Sportfishing's Hottest New Products Garner Top Honors During ICAST
by Janet Tennyson
Shimano American Corporation's new Calcutta TE 200DC reel took Best of Show honors today during the American Sportfishing Association's International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades at the Las Vegas Convention Center, competing with nearly 1,000 other fishing products making their marketplace debut. The Calcutta reel also won top honors in the reel category.
Products competed in 11 categories this year, including a new category for children's tackle. More than 150 companies entered lures, rods and reels, and other angler equipment and accessories into the New Product Showcase, the flagship feature of ICAST and a driving force for product sales in the coming year. Buyers judged products based on their level of innovation, execution, workmanship, and practicality to select Best of Show honors in each category.
Making up a special section of ICAST's 209,000-square-foot show floor, the New Product Showcase gives the industry's latest innovations special visibility during the show, with more than 5,000 representatives of the sportfishing community attending.
Overall Best of Show: Shimano American Corporation's Calcutta TE 200DC reel
Best of Show Winners by Category/Company/Product
- Rod/Sirrus Rods/Spectra
- Reel/Shimano American Corportation/Calcutta TE 200DC
- Terminal Tackle/Lead Masters/Powder Coated Jig Heads
- Line/Stren/Super Braid
- Hard Lure/Lucky Craft/Live Pointer 95SP
- Soft Lure/Pure Fishing/Gulp!
- Tackle Management/Plano Molding Company/CDS Utility Box
- Kid's Tackle/Zebco/Spongebob Squarepants Fishing Combo
- Boating Accessory, Electronic/Lowrance Electronics/X-104 Electronic Sounder
- Fishing Accessory/Pure Fishing/Digital Lip Grip Scale
- Clothing, Giftware/River's Edge Products/Fly Fishing Toilet Seat
The American Sportfishing Association is the leading recreational fishing trade association, uniting more than 500 members of the fishing and boating industries, state fish and wildlife agencies, federal land and water management agencies, conservation organizations, angler advocacy groups, and outdoor journalists. The American Sportfishing Association initiates and supports efforts to advance fisheries conservation, fishing opportunities, and a profitable sportfishing industry.
