SALMON-A-RAMA Rules

SALMON-A-RAMA Rules 

With 2024 off and running we will be releasing several updates and area's of growth to help celebrate the Salmon-A-Rama 50th Anniversary.

General Rules 2023

SALMON-A-RAMA consist of four divisions; Shore, Boat, Kayak, and Youth Divisions.

All fish must be caught by hook and line, by an individual possessing a valid SALMON-A-RAMA ticket (all participants on a given boat must have a Salmon-A-Rama boat ticket) for the Division to be entered, at the time that the fish is caught. All fish must be caught between 12:01 AM CST on July 15, 2023 and 11:00 AM CST on July 23, 2023.

All participants must be at least 6 years of age and must possess a SALMON-A-RAMA ticket.

All SALMON-A-RAMA tickets purchased after 12:00 AM on Saturday, July 15, 2023 must be purchased at an official SALMON-A-RAMA weigh-in location or online and shall include a $5.00 late fee. In addition, such tickets will be stamped with the time and date of purchase. NO FISH will be eligible for registration on the ticket within 24 hours of the time indicated on the ticket.

SALMON-A-RAMA contestants must comply with State, Federal, Local, and other pertinent fishing and boating laws and regulations. 

Any contestant issued a citation for violation of any fishing or boating laws during the tournament will have their violation reviewed by the tournament committee and based on their decision could be disqualified. No refunds will be made.

All fish entered must be caught in the waters of Lake Michigan or its tributaries up to the first bridge crossing the tributary. There are no city or state boundaries.

*NEW*----Chinook, Coho Salmon, Brown, Rainbow & Lake Trout under 16 inches will NOT be eligible for weigh in. Fish in these Divisions must be over 16 inches. Excludes Super Sweepstakes and Two In a Boat.

All fish must be registered at a designated SALMON-A-RAMA weigh-in station (refer to SALMON-A-RAMA website for up to date locations and weigh-in times).

All fish will be weighed on certified scales by tournament officials or by tournament authorized personnel.

Designated remote weigh-in sites will close two hours before tournament headquarters on the final day (9 AM CST / 10 AM EST).

The hours all designated remote weigh-in sites will be posted on the SALMON-A-RAMA calendar.

In case of a tie by weight, the first fish registered will be awarded the prize.

At the discretion of the tournament officials, the three largest fish in each division and category may be displayed during the week of the contest and must be available for this purpose. Division leading fish outside the area will be kept by the official weigh-in site where the fish was registered at. 

The contestant upon purchasing a SALMON-A-RAMA ticket agrees to the following:

To abide by all rules established by the SALMON-A-RAMA committee.

Salmon Unlimited of Wisconsin is not responsible for any injuries, damages or theft. Each person fishes the derby at their own risk and shall hold nobody but themselves liable for personal injuries or property damage.

Any person wishing to protest any fish or fisherman registered in any division for a violation of any contest rule or unsportsmanlike conduct, must submit the protest in writing plus a $250 cash protest fee to a Tournament Official in person at an official weigh-in station. The protest must state the rule violated and facts known to the protester. All protests must be submitted either within 24 hours of the time the protested fish was registered or by 10:30 AM CST on the last day, whichever is earlier. Tournament Officials will review all protests. If the protest is found valid, the fee will be returned. If a protest is denied, the $250 protest fee will be forfeited.

The overall Grand Prize fish must be saved at the respective weigh-in station and brought to Tournament Headquarters for display at the SALMON-A-RAMA award ceremony at the discretion of the committee. 

If a person possesses both a Shore AND a Boat registration and catches fish in accordance with the rules of the Shore division, that fish may be entered in either the Shore or the Boat Division, but not both. The participant must declare which division the fish is being entered in at the time the fish is registered and prior to it being weighed. The declaration cannot be changed once the fish is weighed-in.

