My official title here is Senior Editor of BASS Publications, but, unofficially at least, I'm known as "the Bass Geek." I'm also the new editor of Bassmaster.com and BASS Insider. The Bass Geek thing is a title earned over 31 years of BASS membership and too many hours poring over bass magazines, books, videos and the like. I've even spent a few thousand hours on the water, chasing my favorite species.
I'd be less than honest if I told you that I didn't like the title Bass Geek. It's at least a little flattering when someone stops by to ask an obscure question about BASS or bass fishing history in the hopes that I might know the answer when no one else seems to know it. But my most enjoyable moments come when I learn something new myself.
As the Bass Geek, one of my biggest frustrations is that our sport lacks the kind of statistical wealth that makes baseball such a great game. Growing up, I was a baseball fan, too, collecting cards and memorizing statistics. While baseball is the ultimate statistical game, bass fishing is seriously lacking in that kind of history and lore.