ORC - Care of fish for weigh-in

Since this is a tournament, with a bonus of fresh fish to eat, a question......

Is the largest fish by weight, length, or a combo?  I ask for a specific reason that really may be mute, but hey...:

In caring for our catch, most of us catch, bleed, bonk, and store - or some fashion of the sequence....What is the possibility from past results, that the weight lost from bleeding will be a factor?

I personally have only bled out salmon, never rockfish, but with all the research I have been doing, it appears that I will be changing my ways and bleeding them out so that I get an even better quality product to consume.

Thoughts?

To make it level, I wouldn't mind a rule that all fish must be bled before weigh-in.  That way we're not risking ruining the meat just to save an ounce or two of weight.

IIRC from the thread on last year's tournament, bleeding vs not would not have affected the winner, but might well have affected some lower places.

Edit: Look here for the weights from last year.

   Fish have to be weighed in by 2:00 PM.
   Figure that time into your quality of meat equation.......for the competition.

You're overthinking it.   

Look, if you catch something you think might win, don't bleed it, get it weighed, and if you're concerned about the meat quality, donate it to the potluck.  We won't mind eating it.

For everything else you catch, handle it like you normally would.

Bleed or not to bleed...    Leave it up to the individual anglers personal choice.  Meat from either is still more than edible and I'd bet most couldn't tell bled from unbled once it hits the fryer.   

Any suggestions on how to best stuff the fish with lead?   

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/19468/cheating+scandal+at+us+open+rocks+bass-fishing+community/

Just stuff a leagal size crab down its throat and and you are sure to win!

Any suggestions on how to best stuff the fish with lead?   

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/19468/cheating+scandal+at+us+open+rocks+bass-fishing+community/

Shhh!!! Dont give away all the good secrets!

I figure I'm out of town for it and have been doing some behind the scene negotiations to get half of any winnings using said tricks...

Not sure how well half a boat floats 

Has to float better than a ling stuffed with 5 lbs of lead, right?

Touche

Forgive my ignorance here, I've never fished in the ocean before.  But wouldn't bleeding a fish in the ocean be somewhat hazardous (sharks and stuff)?

Forgive my ignorance here, I've never fished in the ocean before.  But wouldn't bleeding a fish in the ocean be somewhat hazardous (sharks and stuff)?

You're absolutely right!  The best practice in this department is to bleed your fish into the bag you keep them in, such as a catch cooler bag or a big drybag.  Not only does this keep you from chumming the water around you, but you can throw in ice packs and keep your fish cool and out of the sun.

Forgive my ignorance here, I've never fished in the ocean before.  But wouldn't bleeding a fish in the ocean be somewhat hazardous (sharks and stuff)?

You're absolutely right!  The best practice in this department is to bleed your fish into the bag you keep them in, such as a catch cooler bag or a big drybag.  Not only does this keep you from chumming the water around you, but you can throw in ice packs and keep your fish cool and out of the sun.

I agree with the keeping em cool part but I don't think sharks are keying in on spiney little rockfish or dead lingcod.  Now, if you were bleeding out a whale or a sea lion there'd be cause for concern. 

For those that don't agree, you'll be happy to know that Konezone is kicking down a couple of kayak size kill bags for prizes.   

-Spot-