Craig Sleeman and Team Midnight Express compete at the highest level of walleye tournament fishing in the country! Craig's passion for walleye and perch fishing stems from his Finger Lakes experience in Upstate New York, where he resides and continues to compete. An art teacher by trade, he presents educational workshops at many local and regional expositions on new technology and tournament-proven techniques and will continue to compete on the National Walleye Tour this season.
Craig continues to pursue the Eastern Basin here on Lake Erie with top honors in the Sunset Bay Walleye Shootout, Chautauqua Conservation Club and Innovative Outdoors Walleye Challenge. Craig and his brother, Ethan, also won the Largest Perch Tournament in New York State this past year on Cayuga Lake. A 2025 participant in the National Walleye Tour, Craig has a vast knowledge of techniques, forward-facing sonar expertise, and numerous trolling tactics to make you all better fishermen. Support from local sponsors such as Doc's Tackle, Douglas Rods, Buffalo Roofing and Axis Spine helps in sending Craig and his team on the tour of tremendous success.
He is well-versed in all three major electronics platforms - Humminbird, Lowrance, and Garmin - and has been running LiveScope since 2018 and Active Target since 2021. He has also been fortunate to learn from some of the best in the walleye world, including Sammy Cappelli, Mike Yarema, and David Lortscher from Doc's Tackle.
He currently lives with my wife, Meghan, and daughter, Eva, near the shores of Lake Erie in Harborcreek, PA.

Capt. Ross Robertson has made his complete living as a full-time professional angler for more than 20 years. Through the years, he has worn many hats, including time as a fishing guide, boat salesman, TV host, outdoor writer, product designer, tournament fisherman, speaker, radio host, and podcaster, to name a few. You may have seen him in publications such as In-Fisherman, Outdoor Life, Field and Stream, MeatEater, or his self-published book, Walleye Trolling. While his fishing career has taken him everywhere from Alaska to Europe, he spends most of his time fishing year-round on Lake Erie's Western and Central Basins.

I've been fishing competitively for walleye since the age of 10. I started fishing tournaments with my father on Kinzua.
I started fishing professionally in 2018, making this my eighth season on the National Walleye Tour. Some successes on the National Walleye Tour include: one win, two second-place finishes, six top-five finishes, and nine top-ten finishes. I am also the youngest angler to ever win a national event, and I currently hold the longest check-cashing streak on tour, with ten checks in a row. I was a top five angler in 2023 and 2024, and also a top-25 All-American five times for the National Team Championship.
Tournament Circuits fished: National Walleye Tour (full-time), Cabelas/Bassproshops National Team championship (part-time), Masters Walleye Circuit, Michigan Walleye Tour, and LEWT.

Pete Alex started fishing Lake Erie in 1978 and began chartering in 1988. He has seen a wave of changes to the walleye fishery and techniques since the walleye fishery began in the early 80s. He fishes out of Erie, PA, for walleye from June until early October. His techniques vary from shallow-water programs to deep, warm-water programs, which are somewhat universal to every port on Lake Erie. Some notables: He invented Stealth Core almost 10 years ago, is on several manufacturer pro staffs, has won the most tournaments out of the port of Erie, PA, and sits on several fisheries boards for Lake Erie. He has used a variety of tactics to catch walleye on Lake Erie over the years, which include worm harnesses, jets, mono line plug fishing, lead core, weighted steel riggers, and divers. He experienced the highs and lows on Erie, which has made him a very knowledgeable angler.

Capt. Tom Miranda is a licensed USCG Master Captain and owner-operator of Pole Dancer Sportfishing, based out of Sunset Bay, NY. Capt. Tom and his longtime tournament team compete in most of the walleye tournaments on the eastern end of Lake Erie, with many top-ten finishes, and have won the Innovative Outdoors Walleye Challenge. Capt Tom is also an active member of the Eastern Lake Erie Charter Boat Association, Southtowns Walleye Association, and Western New York Walleye. Capt. Tom and his team fish out of a 20-foot Lund Sport Angler.

Calvin is an avid hunter and angler with a particular passion for trolling the Great Lakes. While doing research for a new trolling product (Strike Assist), he has collected and watched hundreds of hours of underwater footage of trout, salmon, and walleye. This underwater footage has revealed a lot about fish behavior, especially how they approach and strike at baits. This footage has both confirmed what experienced anglers already suspected and also challenged many myths that anglers perpetuate. He wants to share what he has learned to help other anglers be more effective.

I'm Captain Destin DeMarion, owner of Big Fat Bass Guide Service based on Lake Erie in Erie, PA. For over a decade, I've guided anglers to some of the best fishing the Great Lakes have to offer while also spending four winters chasing trophy largemouth bass in Florida. Before that, I competed at the highest level of bass fishing as a Bassmaster Elite Series Pro, earning multiple top-ten finishes.
I grew up fishing for anything that swims and earned a degree in Environmental Science and Biology - though these days, I like to say I work in "applied sciences." I'm passionate about understanding fish behavior, helping clients catch trophy fish of all species, and applying those insights in both guiding and tournament competition.
While I've caught many big walleyes over the years, one of the most memorable was a 32.5", 15-pound giant from Lake Erie near the New York line back in the mid-2010s. In recent seasons, I've expanded into casting, jigging, and forward-facing sonar (FFS) trips for walleye, combining techniques from my bass background with cutting-edge electronics understanding. That approach helped our team land a top-ten finish in the 2024 LEWT Casting & Jigging Open with my longtime sponsor, Doc's Tackle, this season.