On Nov. 14 and 15, at the Central Florida Fairgrounds on Colonial Drive, the Florida Sportsman Fishing and Boat Show will host two days of hardcore fishing information offered by a dozen top fishing pros on subjects that range from using outriggers and downriggers to sight-casting for redfish and trout. Realistic fishing conditions will be simulated as seminar speakers share their knowledge from the bow of a Sterling flats boat floating in a 10,000 gallon pond and an offshore boat fully tricked out for deepwater angling. The audience will experience the virtual reality of fishing and enjoy a sense of being there on the boat with each seminar speaker. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to learn firsthand what makes these pros so successful.

All Seminar Schedules Same Both days

Riggin’ it Right Schedule

OFFSHORE
11 a.m., Building Better Leaders
30-second kingfish rig, line-to-leader knots

Noon, Better Bottom Fishing
How to rig for every Florida’s bottom species

1:30 p.m., Natural Baits
Better rigs make for better trolling

2:30 p.m., Caring for and Cleaning your Catch
Stick around for free fillets

4 p.m., Fishing the Entire Water Column
How to use kites, outriggers and downriggers

INSHORE
10:30 a.m., Soft-Plastic Basics
Rigging soft plastics for trout, reds and flounder

11:30 a.m., Terminal Tackle Rigs for Live and Dead Baits
Popping corks, free-lining baits, bottom rigs, etc.

12:30 p.m., Uni-Knot System
One basic knot for all applications

1:30 p.m., Soft-Plastic Modifications
Think beyond the manufacturer’s instructions

2:15 p.m., Float Rigs
How to set up the basic sliding float rig with success

3:15 p.m., Uni-Knot System
Tying fluorocarbon leaders to braid

4 p.m., Livebait Basics
Catch more fish using live baits

Angler on Foot

10:45 a.m. Beach fishing Florida’s east coast 12:00 p.m. Effective bridge and pier fishing 1:00 p.m. Fishing the flats 2:00 p.m. (at the Inshore Stage) Beach fishing Florida’s east coast 3:00 p.m. Effective bridge and pier fishing 4:00 p.m. Beach fishing Florida’s east coast

Hobie Kayak Stage--Fishing Seminar and slide show:
12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. by Florida Sportsman Associate Editor Jerry McBride. Or stop in anytime and see the tricked-out boats and talk to the experts about how to fish from kayaks.

Federation of Fly Fishers Casting Instruction at the Fly Pond (in front):

11:00 a.m. Captain Pete Greenan, Introduction to Fly Fishing

1:00 p.m. Brad Lowman, Advanced Casting Techniques

Individual casting instruction, knot and fly tying, and rod-rigging programs available all day at the Federation of Fly Fishers tent (next to the food tent).

Seminar Schedule the Same Both days

Inshore Stage

11:00 a.m. Capt. Mark Nichols Wadefishing the Flats

12:00 p.m. Capt. Mike Hakala Trout College

1:00 p.m. Capt. Chris Myers Mosquito and Northern Indian River Lagoons

2:00 p.m. Larry Finch Surf Fishing College

3:00 p.m. Capt. Terry Sturgeon Using Live Bait to Catch More Fish

4:00 p.m. Capt. Tony Bozzella Understanding Tides and Moon Phases

Offshore Stage

11:00 a.m. Capt. Terry Lacoss Downriggers 101: From Wahoo to Grouper

12:00 p.m. Bill and Kyle Kosiba Fishing Space Coast Artificial Reefs

1:00 p.m. Capt. Hank Williams More Fish with Less Time and Money

2:00 p.m. Capt. Terry Lacoss Mastering Kingfish

3:00 p.m. Capt. Rick Ryals Sportsman’s Best—Snapper & Grouper

4:00 p.m. Fishing the Water Column Using Kites, Outriggers & Downriggers

Inshore Stage

11:00 a.m., Wadefishing the Flats

Mark Nichols, inventor and manufacturer of D.O.A. Lures, has tested his lures in shallow water all over the country. The techniques he uses in the southern Indian River Lagoon, Texas bays and Louisiana coastal islands will work just as well in Florida’s central east coast waters.

“Keeping a low profile is essential in skinny water,” explains Nichols, “and I can’t do that from the bow of a boat. I’ll get out and go down on my knees on a submerged sandbar when I see a fish, which might put the water around my chest.”

Nichols will demonstrate lure retrieval technique while wading in the inshore pond, casting to a display of virtual reality snook and redfish swimming in the roots of artificial mangrove plants.

