Clay Dyer – Living Life and Bass Fishing Beyond the Limits
The Heart of an Athlete
 Editor’s Note: Clay Dyer of Hamilton, Alabama, is an outstanding, unique and highly-successful individual and bass fisherman. Dyer has found a way to take what 90% of us would consider a disadvantage and turn it into a tremendous advantage. “I stand out at every fishing tournament in which I compete,” Dyer mentions. “I’m usually the only fisherman there with no hands, only a partial arm and no legs. I’ve discovered that to be successful in this industry, it helps to be unique. I don’t have to wear sponsor shirts, have my boat and truck wrapped or have m y name printed on all my equipment. Most of the time, when I go to a tournament, the fishermen and the spectators will know who I am, and the products I fish and why when they see me or before they leave.” This week, we’ll take a look at the life of Clay Dyer – one of the most-amazing and unique anglers in the world of bass fishing.
Question: Clay, most bass fishermen dream of the day they can quit their jobs and just compete in tournaments, host TV shows, conduct seminars and travel the world fishing. You don’t have any feet, legs, hands and only a partial arm on your right side. How have you been able to attract sponsors and become a full-time professional bass fisherman?
Dyer: I’m a competitor. I’m constantly working out, exercising, eating right, improving myself physically and mentally, tuning my tackle and trying to learn  all I can to be the best athlete I can be. I’ve also got the patience, the perseverance and the willpower to work at being the very best I can be every day, so I can continue to compete.
Question: In spite of your incredible work ethic, attention to detail, patience and perseverance, many fishermen will look at you and ask, “How in the world has this guy been a ble to accomplish all he has to become one of the nation’s best bass fishermen?” They see your disadvantages instead of your advantages. How have you been able to take your physical limitations and achieve all you have?
Dyer: The factors most people see as my disadvantages, I view as my advantages. When I go to a bass tournament, I stick out like a sore thumb. I can’t go anywhere incognito. Anyone who sees me knows that I’m different. So, this gives me a real advantage from the beginning. Because I’m different, I’m noticeable, and because I can compete at one of the highest levels of bass fishing, I’m even more noticeable. Because I love people and my work, people want to know more about me.
Question: What kind of training schedule do you have?
Dyer: I try not to eat junk food, and I take vitamins, drink protein shakes and eat nutritional bars. Too, I exercise daily. I’ve got weight bands I can put on my partial arm and perform all kinds of exercises. I exercise my back, stomach and shoulders, and I jog every day for at least 30 minutes. Now, remember, when I’m jogging, 30 yards for me is about the equivalent of 250 yards for a guy with legs and feet. I do push-ups, crunches, back extensions and any other exercises to strengthen my body physically. I started working out about 5-years ago, and I really can tell a difference in my strength and stamina. Now, I can cast baits just as hard and accurately at the end of 10 or 12 hours of fishing as I can at the beginning of the day.
Question: How many casts do you make a day?
Dyer: One day when I was fishing a lot of fast-moving baits like spinner baits, Red Eye Shads and crankbaits, a friend counted 2,500 casts. So, in a day of fishing slow and fast, I’ll average between 2,000 and 3,000 casts per day.
Question: Are you a finesse or a power-bait fisherman?
Dyer: I’m a finesse fisherman only when I have to be. I’d rather be flipping a jig or casting a crankbait, a spinner bait, a buzzbait or a top-water bait than having to drop-shot. I prefer to power fish, cover a lot of water and chunk and wind all day.
To learn more about Clay Dyer, visit http://www.smgoutdoors.com/claydyer.html, or call (214) 632-4416.
Tomorrow: Being a Role Model
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