PONCA CITY, Okla. (July 12, 2012) – The Bass Federation (TBF), in partnership with FLW Outdoors, the Pennsylvania Bass Federation, Cabela’s and Berk’s Bassmasters will host the 2012 Student Angler Federation (SAF) Pennsylvania and New Jersey High School Fishing State Championship. The championship will be on Saturday, August 4. The launch will be out of Dry Brooks Ramp on Blue Marsh Lake near the town of Reading, PA.
The championship is a two person team event for students in grades 9-12. Registration for anglers and their “coach,” who will provide the boat they compete in, is online at HighSchoolFishing.org. Check-in begins at 5:30p.m. EST on Friday, August 3rd at Cabela’s, located just 20 minutes from the lake in Hamburg, PA, with a mandatory rules briefing to follow immediately after check-in. We highly encourage all teams to preregister online to avoid late registration fees.
“We are so excited to be hosting the SAF Pennsylvannia and New Jersey High School Fishing State Championship at Blue Marsh Lake,” Tournament Coordinator of the Berk’s Bassmasters Fishing Club, Dan Devine, said. Berk’s Bassmasters is a local club and a branch of The Pennsylvannia Bass Federation who will be adminstering the high school tournament this year.
Cabela’s will be hosting the check-in and rules briefing at their Hamburg, PA retail store. Cabela’s Hamburg, Pennsylvania Retail Store is located just off I-78. In addition to offering quality outdoor merchandise, the massive 250,000 sq. ft. showroom features educational and entertainment attractions, featuring a décor of museum-quality animal displays, huge aquariums and trophy animals interacting in realistic re-creations of their natural habitats. “Holding the registration here at Cabela’s gives our young competitors a chance to stock up on a massive range of fishing equipment and supplies before the tournament,” Cabela’s Promotion Manager Harold Luther said. “Coming prepared to stock up on great supplies could just give competitors a bit of an edge in the upcoming tournament.”
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 Conference Championship held in conjunction with a National Guard FLW College Fishing Conference Championship. Those winners will advance to the FLW Outdoors/TBF High School Fishing National Championship held in conjunction with the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship in the spring of 2013. Each team that qualifies for a conference and/or national championship will receive a travel allowance to help offset expenses. The National Champions 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, which includes full TBF/FLW Outdoors membership benefits for the year, as well as, free entry to ALL SAF sanctioned events!
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,” Youth Director Mark Gintert, commented. “The Federation is driven by our desire to promote education through fishing and the testing component is designed to do exactly that. We also offer all TBF/SAF members 11 free online training courses in our member’s only online store with Faculty of Fishing’s angler advantage program. Put this package together with all the programs our affiliated state federations like the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Bass Federations have to offer, and our partnership with FLW Outdoors, and the sky is the limit,” Gintert continued. “These young anglers and their families have opportunities unlike anything the industry has ever seen.”
Event Details:
State Championship sign-up: PRE-REGISTER ONLINE at HighSchoolFishing.org. Boat numbers are determined by date registered. A $25 late registration fee applies to those registering at check-in. The best way is to pre-register online at highschoolfishing.org.
Mandatory Check-in: Friday, August 3rd, 5:30 p.m. EST, at Cabela’s located at 100 Cabela Drive, Hamburg, PA 19526. Rules Briefing to immediately follow.
Takeoff & Weigh-in: Saturday, August 4th, 5:00 a.m. EST, at the Brooks Ramp on Blue Marsh Lake near the town of Reading, PA. Weigh in at 2:30 p.m.
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.
