TOURNAMENT PROGRAM EDITION
January 21 21--23, 2016
TOURNAMENT RULES & SCHEDULE MEET OUR SPONSORS WHY WE DONATE TO THE RFA AUCTION GOODIES
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BUC CUP NEWS
Special Tournament Program Edition
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he Buc Cup beckons and we hope you will answer the call in 2016. We’ve been working hard to put together another classy event with great sponsors and venues in the Palm Beaches. Last year the Buc generated the largest total purse in years with the top boat taking home over $92,000! We’re looking for even bigger numbers this January so come aboard and enjoy the competition! We’ll save a table at the awards banquet for you, your crew and family. It will be a great time for all! SUBSCRIBE
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Longer Article Headline Subhead By: Gary Caputi
Fifty-three and Counting!
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he staff at the Buccaneer Cup is looking forward to welcoming you at the at the Buccaneer Marina Restaurant and Bar again on January 21st. The Captains Meeting/Party is sponsored by our long-time friends and supporters at Viking Yachts and HMY Yacht Sales. There will be food, open bar, tee-shirts to buy and plenty of friends kicking up their heals at the bar. Be forewarned, this might be the last year we can hold the kick-off bash at this legendary watering hole. There are rumors that it might be dismantled with the loss of a lot of sportfishing history, so don’t miss it.
neer Bob legend, Penthouse Paulie Pietraska, will be the voice of the tournament on the VHF again this year and he is promising colder weather and hotter
Thursday, January 22 starts the completion and there will be a substantial pot of gold at the end of the event along with trophies galore.. Last year the top boat took home $92,000 in prize fishing. You can take it up with money and a pickup truck load him it if doesn’t materialize. of classic Buccaneer Cups! We fish again on Friday, January Our very own heir to the Bucca- 23rd, get cleaned up and head on down to the Sailfish Club of JAN 2014
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Florida for the awards banquet. You can drive there or grab the water taxi from Sailfish Marina on Singer Island, which will also bring you back after the party. Plans are to offer everyone’s favorite, the Club’s fabulous seafood buffet and plenty of open bar with our sincere thanks to MTU, Florida Detroit Diesel Allison and Johnson &Towers as hosts. This year all the proceeds from the BUC CUP will be donated to the Recreational Fishing Alliance and with very good reason. No organization has done more for bluewater fishermen than the RFA and they deserve our support. Read more about some of those important victories that have benefited bluewater fish stocks and helped protect our right to fish! We wish you all the best of luck in the 53rd Buccaneer Cup, Florida’s premiere sailfish tournament, and we will do our best to make it exciting and enjoyable.
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53rd BUCCANEER CUP It would be impossible to put on the Buccaneer Cup without cere thanks for all they do to make this tournament possible
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CORPORATE SPONSORS the support of our many loyal sponsors. We extend our sinfor our benefactors, contestants and the Buc Cup legacy.
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Fishing Schedule - Rules - Prizes General Information
11) The length of the leader may not exceed 15 feet. The combined length of the double line 1) January 21, 2016 (6 PM) – Captain’s Meeting: and the leader may not exceed 20 feet. Buccaneer Yacht Club, 142 Lake Drive, Singer Island, FL 33404 (Registration/Calcutta En- 12) Live or dead baits may be used, but only one type of bait is permitted in the water at any try 4 to 6 PM-please come early) time. 2) Fishing Days - January 22 & 23, 2016. (No 13) Chumming of any kind, including with live Lay Day) bait, is prohibited. 3) Fishing Hours - Lines in 8:00 AM. Lines out 14) No more than six rods are permitted in the 3:30 PM. water at any time. This includes rods being 4) Boundaries: From 27.30.00 latitude (Ft. used to catch bait. Pierce Inlet area) to 26.02.00 latitude (Ft. 15) Live Bait: No more than two kites maybe used Lauderdale Inlet area) and no further offand artificial or dead bait dredges or teasers shore than 072.50 longitude. are permitted. 5) Boats may leave from Lake Worth or Jupiter 16) Dead Bait: No more than two dredges maybe Inlets no earlier than 6:30 AM and must reused and artificial or dead bait surface teasers turn catch logs to Sailfish Marina or Castaway and daisy chains are permitted. Marina by 5:00 PM. 6) Boats need fish only one day for tournament 17) Live bait teasers are prohibited. to be official. 18) Passing the rod to an angler after hookup is permitted. 7) There is no weather committee. The determination to fish is at the discretion of the captain and crew, who assume all liability for Catch Validation their decisions. 19) To qualify for points each release must be 8) Certified Observers may be provided by the called in to the Tournament Committournament as available. tee including the boat number, type of bait and angler's full name immediately by VHF radio or cell phone and it is acknowledged Fishing Regulations with an assigned catch number and official 9) I.G.F.A. Rules apply except as follows. time of release. The time, catch number and 10) Only non-offset circle hooks and maximum angler’s full name must be entered for each manufacturer stated 20-lb. test line may be release on the boat’s catch log. Hookups 15 used. minutes prior to the end of fishing must be called in for a release after lines out to qualify.
