Every year people associated with the recreational fishing industry worldwide stream to Orlando in July to see all the latest products that are available at ICAST (put on by the American Sportfishing Association).
Publisher Kevin Stobbe and I arrived in Orlando Tuesday afternoon to view the latest products in the industry and to take part in a series of meetings with key manufacturers. On Tuesday night as accredited media we got to participate the in the New Product Showcase and vote on the products we thought were both innovative and would help improve the angling experience.
On Wednesday we visited a number of booths, talking to manufacturers about their exciting new products. We were helped in this by Andrew Galloway, who introduced us to a number of his clients. It was a long day of visiting, and learning and sharing information. It was certainly something Kevin and I will plan on doing next year. The only drawback was the heat, it was close to 100 Fahrenheit with high humidity, making walking somewhat of a chore outside.
We have featured some of the exciting new products here. One of the things both Kevin and I took away from the show was the huge growth in kayak fishing and all the things that go along with it. Clothing also was a huge part of the show, with a number of manufacturers competing in a variety of categories. While there were some innovative new lure designs (Baitball Spinner Rig from Live Target comes to mind) there didn’t seem to be as much as past years. Kevin and I also couldn’t believe the action of the Live Target Savage Gear 3D Topwater Bat. It won the award for best freshwater hard lure.
https://youtu.be/QKU_hLl_zqw
One other stop was at the Cortland booth and a chance to see and get a sample of their new Ultra Premium fluorocarbon tippet. Their 5x has a break strength of almost six pounds and is 0.006 inches in diameter. For those who try and catch big fish in clear water, this tippet is worth its weight in gold and is taking the fly fishing world by storm.
Finally the number of booths promoting indestructible water jugs in various sized to along with a myriad of coolers and dry packs was impressive.It seems anglers have never had such a variety to choose from when it comes to staying hydrated and dry!
Here’s the full list of Best of Show products from ICAST 2017