Bryant's James Overtstreet is a renown outdoor photographer who has worked with Bassmaster since 2006, taking photographs of the world's best bass anglers in tournaments across the country
In addition to following the fishermen and shootings photos while they search for and catch big bass, he also plants himself in front of the weigh-in stage for each event. After hundreds of tournaments over the years, Overstreet admits that taking photos of anglers holding up their fish can be quite boring.
However, what the fishermen have to say keeps things lively.
"Quite frankly it helps keep my eyes from glazing over after about tournament No. 500, or whatever that number is," Overstreet wrote on bassmaster.com. "It's sitting there and listening to what the best anglers in the world have to say about their day that holds my interest.
"For some reason, the ones that describe a bad day seem to get written down more than most."
Here are a collection of Overstreet's favorite weigh-in quotes that he's jotted down over the years:
• Mik Iaconelli: "An eight-hour day seems like a long time, but it's not when you're confused."
• David Walker after weighing only one fish: "I don't know how I caught that fish. I guess he just decided to give up."
• Denny Brauer: "This whole week's been like an ugly blind date. ... It's a good thing it ended early."
• Mayflower's Kevin Short: "The Arkansas River's hard on everybody. ... It doesn't care where you come from."
• Also from Short: "Whatever I threw today, I ain't throwing it tomorrow. Wherever I went today, I ain't going back."
As entertaining as those guys are, Overstreet said Gerald Swindle of Hayden, Ala., is in a different league when it comes to quotes.
Among some of Swindle's best:
• "I assure you, I know some places that suck."
• "I'm catching one fish for every 41 gallons of gas."
• "I looked like Steve Wonder out there trying to play basketball."
• "Junk fishing is what I'm good at, that and running around confused."
• "If anybody wants to write a story on how to catch one fish and spend about $9,000, then I'm the man to talk to."
He's still A.J.
Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A.J. Foyt is still recovering from triple-bypass heart surgery in November and post-operative complications that kept him the hospital for about a month.
Foyt, 80, doesn't expect to be at the track to watch the IndyCar team he owns until at least May, but he has kept himself busy, albeit without doctor's permission.
"I've been on my bulldozer a couple times," he said. "Nothing to brag about. I was very weak and very tired, but I have done some stuff with it. I probably should keep that quiet because I'm not sure the doctor would enjoy hearing that."
Same playbook
Driver Kurt Busch returned to the track Friday after NASCAR lifted the suspension first handed down before February's Daytona 500.
He was reinstated shortly after the Delaware attorney general's office said it would not pursue criminal charges against Busch in relation to an incident involving Busch and his ex-girlfriend at Dover, Del., in September 2014.
Eddie Gossage, president and general manager of Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, said he believes how the Busch case was handled is a direct result of how the NFL has recently handled similar cases, particularly the incident involving former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice and his then-fiance.
"The NFL's bungling in having so many characters of ill repute playing their game has changed it for everybody," Gossage told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "It's unfair to [Busch] that just on an accusation he gets kicked out of a way to make a living. It just doesn't make sense to me. But the NFL's policy is the same way.
"If I wanted to beat somebody in the Super Bowl, I'd just stick a chick on the elevator with the quarterback the night before the game, accuse him of something and he can't play the next day. Think about that."
Sports quiz
Who won the first Bassmaster Classic in 1971?
Answer
Bobby Murray of Hot Springs.
Sports on 03/15/2015