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20) A release is official when the leader is touched by the mate, the leader is wound inside the rod tip or the cork on a live bait rod touches the rod tip.
CASH PRIZES
21) Your entry into the Buccaneer Cup implies expressed approval that you and all anglers and crew members will submit to a polygraph test if requested by the rules committee. Failure to do will result in disqualification. A certified polygraph examiner will be on site should such services be required.
Added Entry Levels (Calcuttas)
Point Structure & Scoring 22) Release points will be awarded as follows: 200 points for sailfish on live bait. 300 point for sailfish on dead bait. 400 points for marlin on either bait. 23) In case of a tie the winners will be determined by earliest release times. 24) Protests must be submitted to the Rules Committee in writing accompanied by a nonrefundable $500 filing fee no later than 5:00 PM. In all cases the decision of the Rules Committee is final.
General Requirements 25) Boats and anglers must comply with all state and federal fishing regulations and licensing requirements. Failure to do so may result in disqualification. All boats must carry appropriate liability insurance. 26) All boats must be a minimum of 27 feet LOA. The final determination of a boat’s eligibility will be at the discretion of the Rules Committee.
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$5,000 Most Points Live Bait $5,000 Most Points Dead Bait
Overall Categories $5000 Most Points Overall (WTA) $3000 Most Points Overall (50/30/20) $3000 Most Points Daily (60/40) $1500 Most Billfish Released (60/40) Live Bait Categories $2000 Most Points Live Bait Daily (60/40) $2000 Most Points Live Bait Overall (WTA) Dead Bait Categories $2000 Most Points Dead Bait Daily (60/40) $2000 Most Points Dead Bait Overall (WTA) General Categories $250 Top Angler (Winner Take All) $500 Biggest Meat Fish (WTA)* *Kingfish, dolphin, wahoo, tuna & cobia $500 Charity Category (Free Entry In 2017) (90% Payout - 10% Donated to Official Charity Recipient) All participants, captains and crews in the Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Release Tournament enter at their own risk. Committee members and all other persons connected directly or indirectly with the operation of the tournaments shall be exempt from any liability for loss, damage, negligence, harm or injury to any participant, boat captain, crew member, vessel and/or equipment, which may occur during the tournament.
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KEEP UP WITH THE COMPETITION WITH THE REEL TIME SCORING APP Know where you stand during at all times. Download the free REEL TIME live scoring app to your smart phone, tablet or computer.
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watch the tournament: iPhone, Android and Web apps.
he Buc Cup is again offering FREE Reel Time Scoring Apps to contestants and anyone else who wants to keep up with the action as it happens in this year’s tournament. Reel Time Apps are easy to use with an intuitive design that allows every user to easily navigate the available information and options.
To download the REEL TIME Scoring App for the Buccaneer Cup go to the App Store on your phone and enter Buccaneer Cup 2016 in the search window. When it comes up download and install the app. The download is free. The service goes live Monday, January 19 listing the boats entered. Real time scoring is in effect on the two fishing days, January 22nd and 23rd.
App users can favorite a boat to receive push notifications in real time when a boat releases a fish. Participants and fans can view and send pictures from the app. If you or someone on the boat takes great photos you may send them to the tournament director to be included in the app. Whether you are on the go or at your desk, there are 3 ways to
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For desktop web coverage or to learn more about how the phone apps work go to www.reeltimeapps.com
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New Look Buc Cup Shirts for 2016 Our friends at Canyon Gear International have put together an exciting new look for the 53rd Buccaneer Cup tournament shirts. Here’s a sneak peak at what to expect. The tonal version of the Buc Cup logo with the jumping sailfish in full color will appear on dark blue, soft cottonblend long-sleeve tee shirts. Comfortable, sharp and only a limited number will be available.
Available at the Captain’s Meeting and Awards Dinner. Get yours and be the talk of the dock. 16
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ATTENTION CAPTAINS! The Buccaneer Cup is an InTheBite Sanctioned Tournament... and your standings count toward their “Captain of the Year” Award program . In addition, the captain of the boat that wins the 53rd Buccaneer will receive the very special InTheBite Top Captain Cup.
