Want to get involved with and fish Elite Kayak Fishing tournaments?
Here are the essentials…
RULES
This is the most important thing every tournament angler needs to pay attention to, and yet it’s probably the one aspect of our sport that anglers pay the least attention to.
To help promote consistency in kayak bass fishing competition nationwide, Elite Kayak Fishing adopted Kayak Bass Fishing’s Competition Rules Standards. You can find those rules here.
However, there are a few things that we do differently, so we have our own rules addendum, which you can find here. In addition, some events may have its own rules addendum, fewer restrictions or more. Those details will be provided in the event description on Fishing Chaos.
All anglers wishing to compete in our tournaments are required to understand and comply with these rules. Failure to do so could result in deductions or disqualification.
MEMBERSHIP
Membership is not required to fish our events. However, non-members will pay a higher entry fee. Our premium members enjoy benefits such as sponsor discounts (sent throughout the season), exclusive merch, lower entry fees than non-members, and the ability to compete in our Championship and for Angler of the Year. Join here through Fishing Chaos, which is what we use for our tournament management system.
TOURNAMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
We use Fishing Chaos as our tournament management system, which means we run our events through their website and app, as well as control our memberships, communicate with our members, etc.
You will need a Fishing Chaos account and the app on your phone. You can read more details about the app and making sure your phone settings are compatible with the app here.
You do not need a Fishing Chaos subscription, but they do have two plans available—monthly and annual. These plans are more beneficial to the angler who fishes a lot of events that use the app. You’re not obligated to buy a subscription, but the choice is yours. At a minimum, you will need to create an account with them and have the app on your phone in order to fish our events.
APPROVED MEASURING DEVICE
All anglers fishing EKF events must must use an approved measuring device, which includes the following:
Ketch Products Karbonate and aluminum measuring boards.
As of June 26, 2024, the YakAttack LeaderBoard is approved for use in Elite Kayak Fishing events.
Anglers using any other measuring device will have their fish denied.
PERSONAL FLOTATION DEVICE (PFD)
All anglers are required to wear a PFD (i.e. life vest) at all times during our events. The one exception is when you are adding or removing closing (specific details on that can be found in the rules, section 15).
There are many other things that will help you on your journey into competitive kayak fishing, but all of that comes in time, comes with experience, engaging with your fellow anglers, etc. Everything listed above is the essentials, the stuff you must have to fish our events.
There are some more obvious essentials, of course, like a phone, an approved vessel (kayak, canoe, etc.), but everything above should cover all of the less obvious requirements.