Bass #5157 November 19, 2019 at 5:37pm Wichita, KS

Coming into 2019 I had this big plan for a countdown to “Bass #5000.” You see, I had finished 2018 with a total of 4895 bass on the spreadsheet that I created back in 1997 when I joined The Computer Age. I thought big fanfare, perhaps a countdown, maybe one of those oversized fundraiser type displays in my front yard or a graphic on the tailgate of my truck…okay, maybe not.

But then I got so focused on just fishing that when Bass #5000 hit the log I completely missed the milestone. Initially, I was kind of bummed at blowing the chance to celebrate via another blog posting but I got over it. After all, I’m usually not at a loss for blog ideas (598 and counting since May 2017). I just feel sorry for the bass that never got a photograph and write-up for its fifteen minutes of fame.

Instead, the spreadsheet now shows 5157 bass and I’m going with that fish for the substitute celebration.

Being a stat guy, here’s some data related to the “milestone.”

3/21/1997 – At 5:04pm Bass #1 of The Computer Age enters the log (no pic taken, shot below is of Bass #2 landed at 5:38pm).

7/13/2019 – At 6:36am Bass #5000 comes aboard and I totally blow my chance to take a picture as originally intended

555 – Approximate number of miles between Bass #1 (Victoria, IL) and Bass #5157 (Wichita, KS)

8,278 – Days between catching Bass #1 and Bass #5157

1998.75 – Hours spent fishing to land those 5,157 bass

127 – Bodies of water registering at least one of the 5,157 bass

Plenty of other numbers along the way too, such as 1 wife, 4 kids, 2 trucks, 5 homes, 4 jobs and 2 floppy hats just to name a few. It’s been a wild ride and here’s to keeping the fish total climbing in the 2020s. Talk to you later. Troy