ORLANDO, Fla. – Luke Clausen continues to lament a fall that sidelined him for the 2018 Elite season. He’s on the mend and was able to make it to ICAST, where he was found working the Yo-Zuri booth, but he is getting somewhat stir crazy.
“I’m ready to get fishing again,” he said. “This Bassmaster LIVE is kinda like a bad car accident – I can’t help but watch it, but while I’m watching it I’m also mad that I’m not there.”
Clausen, 39, suffered multiple injuries after falling headfirst out of a loft onto a concrete floor on April 17. The aftermath was worse than many car accidents in that he had a concussion, nasty bumps on the back of his head and shoulder, broken ribs and bone chips in his hand. He’s received a medical hardship for the Elite season, which was difficult because he started so well.
While an MRI on his hand will discern if he needs surgery, he continues physical therapy for his shoulder.
“My shoulder is good,” he said. “I’ve got probably 80 percent range of motion. There’s still a lot of stuff popping and grinding in there.”
Clausen has been cleared to fish, and he said he can go for half a day before tiring. To prep for archery deer season, he’s been bow fishing for carp with the draw weight set down to 40 pounds.
The oddest thing he reported was physical therapy for his concussion, which leaves him kinda loopy for a couple hours. The doctor has him looking at Xs on a screen and following them with his eyes and turning his head.
How he fell out of the loft as he retrieved some lures remains a mystery. Too late now, but he helped put up a railing. Best he can figure is he might have stepped down into the fall as the top step was about 8 inches wider than the rest.
“When I regained consciousness, I was 15 feet from there, so I don’t really know,” he said. “I know the concrete was really hard, and it doesn’t feel good on your head.”
With his arm in a sling for two months, Clausen said his healing has sped up and he can’t wait to compete again. While the Elite season is sadly a wash, he believes he’ll be plenty ready and has set his mark on the U.S. Open in October.
Improve Quantum Accurist comes in colors
Who better than Kevin VanDam to promote a product, and he seemed rather fired up about the upgrades Quantum has done to its popular Accurist reels.
“It’s been one of our best sellers for a long time, and it’s been improved this year,” VanDam said. “It’s gone from seven ball bearing to nine for 2019, it has a centrifugal brake system and a flipping switch. That’s all for $100, so it’s hard to beat.”
He said the new brake system is better than the previous magnetic system, which helps control backlash while keeping performance for casting distance.
“It comes in four colors, and there’s an inshore version if you fish saltwater. If you’re Adrian Avena, you’re going to use that one,” he said, holding out the green. “Casey Ashley is blue. Notice there’s no red or black, so I’ll stick to the KVD stuff.”
Wink, wink.