11th Annual Healthy Lake Committee
Ice Fishing Derby
March 2, 2024
Northern Basin
Pelican Lake, MB

PDF copy of Guide and Rules here

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This Guide contains everything you need to know about the derby, including:

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• Official Rules

• Instructions on how to download the Fish Donkey app and register for the derby

• Details on how to practice in Fish Donkey app

• Instructions on how to enter a fish in the app, and the specific photo/video criteria that we require for fish entered in the derby. 

• Tips for the best possible derby experience in this new electronic format. 

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We recommend you print this guide and bring it with you to the derby so you have it in paper format. You are responsible for reading and understanding the information in the guide and Rules BEFORE the derby. 

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2024 Healthy Lake Ice Fishing Derby Rules & Regulations
 
• The competition is scheduled for Saturday, March 2, 2024 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at Pelican Lake.  Only fish caught during these times, in the designated area, will qualify.  

• There will be no in person registration. Participants must register through the FishDonkey app. To be entered into the ‘early bird’ draw, you must register by the end of Friday, February 23rd, 2024.

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• Registration fees will only be refunded in the event that the derby is cancelled; if there is an extenuating circumstance, we may offer a one time exception at our discretion. No refunds will be issued under any circumstances after March 1, 2024. 

• Entry fee is $60. There will only be one Division; all ages are welcome. Any participants under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Please note each participant should have their own device with the FishDonkey app installed. Each participant must register with a unique email address, which becomes your username. More info on how to register and use the FishDonkey app below. 

• Participants MUST pick up an official Healthy Lake bump board the morning of the derby. Bump board pick-up opens at 8:00 am, and will be located on the ice just off Terry Fox Park in Ninette. Only official bump boards will be accepted in derby measurement photos, you may not use your own bump board. Any alteration to or bending of bump board, visible either in photos or in person, will result in the disqualification of the angler from the derby. If your bump board becomes damaged accidentally during the derby, bring it to the committee to be exchanged. Bump boards must be returned to the committee before leaving the derby. 

• It is highly recommended that you fish with another derby participant(s) in order to properly take your photos and videos as described below. If you’re fishing with a partner or a group, only one of you needs to pick up a bump board at check in, to share for the day.  

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• Holes will not be pre-drilled. Please bring your own auger if you have one. We will have a volunteer with an auger drilling holes for those who don't have an auger, but this may mean waiting. If you need help drilling a hole on derby day, flag down one of our security or committee.  

• Manitoba Fishing regulations in effect.  Anglers must have a valid license unless exempt, and all entrants must use a barbless hook. One registration allows you to fish a maximum of two lines, as per fishing license regulations. If any derby official should find an entrant fishing in violation of Manitoba regulations, that person will be disqualified from the tournament. Conservation officers will be in attendance and making the rounds as well. 

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• Fish limits do not apply when using an app like Fish Donkey, as it is direct catch and release. There is no limit to the number or size of fish you can enter in the derby through the app, as long as the fish are measured, entered, and released as soon as they are caught. 

• Participants must fish in the area designated for the contest, which is the northern basin of Pelican Lake. If there are no visible marks showing the southern boundary, the southern boundary is a line between Manhattan Point and the opposite shore on the west side of Pelican Lake.  Any fish caught outside of the designated area will be denied. 

• Derby participants may NOT fish in a group with anglers who are not registered in the derby and are actively fishing. Our security team have the right to disqualify any derby participants fishing in this manner. You may have non-derby guests if they are not fishing during derby hours. We must enforce this rule in order to keep things equal and fair for all derby participants. 

• Fireworks or other sounding device will sound to begin and end derby. If you do not hear the sound, you may begin fishing at 10:00 am. Absolutely NO pre-fishing will be allowed.  Any participant with a line in the water prior to 10:00 am will be disqualified. 

• In case of discrepancies or complaints, the Derby Official’s decision shall be final. No other person can be considered as spokesperson for the rules during the derby.

• Northern Pike, Walleye and Perch are eligible. Only fish of these species caught with a barbless hook in the usual manner will be allowed. See below for detailed instructions on how to measure your fish with Fish Donkey app. 

• A live leaderboard can be found in the app. 

• PRIZES: The grand prize will be awarded to the longest fish caught overall. Then, 1st place will be awarded in each of the other two fish species categories. This will continue with 2nd place across all fish species categories, 3rd place and so forth. This process will continue until all prizes have been awarded. We will award prizes to the longest 7 fish in each of the three species categories, at minimum. In the event of a tie in length, the fish measured first will be awarded above the fish measured second, and so forth.  

