2014 High School Fishing World Finals July 15-19
2014 High School Fishing World Finals Returns to Lake Dardanelle
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Bass Federation (TBF), is pleased to announce that the 2014 High School Fishing World Finals will once again return to legendary Lake Dardanelle and the city of Russellville, Ark. The event dates are July 15-19 at Lake Dardanelle State Park.
“We are thrilled to host this event again in the city of Russellville,” Executive Director of Tourism for Russellville, Christie Graham, stated. “This event continues to grow every year and has become a terrific family destination for high school anglers across the country. Our community loves bringing this group in as it allows us to showcase our entire area as a family vacation destination.”
“Our expanded format last year built a lot of excitement for this event,” TBF National Youth Director, Mark Gintert, said. “Adding the semi-final and consolation rounds as well as another full day of fishing was well received by our anglers and their families. Combine that with the expansion of Saturday’s final to 20 teams and we had a lot of final day excitement,” Gintert added. “To spruce things up this year we’ll be expanding tournament waters to allow locking into the rest of the Arkansas River system so our teams will have more water to fish and some additional strategies to contend with.”
‘The High School Fishing World Finals has done more to grow high school fishing nationwide than any other event,” TBF President, Robert Cartlidge, stated. “Several states that now have high school fishing teams and programs can trace their roots back to teams participating in this event,” Cartlidge added. “Our staff works very hard to make this a showcase event for high school fishing and at the same time keep it exciting for our anglers and their families. The staff and facilities at Lake Dardanelle State Park are absolutely top-notch and it’s central US location right on I-40 make it a great family vacation.”
As always, the HSFWF is open to all high school anglers in the country. For active SAF members there are no entry fees. For non-SAF members the $25/yr membership can be purchased online at the time of registration. All anglers can register in advance at highschoolfishing.org by clicking on HSFWF on the homepage.
Official practice begins Sunday, July 13. The check-in and rules meeting banquet will be Tuesday, July 15 at Russellville High School starting at 3:30pm with the rules meeting and dinner to follow at 6pm.
This year’s format will once again have the top two teams from each state or country advancing to Friday’s semi-final round of competition. Those not making the semi-final round will have a chance to fish their way back into Saturday’s top 20 final through the consolation round. For Saturday’s final round the top 20 weights will compete (the top 10 from the semi-final round and the next 10 highest weights overall).
A host of scholarships and prizes await the winners, as well as, advancement to the prestigious Boat US Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship where they can compete against the top college teams in the country. The winners at that event could also advance to fish for a chance at the Forrest Wood Cup and the TBF “Living the Dream” package, which has the potential to launch a professional fishing career.
The event will be televised on Federation Angler TV series on NBC Sports next fall.
Event Details:
Sign-up: PRE-REGISTER ONLINE at HighSchoolFishing.org or a $25 late registration fee applies to those registering onsite. The best way is to pre-register online at highschoolfishing.org.
Mandatory Check-in: Tuesday, July 15 at Russellville High School. Check in starts at 3:30pm with the rules meeting and dinner to start at 6pm CST.
Takeoff & Weigh-in: Wednesday, July 16 at Lake Dardenelle State Park. Take-off at safe light. Weigh-in at 3pm. Questions? 580-765-9031
Tournament Waters: Lake Dardenelle (Locking is permitted at our own risk to other pools of the Arkansas River)
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 there is. 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 45 years. TBF started the Student Angler Federation and the national High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org
Dates: July 15-19, 2014
Host:
Russellville Tourism
708 West Main
Russellville, AR 72801
479.967.1762; discoverrussellville.org
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
2 Natural Resources Drive
Little Rock, AR 72205
800.364.4263; agfc.com
http://www.discoverrussellville.org/
http://www.russellvillechamber.org/
http://www.russellvillearkansas.org/
Schedule of Events:
Lake Is Off-Limits 11:59pm Sunday, July 6 through July 12
Official practice days are Sunday, July 13 – Tuesday, July 15
Please read rules carefully at www.highschoolfishing.org
Wednesday, July 16 – Full Field Competes – LOCATION * Dardanelle State Park
– 6:00am National Anthem and Takeoff begins
– 2:30pm Day 1 Weigh-in begins
Thursday, July 17 – Full Field Competes – LOCATION * Dardanelle State Park
– 6:00am National Anthem and Takeoff begins
– 2:45pm Day 2 Weigh-in begins – Top two(2) from each state advances to the semi finals, everyone else in Second Chance Round
Friday, July 18 – Semi Final Round and Second Chance Round – – LOCATION * Dardanelle State Park
– 6:00am National Anthem and Takeoff activities begin
– 1:30pm Second Chance weigh in begins
– 3:00pm Day 3 Semi-Final weigh in Weigh-in begins
– 6:30-9:30pm PARTY& GAME NIGHT! FOOD, FUN, CABELA’S GIFT CARDS, AND MANY MORE
PRIZES! – LOCATION* COOL & REFRESHING Clarksville Aquatic Park –1611 Oakland St. ,Clarksville, AR, 75441
…… Bring your bathing suits!
Saturday, July 19 – Field cut to top 10 from the semi-final round and the next 10 in total weight from both the Semi Final and Second Chance standings combined LOCATION * Dardanelle State Park
– 6:00am National Anthem and Take-off begins
– 6:30am Multi species Tournament Open to all HS teams NOT in the final top 20. Take-off begins
– 10:00am-3:00pm Dardanelle State Park – Lakeside festivities at the big top. Lots of activities – mobile aquarium, games and fun.
– 12:00 noon Multi-Species weigh in begins
– 3:00pm Weigh-in of Top 20 world finalists begins
Takeoff/Weigh-In/Marina Location:
Dardanelle State Park
2428 Marina Road
Russellville, AR 72802
479.967.5516
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