FLW Casting Pool

One of the biggest hits here for both the fans and the Pros' alike is the FLW Casting Pool. It's a skills competition that is a pitchers dream!  4 rings and a bell - 2 minutes and most points win. There's a youth division, an open division and a pro division.

Last Day of the Show....don't miss out

Ranger Z521

Cuttin' Up with Wurm

Evinrude Pro Mike Wurm having a great time catching up with Terry.  Talking golf, fishing, and career.  You're going to like this video!

Al Odom

Jr World Championship

Castrol Pros Dudley & Surman

Wee Vee

Fish Fry!

Welcome to Pittsburgh!

Forrest Wood Cup is officially here!  Lots of excitement from the community waiting to see what their favorite anglers bring to the scales. Pittsburgh is definitely a great host city!

Bill Siemantel's briefcase

Getting the scent

We’ve tried scents over the years and one of the newest that got our attention is from BioEdge, which is based in Maine but has a solid offering for freshwater and saltwater applications.

BioEdge is oil-based and comes in a liquid potion and a semi-solid wand, which can be more easily applied to hardbaits, plastics or jig and spinnerbait skirts. Nineteen different combinations are available including herring, sandworm, shrimp, nightcrawler, minnow, crayfish and more.

For more information visit www.bioedgefishing.com

Blakemore’s Road Runners, reel lube

New in the legendary Road Runner lineup is the “Natural Science Series” of jigheads with willowleaf blades in seven sharp colors.

They come in 1/16 and 1/8 sizes and will be great for panfish. Match them with a similarly-colored soft plastic or even a minnow, and you’ll have a realistic profile.

Reel Magic Reel Lube is something new and designed for internal gears while being impervious to salt water intrusion.

“It’s approved for use in bakeries and is a clean, synthetic lube,” said T.J. Stallings as he showed us the goods. “There’s a secret code in the package to allow you to order a CD of us breaking down a reel, cleaning it and then showing how to appropriately lube it.”

If you’re into spinners for panfish, watch out for the Mr. Crappie “Spin Daddy,” which combines a spinner with the popular Slab Daddy that came out last year.

It has a painted lead head combined with a wrapped and epoxied chenille body in eight colors and two sizes. Great for kids or for the panfish bite when it’s really on.

Free hooks from Tru-Turn

This blew us away when Tru-Turn design guru T.J. Stallings described the “5 for 5” hook promotion in honor of the company’s 50th anniversary.

If you buy five packs of Tru-Turn hooks, and that could be trebles, panfish, catfish and bass hooks, you can visit www.truturn50th.com and print a coupon. Fill it out, add the proper UPC sales codes and send it in for five more packs of hooks.

“For the cost of a stamp and a little time, you can get five free packs,” Stallings said. “Plus, we’re running this through spring of 2011. What better way for us to thank all the people we don’t even know for supporting our company?”

Plano’s upgraded, looks to liquid baits

With the Gulp! and Trigger-X bait lines, Plano has designed the Liqua-Bait Locker with stackable and sealable plastic jars in a tray container the size of a 3700 Stowaway.

A rubber o-ring around the lid seals everything in the tray. When you open the lid, you can pick whichever jar of bait, unscrew the lid or open the hatch, get a bait, close and reseal the whole thing.

“We like to say we’re keeping stuff from getting out more than getting in,” said Plano’s Douglas Riewski.

One cool tackle organizer for the minimalist is the 4472 Open Top Softsider, which allows for four 3700 boxes and has a rainfly. Grab a few for a day on the lake or at the pond and you’re good to go.

The FTO Series has a few new ideas courtesy of Hank Parker’s input, with reinforced structured internal pockets. A smart feature are individual tool-holders on the end pockets for pliers or multitools. If you’re a Plano Guide Series fan, the lineup has been upgraded a bit with a new color scheme and a few tweaks.

Shimano’s new reels light, strong

Shimano’s tough spinning reel lineup has seen its mid-priced Stradic series beefed up this year with the new CI4 series.

The reel bodies are comprised of a carbon-infused process that had its roots in the Shimano bicycling labs. Road racing cyclists, such as those in the Tour de France, want lightweight carbon or other materials that are tough. Why not with a fishing reel?

The Stradic CI4 comes in a 6.2-ounce 1000 series model and a 7-ounce 2500 series, which is a smidge larger. They’ll be good for bass finesse, drop shot and similar applications.

