Competitor Kevin Wirth (see right), however, seemed shaken and had decided he wasn't going to weigh fish, which meant his first-day total of only two fish and 3 pounds would stay. He didn't mind. It had been a very long day for this native Kentuckian.
When Wirth left the launch area at 6 a.m. that Friday morning, he was accompanied by a young observer named John Clift. It was still early when Wirth headed to a point near the shore, instead of turning toward open water, as he had been considering. The two arrived at an area near a dock about 4 miles away, near the High Rock Dam.
After making about six casts, Wirth heard a noise from the back of the boat--a grunt, followed by a thud. He turned just in time to see Clift's head overboard, sinking. "I'm thinking he just slipped," said Wirth. "We do that sometimes."
Wirth ran to the back of the boat to help, but it took a second for the bubbles in Clift's rainsuit to buoy him. When he resurfaced, he was on his side, with his face in the water. "I could see where he was in convulsions," Wirth explained.
Stiff winds were pushing Clift toward the dock, away from the boat's stern. Wirth rushed back to the front of his boat, frantic. "I ran back to the trolling motor to swing the boat around and move all the way back to him. The wind was like a strong current, sucking him under the dock," said Wirth.
By the time Wirth reached the dock, Clift had drifted an arm's length under the dock and sunk a foot below the surface. Wirth's thought was, "He's going down!" Wirth subsequently crashed into the dock and reached for Clift's hood, turning him onto his back. By this time, Clift was purple--"no breath of air, totally lifeless," noted Wirth, as he pulled the cord on Clift's life vest to inflate it.
Suddenly, Clift gasped and coughed, and Wirth saw some blood come up. He realized he had hold of a man whose body knew it was drowning.
With the wind still pushing Wirth's boat, and with Clift between the moving boat and the dock, Wirth wrestled Clift around the side, so he could use the trolling motor. He charged toward a nearby ramp, clutching Clift in the process. As the ramp met the bottom of the boat, Wirth, on his knees, pulled up the the trolling motor and dragged the lifeless Clift onto the ramp. Then he ran to the boat for his phone.
Wirth talked with B.A.S.S. officials, who were the first on the scene. With Clift breathing, they worked to ensure he didn't suffer hypothermia. In the 45-degree morning chill, with a 10-mph wind blowing, Wirth worked Clift out of his wet clothes and covered him with his own fleece, rain suit, and dry towels. Meanwhile, the officials massaged color back into the victim.
Clift was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was deemed fine. Wirth, however, was done fishing for the day. The wiry ex-Kentucky Derby jockey, who weighs 140 pounds soaking wet, had exhausted himself with handling a man he estimated at nearly 100 pounds heavier. He simply went for a bite to eat, then back to his hotel room.
"My body was drained," said Wirth. "My knees buckled for three hours."
Word of the ordeal had spread by the time anglers weighed in. One, Greg Gutierrez, praised Wirth while weighing in his fish and later voiced deep appreciation for the poise Wirth had showed.
It's one thing to achieve one or two goals during a lifetime. It's something entirely different, though, to accomplish the number of life's dreams that can be attributed to Kevin Wirth--championship speed skater, Kentucky Derby jockey, professional bass fisherman, two-handicap golfer, horse dentist...and last but certainly not least, a lifesaver. What more could anyone ever ask for?
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