1) Mayhem:  Don, why don’t you give us a little background information on yourself?

DY:   I am 48 years old and the owner of SLS Trucking, living in Alma, Arkansas.  As of August 11, 2002, I have been married to my wife, Sue, for 30 years and have 3 children.

2) Mayhem:  How old were you when you began training and took an interest in competitive body building?

DY:   I began training rather late – age 34.  I started just working out in my garage with an Olympic weight set.  I trained that way for a couple of years before deciding to join a gym.  I hadn’t been training at the gym for very long when some local body builders suggested that I should compete.  They told me I definitely had the genetics for body building. 

3) Mayhem:  Most pros get into the sport of body building for the love of training, but aspire to turn pro in the hopes of making a living from the sport.  Obviously, as the owner of a successful trucking company, monetary income wasn’t the issue for you.  What made you decide to pursue a career as a body builder, aside from your love of the sport, or was this just a hobby in which you wanted to see how far you could go?

DY:  To me, body building isn’t a job, it’s a passion.  I love to lift heavy weight.  When I received my pro card, I wanted to prove to myself that I could compete right along side the best in the world.  I think I have been to every Masters Mr. Olympia since its inception, and I would always leave the show thinking that I could win that show.  However, as an amateur body builder and over the age of 40, I didn’t think it would ever become a possibility. 

4) Mayhem:  How long did you train prior to your first competition and what was the first show you competed in; what weight class and what placing did you receive?

DY:  I trained for 6 years (2 in the garage learning the basics, and another 4 years training pretty seriously in the gym) before entering my first show.  In 1994, I entered the Arkansas State Masters Division and won it. 

5) Mayhem:  You earned your pro card by winning the Masters Nationals.  What year did that take place and how did receiving your pro card from that event come about?  I ask this because prior to you turning pro from that event, the Masters Nationals was not a pro qualifier.

DY:  After winning the ’94 Arkansas State Masters Division, I realized at that point that I could win the open division of that event.  So, prior to the Masters Nationals event in 1995, I entered the Arkansas State and won the heavyweight division and overall title at the age of 41, with a perfect score.  After the competition, the Arkansas state NPC director suggested that I do the Masters Nationals, so I was off to Pittsburgh – where I won the heavyweight class and overall title with perfect scores.  After the show, Jim Manion spoke to me about the possibility of me competing in the Masters Olympia and that he felt I could do some major damage there.  He proposed the idea shortly thereafter to the IFBB about making the Masters Nationals a pro qualifier.  I wound up speaking to IFBB Vice President, Wayne DeMilia, and corresponded with Ben Weider and had several more conversations with Jim Manion, along the way and 2 ½ years later, the idea became a reality.  It was retroactive back to me as I was the original candidate for pro status that was submitted with the idea of turning the Masters Nationals into a pro qualifier.

6) Mayhem:  What was your reaction to becoming the first Masters Nationals champion to earn his pro card?  How did you feel?

DY:  Actually, after waiting for 2 ½ years, I had kind of given up on the idea of a pro card ever happening, so as a Masters Nationals champion, I had nowhere else to go.  I couldn’t go up any higher in competition, and I had no pro card.  I didn’t want to repeat the Masters Nationals again (since I had already won it), so I quit training so seriously and became very involved with running my trucking business.  When I received my letter, advising me of my pro status (I hate to admit this) I had tears in my eyes.  I couldn’t believe it!  It was a dream come true not only for me, but for all body builders aspiring to compete with the best in the sport and to be pro!  Since I hadn’t been training seriously prior to receiving my pro status, I decided that I wouldn’t make my debut until I was at least as good as when I won the Masters Nationals, so I took 2 years to train very seriously and prepare for competition – setting my sights on the 2001 Masters Mr. Olympia competition.

7) Mayhem:  The 2001 Masters Mr. Olympia was your pro debut, and you placed second; a great placing for your pro debut.  Did you notice a difference between standing on stage as an amateur and as a pro?  Also, how did it feel to stand on stage with other pros, some of them legends, if you will, in the sport of body building?

