Judy is back on the fly fishing waters

It should be no surprise to see John Judy at a casting pond giving folks tips on casting technique. It's what he does - what he has done over a long career as a fisherman, instructor and author.

But being back out on the water is a big deal for Judy this year. Last winter, he wasn't sure it would happen.

Judy came close to losing everything last February 20, while teaching Black Butte School students at Hoodoo Mountain Resort. An out-of-control skier suddenly hit Judy like a bolt out of the blue.

He remembered flipping head over heels.

"One minute I was up, one minute down. I tumbled half a dozen times before landing face down," he recalled. "It was a freakish and hard hit."

Eight broken ribs and a punctured lung. Pain seared his body. Hoodoo's rescue squad arrived on the scene and Judy's journey to wellness began.

"Sisters Ambulance was wonderful," he said. "They put me on pain meds before exiting the parking lot."

Little did he know the depth of pain that would last for weeks or that he would return home only to suffer a relapse and have to return to the hospital.

"I went back in for a clot which was signaled by pain, shortness of breath. I was in a lot of pain," he said. "Even with anesthetic, it was painful."

Five months ago, when The Nugget spoke with Judy, he appeared to have lost hope and believed he would not be well enough to fish this spring and summer.

After his second return home, the road to recovery seemed barely visible. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel. With physical therapy, Judy's muscles began to return to normal. He developed a determination to be even stronger than he had been before.

Like most athletes, he had the muscle memory to do it.

"I'm not going to let my age hold me back. I want to be stronger," he said. "I've always skied, fished, etc. I've done a lot of exercise and physical therapy and diet management to recover from this."

Long an admirer of Lance Armstrong, Judy decided to use his injury to spur himself on to wellness. He uses Armstrong's Web site to track his daily progress, working out to gain strength and flexibility. "Dare to start now," Armstrong's site challenges, and Judy has taken the dare.

"I'm open for business, day trips and multi-day trips," Judy said.

All the guides in Judy's fly fishing company are, like him, also ski instructors.

"Being trained in two sports makes them uniquely qualified as sports trainers, There's nothing like it in the fishing community," Judy said.

That dual training has also served Judy well: "We can sense the level of training someone needs. They've all had a mountain of river time."

For those who attended the Metolius River Fly Fishing & Bamboo Rod Fair in Camp Sherman, Judy looked little the worse for wear during his popular spey casting demos.

"The only painful spot remaining today is the spot that actually saved my life: the wound from where the tube was inserted to reinflate my lungs," he said.

He's sticking to his recovery regimen.

"Getting better is a work in progress I hope I can maintain," he said.