Ponca City, Okla. (Aug. 4, 2011) – The Bass Federation
(TBF), in partnership with FLW Outdoors, announced it will be hosting the
inaugural, joint Student Angler Federation Vermont, New York, New Hampshire and
Maine High School Fishing State Championship Sunday, August 28 at Missisquoi Bay on Lake
Champlain. Launch is on the east side of
the bridge. The state championship is a
two person team event for students in grades 9-12. Registration for high school
anglers and their “coach,” who will provide the boat they compete in, is open online
at HighSchoolFishing.org or by calling 580.765.9031. Check-in will
be ramp side at 5:30am on Sunday, August 28. A rules briefing will follow at 6am, followed
by launch. We highly encourage all teams to pre-register online or by phone in
advance. The event winners from each
state will advance to a regional event the following weekend in State
College, Penn.
"The
Bass Federation is very excited to be leading the way with opportunities for
High School Students to get involved with fishing,” TBF Vice President, Norm
White, commented. “Our Student Angler
Federation is designed to get students involved in school fishing clubs and
this event will help them get started with that process.”
Students and parents can go to HighSchoolFishing.org for details on the Student Angler
Federation (SAF) and to sign up. Cost is only $25/ year and includes full TBF
and FLW Outdoors benefits, including access to the all-new FLW Outdoors
Magazine e-Edition and insurance coverage for students and their club. The
winning two-person team from each state championship will advance to an FLW
Outdoors/TBF High School Fishing Regional Championship held in conjunction with
a National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championship hosted on a college
campus this fall. Ranger boats will be provided for the high school anglers to
fish from at each regional championship, and the winners from each regional
will advance to the FLW Outdoors/TBF High School Fishing National Championship
held on a college campus in conjunction with the National Guard FLW College
Fishing National Championship in the spring of 2012. All SAF members and state
championship participants qualify for the largest event in high school fishing,
the 2011 High School Fishing World Finals, July 20-23 in Russellville, Ark., to
compete for thousands in college scholarships and prizes. Start planning your
vacation now! Each team that qualifies for a regional and/or national
championship will receive a travel allowance to help offset expenses. The High
School Fishing National Championship winner’s will also each receive a $5,000
scholarship to use at the university of their choice.
If you’re not an SAF member, there’s a
$25/per angler fee for the state championship, which includes full TBF/FLW
Outdoors membership benefits, and the onetime fee covers ALL SAF sanctioned
events all year!
“We’re very excited to be working with the Norm
White and the Vermont and New York TBF’s to bring the event to this area,” TBF
National President, Robert Cartlidge, said. “Our affiliated state federations are
the backbone of the industry; they’re on the ground doing the work to put on these
types of events and give high school anglers a chance to grow their skills,
have some fun, compete to advance, and get involved with other programs the Bass
Federation has to offer.”
“High school anglers in the Lake
Champlain area are fortunate to have The Bass Federation well established in
the surrounding states and eager to help with this event, which promises to be
a good one,” TBF National Youth Director, Mark Gintert, stated. “Our Student
Angler Federation has a great start with several students participating in our
High School Fishing World Finals this year in Russellville, Arkansas. I’m sure
these high school anglers are ready to show everyone in their states how skilled
they are as anglers.”
Another unique feature of an SAF
sanctioned event is the “angler testing” component. Anglers can take a free
online test at HighSchoolFishing.org about
boater safety, conservation and angler ethics, which makes them eligible for
contingency awards at their state championship. “It’s an industry first by TBF
and a tremendous way to emphasize the importance of education to these student
anglers,” Gintert commented. “The Federation is driven by our desire to promote
education through fishing and the testing component is designed to do exactly
that. Put this package together with our partnership with FLW Outdoors and the
sky is the limit. These young anglers
will have opportunities unlike anything the industry has ever seen.”
Event
Details:
·
State Championship sign-up: PRE-REGISTER ONLINE at Highchoolfishing.org OR BY PHONE 580.765.9031. Questions? info@highschoolfishing.com or call 580.765.9031. If you have
to you can register Sunday morning at Check-in, HOWEVER, the best way is to pre-register online at highschoolfishing.org.
·
Check-in: Sunday, August 28, 5:30am at Missisquoi
Bay on Lake Champlain, NY; the launch is on the east side of the bridge. Rules briefing to follow at 6am.
·
Takeoff & Weigh-in: Sunday, August 28 at Missisquoi Bay
boat launch on east side of bridge. 6:30am and 2:30pm.
·
The
event champions from each state will advance to a regional event the
following weekend in State College, Penn.
About
FLW Outdoors
FLW
Outdoors is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering
anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 191
tournaments in 2011. FLW
Outdoors has taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports
game, FLW Fantasy Fishing presented by Straight Talk, where competitors can
play for free, as well as, sign up for Player’s Advantage to gain an edge. For
more information about FLW Outdoors and FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FLWOutdoors.com
or FantasyFishing.com.
About The Bass Federation
The
Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the
sport of fishing. TBF is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing
organization. TBF affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct
more than 20,000 fishing, youth and conservation events at the local level each
year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for
more than 40 years. Visit bassfederation.com.
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