COLUMN : BASS HISTORY bass fishing ’ s first world record
The circumstances surrounding Fritz Friebel ’ s 20-pound largemouth are still shrouded in legend
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ken Duke has been writing about all aspects of bass fishing for 40 years . When he ’ s not reading about , writing about , thinking about or talking about bass fishing , he ’ s usually bass fishing . hese days , you can ’ t watch a sporting event or competition of any kind without hearing terms
T like “ world record ” or “ Olympic record ,” or “ track record ,” or some such thing , but it hasn ’ t always been like that , especially in bass fishing . Record keeping in the bass world got a bit of a late start , causing many ( including me ) to wonder what we may have missed in those early days .
I should start this piece by noting that true “ sport fishing ” – where the goal is to catch a fish deemed worthy of pursuit by “ sporting means ” – is relatively new as human endeavors go . Before the 19th Century , fishing was purely a subsistence activity . People generally did not go fishing for the pleasure of it . They may have enjoyed it , but the goal was clear : They were out to get food .
And the culinary aspect of fish was a big part of determining which species would be considered “ sport fish ” and which were merely trash . If the public liked the taste of a fish species , it was classified as a “ game ” or “ sport ” fish early on . If not , it was a “ rough ” fish , unworthy of the table or of pursuit by gentlemen ( few women were anglers , and those who were generally did not make it public ).
The largemouth bass had a bad reputation in the early days of sportfishing . In the mid 1800s , it was generally regarded as a low-class fish , living in dank , fetid waters , and tasting “ muddy .” If you were a sporting angler , you pursued trout . That opinion persisted well into the 20th Century in some areas .
26 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | JUNE-JULY 2022