Saturday Night Bat Fight - XVII - Rules and Sign UpsWell, we are now on year 17! This has continued to be a fun and successful event throughout all the years and hopefully this year won't be any different. This is a fun and free event that only has bragging rights at stake and great for anglers of all ages. The rules are listed below. Try your best to follow the rules which will make it easier deciding the winner.
This year’s event will take place on April 27th, 2024... rain or shine!
Unlike in years past where we planned it on big tidal movements and the time change, we're going to try something different this year (If it works, we’ll continue with this updated format). For a long time, we've always had jumbo bats to catch and they were a bit of a nuisance when you weren’t looking for them. Since we have not done very well the last 5 to 7 years and attendance has gone down, we are going to put restrictions on the size of bat ray entries that can be submitted. If the minimum requirement is not met, we will use sharks as tie breakers by the representing county. The bat rays have seemed to have vanished over the years and may (or may not) correlate to the surge in Great Whites and other shark species in the surf zone. I don’t want to continue having really small bats win the tournament when this is supposed to be a Bat Fight and not a Whiffle Ball Fight.
The rules below will only be for SNBF-XVII. If this proves to be a success, then it may possibly be used for future Bat Fights (minor edits may happen to improve the system). The updated rules are as follows:
The Rules:-The fish that counts toward the ultimate winner is Myliobatis californica… aka the Bat Ray. The minimum size restriction for a team to enter is 28” from wingtip to wingtip. The only way a smaller one will be able to be submitted for the contest is if no other tiebreaker is caught (See tiebreakers in this section)
-Widest wingspan measured over the top of the Ray (Taut Tape) with corresponding pictures. No loose or flat laying tape on the entire body and wings. (Loose tapes will be prone to losing some inches)
-Tiebreakers. (Probably not the proper term, but being used here) There will be two categories of tiebreakers, both which include sharks if a 28” bat isn’t landed.
• First Tiebreaker:
Long Rod / Casted Baits: Soupfin, Sevengill, Thresher, Mako, ETC. The larger models of shark that come close to shore (All protected species are off limits to this competition. ie, Great Whites).
This is the first tiebreaker and will supersede the second tie breaker no matter on the size of the shark caught. (Hound shark, Dogfish, Shovelnose, and Leopard Shark are excluded from this contest)
• Second Tiebreaker:
Paddled Out / Droned Baits: All shark species except any protected species such as the Great White and Greater Rays (Pelagic Ray, Bat Ray, Diamond Ray). These sharks may be bigger than the casted bait tiebreakers but will be limited to taking a back seat to the long rod. This Tiebreaker is in case no minimum sized bat is caught AND no qualifying surf shark is caught on casted gear.
-Widest nose to tip of tail measured directly next to the shark with corresponding pictures. The judge (myself) will make a call on length if any questions arise in the actual length submitted with the corresponding picture.
-CPR (Catch-Photograph-Release) only. No gaffs or landing tools that cause direct injury to the fish permitted.
- The main area for each county will be picked by the Team Captain (if available) and any satellite groups must make sure they post their results by the given time of 11:59pm on April 27th, 2024.
-Buddy System – For many reasons, it must be on a buddy system. There are going to be a bunch of satellite groups out there, but there must be two fishermen at every location. Unless you have 4 arms to hold the tape taut over the bats back and take a picture… you need two people. To keep ‘em honest and to add as another safety factor.
-Fishing from the shore only. No Jetty’s, Bulkheads, Piers, Bridges etc. Boat Ramps are OK only as long as you are allowed to fish there and/or not impeding any boat traffic. This is for the safety of the fish and the angler since handling and measuring these critters on anything but a shoreline without obstacles could have sever harm to one or both.
There are a few reasons for this, but the most important reasons are for YOUR Safety and the Bat Rays Safety. Fishing the rocks during the day or at night for Mud Marlin is not a safe bet for you or the fish. You can fish for them 364 days a year that way if you like, but on the Bat Fight, it’s all about safety and all of these structures have a high danger limit to them when dealing with big gear, rods and fish. It was never allowed for SNBF in the past and will not be allowed in the future Bat Fights.
-You can fish in any county you’d like, but the fish you catch will be recorded for the county you caught the fish in. (example: If you are from LA fishing in SD, the bat will count for SD).
-Start time for the event is very dependent on when you want to get out and fish. The opening gun will sound at 6:00am on the day of the tournament and will end at 11:59 that night. This is just the window of time that the tournament will count for any bat rays. This will allow people who work or have prior engagements to get out and participate in the event in a generous time window.
-Photos must be posted by no later than 11:59pm Saturday, April27th, 2024. Any Photos posted later than that time will be disqualified from their entry. (So be VERY time conscience)
The only Online Locations that will be monitored for bat ray entries will be:
1) Prehistoric Soul Forum... all posts will be monitored.
https://www.prehistoricsoul.com/forum/index.php2) SNBF Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1440227290519133) My Instagram Page: the_og_latimeria
https://www.instagram.com/the_og_latimeria/-This is a picture/honor system, please no fudging or cheating. A few times now, the winner won by a half an inch. This made for a great photo finish and great trash talking.
-Everyone is required to have a good time!
All of the rules are pretty straight forward, and I will answer any questions you may have (or need clarification) before the Bat Fight.
The summed-up History of the Bat Fight (work in progress and will continue to evolve into the full story):
http://prehistoricsoul.com/forum/index.php?topic=8.0
