My dad and I split time behind the wheel on the drive from Arkansas to Orlando for ICAST 2026. Given his long career as a professional tournament angler, my dad has been to fishing’s biggest annual show many more times than I have.
ICAST gives us an opportunity to meet fans, touch base with sponsors and see the new products fishing companies are introducing for the upcoming year. This time we saw many new variations of the urchin-style baits that have been dominating major tournaments over the past season. There were also a number of specialized hooks for rigging these baits.
One of the biggest game changers at ICAST this year is Garmin’s LVS44 LiveScope 2 Transducer. It does a much better job of stitching together the sonar impulses from three transducers to reduce fuzziness and blind spots. The display is clearer, smoother and gives you wider angles in forward, down and perspective modes. Garmin also improved the rigging by eliminating the black box and reducing the number of cables from three to one.
New Z-Man baits
Dad and I were excited to show off the baits we’ve helped Z-Man design and refine over the past year. We typically experiment with a prototype for six to eight months before Z-Man is satisfied the bait has been perfected and anglers are getting what they pay for. We’re already working on baits that won’t be introduced until ICAST 2027.
Z-Man’s ElaZtech baits have a strong following because they’re 10 times tougher than other soft baits. They allow you to catch many more fish per bait, saving you time and money. Because ElaZtech baits float, they also have a more lifelike action.
This buoyancy prevented Z-Man from making a sinking stickbait. Their new 3- and 5-inch Kingpin stickbaits remedy that with Z-Man’s new Sinking ElaZtech. It’s just as tough as regular ElaZtech, so you don’t need to use an O-ring to catch multiple bass with one bait. And, by running the hook up through the middle of the Kingpin, you get a higher hookup ratio than with an O-ring that holds the hook sideways.
ChatterBait Elite EVO HD
In heavy cover situations, like buck bushes and thick grass, you need a stout bait so you can horse bass out with a stiff rod and braided line. Z-Man’s EVO HD (heavy-duty) ChatterBait is at least 40% stronger than the original EVO. The beefy components include a 5/0 nano-coated brute hook and other upgraded features.
The new EVO Swim Jig comes with the same 5/0 nano-coated hook, which is molded into a head design like that on the original EVO ChatterBait. We refined the thickness and number of strands in the weed guard so it’s not too heavy for fluorocarbon line but heavy enough for braided line and averting snags in thick grass, buck bushes and cypress trees.
Dad and I also did a lot of testing with Z-Man’s Octane MinnowZ. This ribbed swimbait has a unique SWAG tail, which is a hybrid wedge‑and‑paddle design. It produces a strong, consistent tail wag at any retrieve speed. It comes in 2.8-, 3.3- and 3.8-inch sizes so you can fish it on a jighead, a ChatterBait or swim jig. Since it’s made of tough ElaZtech plastic, one bait might last you all day.
If you attended ICAST, I hope we had an opportunity to chat with you.