Fish of the day prize will be awarded for the largest fish for the target species. The fish of the day target species will be drawn after 10:01pm on the day before. The target species will be posted on SAR web and SAR Facebook page. 

All eligible fish must be kept fresh (never frozen) and weighed in within 24 hours.

Each angler can register up to 5 salmon or trout (2 lake trout) per day regardless of the state(s) they are fishing in. Each angler can register up to 5 perch per day regardless of the state they are fishing in. 

Ticket sales grand prize package will be awarded to the largest fish registered from either the Shore, Boat, or Kayak Division.

All fish will be checked for foreign objects. Any attempt to alter a fish’s weight will be reported the proper authorities.

All first-place winners and witnesses to their catch, will be required to sign an affidavit which will include details of their catch.

To take a polygraph test at the discretion of tournament officials.

Boat Division

Boat Division participants are eligible to be on the top ten leader board more than once for each eligible species. 

The following species are eligible in the Boat Division: Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Brown Trout, Lake Trout and Rainbow (Steelhead) Trout.

Everyone fishing on a boat must be registered in SALMON-A-RAMA.

Boat Division Master Angler Award

Anglers must legally catch all Boat Division eligible fish species to be qualified (Lake Trout, Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon and Coho Salmon).

If no one angler catches all the eligible species, the Boat Master Angler Award will not be awarded.

Prizes will be awarded to the top five anglers that catch the largest total accumulated weight of the 5 eligible Boat Division species over the duration of the tournament. 

Shore Division

Shore division anglers must access the shore fishing location by foot. Boats, Kayaks or any flotation devices cannot be used to access shore fishing areas or restricted areas.

The shore division Grand Prize fish will be the largest fish caught overall (Chinook, Brown Trout, Rainbow, Coho). 

Shore division anglers can to be on the leaderboard more than once. (Chinook, Brown Trout, Rainbow, Coho).

Shore division participants are eligible to win the grand prize package, minus the Yamaha engine (Chinook, Brown Trout, Rainbow, Coho).

Shore Division Master Angler Award

Anglers must legally catch all Shore Division eligible fish species to be qualified (Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon and Coho Salmon).

If no one angler catches all the eligible species, the Shore Division Master Angler Award will not be awarded.

The first-place prize will be awarded to the angler that catches the largest total accumulated weight of the four eligible Shore Division species over the duration of the tournament.

Perch Division

All participants possessing a SALMON-A-RAMA ticket are eligible for the perch division.

The perch division will be based on the total length (in millimeters) of up to 5 fish. Only 5 perch can be weighed per day. Over the nine-day period, the top 5 fish entered by length will be the total score.

Prizes will be awarded to the top 5 places in the perch division.

Youth Division

Youth division is open for all children up to/including age 15.

No fish species categories exist in the youth division. Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Brown Trout, Lake Trout, and Rainbow (Steelhead) Trout are eligible to be registered into the Youth Division.

Prizes will be awarded for the top 20 eligible fish caught in the Youth Division.

Youth division anglers are only eligible to be on the leader board once. If a youth division angler registers a fish that weighs more than the Youth's previous entry, the larger fish will be added to the leader board and the smaller fish will be removed from the leader board. (This does not apply to daily prizes).

Youths possessing a youth division ticket can fish from Shore or on a Boat.

Participants in the Youth Division can purchase a Boat and/or a Shore Division ticket.

Youths possessing a Youth division ticket can only enter a fish in the Youth Division unless they possess a Boat or Shore division ticket. In this case, the participant is only eligible to enter the fish into one division and must choose which division to enter the fish into prior to weighing the fish. 

Youth Division fish are eligible for the Big 5 Event.

Youth Division JR SLAM

The youth with the 5 heaviest fish entered within the youth division, regardless of species, will be crowned the youth Division Jr. SLAM winner.

If the fish is weighed under a shore or boat division ticket, then the fish will not qualify toward the Jr. SLAM. The fish must be weighed in under the youth division ticket.

