KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Luke Clausen’s 2018 season ended on the concrete floor of a friend’s shop in Spokane, Wash.
In April of 2018, Clausen – fresh off a Top 5 finish in the first Bassmaster Elite Series event of the 2018 season, and his first Bassmaster Classic in 12 years – was in the second-story loft of a friend’s shop near Clausen’s home in Spokane, working on tackle. It’s a loft that he’d traversed many times over the years, but as Clausen was leaving the loft, he simply misplaced his foot on the ladder and fell 12 feet onto the shop’s cement floor.
Clausen has no recall of the fall, just that he woke up in agonizing pain. An ambulance ride to Spokane Valley Hospital eventually revealed five broken ribs, a separated shoulder and a concussion.
“I was in a lot of pain, but it was a miracle I didn’t break my neck or worse,” Clausen admitted.
Little did he know, the battle was just beginning.
Clausen followed the medical professionals’ instructions, attended therapy, and stayed diligent in his overall health and conditioning.
“I just had to fish,” he admitted. “I pushed hard to get on the water, even when my arm was in a sling. Probably not a smart thing to do, but I had to try. I believe that pushing actually helped me in recovery. I just didn’t realize how long this all was going to take.”
Clausen was doing all of the right things to recover, until one day in therapy, things got weird.
“So I’m in therapy working on my damaged shoulder and wrist,” he said. “My shoulder would freeze and the pain was difficult at times, but the biggest thing was my balance. I started having major balance issues. The therapist working on my shoulder and wrist mobility gave me a basic balance test, and I failed. He suggested I see a specialist for this because he was worried about post-concussion issues.”
Clausen continued to push harder for his recovery, even after this worrisome news. Physically he was improving well, but the lingering head trauma was becoming a major issue.
“I finally got to a point where I could take my sling off, but all of a sudden, my balance was shot,” he said. “I just fell over and face-planted. That happened four times. I was afraid that I would end up doing worse damage, so I went in and had some therapy tests done for the concussion. These were eye movement exercises. It was awful, I felt so nauseous doing them. The therapists worked with me to improve, but it was brutal.”
Clausen is now on his way to a full recovery even after the frightening concussion battle. Thanks in part to a better diet and a regular workout regimen, Clausen feels like he’s almost back to his pre-injury self.
“My therapist told me I needed to go to a gym to get stronger and healthier, so I signed up with a trainer, and for the first time in my life, I’m exercising regularly and eating healthier,” he said. “It was such a ‘two steps forward, one step back’ battle, but I feel I’ve broken through that and I’m at about 90 percent of what I was. I still have some stiffness in the shoulder, pain in my wrist, and some general discomfort, but overall I’m feeling good and very excited for what my future holds.”