redfish) of the fish compared to the largest fish.  For example, if you enter a 10 lb grouper and the largest grouper anyone enters is 20 lbs, you get half of 25 points, 12.5 points, since your fish is half the size of the biggest.  Note that since the largest fish entered of a species can change as the year goes on, the points you receive for a fish can change from month to month. These point totals will be updated after each monthly meeting and point totals will be available at the meetings and put in the Newsletter several times a year.  Bonus Ellett points for participation are also given. Five bonus points will be given to each member who participates in a Tournament and two points for participation in a Funament. If you place first in the Ellett competition three times you are retired from this competition and placed in a Master Angler category.  (The angler will qualify as an adult in the contest year after the 15th birthday.  If you are 15 on July 10th, you are an adult angler starting the following November.)  

Year 2004 Ellett qualification points begin 1/1/04 and end 10/31/04.  Year 2005 and following Ellett qualification points begin on 11/01 of the previous year and end on 10/31, to allow for the combined Awards Banquet/Seafood Banquet, which will be held in December beginning in 2005.

The John Patrick Youth Award:

This goes to the youth with the most species entered in one year; in the case of a tie, Ellett points will be used to break the tie. This award can only be received once.

Other awards, such as the “Most Unusual” for the most unusual entry, may also be awarded at the Banquet.

Tournament Contests:

The top fish caught during the Spring and Fall GOFC Tournaments will count for the annual  contests. The top fish at each tournament will be recognized at a regular meeting after the Tournament. Specific categories and awards will be announced for each Tournament. You must  be present at the weigh-in for tournament credit.

Funaments:

Fish caught during Funaments are treated like tournament fish, except that prizes and awards are typically not given for Funaments.

 

10. Weigh Stations: 

If you need to get an official weigh slip for an entry, you can weigh your fish on any state-certified scales.  Commercial establishments that use a scale to determine the value of an item sold to the public can be requested to prepare a weigh slip, as those scales will be certified.  The GOFC also has two scales, which can be used for weigh slips.  Since establishments change and the location of the GOFC scales change from year to year, these establishments and locations will be updated early each year and published in the Newsletter.

11. Complaints and Comments:

All complaints, comments, appeals and information concerning the rules should be addressed to the Chairman of the Rules Committee.  The Board will review complaints and appeals and the Board’s decision will be final.  

 

(Rules Revised and Updated, January 18, 2004 by Russ Roy, Rules Chairman)