12:00 p.m., Trout College

Captain Mike Hakala is a lure manufacturer and was pictured on the October 1998 cover of Florida Sportsman holding a gargantuan 30-pound redfish that he caught using one of his own spoons. He has been featured in numerous FS stories, including Flats Action by the Spoonful, Spoon Feed ‘Em and Tune in to Heavy Metal. Capt. Mike’s new spoon is called Aqua Dream—he uses it to catch big trout while guiding in the Mosquito Lagoon and northern Indian River lagoon.

“This year’s trout fishing is as good as it’s ever been,” says Mike. “You can catch trout all year on the east coast of Florida by learning just a few simple techniques that focus on their habits and habitats.”

Topics will include sight-fishing strategies, boatmanship, live and artificial bait selection, and end with a special segment on gator trout.

“Small trout are easy to catch in large quantities and make for an excellent family outing, but you definitely have to change your strategy to target the gators.”

1:00 p.m., Sight-fishing Mosquito and North Indian River Lagoons

Captain Chris Myers is an inshore guide that stealth fishes for tailing reds and trophy trout in the inshore waters of the Mosquito Lagoon and northern Indian River Lagoon. He has spent over 20 years perfecting sight-fishing techniques to catch and release the fabled redfish and gator trout of central Florida.

“The Mosquito Lagoon and the northern Indian River Lagoon are the only places in the world where redfish live their entire lives inshore,” says Capt. Chris. “That means, here in central Florida, we have the opportunity to catch trophy-size redfish twelve months a year. And to top it off, while hunting for schools of redfish, we frequently come across big yellowmouth trout.

“But these fish are not easy to catch, so my slide show presentation will be all about how to read the water to identify species and then stealthily approach and throw the right artificial baits to get a hookup.”

Topics will also include how to figure out the best flats, tackle and lure selection, proper casting technique and boatmanship.

2:00 p.m., Surf Fishing College

Larry Finch makes his living pulling fish from the surf—each November he averages 100 pounds of pompano per day on hook and line. “I’ve been surf fishing the east coast of Florida for 35 years,” says Finch, “and these are the best days of surf fishing I’ve ever seen.”

If you’re like most surf fishermen, you’ve stood there without a bite while Finch reeled them in right next to you. This seminar will teach you how a pro does it and cover everything about catching your own bait, tackle selection, tying terminal rigs and Finch’s secrets to being at the right place at the right time. As an added bonus, one lucky seminar attendee will win one of Finch’s DVDs on surf fishing the east coast of Florida.

3:00 p.m., Using Live Bait to Catch More Fish

Captain Terry Sturgeon, a Jacksonville-based inshore charter skipper, is Florida Sportsman’s castnetting instructor at all Fishing Shows around Florida. So who better to give a seminar on using live baits to catch more fish?

Capt. Terry guides his clients to big catches of northeast Florida’s fabled trout, flounder and redfish, most often using live baits that he catches in his castnet or finds at local bait stores.

“I sometimes use artificials, too,” says Capt. Terry. “But when I want to guarantee a good catch to a client who isn’t that good with continuous casting, I go for the live bait. Shrimp, mullet, crab, whitebaits—they all have their own natural scent and great natural action if you rig them the right way. That’s what my seminar is about, how to rig live baits to get the best action and where to fish live baits to catch the most for your table.”

Topics will also include how to pick the best baits for the Space Coast, such as mud minnows, croakers, pigfish, silver mullet and two different kinds of shrimp.

4:00 p.m., Understanding Tidal Flows and Moon Phases

Captain Tony Bozzella, of Jacksonville, is Florida Sportsman’s inshore Riggin’ It Right expert at all fishing shows around the state, teaching thousands of anglers the secrets to catching more fish using the tried and true baits, rigs and tackle that Florida Sportsman has developed over the past forty years.

Tony is also the maker of TBS Jigs and has over thirty top-five wins in inshore tournaments from Louisiana to northeast Florida. Tony says his key to success has always been his keen understanding of how tidal flows and moon phases affect each species.

“If you know how to take advantage of high and low tides, and the fast currents in between,” says Capt. Tony, “you’ll put more fish in the box and never get skunked.” Capt. Bozzella says he actually follows the fish all day, from the staging areas at low tide when fish are pooled up in pockets, through their routes to feeding areas near fast-flowing incoming tides, to the flooded flats where he can’t normally take his boat.

Offshore Stage

11:00 a.m., Downriggers 101: Wahoo to Grouper

Captain Terry Lacoss is a Florida Sportsman contributing editor and the author of numerous feature articles and seminar columns. His latest book, Mastering King Mackerel (a publication by the Southern Kingfish Association) will be featured at his 2 p.m. seminar on kingfish.

