As an organized group of extreme hardcore Surfcasters, we will gather in numbers to fish.
We will create through competition, official and un-official, awareness of conservation measures to protect Striped Bass.
Our competitions shall be no kill fishing, with all effort to release all Bass hooked during our presence on the grounds we fish.
We will utilize our experience and numbers to actively pursue legislation that protects and expands our rights to shoreline access, and conservation measures that promote and expand opportunities for future generations to pursue Striped Bass successfully.
We will support any and all legislative members, in all states where Striped Bass exist in natural wild stock, who choose to promote measures affecting, in a positive manner, Striped Bass and the Bio-mass that supports and feeds them.
Joining Stripercoast Surfcasters Club
Membership is by invitation only, meaning that you must be referred by a current member of the club for your membership to be considered. We reserve the right to refuse membership to anyone for any reason. We reserve the right to cancel your membership, without notice, for violation of club policy, code of conduct, or by unanimous vote of the Governing Board.
Our message forum is private, viewable only to current members in good standing. If you are interested in joining Stripercoast Surfcasters Club, but have not been referred/invited by a current member, please email me for membership consideration at: jake@stripercoastsurfcasters.us This is NOT a club for beginners or the inexperienced!!
Membership dues are $50.00 for the first year, and $25.00/year thereafter. Membership dues must be paid before access to the club’s message forums will be granted. Dues payment is part of the registration process to gain access to our message forums. All new members will receive a cool Stripercoast Surfcasters cap and window sticker.
No member shall participate in, support, or ignore any activities that shall place the clubs integrity into question.
No member shall hold, retain, seek or support commercial licensing for the sale of wild caught Striped bass. Nor will any member purchase for consumption any part of commercially available wild caught Striped Bass, whether it be raw or prepared at a restaurant or other commercial establishment offering the sale.
No member, while wearing or displaying through club clothing, words or actions, use illegal drugs, when they may be witnessed by club members or general public. The use of same during any official meeting or competition, in house or otherwise, shall result in immediate expulsion from the club.
Members shall at all times while representing the club carry 1 large trash bag in their possession, and shall pick up shoreline trash in order to leave the location cleaner than when they arrived and, when presented with the opportunity to confront by legal and respectful means, take every opportunity to teach others the errors of leaving the shoreline without their personally produced trash.
Members violating bag limit or size limit laws governing Striped Bass shall be removed immediately from membership of Stripercoast Surfcasters, and ostracized as a poacher. Members witnessing these actions, and taking no action, or covering up said actions shall be considered as guilty of said action as well. There will be no consideration of future membership reacceptance at any future time for any reason.
No member shall at any time participate in the false recording of any submitted entry for scored fish during any club or outside competition. Any member with knowledge of false recording, and who takes no action in correction of the violation, shall be considered guilty of participating. Violation shall result in permanent expulsion from the club.
Members shall promote the club through sportsmanship, integrity and personal responsibility. Members shall always be on the look out to expand the club's membership rolls by recommending surfcasters to the club with personalities that would expand our opportunities to make change and direct policy toward conservation measures to protect Striped Bass for future health.
Members will take every opportunity to educate ignorance by understanding and communicating known truth and scientific studies available to promote conservation of Striped Bass and access issues as they affect the club.
Members will take every opportunity to be involved in the political process by attending hearings and legislative session open to the public. They will take every opportunity to make opinion heard at said meetings, or communicating by electronic or written means as necessary. When speaking in public, and when said member has identified the club or is identified with the club, that member will restrict his/her actions to maintain respect and dignity for the occasion. At the same time members are not expected to take personal attacks without defense and shall be backed up by the entire membership, present or otherwise. Members will take the offense at all possible times, we do not dig in.
At such time that the club participates in tagging studies, each member will make every effort to tag as many Striped Bass as possible, when it does not endanger the possibility of a live release.
These resources are as follows but not limited to;
Environmental sportsman’s groups
Bait and Tackle shops
Tackle Manufacturers
Lodging
Restaurants, especially those that join our boycott of wild caught striped bass.
Competition builds camaraderie, sportsmanship, and allows members to familiarize each other with fellow members and new locations and technique. It builds loyalty to the club and helps to further our core belief of conservation.
All club sanctioned competition shall be no kill, catch and release surfcasting. No fish that expires during a sanctioned event shall count for score. During invitational tournaments, dead legal fish will be donated to a local food pantry to avoid penalizing points as outlined in tournament rules.
Method of competition is limited to Rod & Reel surfcasting, including its extreme forms such as skishing. No boat or kayak fishing is allowed in tournament competition.
Competition scoring shall be on an aggregate length basis. A Striped Bass of legal keeping size shall be measured for length according to local authority guidelines, and that length shall be scored on the angler’s card. Total of the added inches shall be the angler’s final score. 1 inch equals 1 point. The fish must be released alive for the score to count. All effort will be made to land the fish as soon as possible, measured and placed back in the water with as much strength as possible. Minimum tackle restrictions shall be ruled upon for all sanctioned club competition. Tackle too light kills fish.
Competition shall be considered a voluntary activity, and no member shall hold the club responsible for any injury, theft, or circumstance that may occur detrimental to the participants financial, or physical health or well being. A disclaimer will be signed and witnessed as part of membership application, stating that the club will be exonerated from any responsibility for any of its member’s actions.
No bait in any form shall be used, whether live, or frozen, with the exception of Eels if allowed by local law.
Artificial imitations of forage, AKA, plugs are the recognized standard of Stripercoast Surfcasters. Other forms of imitation allowed with no natural additive would be bucktail jigs, and soft plastic imitators.
Menhaden oil is specifically banned from use on any and all forms of tackle as an attractant, or masking agent. Any product containing menhaden oil as an ingredient is specifically banned for use as an attractant, or, masking agent.
Special attention shall be paid to research of any angler that may possess a commercial fishing license. A specific question shall be on every entry form relating to this issue.