Wherin We Mourn a Passing.

For about a year now, the morning ritual went: coffee, gatorade, icepack and elevation, check the email, read the online newspaper, then cruise a few boards and blogs, see what the unwashed masses were bitchin' about. Most of the places we stopped are now listed on the blogroll on the right side of this page, and some of them were a powerful inspiration for the inception of this blog.

This morning's check was rudely interrupted by a headline on one of my favorite reads, The Voluntary Beatdown. Seems Bacon_to_Fry is hanging it up, after 365 days of solid effort. A year's worth of excellent writing on fish, fishing, environmental issues, and retarded kids chuggin' Mountain Dew. 52 weeks of dissin' nymphers and defending out-of-the-box approaches to fishing...Done. Fini. Kaput.

In terms of writing style, Bacon was all over the map. From stone delivery to 3 sheets wandering, the writing covers all the bases...If y'all think that fishing is a subject that is too cluttered to write about in stream-of consciousness style, go check the archives of the Beatdown. Bacon manages to capture the giddy breathlesness of incredible events witnessed by few and understood by fewer, the gravelbar musings and mutterings of the broken, and the tinny inner voice of instability that accompanies the sickness of the Coastal Steelheader...all to excellent effect. We will miss the daily Beatdown.

All is not lost, however. Bacon made a regular Wednesday appearance (with Mingo's Girl, the World's Best Holder-Upper) over at Buster Wants To Fish, so for now we will assume that his writing will continue, albeit in a different environs.

So. To the one year run, and the inspiration and entertainment you have provided for us, we say...

Thanks, Bacon.