“I didn’t make squat,”
he recalled.
“That didn’t phase me.”
work in the garage on tackle for an hour or so, then watch a movie with my wife.” The many demands on his time serve to strengthen his resolve. He said that he’s certainly frustrated at times that he doesn’t get to focus 100 percent of his efforts on his angling ca- reer, but he also knows that there are “people who don’t do any- thing but fish and they don’t put the effort into fishing that I do.” ultimately, he still loves to fish, and particularly enjoys competing against the best of the best. “Those 12 hour drives just wind me down,” he explained. “By the time I’m two hours away, I’m fired up. No matter how bad I get beat up at a tournament, I can get three hours away and I’m thinking about how to fish my next tournament. I get goose bumps thinking about holding up the trophy.”
Myers said that it’s the seemingly unsolvable puzzles that keep him coming back to both of his professional passions. “When people say that something can’t be done on a car, that it’s impossible, that’s what I love,” he said. “Nothing is impossible. You just have to figure out a way to make it work. It’s the same way in fishing – you cannot give up.” While he no longer wants to be known as the car guy who happens to fish on the side, Myers realizes that his business acumen has directly benefitted his fishing career. His title sponsor, ATX Wheels, wanted to work with an angler, and since he was already familiar with the company, he was a natural fit, able to work essentially as a traveling salesman rather than just a billboard. His timing couldn’t have been better, either. With the rise of shows like “Pimp My Ride” and “West Coast Customs,” a new generation of anglers didn’t want cookie cutter pickups or Suburbans. Instead, they wanted what KVD and Ish and Swindle had, and since it was Myers who created their rides, he was the man to see. “People from all over the country send their vehicles to us,” he said. “I have one in the shop from Arkansas right now, almost a thousand miles away. The guy knows I’ll know how to make his Tundra tournament-ready. A large part of my success is because I’m a professional angler. A local angler walks up to the counter and Ike or Ish is here, or we have Swindle’s truck in the back. I may room with Gerald, now, but 12 years ago I drove two hours to see him at a bass fishing seminar, so I know what it means to be a fan. When we started the business, if a NASCAR driver or pit crew came in it wasn’t a big deal to me, but if Zell Rowland called, it was huge. Today that happens every day.”
Spring 2013
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