FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PONCA CITY, Okla. (January 15, 2015) – The Student Angler Federation,(SAF) in partnership with the Inshore Fishing Association (IFA) is offering interested High School Students an opportunity to participate in their second High School RedFish Tournament on Sunday March 8th at Laishley Park located at 120 Laishley Park Court in Punta Gorda Florida.
This will be a two person team event for students in grades 9-12. NEW for 2015 is the option for one member of each team to be a 7th or 8th grader if the team chooses. All teams should pre-register online for any high school event at HighSchoolFishing.org to avoid onsite late fees. Both anglers and their “coach,” who provides the boat they compete from will need to check in on Saturday March 7th at the IFA weigh-in trailer located at Laishley Park from 5:00pm to 6:00pm with a rules meeting to immediately follow. Take off is at 6:30am and the weigh-in will begin at 2:00pm on Sunday
“Our expansion into the saltwater events has been an exciting venture for us,” stated TBF National Youth Director Mark Gintert. “We worked with the staff of the IFA to conduct the nation’s first High School saltwater event last year in Houma LA and that experience has propelled us into 2015 with the mission of creating more opportunities for our High School Anglers as we can. Working with the IFA is a perfect fit for us and we look forward to seeing more of these events in the future.” added Gintert.
“We are very excited to continue to work with the Student Angler Federation to help build the foundation of our Inshore Fishing Series across the country” stated IFA Tournament Director Eric Shelby. “We think this gives us a terrific platform to help grow our series as well as create a host of new opportunities for High School Anglers” cited Shelby.
Students and parents can go to HighSchoolFishing.org for details on the Student Angler Federation and to sign up. Annual cost is a meager $25 year and there is no entry fees to any SAF event conducted in our national program including the existing SAF High School State Bass Fishing Championships that are conducted annually in each state. All SAF members nationwide automatically qualify just for being a member to come and compete in the 2015 High School Fishing World Finals for thousands of dollars in scholarships and prizes each year. The World Finals allows anglers to test their skills against High School anglers from across North America at the week-long family vacation event which will be held at a new venue this year in Florence Alabama on Pickwick Reservoir, July 7-11. As with all SAF national events, there is no entry fee to this come one, come all mega event that gives every high school team in the world a shot at the sports top prizes.
If you’re not a 2015 SAF member, there’s a one-time $25 per year membership fee which you can pay in advance when you register at highschoolfishing.org
Event Details:
Sign-up: Pre-register online at HighSchoolFishing.org or a $25 late registration fee can apply to those registering onsite. The best way is to pre-register online at highschoolfishing.org.
Mandatory Check-in: Saturday March 7th at the IFA trailer located in Laishley Park. The park address is 120 Laishley Park Court in Punta Gorda Florida.
Takeoff & Weigh-in: Sunday, March 8th at Laishely Park. Take-off at 6:30am with the weigh-in scheduled for 2:00pm. Questions? 580-765-9031
Tournament Waters: Contestants may fish any public access waters on the Western half of Florida except within 1 mile of the Port Manatee Port Authority Office at 300 Tampa Bay Way #1 Palmetto FL.
About the IFA
Drawing inshore anglers from Texas to the Carolinas and beyond, the IFA Redfish Tour is the largest and oldest redfish tour in the nation. Offering anglers the opportunity to compete in low-entry fee events, redfish anglers can fish close to home, minimize expenses and compete for lucrative winnings and contingency prizes. The IFA Kayak Fishing Tour presented by Hobie Fishing is the fastest-growing kayak fishing tournament trail in the county. Kayak anglers competing in the catch-photograph-release tournaments can take advantage of the numerous money and product prizes awarded to competitors. For more information or to become a member of the IFA, visit www.ifatours.com.
About The Student Anglers Federation
The Student Anglers Federation (SAF) was formed by The Bass Federation (TBF) when TBF started and founded the national high school fishing movement in 2007 and is the oldest and largest High School fishing program in North America. SAF is the recognized worldwide leader in High School fishing programming and sets the bar with a long list of industry exclusive programs including offering events for 7-12th graders in every state as well as Canada, the only High School fishing program that includes angler educational studies, online training and angler testing and full comprehensive insurance for all SAF clubs, members and events. SAF truly is education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on facebook!
