A few weeks ago, the Troutbitten Podcast crossed 1 Million downloads. Spencer Durrant, the news editor for Midcurrent and host of the Unhooked Podcast, got in touch to ask if I’d answer a few questions for the occasion.
The Midcurrent publication is part of the glue that binds this industry together, so I was happy to oblige. Answering these questions also got me thinking about where this Troutbitten Project has been and where it’s going.
So as Troutbitten enters the year of its tenth anniversary, here’s a look into one of our favorite branches of this Troutbitten media company and how it became so important to the Troutbitten community.
READ the Full Interview on Midcurrent
Question One
MidCurrent: 1 million downloads – that’s incredible! The podcast game is really competitive these days (everyone seems to have one). What, specifically, has helped Troutbitten stand out in the fly fishing niche?
Dom: Thank you, Spencer.
Yes, the Troutbitten Podcast took off right away, and it has become a rewarding part of this whole project. I love seeing the connections that anglers have to Troutbitten and how much they attach part of their fishing lives to something that I created.
Success for the Troutbitten Podcast, just like the website and the videos, has come from three things: consistency, quality and authenticity.
When I started the website in 2014, there were plenty of other fishing blogs and websites out there. But I noticed a trend. People wrote for a while and then tapered off. I promised myself I would not do that. So I committed to a full year of writing every week. Then it became twice a week. And by 2017, I was committed to publishing three times a week. I’ve been doing that ever since.
I saw that model of consistency work with the website, so I wanted to do the same with the podcast . . .
READ the Full Interview on Midcurrent
Question Two
MidCurrent: What have you learned as an angler from doing the podcast? I’ve found the more I write and talk about fly fishing myself, I keep learning.
Dom: I’ve learned from my friends through the conversations you hear. I learned from Trevor about wool layers, and I gave wool another chance. Now, I wear wool almost every day, for about eight months of the year. I’ve learned more about when, why and how to pause streamers from hearing Bill’s surprising answers to questions in one of our streamer episodes. Those are just a couple examples of how I’ve learned through the conversations themselves.
Hearing comments and receiving questions from listeners is also a continuing education . . .
READ the Full Interview on Midcurrent
Question Three
MidCurrent: I know your focus has always been on helping other anglers. Why did you decide a podcast was the right way to expand your ability to help other anglers?
Dom: I didn’t decide it that way, honestly. With Troutbitten, my method has been to just keep my head down and try to create good things. I’ve had no overarching business plan or even a path to follow. So as the next opportunity or idea has come up, I’ve decided to follow through with it or put it on hold . . .
READ the Full Interview on Midcurrent
Question Four
MidCurrent: What exciting things do you have in mind for Troutbitten in 2024?
Dom: In 2024 we’re launching live Troutbitten podcasts on YouTube. Many of these live events will feature popular guests, where the audience can join in to ask questions of the guests or the Troutbitten crew.
We’re all excited about this addition to our podcast lineup, and . . .
READ the Full Interview on Midcurrent
Fish hard, friends.
** Donate ** If you enjoy this article, please consider a donation. Your support is what keeps this Troutbitten project funded. Scroll below to find the Donate Button. And thank you.
Enjoy the day.
Domenick Swentosky
T R O U T B I T T E N
domenick@troutbitten.com
I would like to thank you all for the pod casts. The most recent series on nymphing is really good. I can’t wait for Spring to arrive in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and get back in the river. My son and his family recently moved back to Pittsburgh, can you recommend a couple rivers that I might fish with him in the area? We also have family East of Pittsburgh in Ligonier, so maybe a river in that area as well. That would be awesome. Many Thanks. Please keep doing everything you are doing in your articles and pod casts, it is all point on.
Cheers
Hi Max,
Happy to help you out, but I wont’ name stream names publicly. You could email me, if you like. Honestly, the best thing is to just buy the Keystone guide book. It has every water you would want to fish down that way.
Here’s the link.
https://amzn.to/2DRZsJ9
Cheers
Dom
I forgot about not naming names, sorry. I bought the book. I’ll let you know how my PA fishing goes this summer.
Cheers
Right on
Congratulations Dom and crew on 1 million downloads! I never miss an episode and listen to many of them multiple times.
I couldn’t get to the midcurrent article with the imbedded link so I just googled midcurrent and troutbitten to get there
Thanks for bringing that to my attention, Mike. I had the link screwed up. Changed it. Thanks again.
Dom
Huge congratulations! Been a pleasure to ride along for the evolution over the years. There’s no other online resource that’s as encyclopedic as Troutbitten. Well done, well done.
Thanks Jim. Very kind.
Dom,
Thanks for the generosity and passion you show for teaching things fly fishing. You’ve set me up to learn a great deal on the water and I appreciate your level headed approach. I was over on the Yellow Breeches a month ago and ran into another fisherman who recognized your influence on my gear and technique and we compared TroutBitten notes.