BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — If there was one thing angler Rick Clunn learned while Bassmaster Elite tournaments were postponed during the pandemic shutdown, it was that his career was far from over. Not that the notion had occurred to him despite people asking when he might retire.
“The whole [shutdown] situation challenged us all mentally and physically,” the 74-year-old legendary pro from Missouri said. “One thing I certainly learned is I now know I don’t want to retire. Having nothing to do makes you grow old quickly.”
So, when there was so much uncertainty about when the Elite Series season might resume, he scheduled surgery for a partially torn rotator cuff to make use of the downtime.
Doctors said it would be at least an eight-week recovery period. When B.A.S.S. scheduled the DEWALT Bassmaster Elite at Lake Eufaula four weeks later, accepting a medical exemption was not an option. Clunn was going to fish. He didn’t tell anyone; not Tournament Director Trip Weldon, the media or other competitors. Nor his doctor.
“He didn’t want any sympathy and was afraid he wouldn’t be allowed to fish,” said Clunn’s wife, Melissa.
Clunn attributes the tear to his high school football days and making 1,500 to 2,000 casts a day during his storied 46-year career in which he has won four Bassmaster Classics and 16 Bassmaster events.
In addition to the tear, Clunn had bone spurs that abraded the muscles every time he used his shoulder.
“Until recently, it hadn’t bothered me much during fishing, but it did while I was sleeping,” he said.
Melissa said her husband was a “man on a mission” after the surgery. He would not wear a sling and took no pain meds after the first night.
“I caught him practicing casting with a 7-foot rod in his office within a week of the surgery,” she recalled. “He would get angry with me when I scolded him for lifting or doing anything the doctor told him not to do. He wasn’t the ideal patient.”
Again, Clunn shrugs that off. He was confident he could cast and set the hook with just a little pain. “I’ve known this body for 74 years – what it can do and what it can’t do – and what it needs to do to recover. I was going to push it but not too far.”
Satisfied he could cast and set the hook, his biggest concern was driving the boat. He doesn’t use a foot pedal, so he had to control the boat speed with his right arm and steer with the surgically repaired left.
“I found out I could drive just fine but had to drive different speeds and had to learn what I could and couldn’t do,” he said. “When I found out I wouldn’t have a Marshal the first day, I was relieved.”
Clunn said he had no pain while fishing and had no problems through three days of practice; however, sacking his fish at the end of each tournament day was a different story. It required he reach the repaired shoulder away from the body, which was a definite no-no.
“I tried bagging fish the first day, and I looked like an idiot,” said Clunn, who averaged 15 pounds a day and finished 56th. “The second day I got help from [fellow competitor] Jamie Hartman. He’s the only one I told about the surgery.”
Clunn says he can’t control how old he may look but knows attitude controls how old he feels. When he left for Eufaula, Clunn had about 30% use of his shoulder. When he came home, Clunn says, he was up to 75%.
“He’s the toughest person – physically and mentally – of anyone I’ve ever met,” said Melissa. “He would never be happy if fishing wasn’t a part of his life.”
Fishing and his will to stay active help keep Father Time at bay.
“When I got home from Eufaula, I felt 25 years younger than I felt when I left home,” said Clunn, after fishing his 458th B.A.S.S. event. “As long as I stayed away from the mirror.”
About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 515,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), television show (The Bassmasters on ESPN2 and The Pursuit Channel), radio show (Bassmaster Radio), social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.
The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series, TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Series, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by Academy Sports + Outdoors, Bassmaster Team Championship, new Huk Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Kayak Series powered by TourneyX presented by Abu Garcia and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic.
