Dildo Pond derby looks at changing rules to allow salmon

Organizers of a trout fishing derby say they'll survey all registered competitors in an attemptto determine a winner in a contest sidelined by salmon.

"I want togive the prizes away," said Terry Snow, owner of Buy & Sell Magazine, which sponsored the Valentine's Day derby on Dildo Pond in Trinity Bay.

"Ijust want to put an end to this in the fairest possible waythat Ican."

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DNA testing confirmed Friday that the top contender is a salmon. According to contest rules, the 5.6 pound fish would be disqualified.

Snow said the Department of Fisheries and Oceans is trying to determine if two other potential prize winners are also salmon.Buthe doesn't want to wait for that information before deciding his next step.

Snowtold CBC News on Monday that he is polling hundreds of derby entrants to ask if they are willing to retroactively open the contest to all types of fish not just brown or brook trout.

"And we'll see what the reaction is of the people that we poll and hopefully we'll get a consensus," Snow said.

More than $30,000 worth of prizes are at stake.

The angler who caught the biggest fish, Owen White, told CBC News onFriday that derby organizers should have known there were salmon in Dildo Pond, and set up a tank to keep the fish alive while they were weighed and measured.

"Why should Ihave to suffer for their lack of due diligence," questioned White, who has threatened to hire a lawyer.

"Next year, we'll make an adjustment to the rules," said Snow, who said neither he nor DFO realized there were salmon in the pond.

Snow said the uncertainty surrounding the 2016 winnershould be resolved by the end of the week.

"I want to put an end to this. I need to put an end to it," he said.

"And I would like it to end with a happy ending."