In the baitcasting arena, the Core 50Mg7 reel is stunningly lightweight with a magnesium frame and spool and total weight of 5.5 ounces. It is capable of freshwater and saltwater applications (obviously with a good cleaning of freshwater after use) and designed for ultralight finesse.

The Core 100 series is designed for all bass applications, with five reels, and runs about $370.

PowerPro looking for ice

It seems there’s a little surge in the ice fishing industry and PowerPro braid plans to get on board with new plans directed at that market.

PowerPro Ice braid will be available in 50- and 100-yard spools to fit on Shimano Sahara 500FD series spinning reels. Shimano is the parent company for PowerPro.

“There’s no sense in offering a spool of line with 25 more yards than will fit on your reel,” said longtime marketing specialist John Mazurkiewicz. “You’ve paid for that but chances are you won’t keep it. Or then you have to buy a 300-yard spool to fill the reel. So it makes sense to offer a spool of PowerPro that fits the reel capacity.”

Wildly Stronger- Yeti Coolers

Celebrity sighting......

Iaconelli going incognito.....?  Love the new alias Mike!   Mike will be fishing the FLW Championship coming up in 2 weeks. Look for more City Limits shows coming soon.

Avoid the teeth and hooks

Time and again we’ve heard of pals who have been bitten by toothy fish such as walleye or saltwater critters, or had a hook jammed in a hand or finger while trying to wrangle a wiggling fish.

Gloves aren’t always quickly available but when you are dealing with fish that have sharp teeth or big plugs with trebles, they’re a good accessory to have around. Taking a moment to slide your hand in and then deal with the fish can spare you some pain.

Lindy’s new Fish Handling Glove is worth considering. The video loop at the Lindy booth shows Big Water Adventures television show host Mark Davis using the glove for what would seem to be incredibly stupid actions: sticking his hands in a shark’s mouth, holding a big treble-hooked plug while a fish is wiggling and other crazy actions.

But Davis suffered no wear, tear or injury while wearing the glove. Pretty amazing, actually. The fabric was designed, according to Lindy, for the medical industry to help reduce accidents around hypodermic needles in labs. Now, it’s available to help ward off toothy or hook-related problems on the boat or ice.

If you have fleas, that’s good

Tru-Tungsten’s new Flea Flicker weighed hook will be perfect to thread on a worm for a wiggling action that bass won’t ignore.

The combo of a MiHatchii finesse wide-gap hook and a tungsten weight positioned just below the line eye imparts a freakishly enticing action. Because tungsten is heavier than lead, a smaller weight offers a smaller profile with enough weight to get the job done.

The Flea Flicker comes in 1/8, 3/16 and 1/4 ounce sizes and three colors.

Visit www.tru-tungsten.com to find out more.

Is it real or artificial?

If you’ve ever been bluegill fishing and wondered if the pelletized food tossed out at hatcheries or available at stores might work on a hook, worry no more.

What’s more, now you can have a “pellet” that stays on the hook after multiple catches, looks like the real thing and even smells like it, too.

Appropriately named “The Artificial Fish Food Lure,” the durable lure is a virtual match for a brown pellet. It floats, stays on a hook, has a strong and long-lasting aroma of fish food and would work for fly fishing as well due to its lightweight consistency.

It’s one of the coolest things we’ve seen. Visit www.stubbysteve.com to check it out and order.

Hooked up with a rattle

A friendly little glow

One of the coolest things we’ve seen this week isn’t a lure or rod, but rather a unique lighting system for your dock or boathouse that could help you catch a few fish at night or just enjoy watching them swim around with a different perspective.

Deep Glow lighting system is an underwater light in a waterproof housing that provides 10,000 lumens that cut through murky water and shine brightly in clear water. They are designed to sit on the bottom in 3 to 20 feet and face the surface. The powerful glow illuminates through a quarter-inch thick glass dome.

The light has four color options: green for murkier waters; blue for clear waters; clear for other clarities and magenta for holidays or a commercial application. The lighted area will illuminate bait fish or other species and may attract them as well, providing angling or recreational viewing opportunities at night. They work under docks, boathouses, piers and around sea walls or bulkheads and have a photocell or timer option to come on or turn off automatically.

Visit www.deepglow.com for more information.

Dance gets a little salty

Bill Dance is known for his decades of bass fishing exploits and as one of the sports greatest ambassadors, and we’ve known him to offer a smile when discussing his catches of big catfish or fun days targeting bluegills or crappie.

