Carp Tournaments

For those of you who have been following the carp fly fishing game for a little while may have heard about some of the carp fly fishing tournaments that are, for the most part, in their sophomore year. The three we're aware of and have on our own bucket lists to do (as long as they continue to happen annually) were a HUGE hit last year and have made their way back by popular demand. Some of the carp anglers we've talked to this week so far have been in these tournaments, especially Orvis' Carp-ocalypse out in Washington.

For those of you who don't know much about them, here's a little more info so you can either prepare yourself for this year's event or next years...

3 Rivers Carp Cup

This is the only of the three events that has yet to happen. Its being brought to you by all the awesome names you see on the poster, from Orvis to YETI to Nautilus and much more. Here's some info pulled from the event's website...

"Anglers should attend an informal "meet and greet" on Friday August 16th at the Outdoor Knoxville Adventure Center in order to explain the rules of the tournament and socialize with other anglers and local celebrities. Beer and food will be available. All anglers must check in at the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame located at 700 Hall of Fame Drive Knoxville, TN 37915 the morning of the tournament. Check-in will begin at 8:00 am sharp and will continue until 9:30 for the late risers. During event check-in anglers will receive an official 3 Rivers Carp Cup ruler that is to be used to measure and document the length of all fish caught. 

The final "weigh-in" and the awards ceremony will be held at the Outdoor Knoxville Adventure Center. Anglers must bring in their digital cameras with the pictures of their catch along with their score cards to the Adventure Center no later than 6:00pm. An official Carp Cup tournament shirt and other sponsor gear will be included in the registration fee. Prizes and awards will be given out once all of the contestants' catches have been registered."

The event is $50 per person and there are two divisions, a Team Division (The Boat Division is a team tournament! Teams can consist of no more than three people per boat, at least one of which must be 18 years or older. Boats may be motorized or drift.) and Individual Division (The Wade/KAYAK/SUP Division is for individual anglers only). Here's how they score everything...

"Every fish must be recorded with a digital camera or phone, and each measurement must be with anofficial Carp Cup ruler (to be provided to each team or angler at sign-in)that clearly shows the entire length of the fish and a close-up of the ruler. Anglers must take two photos of each registered fish; one hero shot and one shot clearly documenting the length of the fish with the official Carp Cup ruler. All fish must also be recorded on each angler's score card. *The 5 largest fish per length per team/angler count: 

1 inch = 1 point The team/angler with the most points wins their division. *The team/angler with the most points wins their division. In the event of a tie, the angler/team with the largest total fish caught will be declared the winner. In the event of a further tie, the 3RCC ruling committee will decide how to divvy up prizes."

For those of you who live near Knoxville, TN or are willing to make the trip, act now and sign up to give yourself a chance to win some great prizes and have a great time!

Orvis' Carp-ocalypse 

You can read the poster for most of the info but unfortunately, this event happed during the opening weekend of Carp Week. Carp-ocalypse was awesome last year and it had such a big turnout that Orvis had to do it again and it also helped plant the seed for their now awesome Carp Central section on their site (read about it more today in the Orvis' Carp Central post). This tournament was Adam McNamara or Orvis Portland's brainchild and was a hit. Adam helped us out a lot last year with Carp Week and is a great friend to TLTFF, he's also an amazing resource for fly fishing for carp. We're excited to get a recap from him on how this year's Carp-ocalypse went.

For a full roundup from Adam on the Orvis News site, click here.

Denver Trout Unlimited's Carp Slam

The last event that happened this year and is in its seventh year is the Denver Trout Unlimited's (one of the biggest TU chapters in the US) Carp Slam. Here's a little more about the Slam via the event's site...

"It’s a fly fishing tournament where the finest professional and amateur anglers in the region (and beyond) match wits with the wily and elusive common carp. Carp are one of the most difficult freshwater fish to pursue on fly – meanwhile the urban South Platte River running through downtown Denver is one of the finest carp fisheries in North America.
The purpose of the tournament is to raise money for the reconstruction / rehabilitation of the Urban South Platte River below Chatfield Reservoir and through Denver."

Denver TU does a great job with this event and apparently has a great turnout (otherwise they wouldn't be in their 7th year). Here's the trailer they put together for this year's Carp Slam...

For more info about Carp Slam, how you can get involved next year and who was in it, check out the event's website.

The best part about these tournaments is they all benefit great causes! Be sure to keep your eye on these events, we're hoping to do at least one next year!

Boom...The TLTFF Crew