A. The club name will be "Windy City Cat Catchers".
B.
Windy City Cat Catchers will be printed on all jackets, shirts, or other
accessories used in
promoting the club, it's team, or it's membership. The colors of
said accessories will be
yellow, red,
and blue.
To improve
our skills as catfish fishermen through fellowship, and to exchange catfish
fishing techniques and knowledge.
A. Must be a minimum of 18 years of age.
B. Must complete, sign, and submit a Membership Application.
C.
Must agree with and adhere to the clubs Purpose, Constitution, and
other club rules and
regulations.
Section 2: Acceptance for Membership
A.
A prospective members application for membership shall be considered
at the end os his/her
second event attended.
B.
A 2/3 majority vote of the membership in attendance is required for
acceptance. (no proxy
votes permitted).
C.
If there is more than one applicant to be voted on, applications will
be considered in
alphabetical order.
A.
Annual membership dues for all club members are due at the clubs 1st
scheduled meeting for
each new year.
B.
All new members must have their dues at the time of acceptance,
or at the next scheduled
club meeting.
C.
Membership dues are as follows:
New Members: $20.00
Returning Members: $15.00 / year
Total club
membership will not exceed 50 members.
B.
The Executive Committee will meet one hour prior to all regular
meetings for the purpose of
conducting club business.
C.
During the tournament season (April thru October), special club meetings
may be held at the
end of
a tournament if deemed necessary by the President or the Executive
Committee.
D.
Special meetings may be held at the discretion of the President.
A.
There will be seven sites selected for the tournament schedule.
There may be no more than
seven club tournaments in one year. No body of water may be fished
more than twice in one
tournament year.
B.
The creation of the tournament schedule will begin at the January meeting
with the following
procedures:
1) Each club member will write down the
top seven sites he/she would like to fish in the
coming year. Two of the seven must be sites that were not on the
prior years'
tournament schedule.
2) The Secretary/Treasurer will total
up the nominations and announce to the
membership which
fishing sites were chosen by the membership. The top sites will be
the tournament sites.
3) The Executive Committee will create
a tentative schedule to be voted on at the next
meeting by the membership. If the tournament schedule is not approved
by a majority of
the membership in attendance at said meeting, the Executive Committee
will create a
new schedule and will continue to do so until approved by the membership.
C.
If for any reason a tournament location is changed, the new tournament
site will come from the
list of sites nominated by the membership at the beginning of the year.
D. There will be at least one "over-night" tournament held each year.
E. There will be at least one two-day tournament held each year.
F.
The club may elect to fish against another "Catfish" club.
Section 2: Entering a Tournament
A. All club members will be provided with Tournament Applications for each tournament.
B.
Tournament applications, along with the appropriate entry fee, must
be received by the
Tournament Director no later than the Monday prior to the tournament.
C.
Any tournament application / entry fee not received on time may be
refused by the
Tournament Director.
D.
Tournament entry fees are listed on the Tournament Application, and
are as follows:
1 day tournaments are $5.00 each.
2 day tournaments are $8.00 each.
Officers of the club are not required to pay entry fees.
E.
Any member who pays an entry fee, but fails to show up at the tournament,
will automatically
forfeit said entry fee, which will go into the club treasury. In
special circumstances, the
Executive Committee may elect to refund entry fees at it's discretion.
A.
The Tournament Director has final word on all issues
pertaining to club tournaments. Any
member or perspective member not complying with said tournament rules may
be
disqualified by the
Tournament Director and will forfeit all fees and all
points for the
tournament. (Even show
points).
B.
Fishing hours will be determined by the Tournament Director and
published in the monthly
Newsletter preceding the tournament. If the Tournament Director
changes the hours after
the Newsletter has been published, he/she must notify all participating
members in advance.
C.
The Tournament Director will draw the tournament pairings.
No fisherman shall be paired
together more than 2 times in one tournament year.
D.
The Tournament Director shall designate a weigh-in assistant
at each tournament. He/she
must be at the check point at a time designated by the Tournament Director
and will
check in members
and assist in the weigh-in procedures.
