Are you planning to visit Nantucket Island this Fall? A great way to get to know the Island and to meet other fishermen is to participate in the Nantucket Inshore Classic Fishing Tournament while you are there!
The Tournament will begin this year on Sunday, September 13 and run through Saturday, October 17. This duration allows anglers who will not be on Island for the entire Tournament to fish whenever they can and still have a legitimate chance to qualify for prizes.
Now in its 10th year, the "Classic" was organized by local fisherman and tackle shops to promote and enjoy the exciting Fall Salt Water fishing on Nantucket while at the same time raising funds for the Nantucket Anglers’ Club Scholarship Fund for deserving Nantucket students. The Tournament is open to ALL local and visiting anglers. It has grown to over 250 participants and has raised thousands of dollars for the Scholarship Fund.
The tournament is an individual angler tournament. There have traditionally been three divisions; All Tackle, Fly Fishing, and Junior. Each division has separate categories for fish caught from the beach or from a boat. Species eligible for prizes are Striped Bass, Bluefish, Bonito, and False Albacore. New for 2015 there will also be a new Catch and Release Division.
Prizes including rods, reels, tackle, lures, tackle boxes, beach passes, and local charters are awarded for the heaviest combined weight in each division and category. Prizes are also given to the Angler with the heaviest fish of each species in each of the four categories. There are weekly prizes as well. For the new Catch and Release Division, prizes will be awarded based on the longest fish entered of each species. Participants do not need to be at the closing ceremony in order to receive their prizes.
Tournament results are announced daily by e-mail, on the radio, in the newspaper and online so participants always know where they are in the standings and the size of the leading fish in each category. The highlight of last year’s tournament was the superb False Albacore fishing which continued throughout the Tournament. Anglers had phenomenal days from both the boat and the beach with the largest beach fish weighing in at 13.75 pounds. Bonito action was very good earlier in the tournament. The "Bonito Bar" produced many multifish outings as did the beaches at Great Point. Bluefish last year were on the small side although a 14.6 pounder was caught from the beach in early October. The largest Striped Bass that were weighed in were in the 25 pound class.
Interested anglers may sign up prior to or any time during the tournament. Tournament brochures, entry forms and rules will be available at Bill Fisher Tackle, Nantucket Tackle, and the Nantucket Anglers’ Club. Participants may register by bringing a completed entry form to the Nantucket Anglers’ Club along with the entry fee, which is $50.00 for the All Tackle, Fly Fishing Division, or Catch and Release Divisions. For anglers choosing to fish in BOTH All Tackle and Fly Fishing divisions the entry fee will be $75.00. Juniors, under 16, participate for free. The Nantucket Anglers’ Club is located at the Head of Old South Wharf in downtown Nantucket adjacent to the Stop and Shop parking lot.
Participants will receive a distinctive long sleeve tournament t-shirt and a tournament I.D. pin. They will also be invited to attend the kick off and closing awards parties at the Anglers’ Club featuring raffles, a raw bar, hearty hors d’oeuvres and the opportunity to swap stories with many other dedicated and experienced fishermen.
For more information about the tournament go to the Nantucket Inshore Classic Facebook page or to the Nantucket Anglers’ Club webpage at NantucketAnglersclub.com.
