|
|
John's Journal...
Entry 153,
Day 4
AMERICA'S GREATEST BASS FISHERMAN
Clay At His Best
EDITOR'S
NOTE: He's a giant among bass fishermen, and in my opinion Clay Dyer of
Hamilton, Alabama, is the greatest bass fisherman with whom I have ever
fished. Fishing since he was five years old, Clay has tournament fished
since age 15 and has been a full-time professional bass fisherman since
1995. Clay, at 24 years old, is almost 40 inches tall and weighs 86 pounds.
He has no legs, but he does have a partial 16-inch-long arm on his right
shoulder. If you see Clay in a fishing tournament, you won't think he
has a disability either. Clay is highly competitive and fishes two to
four bass tournaments a month. Clay's sponsors include: Skeeter boats,
Yamaha outboards, Minn Kota trolling motors, All Star graphite rods, Strike
King Lure Company, Lowrance electronics and Team Fish fishing line. Rather
than tell Clay's story to you, I'll let Clay tell his own story.
QUESTION: Clay, of all the things you have done and feel
you can do, what do you feel you are the best at?
ANSWER:
I feel that I'm the best witness that I can be for God. Jesus Christ is
my Lord and Savior and died for my sins. And once I committed my life
to Him, and decided to be a witness for Him, amazing things have happened
to me. He has made the things that I've wanted to do a lot easier. He
has given me willpower, strength and courage to try things that I wouldn't
ordinarily try. He has taught me not give up. When I'm fishing in 110-degree
weather, sweat is just pouring off me, and the fish aren't biting, I've
learned not to give up. On the days when the weather is so cold that I
have to wear a snowmobile suit and a helmet, and the fish aren't biting,
I've learned not to give up. The good Lord has taught me to never give
up, to never throw in the towel and quit and to always do more than anyone
thinks I can. I love to fish. I love to win. I love to work with and for
my sponsors. But the thing that I love the most is to know that I've made
a difference in someone else's life. Maybe I have encouraged someone else
to be all that they can be. If I can encourage someone else to not quit
during bad times, not give up when that seems the only option and to reach
for seemingly impossible goals, then my life has been worthwhile, and
my testimony has been effective. I feel really blessed that I can drive
these high-performance bass boats and have such great sponsors. To be
able to fish and work for these companies is a tremendous honor for me.
I love to go to the national bass tournaments and have the biggest bass
fishermen in the world say, "Hey, Clay. How are you doing? How's your
fishing coming?" For them to know who I am and want to be around me is
one of the greatest encouragements of my life.
QUESTION:
Clay, most guys in your shape would be thinking about what they didn't
have and or couldn't do. How have you turned that attitude around?
ANSWER: What I'm doing is not really a big deal. I just take what I have
and try to do the very best I can with what I've got. By adopting this
attitude, I've found out that I can do things that I didn't think possible.
Many times people ask me how I cast or how I tie on bait or run a trolling
motor and although I try and explain, I usually wind up telling them,
"I really can't explain it. Just watch, and you will see how I do it."
QUESTION: How do you tie a lure on a hook?
ANSWER: I put the bait on my arm, and then I get the bait as close as
I possibly can to my mouth. Using my tongue, lips and arms, I just feel
the line going through the eye of the hook and turn the bait until I make
a knot. Then I run the tag end of the line through the knot. I have tied
on so many lures over the years, it now is a task that I do so repetitiously
that I don't even think about it. Think about using your fork to scoop
up food and put it in your mouth. You never really think about how you
do it, you just do it. When I'm tying on a hook, I don't even think about
what I'm doing. I just tie on the hook.
QUESTION: What type knots are you tying?
ANSWER: I usually tie a Palomar knot or an improved clinch knot. Ninety-nine
percent of the time I use a Palomar knot. I can tie almost any knot that
anybody else can tie. I think that the Palomar knot may be one of the
hardest knots to tie, but it is one of the best knots that you can tie
to keep from having your line break. I have to flip the line around several
times, pull on a part of the line and then another part of the line, then
the knot is tied. I don't ever think about how to tie a knot, I just tie
a knot.
QUESTION:
Clay, most bass tournament fishermen dream of the day they can get sponsors.
However, most tournament bass fishermen do not have sponsors. How were
you able to get sponsorship?
ANSWER: I have been very blessed to meet and get to know quite a few people
in the fishing industry. But just knowing people is not the answer to
get sponsorship. You can be the best- looking fisherman on the circuit
and catch more bass than anyone else on the circuit, but if you're not
willing to work for your sponsors and help them, then, they really are
not interested in sponsoring you. When my sponsors need something, they
know I'm ready to be there for them. I am ready to do whatever they need
done, wherever they need me to be. I'll be working in my sponsors' booths
this year at the BASS Masters Classic in Birmingham, Alabama. I will help
them any way I can work in that booth. I try and work just as hard, if
not harder, than the most-prestigious tournament angler the company has.
I've met with all my sponsors and had heart-to-heart talks with them.
I told them why I'm doing what I'm doing and what I felt that I could
do for them. Instead of telling the sponsors what I want them to do for
me, I've told them what I'm willing to do for them. I never ask my sponsors
for anything. I feel like if I can show them that I can help them, they
will show me that they want me too. And they will sponsor me on the level
where they feel that I should be. That is fine with me. I'm just really
proud to be associated with the companies that sponsor me. Companies are
not looking for big strong muscle men or someone who wants to be the big
guy and has an ego problem. They are not necessarily looking for a guy
who can catch the most fish. Fishing-tackle companies are looking for
someone who will be a good example and representative for their company,
someone who will work for and with them and someone who genuinely appreciates
the opportunity to work within the fishing industry. They are also looking
for someone who will help sell their products and who understands that
helping to sell their products is just as important as catching bass.
You can contact Clay Dyer at 5321 Steel Street, Hamilton,
Alabama 35570.
TOMORROW: THE FUTURE FOR CLAY DYER
|