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Why the Buccaneer Cup Supports the Recreational Fishing Alliance By Gary Caputi
It’s All About the Fish and the Sport
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ome of you know that the Buc Cup has donated the funds it generates to the Recreational Fishing Alliance since I became involved with the event over ten years ago. In fact we have run the tournament as a fund raising event for the RFA and all the proceeds after expenses are donated. As dedicated bluewater fishermen you should be familiar with the RFA and if you are you might know a little about it, but we realize many of you are not.
Not long after it was officially incorporated and approved as a political action organization the RFA single-handedly put an end to pelagic pair trawling in the Mid-Atlantic canyons. The practice, which was done by stringing a midwater trawl net between two high-powered commercial fishing boats to target tuna and swordfish, had an immediate negative impact on tuna stocks and was often conducted in direct conflict with recreational vessels fishing the canyons. No other The RFA is a political fishing or conservaaction organization tion organizations that works to protect gave it much through, critical marine fisheries but the RFA underand your ability to acstood the negative imcess them—your ability pacts it was having on to go fishing! Both the fish stocks and your fish and recreational ability to go fishing fishing has been under and took action winassault for decades and ning a regulatory victhat is why the RFA was tory that banned the formed. It grew out of gear and the practice meeting of concerned after exerting political fishermen held over 20 pressure on the Nayears ago around a tional Marine Fisheries conference table at the Service through ConViking Yacht Company gressmen and Senators. and grew to become the leading lobbying organization for us, saltwater fishermen. And while The RFA was solely responsible for taking on the RFA works on behalf of all saltwater fishermen its pelagic long line industry that had been devasaccomplishments on behalf of the bluewater tating not only their target species, swordfish, crowd, that us, have been remarkable, if not her- but also having a major negative effect on marlin alded enough for everyone to be aware of them. and sailfish, which were being killed by the tens 20
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of thousands as unwanted bycatch. Longline yon and others. It was so restrictive that the gear had been decimating pelagic fish stocks for number of U.S. pelagic longliners dwindled to over twenty years when RFA took them at a about 20% of the number since the plan was time when other organizations were trying to enacted. The benefits took a little time to accrue, barter a deal with them. but swordfish stocks beThe RFA went its own gan to rebound quickly way digging up inforand white marlin stocks mation the National Matook off. Sailfish stocks rine Fishery Service had grew at a rapid pace over buried through the Freethe ten years following its dom of Information Act enactment and the rest is that clearly showed history. The result of this where the areas of greataction, which was two est interaction with billyears in the making, has fish was occurring and been a revitalized offwhere the highest level shore recreational fishery of harvest of immature off the Atlantic and Gulf swordfish was taking coasts and it has had place. With this data in benefits that extend well hand and a few friendly outside U.S. water! Imagine if white marlin were declared politicians as champions The RFA fought other recthe RFA muscled the as- an endangered species. reational groups during sistant administrator of the development of the Billfish Fishery ManageNMFS to “do the right thing� and put in place a ment Plan to maintain a 250 fish recreational management plan to reign in the longline indus- harvest quota specifically so major marlin tourtry. The main feature of the plan was time and naments like the Big Rock, the White Marlin area closures for key locations like the Charles- Open, the MidAtlantic and others could continton Hump, the Straits of Florida, the DeSoto Can-
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ue to exist. The 250 fish quota is insignificant as far as conservation is concerned, but the economic impact of those tournaments is almost incalculable. Unlike smaller tournaments like the Buccaneer Cup, it would be nearly impossible for tournaments that generate that kind of participation and prize money to be forced to be all release. The RFA went head to head with the Billfish Foundation, which was promoting the no retention of billfish mantra, and won and so did tournament fishermen like you.
no ESA listing of white marlin. Another victory on your behalf and most of you probably had no idea.
