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Show has something for everyone--seminars, demonstrations, fishing boats and a huge indoor tackle sale.

Florida Sportsman Magazine will host their thirteenth annual Fishing and Boat Show at the Okaloosa County Fairgrounds and the popular magazine promises that the Show will be bigger and better than previous years, with ongoing seminars, kids’ events, hands-on instruction and demonstrations. The most popular part of the event--a huge indoor tackle sale--will fill the 50,000 square foot Fairgrounds Expo Hall, with fishing boats and accessories added to the mix.

“We added some new things this year that are sure to please fishermen and their families,” said Show Director Robin Smillie. “New are a mini seafood festival out front in a big tent, complete with a live three-piece southern rock band. The seafood is from recipes out of Angler’s Cookbook, written by our senior editor Vic Dunaway. The band is made up of members of the Florida Sportsman Forum.”

Also new is a Kayak Stage: Florida Sportsman Associate Editor Jerry McBride recently trimmed his personal kayak fleet from eight to four boats, and sold his “real” boat. “I hadn’t used it in two years. Kayaks allow me to access prime fishing waters off limits to larger craft while avoiding the nightmare of crowded boat ramps. And the purchase and outfitting of a fishing kayak represents a fraction of the cost of traditional boating, especially in view of current fuel prices. Then there’s the stealth factor, as fish become ever more wary of trolling motors and hull slap. Throw in the cardiovascular exercise and it’s no surprise kayak fishing is the fastest growing segment in saltwater fishing.” Kayak manufacturers are responding with fleets of new kayak models and specialty craft for inshore and offshore fishing. Jerry and local experts can guide you through the clutter in choosing a kayak if you’re a newcomer to the sport, and show you what accessories you need and what will just be in the way. Between seminars, these expert "yakkers" will be on hand to discuss kayaks, gear, tackle and fishing techniques that will enhance your skills no matter how you fish.

Angler on Foot is another new hands-on demonstration. Capt Larry Finch, featured in an upcoming Sportsman article about beach fishing, will teach anglers without a boat how to fish from beaches, bridges and piers. “I adapted my beach cart with hardware store stuff,” says Finch, “and people stop me everywhere I go to examine it and ask questions about it. I can’t wait for the Panhandle guys to get a look--I’m sure they will go right out and try to duplicate it.” Finch will also be one of the featured seminar speakers on the Inshore Stage.

“One of the centerpiece attractions of the Show is the Riggin’ it Right Academy, Offshore and Inshore” says Show Director Robin Smillie. “Our magazine has a sharp focus on instruction and how-to, so this classroom setting is our way of bringing the pages of Sportsman to life.”

Show attendees sit at “learning stations” with supplies at hand, including wire, mono, pliers, and fresh bait like ballyhoo, sardines, and shrimp. Sportsman staff give personal hands-on instruction at rigging everything from a swimming mullet to a popping cork rig.

The best attended seminar at Riggin’ it Right is a live filet demonstration where several lucky attendees who get their ticket drawn will take home a bag of flounder, grouper and snapper filets.

“If you want to learn from the pros and get your hands wet with the real thing,” adds Smillie, “just take a seat--it’s all included in one admission price. Some of the most popular topics are the wired swimming ballyhoo rig tied by tournament pros in the Offshore Academy and how to rig, cast and retrieve all the different types of lures in the Inshore Academy.”

The Show also features an offshore and inshore seminar stage, a hands-on “castnet pit,” a knot-tying table, and flycasting pond complete with expert Fly Fishing Federation casting instructors. Kids events include a spincast pond where volunteer parents teach casting techniques and all participants win a Zebco tackle box and Fish Identifier Game where kids are challenged to match pictures of fish placed throughout the Expo Hall.

The list of exhibitors reads like a Who’s Who in Florida Fishing with over 100 booths of fishing tackle and boats, state agencies, conservation groups and seminar speakers. Most of the exhibitors are set up to sell tackle, fishing gear, clothing, charters and guides, fishing boats and accessories, so deals and bargains are the order of the day. In one of the many promotions, anyone who purchases fishing reels at the show can take their new reels to the Fins Superline booth and get a free spool of braided line.

Along with the exhibitors selling tackle and fishing-related merchandise and 15,000 square feet of tricked-out fishing boats, the Show focuses on instruction and information for the novice as well as the accomplished angler. "All of our seminar speakers have a wealth of angling knowledge,” says Smillie. “We want to make that information available to the average weekend fishermen and their families."

Hard-core fishing information will be offered by a dozen of the area’s top fishing pros on subjects that range from fishing for trout with artificials to bottom fishing for snapper and grouper. Realistic fishing conditions will be simulated as seminar speakers share their knowledge from the decks of working fishing boats. The seminar stages are real fishing boats, fully outfitted for inshore and offshore fishing applications. The inshore stage is a Sterling flats boat floating in a 10,000-gallon portable pond--the seminar speaker stands on the front deck and gives a lesson by casting lures to the edge of a stand of mangroves. The offshore stage is a 26-foot Century offshore boat loaded with downriggers, marine electronics, bait wells and tackle. Seminar speakers stand in the cockpit of the boat and demonstrate the proper use of these fishing devices. The audience will experience the virtual reality of fishing and enjoy a sense of being there on the boat with each seminar speaker, learning first hand what makes these pros so successful.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will display the Florida Sportsman Grand Slam Tank, a 500-gallon mobile aquarium that houses a live redfish, sea trout, and snook. The redfish and snook were hatched and reared at the Port Manatee hatchery near Tampa, but the trout was captured from the wild. Florida Sportsman Senior Editor Vic Dunaway coined the phrase “Grand Slam” during his early years with the magazine and it is now used worldwide to describe catching three local gamefish in the same day. Also in the FF&WCC booth will be representatives of the Wildlife Division and the Florida Marine Enforcement Division.

For those who want to learn how to net their own bait, Florida Sportsman experts will give hands-on instruction in throwing a castnet at the 600-sq.-ft. castnet pit. Two methods are taught, the standard double load and the Dry Load--throwing a perfect circle is all in the load."

At the Florida Sportsman booth, Florida Sportsman staff writers and editors will be on hand to greet the public and talk a little fishing. “We’re never short of story ideas in the Panhandle,” says Editor Jeff Weakley. “There are endless fishing opportunities there and we’re looking forward to meeting our readers and hearing their fishing stories.” Also in the booth promoting their new books will be local author Buck Hall who wrote Sportsman’s Best: Offshore and Amelia Island charter skipper Terry LaCoss who wrote Sportsman’s Best: Redfish.

At the Zebco Kids’ Take Me Fishing Spincast Pond, youngsters will get instruction on casting technique and compete in a can’t-lose contest to win lures and rod-and-reel combos. Every child who enters will receive a Zebco Tackle Pack and those who successfully land their lure in a floating target will win a Zebco 12-pound-class spin outfit. “Watching them learn to cast is as much fun for me as fishing,” said Tom Putnam of Half Hitch Tackle. “Last year some neighboring exhibitors got bonked on the head a few times with rubber lures, but over 300 kids walked away with a prize--30 of those prizes were rod-reel combos.”

“Anyone who enjoys fishing will have something to see,” promises Smillie. “It’s a Family Fishing Festival, so bring the kids and plan on spending the entire day surrounded by fishing events and fishing stuff.”