2011 ICAST Live Blog - Day 1

(Editor's note: This blog will be updated several times each day during ICAST. If you check this story multiple times, make sure you hit "refresh" on your browser to display the newest content. All times listed in this entry are PDT.)

Wednesday :: 5:30 p.m. 

We finally got over to the Ardent booth to check out their new Edge series of reels. The Edge series features drag tracking technology. When line is pulled off the reel the levelwind mechanism actually moves side to side. Drag tracking ensures smooth, consistent drag pressure and reduces line stress that can cause line breakage. It's a pretty cool concept that we're excited to put to test on the water.

Ardent introduced several different models of the Edge, including an inshore version and a camo-patterned Fishouflage version.

Wednesday :: 4:45 p.m.

One way to describe ICAST is like a fishing show on steroids. This Rapala booth is bigger than most sporting goods stores.

Wednesday :: 4:20 p.m.

Lots of pros are here shooting video for all sorts of companies and media outlets. Here's a pic of Bassmaster Elite Series pro Fred 'Boom-Boom' Roumbanis doing a take for WFN. He nailed it on the first shot.

Wednesday :: 3:30 p.m. 

Inshore anglers will dig these new Gulp! goodies from Berkley.

Fans of the 3-inch Gulp! shrimp will be stoked to see the new Firetail edition, which features a chartreuse tail. For years Gulp! was only available in solid colors, but Berkley has made big advancements in their Gulp! color selections recently.

The other new Gulp! product inshore anglers should know about is the flats worm. The flats worm was designed by Flrodia redfish pros Bryan and Greg Watts, and they're calling it the ultimate redfish bait. The word from Berkley is that the flats worm is actually made of a heavier material than regular Gulp!, so it should cast like a bullet.

And finally, there's the jumbo-sized, 6-inch swimming mullet. The picture doesn't do it justice. These suckers are fat! Should be great for trophy trout, snook and tarpon.

Wednesday :: 1:10 p.m. :: Quantum Press Conference Notes & Quotes

The EXO series of reels from Quantum is based around one simple concept: building a lighter reel without sacrificing the structural integrity, size or toughness of the frame.

“We took a very close look at what’s not needed in a baitcasting reel’s frame – and we took it out.  But the biggest thing to note is that we didn’t lose strength and function in the process. In fact, we maintained the hardy 150-sized gears in a smaller, sleeker 100-sized frame when we built EXO.” - Bob Bagby, Quantum

Gerald Swindle joked: "If you want to know what drove us to go as light as we can go, look down here at Bill Dance. If you don't know, Bill just celebrated his 103rd birthday and I talked to Kevin (VanDam), and I said, 'Kevin, if we don't do something Bill's not going to be able to hold a reel any more. Thanks to the Quantum EXO, Bill might have 20 years of television left in him.'"

Kevin VanDam: "I started fishing Quantum 21 years ago. They used to give us a reel and say, 'Here, go fish it.' Now we're involved in the design process from start to finish, and you can see that in the quality of the products.  It's amazing the lengths Quantum goes to to give anglers quality products."

Quantum boasts the EXO frame is 38% stronger than magnesium and 6x stronger than a frame made from all graphite composite. They acutally showed a video of the EXO baitcaster being run over by a truck.

EXO baitcaster quick specs:
- 5.9 ounces
- Holds 145 yards of 12-pound monofilament
- MSRP: $249
- Three gear ratios: 7.3:1, 6.6:1, 5.3:1
- 10 bearings + 1 roller
- Max drag: 17 lbs.

EXO spinner quick specs:
- 6.9 ounces (25 size), 7.1 ounces (30 size)
- 25 size holds 150 yards of 8-pound mono, 30 size holds 150 yards of 10-pound mono

- MSRP: $199
- Gear ratio: 5.2:1 (both sizes)
- 10 bearings + 1 roller
- Max drag: 16 pounds 

Wednesday :: 11:40 a.m. 

One more quick update before I head to the Quantum press conference. Here's a look at Shimano's redesigned Sustain spinning reel.

Check out the little kick stand on the side of the Sustain. Shimano calls it the "reel stand". You know when you lay a spinning reel on the deck of your boat and it sits flat on the rotor or puts pressure on the bail? This simple little bit of ingenuity solves that problem. Pretty cool feature in an even cooler reel.