Lately, Dance has turned his attention to chasing saltwater species for his new television show – “Bill Dance Saltwater” - on the Outdoor Channel. He also still has his popular “Bill Dance Outdoors” freshwater show that airs on the Versus network.

“It’s been a lot of fun,” Dance said Thursday afternoon. “We started with striped bass and moved down the coast toward Florida for snook, sharks and on around the Gulf for redfish, specked trout and things like that people can catch without going far out.

“I’ve tried to find people who are knowledgeable about the different species and habitats so they can explain what we’re doing, and that gives viewers the chance to learn about something they can do pretty easily inshore or close to inshore. We’ve gotten out a little bit but you probably could still throw a rock and hit the beach.”

One of the hallmarks of Dance’s shows over the years has been education about the different fish and the lures or techniques he’s using. Sure, he’s helping sell items for his sponsors as are all television show hosts. But Dance often takes things to another level, describing the lure’s qualities and then backs it up with years of experience with his tackle to help further illustrate and educate.

ICAST announces "Best of Show" winners

More than 600 entries from 208 exhibitors in the ICAST “New Product Showcase” featured innovative tackle and accessories for anglers, with Hobie Cat taking the Best of Show honors for its Mirage Pro Angler hybrid kayak-boat.

The Hobie craft offers many options for anglers including rod holders, baitwells, storage boxes and other features. The patented Mirage pedal system provides hands-free propulsion on big waterways and small, shallow streams.

The showcase opened the ICAST show Tuesday night with buyers and media members voting for the top awards in 17 categories. Judging was to have been conducted based on innovation, execution, workmanship and practicality. The event was sponsored by ESPN Outdoors-BASS.

The winners:

Overall Best of Show – Hobie Cat – Hobie Mirage Pro Angler
Apparel – Cablz, Inc. – Cablz
Electronics – Lowrance-Navico – Lowrance HDS-10
Eyewear – Costa Del Mar Sunglasses – Zane
Fishing Accessory – Durasafe – Codeable Locks
Giftware - Master Vision – Mini Lantern
Kids Tackle – Ross Reels USA/Ross Worldwide Outdoors – Journey Youth Fly Fishing Outfit
Line – Pure Fishing – Berkley Trilene TransOptic
Soft Lure – Sebile USA – Magic Swimmer Soft Pro Model
Hard Lure – Sebile USA – Spin Shad
Marine - Hobie Cat – Hobie Mirage Pro Angler
Freshwater Reel – Shimano American Corporation – Stradic CI4
Saltwater Reel – Daiwa – Saltist Lever Drag
Freshwater Rod – USA Custom Rods – Camo Stix
Tackle Management – Plano Molding Company – Liqua-Bait Locker System
Terminal Tackle – Better Bait Systems – Circle Hook Rig
Saltwater Rod – G. Loomis – Pro Green 882S

Frabill Hiber-Net

Ish Monroe

Wired2ISH???? Nice try Ish!

Greg Hackney

Byron Velvick

Former Classic Champ Alton Jones on the mic!

Berkley Bio Dip

Looking for a way to add color to your Gulp and Gulp Alive?  Because these baits are water based and biodegradable most coloring agents won't adhere to it.  Berkley solved this problem by introducing Bio-Dip!  This can be brushed on to detail eyes, stripes or whatever you like. Provides best coverage and vibrancy on lighter color baits.

Berkley Powerbait Ripple Shad

Terry and KVD!

Strike King Rage Smokin Rooster

You got to see this one!  One of the Strike King Pros new favorites!  Another great addition to the great RageTail line!

Baby King Shad

Strike King Eeliminator

One of the newest styles in plastics is the Strike King Eeliminator.  This can be used weightless and thrown in place of fluke style baits or can be used Texas rigged and Carolina rigged.   Real versatile bait with lots of action.

Bits and pieces

Berkley has dropped its Frenzy lineup of hard baits … Bassmaster Elite Series pro Gerald Swindle was being followed by a camera videographer as part of a possible reality television show in development … The annual ICAST “Best of Show” awards were announced Wednesday evening and we’ll have more on those today … More than 300 media members have been accredited including from Europe and Asia to cover the show …

K-Short has wild landing

Kevin Short and his wife, Kerry, had a memorable landing Tuesday night at the Orlando airport when their Southwest Airlines jet made a quick stop after touching down on the runway.

Short said the plane hit the asphalt “and the pilot laid on the brakes pretty hard. It wasn’t like normal … I knew something was up. It’s not good when you look out the window and see vehicles with flashing lights.”