E.
The Tournament Director shall designate any off limits areas
of each site before fishing
begins at
that site.
F.
Any member checking in late at the beginning of the tournament may
be penalized or
disqualified by
the Tournament Director.
G.
Any member checking in late at a weigh-in will forfeit 25 points
from his/her totals. If over
10 minutes late, he/she may be disqualified from the tournament.
If a member is over 1/2
hour late,
all members competing in the tournament shall start an organized search.
H.
Species of Catfish to be counted at weigh-in will be determined by
majority vote of the
membership at the first regular meeting held before the first tournament.
I.
All state and local laws regarding size and number of fish will apply
at all club tournaments.
Any laws or regulations limiting number of lines, poles, hooks, etc. will
be strictly adhered
to. Any member
or perspective member not complying with said regulations will
be immediately disqualified
from the tournament, and may be expelled from the club.
J.
Both competitors must stay together at all times during the tournament,
unless under
emergency conditions.
(Washroom breaks are allowed).
K.
The Tournament Director will keep a log book of all club tournaments,
with information on
number of fish weighed, weather, and water conditions. He/she will
allow access to all
information, maps, etc. to club members.
L.
Club members are required to provide honest and correct information
at the request of the
Tournament Director. Failure to do so can result in disqualification
and a loss of all points
received in that tournament.
M.
Protests must be submitted in writing to the Tournament Director
within 1/2 hour of the
weigh-in. Whenever possible, an immediate ruling will be made by
the Tournament
Director. Otherwise,
the Executive Committee will research the protest and make a
decision within 2
weeks following the incident. All protests, along with the rulings,
will be
documented in the next
Newsletter following the protest.
Section 4: Point Schedule & Weigh-In Rules
A. All members attending an off-season meeting (November thru March) will receive 50 points.
B. All members attending in-season meetings (April thru October) will receive 20 points.
C. All members attending a tournament will receive 25 show points.
D.
Tournament bonus points shall be awarded (by total weight) to all who
catch keeper fish
according to the following Bonus Point Scale:
1st place - 200 points (100%)
2nd place - 160 points (80%)
3rd place - 130 points (65%)
4th place - 110 points (55%)
5th place - 100 points (50%)
6th place - 90 points (45%)
7th place - 80 points (40%)
8th place - 70 points (35%)
9th place - 60 points (30%)
10th place - 50 points (25%)
All members weighing keeper fish and placing 10th place or lower will receive
50 bonus
points (25%
of base).
E.
Length and weight of keeper fish to be decided by majority vote of
membership in
attendance at the
first regular meeting held before the first tournament.
F.
"Big Cat" for the tournament is worth an additional 15 bonus
points. In a 2-day tournament,
"Big Cat" is awarded to the largest fish weighed over both days and is
worth 25 bonus
points.
G.
All questionable fish will be checked for size by the Tournament
Director using a "Golden
Rule Weighmaster".
Any fish that does not meet the minimum size limit will not be counted,
and a
penalty of 1 lb.
will be assessed against the remaining weight total. If the short
fish is
the only one
brought to the weigh-in, the member will forfeit his/her tournament show
points.
H. A forfeiture of 0.2 pounds will be assessed for each dead fish.
I. All ties in the final year-end standings will be broken by total weight for the year.
J.
No points will be awarded for club sponsored events, such as the Awards
Banquet, Family
Picnic, etc.
A.
The club will organize an annual Awards Banquet and pay for the cost
of all associated
awards.
B.
Acheivement awards will be presented at the annual Awards Banquet to
the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd
Place overall finishers. The winners of these awards may choose between
:
1) a jacket, 2) a trophy, or
3) a wall plaque.
C.
Special awards will be presented at the annual Awards Banquet to the
Season Big Cat
Winner and
the Most Improved Fisherman. The winners of these awards may choose
between :
1) a trophy, or 2) a plaque.
A. The purpose of the Executive Committee is to function as the governing body of the club.
B.
This committee shall consist of the four Officers of the club
and three club members elected
at large.
A.