Quick specs:
- X-Ship provides rigidity and tremendous amount of cranking power
- New Magnumlite CI4 rotor reduces resistance on rotation and provides smoothness
- Rapid fire drag allows anglers to adjust drag to ideal setting during the fight
- Five sizes (gear ratio): 1000 (6:1), 2500 (6:1), 3000 (6:1), 4000 (6.2:1), 5000 (6.2:1)
- MSRP: 1000, 2500 and 3000 ($329.99), 4000 ($349.99), 5000 ($359.99)
- EVA handle knob
- Aluminum sideplate

Wednesday :: 11:10 a.m.

Just took a quick peek in the Quantum booth. They've been the source of significant buzz leading up to ICAST, and their new EXO line of rods and reels is what all the fuss is about.

I'm scheduled to go to a press conference to learn more about the EXO products in about 45 minutes (I'll be blogging minute-by-minute details from that, so stay tuned.), but until then, here's a quick look at Quantum's new goodies.

EXO is short for "exoskeleton". These aluminum-framed reels are lean and mean.

Wednesday :: 10:25 a.m.

After watching all the videos and hearing all the hype about the new Abu Garcia Revo MGX reel and matching Villain rod, we finally got our hands on one of these killer new combos.

Saying this combo is light doesn't even do it justice. The whole outfit is well-balanced and extremely comfortable in the hand.

Aside from being feather-light and ultra-smooth, the MGX has a sleek and slender profile on the rod. When you palm the reel it almost disappears. And for those wondering, I don't have gigantic man-bear-paws, the reel is just that small.

Wednesday :: 9:40 a.m.

Here's a first for me: a puffin-patterned swimbait from SAVAGEAR. Yeah, puffin. As in the pelagic seabird of the genus Fratercula (You believe that I knew that off the top of my head, right?). Kinda' gives a new meaning to "chicken of the sea," doesn't it?

Wednesday :: 9:15 a.m. 

We snapped a couple pics of the newly redesigned Shimano Curado G. The new Curado still sports the classic green frame, but it's been stylized a bit further with black accents.

Quick specs:
- Available in right- (200) and left-hand (201) retreives
- Gear ratios: 200G7 (7.1:1, 30 inches per crank), 200G6 (6.5:1, 27 inches per crank), 200G5 (5.5:1, 23 inches per crank)
- MSRP: $159.99
- Dartanium drag (Max: 11 lbs.)
- Four shielded stainless steel bearings
- One roller bearing

Shimano definitely knows the way to a media member's heart. Mmmm... cookies.

Wednesday :: 07/13/2011 :: 8:45 a.m.

Our booth is ready to roll! Now we're heading out to get the scoop on all the latest gear. Stay tuned all day for constant updates as we load photos and other tidbits into the blog. Viva Las Vegas!

Monday :: 07/11/2011 :: 5:00 p.m.

Vegas, baby! It's ICAST time!

If you're an angler and you don't know what ICAST is, it's time to move out from underneath that rock. 

ICAST is... well, it's Christmas in July for anglers. Every summer, tackle manufacturers from around the world head to ICAST to show off all the latest fishing-related toys they've been keeping under wraps for the past year. Rods, reels, baits, line, tools, apparel - you name it, ICAST has it.

Now, I've got some good news and some bad news.

Here's the bad news: ICAST is a closed-door show. Only manufacturers and members of the media (That's me!) are allowed to attend.

And now the good news: EarthSports will be on-hand at ICAST scoping out all the new gear and we'll be broadcasting all the fishy goodness to you live from Las Vegas.

You're reading the first installment in the 2011 ICAST live blog at EarthSports.com. We'll be updating this story constantly throughout the week with pictures, interviews, product details and anything else interesting we come across in Sin City (we'll try to keep it rated PG, but no promises).

We'll also be shooting tons of video and doing dozens of interviews with pros and brand representatives from tackle companies big and small. You'll see that content trickle into the site over the next few weeks. 

We wish we could pack all you EarthSporters in a suitcase and bring you along for the ride, but the airline didn't seem to like that idea. So we hope this live blog is the next best thing to being in Vegas.

In the meantime, if you have any specific products or brands you'd like us to take a look at while at the show, drop us a line in the comments section and let us know. We'll be chasing down pros like Skeet Reese and Mike Iaconelli, too. So if you have any questions you'd like to ask those guys, let 'em rip!

Vegas, here we come!

In addition to updating the live blog we'll also be sending out tackle tidbits through our Facebook and Twitter pages. Make sure you're following us on all fronts to get the full ICAST experience.