Ponca City, Oklahoma - The Bass Federation (TBF), in partnership with FLW Outdoors, announced it will be hosting the inaugural Student Angler Federation Pennsylvania High School Fishing State Championship, Sunday, August 28 at Presque Isle State Park, Lake Erie, MI at the West Pier boat launch in Presque Isle Bay. 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 begins at 4pm on Saturday, August 27 at the Days Inn in Erie, PA. A mandatory rules briefing will follow at 6pm. We highly encourage all teams to pre-register online or by phone well in advance to avoid late registration fees.
"We are very excited that Erie will be hosting the inaugural State High School Bass Fishing Championship at Presque Isle State Park," Executive Director of the Erie Area Sports Commission, Ron Sertz, stated. "Our city is proud to have world class bass fishing in our backyard. We are eager to have students and their families from across the entire state experience both the quality of bass fishing on our lake, as well as, the hospitality of our city and its citizens."
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 Pennsylvania Bass Federation to bring this event to Pennsylvania," 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 Pennsylvania Bass Federation has to offer."
"High school anglers in Pennsylvania are fortunate to have the Pennsylvania Bass Federation well established in the state and eager to help with this event, which promises to be a great one," TBF National Youth Director, Mark Gintert, stated. "Our Student Angler Federation has a great start in Pennsylvania with several students participating in our High School Fishing World Finals last year in Russellville, Arkansas. I'm sure they're ready to show everyone in the state how far they've come 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 HighSchoolfishing.org OR BY PHONE 580.765.9031. Questions? info@highschoolfishing.org or call 580.765.9031. If you have to you can register at the Saturday Mandatory Check-in, HOWEVER, there will be a $25/ per angler late fee. The best way is to pre-register online at highschoolfishing.org.
• Mandatory Check-in: Saturday, August 27, 4-6pm Local Time, at the Days Inn; 7415 Shultz Rd., Erie, PA 16509; Rules briefing to follow at 6pm;
• Takeoff & Weigh-in: Sunday, August 28 at Presque Isle State Park, West Pier boat launch in Presque Isle Bay, Lake Erie, 6am and 2pm.
• Event Host Hotel: Days Inn, "Chairman's Award Winner", 7415 Shultz Rd., Erie, PA 16509; 814-868-8521 PH; Reference "Bass Federation Youth Tournament" when making reservations. To secure the discounted room rate of $69 with free hot breakfast, make reservations by calling directly no later than July 31.
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.
