Nick Meyer and Abby, one of his rescue puppies, relax in Nick’s studio. That is one of his latest paintings in the background.
LIFE OUTSIDE THE BOX
■ British-American jack-of-all-trades is master of many
■ British-American jack-of-all-trades is master of many
Many folks who think they know Nick
Meyer probably only are aware of his most
recent metamorphosis.
I suppose this
could be said
about many of our
acquaintances.
But Meyer is not
like most people,
purely by the va-
riety and number
of parts he has
played during a
life adventure that
includes nearly as many nations and conti- nents as reinventions. He has fished and sailed the North Sea, the Mediterranean, the Sea of Cortez, the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, the Gulf of Mexico and other water bodies too numerous to list here.
Local anglers, especially the surf-fishing crowd, recognize the 6-foot gregarious Brit by his distinctive accent, which many mistake for Australian. They see his smiling face bounc- ing down the beach in his trademark red, Breakaway Jeep or his Honda XR 650R dirt bike, which appears small against his large frame. Or they know him as the guy who can cast a mile, nearly always by the side of pretty wife Brenda, who can cast nearly as far. Both hold several long-casting titles.
I’m a little more familiar with Nick because he’s a neighbor who pedals a bicycle past my driveway in the dark nearly every morning. We occasionally fish the beach together, and he has helped me with several columns, most recently on pompano fishing. I met him years ago as the suds-sipping, backslapping owner of a tiny tackle shop on the island. He held court either on the beach or in the backroom of that shop nearly every afternoon with a ragtag assemblage of disciples. Everybody was his mate, in the British sense.
He has since stopped drinking, but still calls everybody mate, while maintaining his jovial personality. Nick wisely married Bren- da, who is director of Special Programs for the Taft Independent School District, and became a naturalized American citizen. He also has appeared on many television shows, written and been featured in countless newspaper and magazine articles, authored two books, is an accomplished painter, campaigned for con- servation and other causes, invented several fishing devices, sold thousands of copies of his instructional videos and shipped his Break- away fishing rods to anglers worldwide. His products are on the shelves and in the catalogs of Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shop, H-E-B Stores, Roy’s Bait & Tackle, Port A Outfitters and other lo- cal shops, as well as online through Break- awayUSA.com.
He ships to Australia, Singapore, Mex- ico, El Salvador, Argentina, several South American countries, Canada and through- out the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. I wouldn’t know much of this had I not asked, because he is too humble to say, though that point is debatable. Nick com- bines a Type A work ethic with a laid-back and casual business model. And it works because he never stops.
I suppose this
could be said
about many of our
acquaintances.
But Meyer is not
like most people,
purely by the va-
riety and number
of parts he has
played during a
life adventure that
includes nearly as many nations and conti- nents as reinventions. He has fished and sailed the North Sea, the Mediterranean, the Sea of Cortez, the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, the Gulf of Mexico and other water bodies too numerous to list here.
Local anglers, especially the surf-fishing crowd, recognize the 6-foot gregarious Brit by his distinctive accent, which many mistake for Australian. They see his smiling face bounc- ing down the beach in his trademark red, Breakaway Jeep or his Honda XR 650R dirt bike, which appears small against his large frame. Or they know him as the guy who can cast a mile, nearly always by the side of pretty wife Brenda, who can cast nearly as far. Both hold several long-casting titles.
I’m a little more familiar with Nick because he’s a neighbor who pedals a bicycle past my driveway in the dark nearly every morning. We occasionally fish the beach together, and he has helped me with several columns, most recently on pompano fishing. I met him years ago as the suds-sipping, backslapping owner of a tiny tackle shop on the island. He held court either on the beach or in the backroom of that shop nearly every afternoon with a ragtag assemblage of disciples. Everybody was his mate, in the British sense.
He has since stopped drinking, but still calls everybody mate, while maintaining his jovial personality. Nick wisely married Bren- da, who is director of Special Programs for the Taft Independent School District, and became a naturalized American citizen. He also has appeared on many television shows, written and been featured in countless newspaper and magazine articles, authored two books, is an accomplished painter, campaigned for con- servation and other causes, invented several fishing devices, sold thousands of copies of his instructional videos and shipped his Break- away fishing rods to anglers worldwide. His products are on the shelves and in the catalogs of Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shop, H-E-B Stores, Roy’s Bait & Tackle, Port A Outfitters and other lo- cal shops, as well as online through Break- awayUSA.com.
He ships to Australia, Singapore, Mex- ico, El Salvador, Argentina, several South American countries, Canada and through- out the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. I wouldn’t know much of this had I not asked, because he is too humble to say, though that point is debatable. Nick com- bines a Type A work ethic with a laid-back and casual business model. And it works because he never stops.
MAN OF MANY TALENTS
DAVID
SIKE
Meyer once played in the English folk band Rickety Thatch. He still plays for relaxation.
This painting of tuna is one of Nick’s more popular sellers.
FISHERMAN
Meyer with a big jack crevalle caught on Padre Island National Seashore.
FISHERMAN
Meyer with a big jack crevalle caught on Padre Island National Seashore.
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