The 15th annual Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament kicks off this week showcasing some of the top white marlin teams in the Atlantic. While the spotlight will be on the competition the next several days, there is another important reason for this popular event—to raise money for local charities that help kids and the natural resources. This year the VBBT is holding four raffles with unique prizes to fund those critically needed contributions.
“This is our 15th year and after every tournament we look at how much money we’ve raised overall,” says VBBT Marketing Director Deirdre Bell Loftin. “We’re well over the $800,000-mark, so we’re really hoping to reach $1 million to celebrate our 15th anniversary by selling raffle tickets for some cool prizes.
“The VBBT is all about fun, fishing and competition,” she adds. “But it’s also about our ability to do good for good charities. They all have excellent scores and really look out for the kids and resources. The main ones we support are the local Boys & Girls Clubs, Achievable Dream and Stop Abuse. Our title sponsor, the Charles Barker Automotive Group, gets it rolling with a generous $25,000 donation split between those three charities and the raffle proceeds will let us enhance our contributions even further.”
Two big prizes top this year’s raffle drawings. The first is a fully reconditioned Tomberlin custom street legal golf cart. This one is the E-merge model with a 5-inch lift kit, custom wheels and tires and a brand-new factory rear seat kit. This cool ride is street legal in all 50 states in speed zones of 35 mph or less. Only 250 tickets will be sold at $100 apiece for this cart valued at $11,000. The late buzz on the docks is that the cart may actually be a brand new, tricked-out machine, but we won’t know for certain until Saturday night.
You’ll never have to guess about line’s in and out times again with the other top raffle prize. For a $100 raffle ticket, 250 anglers will have a chance to win this timeless Rolex Submariner two-tone watch. It is brand new, certified and a lifetime time piece. The Rolex is valued at $13,400.
Get ready for hunting season with raffle item Number 3, a Benelli Super Black Eagle III 12-gauge shotgun. It has a 28-inch barrel and comes in Max 5 camo finish. The retail value for this precision shotgun is $1,800 and only 100 tickets will be sold at $50 each.
Hunters preferring silent stalks will love to get their hands on the Prime Logic RH 28.0 60 Fusion compound bow. It’s valued at $1,200 and only 100 tickets will be sold at $50 each.
If all of these special items appeal to you, a MegaTicket bundle is available for $250 for a chance to win all four items. The MegaTickets will be sold until one item sells out completely. Winners are responsible for shipping the items if they’re not picked up locally.
The VBBT Rolex Raffle will continue until all tickets are sold. A special Facebook live event will broadcast the drawing when sales are final. Drawings for the other three items will take place Saturday evening, the 25th, at the VBBT tournament tent. Winners don’t have to be present to win.
Tickets can be purchased at the VBBT tournament for participants, from local volunteers or on-line at VBBT.com. Credit card payment is allowed; a convenience fee will be added to the ticket price.
Fishing begins at 8:30 am Thursday for the 2018 VBBT, but the raffle ticket sales are already underway. Both will feature some awesome catches for the winners!