• Prizes will be awarded after the close of the derby as soon as submissions are verified; around 3:00 pm. Any change to this timeline will be announced/posted during the derby. If you are a winner please be at the derby village no later than 2:45 pm. Final winners’ names will be listed in the app, and posted on our facebook page shortly after 2:00 pm. Prizes must be accepted as awarded and claimed at the derby, and proof of derby registration or proof of identity must be shown when claiming your prize. All prizes are final and no cash substitutes or prize exchange will be allowed.

• RANDOM DRAW prizes will be drawn during the derby between 10:00 and 11:00. All registered participants are in the random draw. Random draw winners will be posted on our facebook page, as well as posted at the derby village. If you are a random draw winner you may come collect your prize at any time during the derby. 

• Winners List will be posted on this webpage in the days following the derby.  

• As per Manitoba Law, it is illegal to leave refuse including dead fish or fish remains on the ice.

• Failure to comply with the contest rules subjects participants to disqualification.

• The organizer may at any time before, during and after each event change event format if so required.

• The derby officials have the right to enter/inspect fishing shacks and/or tents etc. 

• The derby officials have the right to delay or shorten the tournament, subject to weather or safety conditions.

• All participants must do their utmost to exhibit good sportsmanship and conduct at all times during the derby.

• NO alcoholic beverages will be allowed at any time during the derby.

• Promoters and organizations assisting in the derby operation, their agencies and agents are not responsible for death, injury, damage, liability, theft or fire on any entries.  Each entrant, upon entering the derby, understands and agrees to the previous sentence.  At all times, during and after, you are responsible for your safety, actions, gear and equipment.

• Participants agree upon entry of the derby that they may be photographed for the promotion of the Pelican Lake Healthy Water and Fish event and the use of any photographs without compensation.
 
How to use the FISH DONKEY app:  

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Download the Fish Donkey app on to your device from your app store or from www.fishdonkey.com/app. 

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Practice, practice, practice in the Fish Donkey app BEFORE derby day. To practice, join the tournament called ‘Practice Entering a Fish.’ Get familiar with the app’s camera and video. Practice taking photos with and without the flash, and videos. 

 

To register for the derby, open the app and select the orange button ‘Fish in a Tournament’. Search for ‘Healthy Lake Ice Fishing Derby 2024’. Select Join Now. You will register and pay. Once you’ve successfully registered you will receive a receipt by email, and the Healthy Lake Ice Fishing Derby will appear on the home page of the Fish Donkey app on your device. Each person will register separately, under a unique email address. The email address you register under becomes your Fish Donkey username. PLEASE NOTE: logging in and out of the app between participants on one device is nearly impossible and not recommended. If you are in a poor reception area, once you log out you will not be able to log back in. Using the app in this manner (logging in and out between participants to share a device) is likely to result in a bad experience for you at the derby, and may cause the app to not work at all. If you choose to do this against our recommendations, we are not responsible for lost fish or the app not working for you, etc. 

 

To enter a fish during the derby: 

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1.  Open the Fish Donkey app. On the home screen, tap the Healthy Lake Ice Fishing Derby. It’s best to open the app and get into the tournament while you’re in a good reception area, and leave it open for the day. Don’t log out of the app!

2.  Once you’ve caught a fish, tap ‘Enter a Fish’. This opens the app camera. You cannot upload photos from your regular camera roll, you MUST take the photos THROUGH the app. 

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Measuring Instructions: Each fish must be measured on an Official Healthy Lake Bump Board. You must pick one up at derby check in. You may NOT use your own bump board. Through the Fish Donkey app take the following required two photos and one video: 

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PHOTO ONE (hero shot): Angler who is entering the fish, holding the fish with the left side of the fish towards the camera. The angler in the photo must be the participant the fish is entered under. 

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PHOTO TWO (bump board shot): Fish on the bump board with the left side of the fish towards the camera. The fish’s mouth must be closed and touching the bump of the bump board. Tail must be flat, not pinched to the center. You may pinch the tail just to the width of the bumpboard if necessary. The entire fish must be visible in the photo. Take photo from directly above the fish, not at an angle. If lighting is poor, take the picture with flash. 

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VIDEO (live release): Start the video with the fish on the bump board after taking PHOTO TWO showing the whole length of the fish. The fish must be gently released into the water, head first down the hole, showing a healthy, live release. Fish must be alive and swim downward out of sight after release. 

