Welcome to ICAST 2016

For fifty-nine years, ICAST (International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades) has been the king of all fishing trade shows. Everyone connected to the fishing industry from exhibitors, buyers both retail and wholesale, manufacturer’s representatives, industry associates and industry suppliers along with other fishing related representatives. Not surprisingly, ICAST is a time when companies highlight new products so retailers can place orders to purchase immediately or at a later date for arrival in the spring.


What’s that mean for crappie anglers? It’s an exciting preview of new products or lures that will be showing up on retailers websites or in stores across the United States. Of course with an overflowing number of media, crappie anglers will be seeing new crappie lures, crappie rods and other crappie related fishing products in print and on social media.


A number of crappie related companies also had crappie professional anglers at their booths during the show. Crappie Dan aka Dan Dannenmueller, Garrett Steele and Mr. Crappie aka Wally Marshall were all talking about new lures and products related to fishing for crappie. Several of the new fishing lures and products made it into the ICAST New Product Showcase.


Walking around from booth to booth, I found everything from new crappie fishing rods by B’n’M Pole Company (www.bnmpoles.com), Mr. Crappie lures by Strike King (www.strikeking.com), Road Runner Lures by Blakemore (www.ttiblakemore.com) , lures by Johnson Outdoors (www.johnsonfishing.com) and even bumped into Wade Mansfield from Grizzly Jig Company (www.grizzlyjig.com) the nation’s #1 crappie store.



“In 1987, I had won my first crappie tournament and everyone was telling me that they wanted me to promote their products. They said Wally you need to be at the fish trade show in Vegas. So, I have been to every show since,” said Marshall.


Marshall went to about twenty booths during that show and got his hopes up on getting sponsored by those companies. Then Joe Hall at Blakemore Road Runner company called and said there was something about Marshall that he liked. He paid for Marshall to be at ICAST every year for twenty years and now Marshall comes every year to represent his sponsor company’s products.


New products by companies are key to creating excitement at ICAST. Marshall had to show off two new products that were super exciting being released at ICAST. One was Mr. Crappie Crappie Care, a product to be used in livewells, bait tanks or minnow buckets. The other was the new Mr. Crappie Hydrowave, revolutionary electronic product by TH Marine Supplies.


Of course, lure companies and manufactures work all year to produce products for the next year ICAST. In fact, some begin right after ICAST gets over. Next year, ICAST 2017 will be in July at Orlando, Florida.


New products and lures from some of the best companies in the world get released at ICAST. For crappie anglers it’s like opening presents on Christmas morning, but in July and that’s why ICAST is important for crappie anglers who want the newest and latest products.