More year end hi-jinks, coming up…
2011 was kind of a stellar year around here. 3 years ago I hacked together penned 280 blog posts within the calendar year. I know…WTF, get a life, right? That number’s been slipping each year since…down to 172 in 2012, 154 in 2013, and a “mere” 136 so far this year (not counting today’s hot mess).
Anyway, of those most recent 136, there were probably at least a few that were somewhat worthwhile…or entertaining…or had some sort of redeeming quality…at least that’s what my Google stats tell me by “your” visits.
So for all of you that have been around for the ride, or are even brand new to the blog, I figured I’d close out the year with a Top 5 post. “Popularity” being judged by Google Analytics’ visitor statistics. Which I do understand is clearly flawed logic since posts written in the beginning of the year have a better chance to amass more traffic, but whatever…blah, blah, blah…
(Also, to any blogger that also plans on doing a year end recap either this week or next, please note that THESE RULES STILL APPLY).
The Top 5 Troutrageous! Posts of 2014
#5. Daft Punk Unmasked; A Crappy T! Grammys Recap
My buddy Howard over at Windknots & Tangled Lines didn’t really have a banner 2014. But he did evidently get some red carpet time in with some author I never heard of and the guy in the Arby’s hat…while looking quite dapper in the process.
#4. A Plea For Help – Save Our Wild Puffer Balls!
Yeah, I was clearly smoking crack or something when I wrote this one. The fact that it’s so long (that’s what she said) is what really gets me. I think I had the brainstorm for this opus while I was mowing the lawn in 98 degree Florida heat. Heat stroke, yep, that’s what I’ll blame this on…
#3. The Quest For The Ultimate Fly Fishing Kayak – Part 5
For whatever the reason, folks must have been really into the new Feel Free Lure fishing kayak. I’ve written several “Quest For The Ulitmate Fly Fishing Kayak” posts, and this one was by far the most popular, not only of this year, but perhaps (in relative terms) of all time…
#2. ICAST / IFTD 2014 – Reels In Review
For a blog that talks a heck of a lot about tenkara, my readers sure do like reels. I mean who am I kidding, how can you not? Heading to the ICAST/IFTD show in Orlando this year as “press” was a pretty cool thing. I actually wrote a handful of posts about several different product categories from the show, but this came out tops, by a wide margin. The Fly Reel Company’s RB1 (picutred above) might have been my favorite reel at the show…
#1. So You Want To Buy A Tenkara Starter Kit? Patagonia vs. Tenkara USA
The people have spoken…and I guess they were interested in tenkara starter kits… Patagonia created a bit of a buzz in early 2014 when they entered the tenkara market with their “Simple Fly Fishing” concept. Primarily packaged in a “kit,” I compared their offering to the leading competitor’s offering. I really wasn’t trying to pull ALL of the options into this post, as there are many worthwhile sets in the marketplace…only trying to compare comparable offerings from a pricepoint and feature/benefit standpoint. The choice was clear to me, but I certainly can’t fault you if you went in another direction.
And with that, I conclude the Top 5 Troutrageous! Posts of 2014. Unless of course I pull one out of my backside in the few days left between now and New Year’s. I seriously doubt that will happen, but who knows…
I hope you enjoyed…or at very least, tolerated…the offerings here over the last 362 days. I’ll try to do better in 2015, because it’d be hard to do much worse…
