2017 file photo/The Capital-Journal
If it seems like the lineup for the 2018 Topeka Boat and Outdoor Show is all over the map, it’s because it is — by design.
“Yes, there is something at the show for all those that love Kansas outdoors,” said Phil Taunton, organizer and host of the What’s in Outdoors radio program on KVOE-AM (1400) in Emporia.
“Yes, there is something at the show for all those that love Kansas outdoors,” said Phil Taunton, organizer and host of the What’s in Outdoors radio program on KVOE-AM (1400) in Emporia.
This year’s event, which runs Feb. 2-4 at the Kansas Expocentre, will feature two seminar stages — one in the main vendor’s room and one in the boat showroom — with presenters focusing on everything from ice fishing to deer hunting to outdoor photography.
Among those presenting on the first stage will be Travis Blenn, of the three-time national champion Kansas State University bass fishing team; longtime outdoors writer and fishing icon Ned Kehde, namesake of the popular Ned rig fishing setup; Joe Bragg and Dustin Hobbs, of the Kansas Crappie Club; and David Studebaker, organizer of the Catfish Chasers Tournament Series.
Studebaker will run a booth and present seminars at the event. Among the topics he expects to focus on during his seminars are alternative ways of catching catfish.
“We’re actually going to have our sponsors -- who have some very good products that Catfish Chasers is sponsored by -- we’re going to have examples there for people to look at and we can tell them why we think they’re great,” Studebaker said. “Some stuff may be for sale, it just depends on what these vendors send me.”
Alongside the sponsors, the Catfish Chasers booth also will be manned by some of the top catfish anglers in the area, giving patrons a chance to ask questions and talk catfishing with the experts.
“I’m going to have a variety of professional catfishermen coming through and they’re going to be in the booth and they can talk shop, just talk fishing, whatever,” Studebaker said. “They’re willing to share information.”
Lawrence resident Kehde, a recent inductee in the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame, will present at noon Saturday, Feb. 3. His seminar is titled “101 Black Bass in Four Hours Fishing Northeast Kansas Waterways!”
Some more specialized forms of fishing also will be covered during the three-day event. In-Fisherman Magazine writer David Harrison will present at 4 p.m. Friday and 10:15 a.m. Saturday on ice fishing, and Bob Griffin, former president of the Kansas Bowhunting Association, will host seminars at 6 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday on bowfishing. Kim Burnett and Damon Brake also will present on fly fishing and fly tying at 2 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Saturday.
Second stage
The second stage will feature Tom “The Mushroom King” Weipert, as well as outdoors writers Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush and a variety of other presenters. Roudybush self-published a book in 2013 titled “Fishing Secrets: How and Where to Find ’Em,” while Irwin published his book, “An Outdoor Sporting Life: A Celebration of Heartland Hunting, Fishing, Friendship, and Landscape,” in 2015.
High school anglers Thomas Heinen and Parker Stillwill join them on Stage 2 to speak on getting involved in competitive fishing as a youth. Heinen fishes the Kansas BASS Nation High School Tournament Series, while Still fishes against older competition through the Kansas Crappie Club.
Steve Woolf, superintendent of Erie Unified School District 101, also will talk about WILD Kansas, an outdoors-based organization for students that he likened to the “FFA of getting people outdoors.”
Aside from Taunton’s stated goal this year of getting youths more involved in hunting and fishing, women also will be well represented. Jami McCabe and Sherri Winters will discuss the Becoming an Outdoors Woman program, and Audrey Agin will present with Dave Navarro on outdoors photography.
For those interested in deer hunting, the Bluestem chapter president of the Quality Deer Management Association, Tim Donges, also will be on hand to speak about maintaining trophy whitetail deer populations in the 21st century. Donges has been an ardent anti-poaching voice in the El Dorado area for years.
Grand prize
Taunton said those who visit the What’s in Outdoor booth and sign up will have a chance at winning a lifetime KDWPT hunting or fishing licence courtesy of the Justin Corbett Memorial Foundation, as well as a 6500 Abu Garcia Catfish Commander rod and reel combo and loaded big cat tackle box, courtesy of What’s in Outdoors/Fishing’s Future and Catfish Chasers. A youth/mentor crappie fishing adventure guided by Bragg and the Kansas Crappie Club will also be a part of the prize package.
That prize will be awarded June 2 at the Justin Corbett Memorial Youth Day at Ravenwood Lodge, he said.
In addition, he said that Will Cokeley, owner of Cokeley Farms, is giving away a two-person youth/mentor four-bird pheasant hunt and a guided youth/mentor catfish trip will be offered by Catfish Chasers.
