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That Time Again
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By Brandon Cotton
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FishRap News Edition:
Jun 29, 2007 |
For some reason, I don't measure the year by Jan. 1 and Dec. 31. Yeah I know the dates mark the beginning and the end of the year, but when I was in grade school, I never thought of the year starting and ending at these times. Most of the time I simply considered this the most "holiday-filled" time of year.
In school, all the way through college, it was usually August or September as this marked the end of summer and the beginning of another year of school. Now, strangely, I mark the year by the upcoming ICAST event in Las Vegas. Perhaps because although summer will have started a few weeks earlier, it really hasn't gotten fully rolling yet.
Mainly, I think it's because this is when the majority of tackle manufacturers announce and showcase their latest and greatest offerings. Much like the car industry, although the calendar is only halfway to flipping to 2008, manufacturers will be showing off their 2008 offerings (most of which will already be available or shortly after the show.)
If you're not familiar with this show, basically it's the largest sportfishing industry trade show where manufacturers, dealers, buyers, journalists and more mix together to showcase new products, purchase and plan for the coming season, make contacts and get the word out to the sportfishing general public about all the great new gadgets and gear coming on the market.
This is definitely a fun event and after speaking a little bit with a few people in the industry, it looks like we should once again see some neat tackle offerings for the coming year. No one has fully spilled the beans yet, but I'm sure some "oohs" and "ahhs" will be heard in the near future.
Another great thing about this year's ICAST event is the fact that the show will be celebrating its 50th nniversary. As with any other event, sticking around and making it for 50 years is an accomplishment in itself. Add to that the sheer size of the show, the amount of money involved and the popularity of this event and it's easy to dub this the "must attend" show for the fishing tackle industry.
While this is not a consumer show, you can find out more information at www.asafishing.org under the ICAST tab. There is also a detailed timeline of milestones that indicates how far this show has come since 1958. After the show, you can return to the site to get a good idea of who won which awards and what new products should be hitting the stores in the coming months.
So here's to another great new year. Be sure to check out FishRap all year long for highlights of many of these great new products on the market. Be sure to also check us out online at
www.fishrapnews.com
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Do you have a story, opinion or comment about fishing you'd like to share? FishRap welcomes letters to the editor. Letters are subject to editing and should not be more than 500 words. Submissions should be e-mailed to
brandon@goboating.com.
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