Editor’s Note: Clay Dyer of Hamilton Alabama, a member of Plano’s Pro Team, a pro fisherman on the FLW Tour, a motivational speaker across the nation and an assistant coach for the Hamilton High School Aggies football team, has hosted TV shows and teaches number of fishing seminars each year. This week, Dyer will tell us how and why he became a Plano pro.

Question: Clay, how long have you been on Plano’s Pro Staff?
Dyer: I’ve been a member of the Plano Pro Staff for 11 years. The company was one of my first sponsors.

Question: Why do you like Plano tackle boxes?
Dyer: As a touring-pro fisherman, I have to carry a lot of tackle to every tournament in which I compete. To fish as efficiently as I can, I want my tackle to be organized. Then I don’t have to spend time looking for a particular lure I want to fish with during practice or competition. Because of the various tackle-box systems Plano produces, I have many-different ways I can organize my tackle and lures. I can organize my weights from the tiniest split shot to a 1-ounce sinker and know exactly where every weight I may need is located in the box. Too, I can organize my lures by depth and color.

Question: How does a guy with no hands and only a partial arm use a tackle box?
Dyer: I need to be able to get into my boxes quickly and easily using my teeth, without the edges of the latches cutting my mouth. Too, I need strong latches on my tackle boxes, so when I drop one, it doesn’t burst open and throw all my lures, weights and hooks on the ground. Because I don’t have any hands, I occasionally do drop my tackle boxes. Therefore, I need a really-tough tackle box because I’m so rough on them. If a tackle box is tough enough to pass the Dyer test, it’s tough enough for all fishermen. Oftentimes, I’ll drop my boxes on concrete boat ramps or asphalt parking lots when I’m transferring them to and from my boat and truck. My Plano boxes never have spilled open or broken.

Question: Which Plano tackle box do you use the most?
Dyer: I use the ProLatch Stowaway box more than any other box. I use some of the Guide Series boxes to keep my equipment in the back of my truck. Too, I like the shelving systems to organize my tackle in my shop in my garage.

Question: How did you start working with Plano?
Dyer: I met Jesse Simpkins, Plano’s marketing director, many years ago, and told him how much I liked Plano, and how long I’d been using Plano tackle boxes. I told him what I was doing and hoped to do in the future. Simpkins, like my other sponsors, believed in me and thought I’d be a good representative for the Plano Molding Company.

Question: Why would you recommend Plano tackle boxes to other fishermen?
Dyer: The boxes are tough and durable, and they can withstand rain, sleet, snow and blistering-hot sun. The Plano boxes also lockdown tight and seal very well. Plano even makes waterproof tackle boxes. When you use one of the waterproof tackle boxes, even in a driving rain, you won’t get moisture in your box, which can cause your hooks to rust. The boxes without waterproof liners are also extremely effective in protecting my lures and not allowing them to rust.

Question: How do you put lures into and take them out of your tackle box without any hands?
Dyer: I hold a pair of needle-nosed pliers in my mouth and use the pliers to pick up the lures.

Question: How do you tie lures onto your line?
Dyer: I place the lure on the bend of my partial arm, put the line in my mouth and tie the knot with my tongue and my lips. Once I’ve got the knot tied, I move the bait, so the point of the hook is sticking in the end of my arm. Then I use my mouth to pull the line tight against the lure.

Question: You mean you’re pulling the line and the point of the hook into your partial arm?
Dyer: Yes, that’s right. The point of the hook usually sticks me, and I bleed every time, but that’s the price I’ll pay to be a professional fisherman and compete on the national FLW circuit.

Question: What knot do you tie?
Dyer: I tie either the Palomar knot or the San Diego clinch. About 90% of the time, I tie the San Diego clinch knot.

Question: What tours do you fish?
Dyer: I fish the FLW Tour and the FLW Series.

Question: What’s in the future for you?
Dyer: I’m hoping that in 2009, I’ll start hosting a TV show as well as keep fishing the tour events. One day, I hope to fish in the FLW Championship and win it.