These are just a few examples of what the RFA has accomplished on behalf of offshore fishermen and tournament teams over the years, but their work encompasses all recreational saltwater fishing issues, both legislative and regulatory. What the RFA needs to accomplish its work are members and funds. I don’t know if you The Buccaneer remember when Cup helps as do environmental donations from groups tried to companies in have white marlin the marine and listed as an endantackle industry gered species, but and even from it came just a few the National Mayears after the RFA rine Manufacturhad the longline ers Association. industry reigned in But it desperateand the stocks ly needs benewere already on factors who are the rebound. An fishermen that ESA listing was tohave a deep and tally unnecessary, abiding love of but many groups the sport. The were pushing hard RFA isn’t glamorto make it happen. ous like the BillAn ESA listing for a fish Foundation; Sailfish stocks have benefited greatly from the RFA’s billfish as ubiquiit does its work in tous as the white work to reign in the longline industry as have marlin and the trenches of marlin could have swordfish. the political areshut down all offna in Washingshore fishing wherever they are commonly ton and the bureaucracies that generate the found. The economic impact would have been regulations. The RFA is a proven political action devastating and the damage done to offshore organization that has earned your support and fishing inestimable. RFA took the problem direct- we hope you will recognize them as an ally who ly to the White House spending tens of thou- has been instrumental in protecting the sport sands of dollars to secure a meeting with Presi- we all love. dent George W. Bush’s chief of staff to discuss We hope you will take time to learn more about the situation. After a long meeting, the word the Recreational Fishing Alliance and become a was passed down to NMFS that there would be member and supporter too.
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BUC CUP AUCTION ACTION O
ne of the highlights of the Awards Dinner is the Silent Auction and we will have some neat auction items again this year. Here are just a few of the goodies you can bid on during the cocktail hours and dinner. Please remember that the auction is held solely for the benefit of the RFA so please be generous and rest assured the money is going to an organization that is fishing to protect your right to fish.
NEW Personalized Contour Step Box
The latest custom contour teak step box design from Release Marine. The box will be built and customized to the winning bidders specifications. You boat logo, favorite sports team, you pick it and Release will make it happen. Retail value—$2999.
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Two Original Artworks in Copper by the Amazing
Hank Bufkin Hank Bufkin is an original! He produces amazing works of art using metal as his canvas. The two pieces he has donated for the auction are not only beautiful, but unlike anything being done in marine art today. In addition to these pieces you will find a $500 gift certificate towards the purchase of his work or a commissioned piece. Check out his website at www.bufkinairdesigns.com
Hank and his wife Susan have donated two uniquely beautiful artworks to the Buccaneer Cup auction this year because they are strong supporters of the RFA. (Above) "Full Sail" - a 16 x 20 hand etched original on hand worked aged copper that speaks for itself. It would grace the collection of any lover of marine art. It has a retail value of $2,500.00. (Right) "Compass Rose" - an 18" hand etched original on hand worked and aged copper. Features a classic compass with north indicated with a fleur-de-lis. This one is set in to a custom round frame, trimmed with 3/8" rope and under resin. It has a retail value of $1,500.00.
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Sailfish Photograph Print by KEVIN DODGE
Born in South Miami third generation native Kevin Dodge is an avid free diver and lifelong water sports enthusiast. His foray into photography began in front of the camera as a globe trotting model. More than 20 years ago, he found a passion behind the lens of a camera. His photographs have been used for clients such as Bank of America, State Farm, Coca Cola,Hyatt Hotels, Ford, IBM, Dell Computers and many others. His latest adventure has been to combine his two loves, photography and diving, and that has resulted in seeing the world in a totally different way. Kevin invites the viewer to pause, and take a moment and see a view of the silent world that few get to see. His highly coveted prints present a unique look at the undersea world.
SELECTION OF UNIQUE JEWELRY ITEMS BY
Oceans Allure has been offering uniquely beautiful jewelry inspired by the sea for years and they are always a hit at the Buccaneer Cup. This year we will offer four pieces: *Silver hand-dipped sea urchin necklace *Silver Sailfish & Hook womdn’s lariat necklace *Gold Octopus Shot Glass Holder *Men’s Silver Hook & Leather Bracelet
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Twelve Pair Salt Life sunglasses with Zeiss Lenses for the best vision you’ve ever had on the water or ashore!
ENGEL COOLERS FILLED WITH CHEER!
Three in all: One large 50 Quart Cooler; One small Dry Box and One Cooler Bag each filled with a selection of your favorite spirits including those cockpit favorites FireBall and Jägermister, tournament tee shirts and more! 26
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Three Certificates good for Two Gallons of the Micron Bottom Paint of your choice courtesy Interlux. Accompanying Certificates for application of paint by Viking Service Center in Riviera
One pair of triple rod holder clusters ideal for live bait fishing from our friends at Bausch American Towers.
Two pair of advance ChromaPop sunglasses from Smith Optics JAN 2014
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Awesome OceanMax Lever Drag Reels by
And standup Rods by
Mustad Gear Bag filled with line, leader and rigging products form AFW/Hi-Seas!
Lure Packs from
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