Among those presenting on the first stage will be Travis Blenn, of the three-time national champion Kansas State University bass fishing team; longtime outdoors writer and fishing icon Ned Kehde, namesake of the popular Ned rig fishing setup; Joe Bragg and Dustin Hobbs, of the Kansas Crappie Club; and David Studebaker, organizer of the Catfish Chasers Tournament Series.
Studebaker will run a booth and present seminars at the event. Among the topics he expects to focus on during his seminars are alternative ways of catching catfish.
“We’re actually going to have our sponsors -- who have some very good products that Catfish Chasers is sponsored by -- we’re going to have examples there for people to look at and we can tell them why we think they’re great,” Studebaker said. “Some stuff may be for sale, it just depends on what these vendors send me.”
Alongside the sponsors, the Catfish Chasers booth also will be manned by some of the top catfish anglers in the area, giving patrons a chance to ask questions and talk catfishing with the experts.
“I’m going to have a variety of professional catfishermen coming through and they’re going to be in the booth and they can talk shop, just talk fishing, whatever,” Studebaker said. “They’re willing to share information.”
Lawrence resident Kehde, a recent inductee in the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame, will present at noon Saturday, Feb. 3. His seminar is titled “101 Black Bass in Four Hours Fishing Northeast Kansas Waterways!”
Some more specialized forms of fishing also will be covered during the three-day event. In-Fisherman Magazine writer David Harrison will present at 4 p.m. Friday and 10:15 a.m. Saturday on ice fishing, and Bob Griffin, former president of the Kansas Bowhunting Association, will host seminars at 6 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday on bowfishing. Kim Burnett and Damon Brake also will present on fly fishing and fly tying at 2 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Saturday.
Second stage
The second stage will feature Tom “The Mushroom King” Weipert, as well as outdoors writers Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush and a variety of other presenters. Roudybush self-published a book in 2013 titled “Fishing Secrets: How and Where to Find ’Em,” while Irwin published his book, “An Outdoor Sporting Life: A Celebration of Heartland Hunting, Fishing, Friendship, and Landscape,” in 2015.
High school anglers Thomas Heinen and Parker Stillwill join them on Stage 2 to speak on getting involved in competitive fishing as a youth. Heinen fishes the Kansas BASS Nation High School Tournament Series, while Still fishes against older competition through the Kansas Crappie Club.
Steve Woolf, superintendent of Erie Unified School District 101, also will talk about WILD Kansas, an outdoors-based organization for students that he likened to the “FFA of getting people outdoors.”
Aside from Taunton’s stated goal this year of getting youths more involved in hunting and fishing, women also will be well represented. Jami McCabe and Sherri Winters will discuss the Becoming an Outdoors Woman program, and Audrey Agin will present with Dave Navarro on outdoors photography.
For those interested in deer hunting, the Bluestem chapter president of the Quality Deer Management Association, Tim Donges, also will be on hand to speak about maintaining trophy whitetail deer populations in the 21st century. Donges has been an ardent anti-poaching voice in the El Dorado area for years.
Grand prize
Taunton said those who visit the What’s in Outdoor booth and sign up will have a chance at winning a lifetime KDWPT hunting or fishing licence courtesy of the Justin Corbett Memorial Foundation, as well as a 6500 Abu Garcia Catfish Commander rod and reel combo and loaded big cat tackle box, courtesy of What’s in Outdoors/Fishing’s Future and Catfish Chasers. A youth/mentor crappie fishing adventure guided by Bragg and the Kansas Crappie Club will also be a part of the prize package.
That prize will be awarded June 2 at the Justin Corbett Memorial Youth Day at Ravenwood Lodge, he said.
In addition, he said that Will Cokeley, owner of Cokeley Farms, is giving away a two-person youth/mentor four-bird pheasant hunt and a guided youth/mentor catfish trip will be offered by Catfish Chasers.
SEMINARS (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
STAGE 1
Main vendor’s room
Friday, Feb. 2
2 p.m. — Kim Burnett and Damon Brake, on drop flies
3 p.m. — Travis Blenn, K-State fishing team, on bass fishing
4 p.m. — David Harrison, on ice fishing
5 p.m. — Richard Sanders, KDWPT fisheries biologist, on Clinton and Melvern Lake report
6 p.m. — Bob Griffin, Kansas Bowhunting Association, on bowfishing
Saturday, Feb. 3
10:15 a.m. — David Harrison, on ice fishing
11 a.m. — Bob Griffin, Kansas Bowhunting Association, on bowfishing
Noon — Ned Kehde, “101 Black Bass in 4 Hours Fishing Northeastern Kansas Waterways!”