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Be sure you have the photos you want before taking your fish release video. You can’t re-take photos of a fish that has been released! Take multiple photos and choose the best ones in the next step before submitting. Remember, you must take the photos and videos THROUGH THE APP. Do not take them with your regular phone camera app.

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3.    Once you’ve taken your photos and video tap the green check mark. 

4.    Uncheck any extra photos that you don’t want to submit, and make sure you have your final required two photos and one video checked. 

5.    Enter the species and the length. The measurement lines on the bump board are every half centimetre. If the tail touches a line use that measurement. If it is between lines, round down to the nearest half centimetre. For example, a fish that is slightly over the 20.5 cm line but is not touching 21 cm line would be entered as 20.5 cm. 

6.    Tap Submit.

7.    Your entry will now show up in the Leaderboard. If it does NOT show up in the leaderboard, tap on your Digital Live Well (fish icon) to see if it is in there. If it is, that means you don’t have enough cell reception at the moment. However your fish entry is time stamped, and will upload into the Leaderboard as soon as you have enough reception. 

8.    We recommend checking your digital live well periodically during the derby. If there are fish in your digital live well, leave it open and move to a better reception spot periodically to upload your fish. If needed, we will have internet set up at the derby village to connect to and get your fish uploaded. If this happens, please do not wait until the end of the derby to upload all of your digital live well fish. 

As fish are received into the Leaderboard, derby officials will be verifying fish by checking photos and measurements. 

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Penalties during fish verification: 

• Right side of fish towards camera = 1/2 cm deducted from length per incorrect photo   

• Full fish not visible in hero shot = 1/2 cm deducted from length

• Video not starting in position photo two was taken in = 1/2 cm deducted from length

• Fish mouth not fully closed in bump board shot = 1 cm deducted from length

• *Stressed or damaged fish (excessive bleeding, extended revival, etc) = 3 cm deducted from length. *Determining if fish are stressed will be at the discretion of tournament officials. 

• Tail not fully visible in bump board shot = fish denied

• Mouth of fish and/or bump not fully visible in bump board shot = fish denied

• Missing one of the required photos or video = fish denied

• Fish mouth not touching bump = fish denied

• Fish not shown swimming out of sight in release video = fish denied

• Any alteration to or bending of bump board, visible either in photos or in person = disqualification of angler from derby

 

TIPS: 

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We recommend that you fish with another derby participant (or have a non fishing helper with you), in order to make taking your pictures and video easier. 

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We recommend you register with an email address that you receive on your phone, in case we send out announcements by email during the derby. Announcements will also be made on our facebook page. 

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Keep in mind you may need to charge your device during the derby. You may want to bring a battery bank etc. Make sure devices are fully charged before the start of the derby. 

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When you catch a fish during the derby, check the leaderboard to see where it will fall in the standings. If it's not going to be anywhere near the top of the leaderboard, you may decide to just release it to get back to fishing for a bigger one. Of course, you can submit any size fish if you want, but it will save you time if you just release the shorter ones. 

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Fish Donkey is a well run app that has been used for thousands of fishing tournaments. The key is becoming familiar with how it works, and practicing ahead of time. You are responsible for learning how to use the app ahead of time. Do NOT wait until the day of the derby to use it for the first time. Join the practice tournament as mentioned above and practice entering fish. Our derby volunteers will not be able to be tech support for everyone on derby day, as we will have a derby to run. Of course, we will help people as best we can if issues do pop up, but we will not have time to train you on how to use the app. 

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For any technical issues with the app during the derby, call Fish Donkey tech support at 1-218-249-0847. They are happy to help and will get your issues sorted out in no time! 

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A Message to all Derby Participants

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The Healthy Lake Committee would like to thank everyone who supports our derby. Many of you have attended for several years and we’re happy to see more and more familiar faces each year as people return to fish with us. With the big changes to regulations many derbies in Manitoba are facing the choice of totally changing their format or having to cancel their derbies this year. We also considered cancelling our 2024 derby, but in the end we decided we wanted to keep the annual tradition going. We ask for your patience and understanding as we learn the ins and outs of running a derby in this new electronic format. Our committee is 100% volunteers. Our goal is still the same as it always was: to run a fun, fair, and organized derby that encourages good sportsmanship and proper fish handling. Pelican Lake and its fishery is a precious resource, and we thank you for taking part in helping us care for it now and for years to come! 

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Please note that we have moved the FREE youth division to a stand alone derby this year, to be held on March 9, 2024. Full details on that is available HERE. 

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