Apparently a sensor in the plane indicated major trouble but there was no problem. The passengers evacuated quickly on the runway and were later able to get the luggage.

“I was about to slide out of my seat because he hit the brakes so hard,” Kerry said. Short made a quick post on Facebook with a photo of the passengers on the runway. We’re glad to hear nothing was wrong, and by Wednesday he was at full steam at ICAST.

Ish’s New Phat Frog

California pro Ish Monroe couldn’t help but smiling during the opening day of the ICAST show with the introduction of his new Snag Proof Phat Frog.

The hollow-bodied frog has two skirted “legs” that are positioned inside the double hooks, creating a greater opportunity to walk the dog with the bait. Additionally, and better for anglers who hate lures that fill with water, there is an internal channel for the hook shanks that is closed from the body. That means there are no openings for water to get inside.

“It’s unsinkable,” Monroe said. “There’s a little extra weight in the butt, too, and it casts a mile. I caught 60 fish on one frog when we were in the design stages. It’s pretty awesome.”

The frog comes in eight cool colors, including a clear body, and the legs are made from Starflash skirts.

Berkley’s TEC tools top stuff

These things may not help you catch more fish, when it comes to actually hooking them, but after they’re in the boat Berkley’s TEC tools are super accessories to have.

The distinctive red-and-black tools range from pliers and bait release hooks to powerful lippers for big fish and scales to see how much they weigh. They’re tough, reliable and worth the money if you need good tools.

Some of this year’s new items:

If you’re worried about losing a set of pliers or multi-tool, the new Premium Tool Tether is pretty cool. It’s a vinyl-coated, corrosion-resistant stainless steel cable attached with a metal grommet to a Velco strap. On the other end is a heavy-duty clip on a swivel, so you can grab your pliers quickly and have them ready to remove a hook.

If you’re getting ready for a fish fry, two new knives look to be great additions to your cleaning kit. One is the Folding Fillet Knife, which has a unique blade protector that holds a full-sized knife blade and then slides into the handle body. The blade locks, but when you mash the locking mechanism to fold the blade the protector extends from the handle to receive it.

The second is the TEC TurboGlide Li-Ion Cordless fillet knife, which has a rechargeable lithium ion battery that doesn’t weigh as much as a NiCad and has about an hour of continuous run time. It charges in about half the time of a NiCad and with “stop and go” use during cleaning will last for more than an hour, long enough to get through a mess of perch, bluegill or cats. It comes with a case, replacement blades and batteries, along with a microbial cleaning board that has filleting instructions.

If you use Gulp! or Gulp! Alive! baits that come in the jars, now you can put them and the liquid in a portable unit with the Gulp! Alive! Bait Management Container. It has two large containers and four smaller ones, each with tough sealable lids that won’t leak or allow evaporation. The individual containers can be removed from the tackle tray or all carried together, and it’s the size of a Plano 3700 Stowaway so it will fit in most tackle boxes or bags. One possibility is to use the two big containers for baits and the smaller ones for hooks or Carolina-rig components.

New Ardent reel has specific purpose

Ardent’s new F-700 reel is reminiscent of a sleek Air Force jet with a singular mission – to get the job done quickly and efficiently.

The reel is designed for flipping and nothing else. A narrow spool holds about 30 yards of line, obviously depending on the diameter, of course, and is not set up for casting. We’ve tried casting jigs just to see what happens and while it’s possible to do so, it’s not recommended. Stick with the flipping and you’ll be better off.

The F-700 has seven bearings and some internal tweaks that are a slight step up from the F-500 cousin Ardent introduced a year ago. Both reels have a 22-pound drag system that is locked down so you don’t have to worry about adjusting it. We’ve had no problems whatsoever horsing bass from heavy cover, including thick hydrilla, and that’s one less thing to worry about.

Additionally, the American-made F-700 has been touched up cosmetically with a cool blue body. It also carries the signature and approval of Bassmaster Classic champion Denny Brauer, who offered input over the last year during testing.

Strike King’s new Rage lineup

Strike King Lures has added to its popular Rage Tail lineup with five new offerings, including the 10-inch offshore Thumper Worm and awesome Smokin’ Rooster creature bait.

The Thumper Worm is designed to be a swimming worm and should be awesome for offshore structure or around vegetation, such as sparse hydrilla or milfoil. The long body has a curled tail with the Rage “edge” that creates super action. It wobbles a bit like a subtle swimbait with a steady retrieve, and the tail has a slight score to enable you to cut it precisely at the right angle for a “half tail” effect. The action changes slightly with this design, but still has enough lip for super motion.