1 p.m. — Roger Wells, Wells Consultants, on improving habitat for wildlife
2 — Steve Woolf, USD 101 superintendent, on WILD Kansas
3 p.m. — Dustin Hobbs and Joe Bragg, Kansas Crappie Club, on crappie fishing
4 p.m. — Kim Burnett and Damon Brake, on jig and fly tying
5 p.m. — Travis Blenn, K-State fishing team, on bass fishing
6 p.m. — David Studebaker, Catfish Chasers, on catfishing
Sunday, Feb. 4
11:15 a.m. — Travis Blenn, K-State fishing team, on bass fishing
1 p.m. — David Studebaker, Catfish Chasers, on catfishing
2 p.m. — Dustin Hobbs and Joe Bragg, Kansas Crappie Club, on crappie fishing
STAGE 2
Boat showroom
Friday, Feb. 2
2 p.m. — Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush, Kansas Hunting and Fishing Secrets
3 p.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
4 p.m. — Members of Fishing’s Future and the KDWPT Fish KS instructors, Aquatic Education
5 p.m. — Dave Navarro and Audrey Agin, on outdoor photography using your cellphone
Saturday, Feb. 3
10:15 a.m. — Thomas Heinen and Parker Still, youth fishing
11 a.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
Noon — Steve Woolf, USD 101 superintendent, on WILD Kansas
1 p.m. — Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush, Kansas Hunting and Fishing Secrets
2 p.m. — Tim Donges, QDMA, Managing Trophy Whitetail Deer in the 21st Century
3 p.m. — Eric Brown and Blake Rapp, Kansas Hunting and Fishing “Pass It On”
4 p.m. — Jami McCabe and Sherri Withers, on Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW)
5 p.m. — Dave Navarro and Audrey Agin, on outdoor photography using your cellphone
6 p.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
Sunday, Feb. 4
11:15 a.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
1 p.m. — Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush, Kansas Hunting and Fishing Secrets
STAGE 1
Main vendor’s room
Friday, Feb. 2
2 p.m. — Kim Burnett and Damon Brake, on drop flies
3 p.m. — Travis Blenn, K-State fishing team, on bass fishing
4 p.m. — David Harrison, on ice fishing
5 p.m. — Richard Sanders, KDWPT fisheries biologist, on Clinton and Melvern Lake report
6 p.m. — Bob Griffin, Kansas Bowhunting Association, on bowfishing
Saturday, Feb. 3
10:15 a.m. — David Harrison, on ice fishing
11 a.m. — Bob Griffin, Kansas Bowhunting Association, on bowfishing
Noon — Ned Kehde, “101 Black Bass in 4 Hours Fishing Northeastern Kansas Waterways!”
1 p.m. — Roger Wells, Wells Consultants, on improving habitat for wildlife
2 — Steve Woolf, USD 101 superintendent, on WILD Kansas
3 p.m. — Dustin Hobbs and Joe Bragg, Kansas Crappie Club, on crappie fishing
4 p.m. — Kim Burnett and Damon Brake, on jig and fly tying
5 p.m. — Travis Blenn, K-State fishing team, on bass fishing
6 p.m. — David Studebaker, Catfish Chasers, on catfishing
Sunday, Feb. 4
11:15 a.m. — Travis Blenn, K-State fishing team, on bass fishing
1 p.m. — David Studebaker, Catfish Chasers, on catfishing
2 p.m. — Dustin Hobbs and Joe Bragg, Kansas Crappie Club, on crappie fishing
STAGE 2
Boat showroom
Friday, Feb. 2
2 p.m. — Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush, Kansas Hunting and Fishing Secrets
3 p.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
4 p.m. — Members of Fishing’s Future and the KDWPT Fish KS instructors, Aquatic Education
5 p.m. — Dave Navarro and Audrey Agin, on outdoor photography using your cellphone
Saturday, Feb. 3
10:15 a.m. — Thomas Heinen and Parker Still, youth fishing
11 a.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
Noon — Steve Woolf, USD 101 superintendent, on WILD Kansas
1 p.m. — Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush, Kansas Hunting and Fishing Secrets
2 p.m. — Tim Donges, QDMA, Managing Trophy Whitetail Deer in the 21st Century
3 p.m. — Eric Brown and Blake Rapp, Kansas Hunting and Fishing “Pass It On”
4 p.m. — Jami McCabe and Sherri Withers, on Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW)
5 p.m. — Dave Navarro and Audrey Agin, on outdoor photography using your cellphone
6 p.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
Sunday, Feb. 4
11:15 a.m. — Tom Weipert, The Mushroom King
1 p.m. — Scott Irwin and Robert Roudybush, Kansas Hunting and Fishing Secrets
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