PRESIDENT: Shall
preside over all meetings, direct all official business, and supervise
all
club functions.
Shall create an agenda (with assistance from the Secretary/Treasurer),
and preserve
order throughout all club meetings. Shall perform all other duties
outlined in the
Constitution.
B.
VICE-PRESIDENT/PUBLIC RELATIONS: Shall
assume all duties of the President
in the event
of his/her death or resignation, until the position is filled in accordance
with
the by-laws. Shall
act as an aide to the President and will represent the President
upon
request. Shall be the
spokesperson and primary contact for all public relations outside
the club.
C.
SECRETARY/TREASURER: Shall
be responsible for keeping accurate records of the
proceedings of the club, shall distribute a monthly Newsletter that will
contain the minutes
of the last
meeting, club standings, tournament results, statements of unfinished business
to
be brought up
at the next meeting, and any other news that is of benefit to club members.
Shall have on hand
at each meeting (for reference), a copy of the Constitution, minutes
from the previous meeting,
and a list of club standings. Shall have charge of all funds of
the club, and shall place same
in a bank approved by the Executive Committee. Such
monies shall be withdrawn by check,
by either the Secretary/Treasurer, or, in case of
emergency, the President. Shall complete
an annual itemized Financial Report (signed by
the President) to be presented to the membership
at the December meeting.
D.
TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR: Shall
be responsible for all tournament details and will
enforce all tournament rules. Shall keep a detailed log book of all
tournaments. Shall
prepare a Site
Information Sheet for each tournament which details directions to
the
tournament location, water
characteristics, and any other information about the site which
may be useful to club members.
A.
The nominations of Officers will be held annually at the November
meeting of each fishing
season.
B.
The election of Officers will be held annually at the December
meeting. Elections will be by
secret ballot determined by plurality vote. No proxy votes are allowed.
Elections for each
Officer shall be held seperately in the order listed in Article
V, Section 2.
Section 4: Eligibility to Vote
Each member
in good standing is entitled to vote. Proxy votes are not
permitted.
The term of
office is one year, which shall begin immediately after the election results
are tallied and
continue until
the next election is held.
In the event
of an office becoming vacant, nominations shall be requested and an election
held to fill
the unexpired
term of the individual vacating the office.
A. A member may be expelled from the club for any of the following reasons :
1) Failure to pay dues as outlined in Article II, Section 3.
2) Missing 3 consecutive events without notifying an Executive Committee member.
3) Any action which would reflect dishonor or disgrace the club.
4) If the membership feels that a members
participation is no longer mutually beneficial
to the
organization.
B. In order to remove a member from the club, the following procedures must be followed :
1) All charges must be submitted in writing,
along with any supporting affidavits and
exhibits, to
the Executive Committee. (By appointment only).
2) The Executive Committee will investigate
all charges and present its findings to the
membership at the next regular or special club meeting.
3) A 2/3 majority vote (by secret ballot)
of the membership in attendance at said meeting is
required for removal.
C.
Expelled members who wish to be reinstated in the club must meet all
membership
requirements (Article
II, Section 1), and be re-accepted according to Article II,
Section 2.
A.
Any Officer or Executive Committee member may be removed
from office by following
the procedures
outlined in Article VI, Section 1.
B.
Any Officer or Executive Committee member removed from
office may appeal to the
membership at the next regular or special club meeting. A secret
ballot will be taken, and if
approved by a 2/3 majority vote of the membership in attendance, the Officer
or Executive
Committee member will be reinstated.
Club funds
shall be donated from club dues, events, fund raisers, sponsors, and tournament
fees.
Section 2: Authorized Spending
The Secretary/Treasurer
or President will be authorized to expend funds for incurred
expenses.
B.
Proposed updates to the Constitution may be presented to the Executive
Committee (by
appointment only) at any regular or special club meeting. If the
Executive Committee
agrees with
the proposal, the Constitution will be ammended and the change will be
outlined
in the next
monthly Newsletter.
C.
The Constitution will be reviewed annually by the Executive Committee
at the January
meeting for possible revisions.
Last
Revision Date: 08/17/99