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ICAST 2005 New Product Best of Show Competition Goes to Shimano
by Mary Jane Williamson

July 21, 2005—LAS VEGAS, NV—The Shimano Torsa Reels won the Overall Best of Show Award, and Best of Show for the Reel category, in the ICAST 2005 New Product Showcase awards competition. The company also took top honors for the new Trevala Jigging Rods in the Rod category.

This year’s New Product Showcase winners also included three first-time ICAST exhibitors—DriDuds, Spinmaster and FisherGirl, Inc. Shimano won Best of Show awards in the reel category for the fourth year in a row.

Sponsored by Fishing Tackle Retailer/ESPN Outdoors, 170 companies entered more than 800 separate tackle products and accessories into the Showcase. The showcase is the flagship feature of the International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades (ICAST), the sportfishing industry’s premier trade event produced by the American Sportfishing Association. The 48th annual show, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center, July 20–22, sold out the show floor months before the event. The show ultimately hosted close to 400 exhibitors with over 1,100 booths.

“No where else in the industry is there anything like the New Product Showcase,” said Mike Nussman, president and CEO of the American Sportfishing Association. “The Showcase offers exhibitors and buyers a chance to debut and preview hundreds of the next season’s innovations in gear and accessories. The creativity and ingenuity our members use to develop and produce new items to enhance the angling experience never fails to amaze me. On behalf of the thousands of ICAST attendees, we congratulate this year’s winners.”

Making up a special section of ICAST’s 250,000-square-foot show floor, the New Product Showcase gives the industry’s latest innovations special visibility during the show, with nearly 6,500 representatives of the sportfishing community attending, more than 1,600 of them buyers.

Buyers and media representatives judged over 800 products based on their level of innovation, execution, workmanship and practicality to select Best of Show honors in 12 categories, as well as the Overall Best of Show winner.

2005 ICAST New Product Showcase Award Winners
Category	Company	Product
Overall Best of Show	Shimano American Corp.	Torsa Reels
Rod	Shimano American Corp.	Trevala Jigging Rods
Reel	Shimano American Corp.	Torsa Reels
Terminal Tackle	Gamakatsu USA Corp.	Magic Eye Treble Hooks
Line	Stren	DuraTuf
Hard Lure	Normark	Rapala X-Rap Series
Soft Lure	SPRO	Dean Rojas Signature Frog
Tackle Management	Plano Molding Company	Flip-Sider
Kid’s Tackle	Spinmaster	JetCast 3.0
Boating Accessory/Electronic	Lowrance Electronics, Inc.	LCX-111CHD
Fishing Accessory	XTOOLS	Floating Pro Series Pliers
Reel/Rod Combo	FisherGirl, Inc.	Mermaid
Clothing & Giftware	DriDuds by Kappler	DriDuds

For the next two years, ICAST will be held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. In 2006, ICAST—July 19-21, 2006—coincides with the National Marine Manufacturers Association’s Marine After-Market and Accessories Trade Show (MAATS). The dates for ICAST 2007 are July 11–13, 2007.

The American Sportfishing Association is the sportfishing industry’s trade association, uniting more than 650 members of the sportfishing and boating industries with state fish and wildlife agencies, federal land and water management agencies, conservation organizations, angler advocacy groups and outdoor journalists. The American Sportfishing Association safeguards and promotes the enduring social, economic, and conservation values of sportfishing.

© Copyright 2008 American Sportfishing Association. All rights reserved.