1st Annual Murrells Inlet Spearfishing Tournament & Lionfish Rodeo

Scuba Express @ ExpressWatersports is proud to sponsor first and only Spearfishing Tournament in South Carolina … Scuba Divers and Freedivers are invited to experience the great diving off the Murrells Inlet coast.

The weekend kicks off with a Captain’s Meeting on Thursday, October 25, 2012 at the Inlet Sports Lodge at 7pm. Tournament shooting will be held on Friday, October 26 and Saturday, October 27, 2012. Divers can hunt one or both days. Shooting commences on both days upon sufficient light. Fish weigh-in and awards will be held at Crazy Sister Marina, located at 4123 Highway 17 Business in Murrells Inlet. Weigh-ins must be concluded by 7pm on Friday and by 5pm on Saturday. The Awards Ceremony will be held on Saturday, October 27th at 7pm at the marina. This is an aggregate style fish tournament. Points are awarded for each fish turned in. There will be a nice prize table. Trophies and prizes will be given out for scuba, freedive, female and youth divisions.

In addition to the Spearfishing Tournament, the event also includes a Lionfish Rodeo. This category is an attempt to address the growing threat of lionfish to our ecosystem. These fish are extremely prolific and territorial. They target juvenile grouper and snapper as their prey and destroy reefs and live bottoms. The lionfish are surprisingly tasty and resemble black seabass in texture and taste. Many wholesale fishmarkets are beginning to offer these fish, and they are beginning to appear on menus around the country. Inlet chefs will be on site at the Awards Ceremony cooking and offering free tastes of prepared lionfish. The winner of the Lionfish Rodeo will harvest the largest number of lionfish. The number of lionfish will also be used as a tie-breaker in the tournament.

Registration fees: Early registration (due by 10/11/12): Adult (18 & older) – $75. Youth (12 – 17) – $25. T-shirt sizes are guaranteed for early registrations. Late Registration (10/12/12 – 10/24/12): Adult (18 & older) – $99. Youth (12 – 17) – $45. Day of Registration at Captain’s Meeting (10/25/12): Adult (18 & older) – $109. Youth (12 – 17) – $65. No t-shirt size guarantees for late and day-of registrations.

Call 843-357-2007 for more information.