St. Petersburg Power & Sailboat Show™ Features Free Hook the Future
Kids Fishing Clinics Plus Boating and Sailing Seminars

Website for St. Petersburg Power & Sailboat Show™:
http://www.showmanagement.com/st_petersburg_power_sailboat_show/event/

ST. PETERSBURG, FL (Oct. 22, 2009) – Teach your kids the joy of fishing or brush up on your mariner skills at the upcoming St. Petersburg Power & Sailboat Show at The Progress Energy Center for the Arts Mahaffey Theater & Albert Whitted Park from Dec. 3-6 in downtown St. Pete.

Capt. Don Dingman’s free Hook The Future Kids Fishing Clinics will be open to all kids, ages 4-16. Young anglers who participate in the weekend clinics enjoy free admission with a paid parent or guardian. The Kids Fishing Clinics will be held Saturday, Dec. 5, and Sunday, Dec. 6, at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., with registration starting each day at 10 a.m. on site. After completing all the learning stations at the fishing clinic, every kid will take home a free rod, reel and tackle kit while supplies last.

The Kids Fishing Clinics are a popular part of the Gulf Coast’s largest boat show that invites show-goers to check out spectacular sales on more than 400 new and used powerboats and sailboats displayed on land and in a stunning waterfront marina setting. Show-goers also will enjoy two large air-conditioned tents filled with marine gear, equipment, and accessories, perfect for holiday shopping. In addition, a variety of entertaining boating and sailing seminars will give adults the chance to discover new cruising adventures or expand their knowledge of life at sea.

During the Kids Fishing Clinics, Dingman, a professional offshore angler who hosts the Hook the Future TV show, gives interactive teaching sessions that include:

• Casting a Rod and Reel
• Cast Net Throwing
• Selecting Tackle & Lures
• Tying Knots
• Fishing Ethics

Dingman believes in inspiring parents to take their kids fishing and enjoy family outings together. By going fishing with his own dad, Dingman learned how precious the parent/child connection is and how the best way to teach a child to do something is do simply let him do it. “Time spent with your kids on the water is priceless,” says Dingman. “Kids can catch anything adults can; the fish don’t know who is holding the rod.”

This year, Dingman is launching the non-profit Hook the Future Foundation, to engage children in fishing through education to become responsible anglers, living a fit and healthy lifestyle while they are good stewards of the environment. To raise funds for the foundation, Dingman will offer St. Pete show-goers a chance to win an Edgewater 245 on a Float on Trailer with a Yamaha F250 loaded with a Garmin Electronics package. Raffle tickets are $20 per donation. The winner, who need not be present to win, will be announced at the 2010 Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show.

Dingman’s Hook the Future TV show airs in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area on Bright House Sports Network, Catch 47 on Monday’s at 1:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. and on the World Fishing Network. Check local listings for times.

The St Petersburg Power & Sailboat Show Seminar Program

Geared to every level of power boater and sailor, about 70 high-quality seminars will be presented throughout the four-day boating festival in air-conditioned seminar tents. Produced by Sail America, the trade association for the sailing industry, the compelling seminars will give show-goers fascinating insights into the cruising lifestyle, plus essential know-how for navigating safely at sea.

Best-selling authors and magazine columnists, marine weather experts and adventurous world cruisers are part of this year’s exciting seminar program. The full schedule of seminars will be posted in early November at the show’s site at www.showmanagement.com. Among the preview highlights so far are:

• Sailboats for A Serious Ocean - 25 Great Sailboats For World Voyaging
  John Kretschmer
  This seminar is a candid and honest look at great boats for world voyaging. It focuses on new and used boats, and what to look for when considering a boat for crossing an ocean.
• At the Mercy of the Sea
  John Kretschmer
  This talk describes Kretschmer’s 2007 best-selling book, At the Mercy of the Sea, the story of three sailors caught in a Caribbean Hurricane. While the story is riveting, and reveals an amazing act of heroism, it is also sad but powerfully instructive.
  
  At age 24, Kretschmer sailed the smallest boat to ever double Cape Horn to windward, a Contessa 32 named Gigi. As a delivery skipper, expedition leader, and offshore passage-making instructor, Kretschmer has logged 275,000 deep sea miles and has never sailed less than 10,000 miles a year since 1983. Kretschmer’s challenging sailing agenda for 2010 and 2011 includes several offshore training passages, leading expeditions to Cape Horn, around Newfoundland, and across the North Atlantic Ocean.
  
  Kretschmer is a contributing editor and columnist for Sailing Magazine, in addition to writing six books including the ever-popular Flirting with Mermaid. His 2007 book, At the Mercy of the Sea, was critically acclaimed and was chosen by the Southern Bookseller`s Association as one of the top 24 nonfiction books of 2007. His new book, Sailboats for a Serious Ocean, will be published in 2010.
• Women and Cruising
  Kathy Parsons, Pam Wall and Gwen Hamlin
  Kathy Parsons, Pam Wall and Gwen Hamlin team up to share experiences and answer all your questions about preparing for cruising and life aboard: from the skills you need to cruise, to outfitting and provisioning, to seasickness, staying healthy, finances, long passages, safety and the fears and the rewards of cruising. Attendees will receive a Women and Cruising Resource List to supplement the information covered in the seminar.
  
  Parsons has been living aboard a sailboat and cruising the United States, Bahamas, Caribbean and Central America for the last 20 years. She is the founder of the popular Women and Cruising website, which helps women prepare for cruising. Parsons is the author of two well-known language guides for boaters, Spanish for Cruisers and French for Cruisers. Gwen Hamlin writes the monthly Admiral`s Angle column for Latitudes and Attitudes magazine. The column discusses questions and issues on the minds of cruising women, especially those just starting out, using input from a far-flung "club" of experienced "Admirals." Hamlin is also a dive instructor and former charter boat captain who has cruised the Caribbean, Mexico and the Pacific.
• Basic Marine Weather Interpretation Skills
  Lee Chesneau
  Lee Chesneau is a highly seasoned senior marine meteorologist with a distinguished 36-year career in maritime weather forecasting, ship routing and writing. He has been a keynote speaker at seminars, and is a certified U.S. Coast Guard STCW Basic and Advanced Meteorology. Chesneau’s philosophy is that there are many tax-funded weather forecast products for mariners that need to be used and understood properly. His seminar will provide show-goers with “a road map” for understanding these products for safe, prudent, weather decision-making on board.