Lake Erie Walleye School

As the founder of Teachin Fishin, Captain Lance Valentine has spent the past 3 decades dedicated to teaching anglers what they need to know to catch more and bigger fish. Using knowledge gained through close to a decade as a tournament angler on the Professional Walleye Trail (with 2 visits to Dunkirk, NY!), Michigan Walleye Tour and other circuits, Lance combines what he has learned on the water with a systematic, easy-to-follow way of "Teachin Fishin."

Lance fell in love with fishing as a 5-year-old on the world famous "flies only" stretch of Michigan's Au Sable River chasing stream trout, and since then has fished for walleye across the United States. Starting in 2005, Lance decided to focus on education, and has spent his time on the water as an educational charter captain on the Detroit River, Saginaw Bay and Lake Erie. He runs close to 180 trips a season, using a hands-on approach to fishing education.

While Lance is on the cutting edge of what is happening in the fishing world, his focus is on teaching anglers a systematic approach to attacking any fishing challenge by applying his 8 steps to fishing success. Lance sticks to teaching the simple things to make anglers better; like pre-trip planning, understanding how conditions affect fish, interpreting electronics properly, having a system for analyzing fishing data, picking the best presentation for the conditions at hand and quickly recognizing and dialing in a pattern.

Lance is fortunate to represent some great fishing companies such as PolarKraft and Angler Qwest boats, Suzuki Outboards, Off-Shore Tackle, Traxstech, Fish Hawk Electronics, Lowrance, MotorGuide, Warrior Lures, Smart-Troll, REC Lending, Pro-Cure Bait Scents and more.

Ali Shakoor is a USCG-licensed charter captain with over 30 years of experience fishing on the Great Lakes. Ali competes in several tournament circuits including the Cabela's/Bass Pro Masters Walleye Circuit (MWC), Lake Erie Walleye Trail (LEWT), National Walleye Tour (NWT), Anglers Insight Marketing (AIM), and Michigan Walleye Tour (MWT). He has qualified for multiple World Walleye Championships and National Team Championships. He has several wins, and multiple top five and top 10 finishes to his credit.

Ali was awarded a Masters of Science in Conservation Ecology from the School of Natural Resources at the University of Michigan. Currently, he is a PhD student in Evolutionary and Organismal Biology with an emphasis on Aquatic Ecology at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI. His current research focuses on the effect of harmful algal blooms (HABs) on walleye biology and ecology, the potential effects of Asian carp introduction on Great Lakes food webs, and the effects of HABs and micro-plastics on baitfish and aquatic insects.

As part of the Walleye School, Ali will discuss factors that affect walleye behavior. These factors will include the effect of wind, weather, current, and waves on fish locations. He will also discuss bait fish biology and ecology, and walleye migration patterns.

His current partnerships include: Warrior Boats, Mercury Marine, Lowrance Electronics, Fishhawk Electronics, St. Croix Rods, AFTCO Freshwater, Erie Marine Sales, Offshore Tackle, Airwave Pedestals, Sunline, and Worldwide Marine Insurance.

Captain Craig Sleeman is a professional walleye angler on the National Walleye Tour and competes in tournaments in the eastern basin of Lake Erie. He is a past Grand Prize winner of the prestigious Sunset Bay Walleye Shootout.

Craig began his career in the Finger Lakes region of New York and continues to tackle competitive yellow perch tournaments in the spring. This experience has improved catchability, decision making and pre-fish planning, which have paved the way to his continued success.

With the continuous improvement in technology, Craig will share the latest cutting-edge tips on trolling, jigging and forward-facing sonar you will not want to miss! Craig's favorite technique for catching walleye is jigging, which has become an integral component throughout the year for fishing walleye in the eastern basin. He'll provide a local spin on the where and when of catching walleye in the eastern basin.

Craig is fortunate to partner with Douglas Outdoors, Doc's Tackle, Torpedo fishing products, i-1baits and 5/0 lure company, Fish Hawk Electronics, Walleye Nations Creations, Off Shore Tackle and Torpedo Fishing Products. Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn and improve your game on Lake Erie!

Captain Don Ruppert is a professional charter captain and tournament angler, with his home port being in Sunset Bay, New York on Lake Erie.

With over 30 years of experience fishing the New York waters of Lake Erie and beyond, Don and his team have developed several successful trolling programs for early season shallow water walleye, transitioning into a proven deep-water program as the season progresses. Don will be explaining these techniques in detail.

Capt. Ruppert will be providing actual areas to target with specific details, including GPS numbers, what lures (colors / styles) to run under certain lake conditions, and tips on how to set up your spreads (both rods and lures). Don will also be sharing some unique underwater footage of walleyes trailing baits and biting baits.

Don and his team are proud to have great longevity and relationships with many premier companies within the industry. They would like to thank Okuma, Garmin, Yaleye Lures, Fish Hawk Electronics, Offshore Tackle and Traxstech systems. Bring a notebook as Don will be sharing the details that keep them consistently finishing in the top of the tournaments!