This first seminar of the day will be all about targeting deepwater pelagic species from wahoo to grouper with both manual and electric downriggers. Capt. Terry will cover selection of lures, rigged and live baits, downrigger weights, cables, release clips and trolling techniques.

“These downrigger techniques are used very little,” says Capt. Terry. “But armed with just a little knowledge you can greatly increase your catch. My seminar will be all about how to get started using downriggers, including how to identify the right unit for your boat and style of fishing.”

12:00 p.m., Fishing Space Coast Artificial Reefs

Bill Kasiba is the incoming president and past tournament director of the Florida Sport Fishing Association. Assisted by his son Kyle, a mate working out of the Sunrise Marina, Kasiba will teach the best methods to find and then fish the many artificial reefs that rough up the sandy bottom offshore of Canaveral.

“Our club has an active permit on our own reef site,” says Kasiba. “It’s about 50 acres now, and growing. Divers went into the water right after we put down some culverts a few years back, and within an hour there were schools of bait and some snapper already populating the rubble.”

In addition to the FSFA reef there are numerous “space junk” reefs made of discarded launch pads from the Space Center, World War 2 ships that fell prey to German U-Boats, and hundreds of acres of bottom that have live reef characteristics. Subjects will include anchoring versus drifting, live bait versus dead bait, reef fishing etiquette, tackle selection and a special section on the relatively new style of butterfly jigging. The Kasibas will also have several hand-outs to help anglers find these reefs and fish them more efficiently.

1:00 p.m., More Fish with Less Time and Money

Captain Hank Williams is the owner of Wet Willy Charters and has fished Florida waters for over 30 years, learning ways to spend less time and money to catch more fish. Hank has developed dozens of nifty tips that will produce better catches of snapper, grouper, cobia, kingfish and other offshore fish. This seminar will be all about maximizing your catch while minimizing your effort and expense.

“If you learn to be a better fisherman you will save money on fuel and tackle,” advises Capt. Hank. “Boating has become more time consuming and more expensive over the years so you need to learn every little trick rather than using the same old tactics that aren’t working. The change in water quality—especially red tide—has caused all of us to start to think beyond the basics and old tactics. It’s not more money or more time that will improve your catch, it’s smarter fishing, pure and simple.”

2:00 p.m., Mastering Kingfish

Capt. Terry Lacoss is a Florida Sportsman contributind editor and the author of numerous FS features and Sportsman’s Seminars columns. Lacoss recently followed up his first book, Sportsman‘s Best—Redfish (published by Florida Sportsman), with a second book, Mastering King Mackerel (published by the Southern Kingfish Association). Terry has multiple wins in Southern Kingfish Association tournaments and will cover many key techniques that are in the book, which will make a huge difference in your kingfishing success. One popular topic will be how to catch more fish by staying close to shore.

“Close-in fish can be ten to twenty pounds larger than the ones you catch farther out,” says Capt. Terry. “You just don’t have to go far out or use a big boat—I’ve seen kayaks catching kings in 25 feet of water just off the beach. You can get back fast if the weather turns and you only need half a day to catch quality fish.” Lacoss will teach everything from simple trolling methods to little-known professional techniques.

3:00 p.m., Snapper and Grouper

Captain Rick Ryals is co-author of Florida Sportsman’s book and DVD: Sportsman’s Best—Snapper and Grouper, and also team leader of Riggin’ It Right at all Florida Sportsman Fishing Shows. Ryals is also the captain of a new 35-foot Cabo Express, Dos Amigos that fishes Florida waters in search of big snapper and grouper. Ryals has won many tournaments over a lifetime of Florida fishing and will speak about how to greatly improve your catch of the most sought after reef and wreck fish—snapper and grouper. Using video clips and photos from Sportsman’s Best, Ryals will explain how to rig terminal tackle, best baits, how to catch and store live bait, anchoring and drifting techniques, and end with someone in the audience winning an autographed copy of Sportsman’s Best—Snapper and Grouper.

4:00 p.m., Fishing the Water Column Using Kites, Outriggers & Downriggers

The Florida Sportsman Fishing and Boat Show Offshore Riggin’ It Right team will present this special edition of Riggin’ It Right at the Offshore Stage. Learn how to outfit your boat with all of the devices used to put your baits in the proper part of the water column to catch more fish.

“A lot of species hang out in the top 10 percent of the water column,” says team leader Capt. Rick Ryals. “But just as many—maybe more—live suspended over wrecks and reefs. Our staff will explain exactly how to get your baits to just that right depth, from the surface to the very bottom, whether it’s for sailfish, grouper, amberjack, kingfish or any other species that Florida Sportsman has been covering for more than 40 years. This seminar will greatly improve your catch rate.”