Top 3 Jr Slam winners will receive a trophy.

Youth Master Angler

Anglers must legally catch all eligible fish species to be qualified (Lake Trout, Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon and Coho Salmon).

If no one angler catches all the eligible species, the Youth Master Angler Award will not be awarded.

Prizes will be awarded to the angler that catches the largest total accumulated weight of the 5-eligible species over the duration of the tournament.

Top 3 Youth Master Angler winners will receive a trophy.

Kayak Division

The kayak division is open to all participants, at least 12 years old, possessing a kayak division ticket.

The following species are eligible in the kayak division: Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Brown Trout, Lake Trout and Rainbow (Steelhead) Trout.

A kayak division angler is only eligible to be on the leader board once. If a kayak division angler registers a fish that weighs more than the angler's previous entry in that given category, the larger fish will be added to the leader board and the smaller fish will be removed from the leader board. This does not apply to daily prizes.

This division is only open to kayaks, paddleboards, canoes or any other manually propelled vessels (hereby referred to as "kayak"). The interpretation of a kayak is up to the discretion of tournament officials.

Holders of "Disabled" Fishing Licenses can be allowed a rule exemption.

All fishing must be done from a kayak in the water.

No electric or combustion motors or sails are allowed on the kayak. ( Exemption allowed for disabled anglers with prior approval by SALMON-A-RAMA committee)

No assistance can be made from a motorized vessel except in the case of an emergency.

A participating kayak angler must comply with all SALMON-A-RAMA general rules.

Prizes will be awarded to the 3 largest fish caught in the kayak division. All fish species listed in the general SALMON-A-RAMA rules are eligible. Kayak division participants are eligible to win the grand prize package.

A kayak angler possessing only a kayak division ticket may only enter fish in the kayak division.

A kayak angler possessing only a boat division ticket may only enter fish in the boat division.

A kayak angler possessing both a boat division AND a kayak division ticket may enter their fish in either the kayak or boat division, but not both. The angler must decide which division to enter the fish into prior to weighing in the fish.


Awarding of Prizes

Prize list will be available on the SALMON-A-RAMA website prior to the end of the tournament. Contest prize list is subject to revision as late prizes may be contributed and may be slotted according to policy as set by the prize committee to enhance the prize list.

Prize ceremonies will be held on July 21st, 2024 starting at approximately 1 PM CST. 

All prize money will be mailed to each winner within 60 business days of the end of the tournament provided all federal, state, and local paperwork has been submitted to the Salmon-a-Rama committee. All prizes must be claimed within 60 days of the end of the contest or the prize will be forfeited. All IRS W-9 paperwork must be completed within 20 business days of completion of tournament or prizes can be forfeited. NO CHECKS will be issued for payments over $599 without a completed W-9 submitted to SU treasurer. Any prizes split must be valid SAR ticket holders from the same boat fish was caught on. 

The official daily standings will be determined at the end of each day. The SALMON-A-RAMA website (www.salmon-a-rama.com) has the official standings.

The Super Raffle will be open to the public, which will be on the closing Sunday. To be eligible for the Super Raffle, all participants must purchase their raffle tickets on July 15th-23rd at the SALMON-A-RAMA grounds prior to the Super Raffle on Sunday at See www.salmon-a-rama.com for more details. All prizes must be picked up within 10 days of tournament completion or they will be forfeited.

RULE CHANGES

The Tournament Committee may change or modify any of these rules, as necessary. Any changes will be communicated on this website or social media.

LIABILITY EXCLUSION

Each contestant shall accept responsibility to protect persons and property from injury or damage during the contest, and Salmon Unlimited of Wisconsin shall not be responsible for the safety of persons or property of participants, regardless of cause.

All participants further agree to hold Salmon Unlimited of Wisconsin, its officers, tournament committee, sponsors and volunteers harmless from any liability for damage incurred as result of participation in the Tournament, in whatever form or manner said liabilities or damages might be incurred.