A few don’t-miss speakers at the Chicagoland Fishing Expo in Schaumburg Jan. 23-26

It seems like the outdoors show season goes by so quickly, doesn’t it? I hope this means that spring is just around the corner, but I am probably fooling myself. Next week we’ll talk about ice fishing. It looks like we will have plenty of opportunities to do that for a while.

For now, I am focused on the Chicagoland Fishing Expo, which is at the Schaumburg Convention Center Jan. 23-26. I am planning on being in attendance for three of the four days and hope to meet many of you there.

Like I’ve talked about recently, one of the main attractions to the shows for me is the opportunity to listen to seminars put on by the top anglers in the business. Some of them are regional, while others are celebrated nationally. All of them are worth your time.

Bassmaster Angler of the Year champion Brandon Palaniuk is a repeat presenter at the Schaumburg show. It is because Palaniuk is a fan favorite. He hails from Idaho and I’ll bet you that you didn’t even know that they have bass swimming in Idaho waters. Well, they do, and Palaniuk has some secret tips and tactics he learned there.

Known as “The Prodigy,” Palaniuk has won the Angler of the Year twice. That is a huge feat. His bank account is filled with over $3 million in tournament winnings, an amount reached by only a few anglers.

Palaniuk has a great personality and is a charming seminar speaker. I can’t wait to listen to Brandon Palaniuk hit the stage.

The first time that Schaumburg show promoter Tod Alberto hired Oliver Ngy to speak, I had never heard of him. Alberto told me I had to be sure to hear Ngy talk. He said I would be amazed. He wasn’t lying.

Oliver Ngy isn’t a fishing TV star, he is an internet phenomenon. Ngy is an integral part of Big Bass Dreams, a fishing conglomerate. Ngy, from California, is a specialist in hunting for bass that clock in at 10 pounds and above. He spends his off-hours chasing giant tuna in saltwater.

Oliver Ngy is a fishing genius. I sat through one of his seminars and I got a tremendous headache because of the barrage of detailed information that Ngy delivered. It was like taking a master’s degree class in bass fishing. I couldn’t believe how much information Ngy covered in an hour on the stage. You’ll be glad you invested the time to hear Oliver Ngy.

Louis Monetti is a fishing wunderkind. He won the Bassmaster College Classic Bracket, which in turn earned him the right to compete in the Bassmaster Classic, the Super Bowl of fishing. This kid is what they call a “hot stick.” I’ve interviewed Louis and he is smart beyond his tender age in his early 20s. This is a good chance for you to get a lesson from a guy who is going to be one of the big names in the sport some day.

Local expert Mark O’Neill knows more about marine electronics than anyone piloting a boat on the water today. O’Neill, who represents Lowrance, is the guy to listen to in order to get all your sonar questions answered. In light of the fact that the topic of forward facing sonar is such a hot button subject, the O’Neill seminar is not to be missed.

There is no bigger name in the world of musky fishing than Jim Saric, “The Musky Hunter” himself. I hope Saric tells the story of the time he put a guiding client on five muskies in a single day trip. Nobody can catch muskies like Jim Saric.

For a complete listing of seminars and speakers, and all show information, please access www.chicagoland.sportshows.com/

• Daily Herald Outdoors columnist Steve Sarley can be reached at sarfishing@yahoo.com.