The Rooster is about 5 inches long and has a near-diamond shaped, flat ribbed body with two Rage wings and a long tail, which also has the Rage design. Rig it on a heavy 4/0 or 5/0 hook for pitching or flipping, or you can swim it and get great action.

The Eeliminator will be super for swimming on top due to the roughly 3-inch, slender tail and also can be used on a Carolina Rig. Lure designer Steve Parks said he fishes it that way and has had numerous catches on the rig. Parks also suggested keeping the Eeliminator in the plastic clamshell pack to prevent bent tails, which can affect the action.

Other new Rage styles include the 5-inch Hawg creature bait and 3-inch Baby Craw, which will be super on a shakey head or a finesse jig. The Baby Craw was the go-to bait for James Niggemeyer this year in his Bassmaster Open victory on Toledo Bend.

Other new Strike King baits include the 3-inch Baby King Shad in eight colors, the double-jointed Sexy Swimmer lipless swimbait in nine colors, the Hack Attack Heavy Cover jig designed by Elite Series pro Greg Hackney and the notable “Coffee Scent” in an aerosol spray to apply to lures to help mask human odors.

Six tapped for ASA board

Six members of the American Sportfishing Association’s Board of Directors were elected or re-elected to fill three regional seats and three at-large seats. Their terms begin Oct. 1 and they will serve two-year terms.

Regional seats went toMartin MacDonald, director of conservation for Bass Pro Shops, Springfield, Mo., who will serve the South Central Region; Bob Eakes, president, Red Drum Tackle Shops of Buxton, N.C.,who will serve the Southeast Region (re-elected); and Dick Pool, president, Pro-Troll Fishing Products of Concord, Calif., who will serve the West Region.

At-Large seats went to John Jilling, president of Wright & McGill Company of Denver, Col.; Geoff Ratte, Water Gremlin Company of St. Paul, Minn.;and Dave Bulthuis, vice president of sales for Costa Del Mar Sunglasses, Daytona Beach, Fla.

Falcon Rods goes BuCoo

Ten new sticks in the Falcon Rods lineup have been redesigned with upgraded features including the Fuji “Lite Bite” reel seats and EVA split grips on the handle.

Chris Beckwith of Falcon said the rods weigh less than 4 ounces and have a variety of uses, from flipping and pitching, Carolina- and Texas-rigging, and casting big baits. The rods have a suggested retail price of $110 to fall into the mid-price range.

The line includes seven casting rods and three spinning rods.

Chapman honored for career work

Billy Chapman Jr., founder of the famed Angler’s Inn on El Salto Lake in Mexico, was honored Wednesday for his recent induction into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame.

ICAST attendees gathered at the G.Loomis booth to pay respects to Chapman for his work as an ambassador for the sport. Angler’s Inn has hosted thousands of anglers from around the world to enjoy the hospitality of his staff and the superb fishing on El Salto, arguably one of the premier bass fishing lakes in the world.

Anyone who ever has visited Angler’s Inn knows it is a fisherman’s paradise, with the focus on catching big largemouth bass from the scenic lake nestled in the Sierra Madres. Upon arrival, guests are greeted with a margarita. You literally eat, sleep and fish, with maybe a nice siesta at midday following lunch before going out for the evening.

There are few memories like watching the sun set over the mountains en route back to the ramp with a cold Pacifico and aching hands due to lipping numerous fish all day. Here’s to you, Billy!

Skeet Reese

Skeet and Terry filming a piece about his Tessera Rods and Trokar Hooks.  Sweet rods at $89.00 retail. Well done!

Trokar

We're here in the Lazer Trokar booth with Shaw Grigsby. As you know by now Trokar is a new brand of hooks.   It's a 3 edge surgical grade sharp hook designed to penetrate twice as fast as any other. Other Pros' promoting this new line are Brent Chapman, Skeet Reese, Gerald Swindle, Chris Elliott and Facts of Fishings' Dave Mercer.

American Rodsmiths

Just spent some time with Bob Brown and Denny at American Rodsmiths. They have 3 different series of rods the feature golf grips built by Winn, a well known golf industry manufacturer. Brauer's series with be in the $179 price range. The H3 Titanium Ultra Series coming in at $289.

Ardent and Denny

First person we see

ICAST - We're Here!

First Blog

We're here!  ICAST updates will begin in the morning. We'll be bringing you all the latest the the show has to offer.