ICAST 2024

Elite favorites at ICAST 2024

Catch up with Bassmaster Elite Series pros to see what new products they are most excited about at ICAST 2024.

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Photography by
Kyle Jessie
Photography by
Tommy Sendek
Arizona
Wes Logan – AFTCO Fortress Rain Suit
“One thing I like a lot about the Fortress Rain Suit is the draw string around the hood that keeps the hood from flying up when you’re making a run.” he said. “The suit has a slimmer fit, but has plenty of room around the shoulders and elbows which allows you to make casts and move around with ease.”
Luke Palmer – Great Lakes Finesse Hover Minnow 2.75
“I love how the bottom of this bait allows it to glide and even dart on the fall,” said Palmer. “A lot of minnow style baits won’t do that, but this bait will almost fall erratically like a tube.”
Heddon Spin‘N Image Topwater
“The new Spin’N Image is a twist off of the Spit’N Image that has been around a long time,” he said. “The hole in the plopping style tail leaves a great bubble trail, and the bait can actually walk like a charm which means you don’t have to just straight retrieve the bait.
Brock Mosley – Bill Lewis Depth Charge
“This bait was designed with Livescope in mind,” he said. “This bait actually sinks which allows you to keep the bait above the fish. It has an erratic action that triggers bites.”
Yamamoto Fat 4-Inch Senko
“I won the Elite Series event at the Sabine River just a year ago on the original 4-inch Yamamoto Senko, and now we have a more beefed-up version of the bait,” he said. “The Senko is such a versatile bait, and now this is a new addition to the already great lineup.”
Tyler Rivet – Big Bite Baits Jerk Minnow (Stealth Colors)
“I’ve always been a fan of the Big Bite Baits Jerk Minnow, but this new lineup of Stealth colors is going to be killer for extremely clear water and for pressured fish,” said Rivet.
Big Bite Bait Pro Swimmer Scentsation
“This is another bait that has been around for a while, but the added Scentsation is going to be a really big deal, especially when we go up north for smallmouth,” he said.
Bernie Schultz – Shimano Zumverno 115SP MR
“What I like about the Zumverno the most is that it has a great return on forward-facing,” he said. “The bait will run 10-12 feet on 10- pound line and has a great erratic action with the added flash boost technology.”
Shimano Vanford A Spinning Reel
“The biggest thing when talking about the new Vanford is the weight, or lack thereof,” said Schultz. “It has a ton of the same features of the super high-end spinning reels in the lineup at a much more affordable price.”
David Mullins – Shimano Vanford A Spinning Reel
“They took a lot of the technology out of the Stella and put it in the Vanford,” he said “It has a new drag system, new drive saft and new gears which makes it a very advanced spinning reel fo the price.”
Matt Arey – Lunkerhunt Furenzy Mouse
“The body has a material that we’re calling aqua-fur that makes it feel extremely life-like,” he said. “When a fish bites, the body easily collapses and allow the nano-coated hooks to penetrate the fish’s mouth.”
Robert Gee – 1st Gen Fishing Scope Jaw Underspin
“On a slow retrieve, this underspin has more of a hunting action from back and forth,” said Gee. “It’s a killer bait when targeting schooling fish that are looking for something moving erratically.”
Bill Lewis Depth Charge
“The Depth Charge is available in three different sizes and has a great shimmy action on the fall,” he said. “When you twitch the bait, it gives an erratic action that triggers a reaction bite.”
Jay Przekurat – Strike King Pinger Minnow
“The Pinger Minnow is a pre-rigged bait that allows you to catch multiple fish without having to re-rig the bait,” he said. “The unique tail design gives the bait a really nice action on a slow retrieve.”
Whitewater Rays Sun Hoodie
“This hoodie has a built-in sun gator which is really nice on those super sunny days,” said Przekurat. “It also has a button up by the hood that keeps everything super secure.”
Mark Menendez – Strike King Hardliner 57
“I’m super proud to have worked hand in hand with the development of the Hardliner 57,” said Menendez. “When developing this bait, we took the qualities of hand-made balsa baits, but made the bait much more durable and easier to cast.”
Lew’s Custom Pro Baitcasting Reel
“This may be the longest casting Lew’s Reel that I’ve ever used,” he said. “The shape of the reel makes it extremely comfortable for chunking and winding as well as dragging a bait.”
Carl Jocumsen – Rapala PXR Jowler Topwater
“I was super fortunate to get the Jowler in before the Lake Murray Elite and was blown away with it,” said Jocumsen. “The lips of the bait create a thrashing action that calls up fish from long distances, and having the high-quality VMC Redline treble hooks is a big deal because it’s ready to go right out of the pack.”
Rapala PXR Deep Mavrik 110 Jerkbait
“The original Mavrik was a great addition to the Rapala line of hard baits, but the new deep version allows angler to cover a different depth range,” he said. “Again, being able to take the bait right out of the package with VMC Redline hooks is super awesome.”
Shane LeHew – Berkley Powerbait Drip Minnow
“The Drip Minnow comes in three sizes – a 3-inch, 4-inch and a 5-inch,” LeHew said. “The profile and attention to detail is what makes this minnow so special.”
Berkley Powerbait Unrigged CullShad
“The harness version of the Cullshad really took off last year, but now the unrigged version allows you to rig the bait multiple different ways.”
Alex Wetherell – Humminbird Apex Units
“I really just love the customizability these units,” said Wetherell. “The Apex units provide the best clarity and they’re incredibly reliable.”
John Garrett – Minn Kota Ultrex Quest
“I truly think that the Ultrex Quest is the best trolling motor on the market,” he said. “All the advancements made to the Quest really makes this the most reliable trolling motor you can buy.”
Tim Dube – Strike King Tour Grade Hair Jig
“With the northern swing coming up, I’m super excited about the Tour Grade Hair Jig,” said Dube. “This bait has a really strong hook in it that actually has a single wire keeper that allows you to thread a little soft plastic to add bulk to the bait.”
Strike King Pinger Minnow
“Forward-facing sonar has been the name of the game recently, and the Pinger Minnow is the perfect bait for it,” he said. “It’s a pre-rigged bait, so all you have to do is take it out of the package and tie it on.”
Kyle Welcher – Rapala CrushCity Hedgehog
“The Hedgehog is easily my new favorite plastic in the Crush City lineup,” he said. “I really like all the upside-down appendages which gives the bait a really great secondary action. It’s just a really good flipping style bait that catches big fish.”
Rapala Crush City Mooch Minnow
“Everyone has already heard of the Mooch Minnow because it’s already had a lot of tournament success,” Welcher said. “The PTFE material makes the bait super buoyant and durable.”
Bob Downey – St. Croix Black Bass Series
“It’s a simple rod, I like the EVA foam with the cork accent and the price point. This will be a great line to fill your arsenal with.”
St. Croix Avid Series
“This line has always been a staple in the St. Croix family,” said Downey. “They re-vamped this series of rods and they are even lighter and more sensitive than before, I’m very pleased with them.”
Cliff Prince – Owner Multi Offset Hook
“This hook has the line tie in-line with the shank of the hook making it great for dropshotting,” said Prince. “It has a shorter shank, wider gap and a lightwire grade with that Owner slick gray finish.  
Owner Round Ultra Jighead
“This jighead now is offered with a bigger hook and heavier weight. It is ideal for use with bigger swimbaits or minnow-style baits.”
Hank Cherry – Bassmooch Rain Boots
“These boots do exactly what they need to at a great price,” said Cherry. “They keep your feet dry, aren’t too heavy and can be worn all day without wearing you out.”
Unnamed Bassmooch bait
“This is a brand new bait for Bassmooch, it’ll be perfect for dropshotting or on a jighead,” according to Cherry. “It’s super lifelike and has an air pocket in the back for adding scent.”
Justin Hamner – Halo BB Series Rods
“We have three rods coming out, a jerkbait rod, jig rod and minnow rod; I’m excited because I had a big part in designing these rods how I wanted them.”
Netbait Hex Tex Line
“These baits all have a honeycomb technology that increases the surface area for more Baitfuel to be on the surface, said Hamner. “It also gives the baits a pretty sweet action.”
Bryan New – Spro Micro Little John 45
“The DD version of this bait is a killer in the fall and winter, this is just a shallower version of that bait.”
FXR Venture Tri Limit Light Rainsuit
“This suit is so light and comfortable for being so waterproof,” said New. “I carry a bunch of tackle in my boat and the less room I can take up, the more tackle I can bring.
Jason Christie – Spro Jason Christie Elite Casting Reel
SPRO Jason Christie Spinning Reel
Matt Robertson – Ugly Stik Carbon
“I helped design this rod with the rest of the Ugly Stik Team,” said Robertson.” We have a 7’6” for flipping and big swimbaits, and a 7’3” for spinnerbaits, jigs and dragging baits; These two rods will get you by for a lot of techniques.”
 
Ugly Stik GX2
“This is America’s first rod,” says Robertson. They completely re-did this rod and it’s all made in-house at the Ugly Stik factory. They also upped the warranty from seven to ten years on this rod.”
JT Thompkins – Yamamoto 3.2 Shad Shaped Swimmer
“The Shad Shaped Worm has been a staple for years, and they added a boot tail to it, said Thompkins. “Our next two events are up north, and this bait will be a killer on a dropshot or a jighead.”
FXR Pro Air UPF Hoody
“This shirt has a hoody and built in neck gaiter to keep the sun off of you, according to Thompkins. “There is a mesh section on the back that allows for more airflow to keep you cool.”
John Crews – Missile Baits Spunk Shad 3.0 with the Hover Missile
 
“This bait nails the demand for a smaller-profile minnow-style bait” said Crews. “When the fish get on shad, this smaller spunk shad is hard to beat.”
 
Missile Baits Micro D-Bomb

“To go along with the trend of upsized or downsized baits is the Micro D-Bomb. This bait is perfect on a ned rig or when the fish are feeding on small crawfish or bluegill.”

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