DY:  Of course, it was total excitement for me standing on stage as a pro.  I was realizing my dream come true and as luck would have it, I was standing right beside someone who had been an inspiration to me for many years, Vince Taylor.  After the quarter turns, I was the first competitor called out to center stage – I just about crapped my pants!  I was only compared to Taylor and Hnatyshack.  They put me back in line pretty early in the first two round.  However, little did I know I was way ahead on the score cards, with almost perfect scores in rounds 1 and 2.

8) Mayhem:  The 2001 Masters Olympia was a 2-day event.  After the Friday pre-judging, you were in the lead by 8 points.  Did you have any idea of this lead and how did you feel the competition was going at that point?

DY:  After the pre-judging, I was ahead by 8 points.  I knew that I was doing well with the way the first call outs went.  Also, Taylor and Hnatyshack were compared to other athletes aside from me, and I was only compared to Taylor and Hnatyshack.  From this, I felt that I was in first place, based on how the callouts went, but I also knew backstage, after seeing everyone in the pump up room, that I had the best package in the show.  Despite all this, I still left the pre-judging Friday evening wondering if this could actually happen, especially since this was my first pro event and I was basically an unknown on the pro circuit.  

9) Mayhem:  At the ’01 Masters Olympia Finals, the following day (Saturday), obviously the judges felt Vince Taylor had greatly improved his appearance over the Friday pre-judging enough to overcome your 8-point lead.  Do you, personally, feel Vince had improved that much, to take the lead and win the show?

DY:  No, I do not.  He did, however, definitely win the posing round where he gained 5 points on my 8 point lead; narrowing the gap and making for a very close contest.  I think they [the judges] gave the reigning champ [Taylor] the benefit of the doubt and used the pose down round to sway the decision in his favor.  I have no problem with this decision.  If I, myself, were a judge at the Olympia and the score was that close, I would probably vote the same way.

10) Mayhem:  Let’s fast forward to the 2002 Masters Olympia.  After the pre-judging this year, once again, you found yourself in the lead by a substantial point spread; and once again, the Masters Olympia was a 2-day event.  Did you feel you would win this time around, or were you feeling a sense of Dejavu, and that the decision would once again go in favor of Vince?  What was going through your mind between the Friday pre-judging and the Saturday night finals?

DY:   I wasn’t sure about the lead this year, but I did know that I had gained some respect since 2001 with the judges.  Although I hadn’t won, I certainly took Vince to the brink which no one had done before.  All the magazine journalists from 2001 expressed that I should’ve won, but then again, I also knew that no reigning Mr. Olympia had ever been dethroned on stage before and I didn’t really expect it to happen this year [2002], either.  There was an incredible group of athletes in the 2002 Masters Olympia lineup.  Twenty-seven athletes total; an increase from only 16 in 2001. 

In addition to myself, Taylor and Hnatyshack returning from 2001, there were many other IFBB greats like Charles Kemp, Chris Duffy and David Hawk, who is just as good now as he was before (he is ageless).  Paulson was another IFBB great and a big asset to the quality of the show, and Flavio Baccinini, who had been runner up, twice, to Vince Taylor, in the past.  They were all good, but once again, after seeing them backstage I relaxed because I knew that I was the man to beat that day. 

My conditioning was again, dead on; I had added 7 pounds of muscle over 2001 and my posing routine would be the best I had ever done.  I felt I was as ready as I would ever be.  However, Vince was also improved over his 2001 Masters Olympia appearance, but I felt I had made larger improvements.  I saw Vince at the 2002 Arnold Classic where he advised me he was coming back with his “A” body this year, so I had better eat my Wheaties. (Hey Vince, I ate 2 bowls a day) 

I knew in order to beat Vince, it was going to take more than having a superior physique.  I knew I would have to win the posing round, so I worked long and hard on my posing this year.  I knew the routine would be the knockout punch I needed to pull things off.

11) Mayhem:  During the time that you and Vince were the final two competitors on stage, awaiting the call for runner up and first place, what was going through your mind and did you and Vince exchange any words at that point?

DY:  I was in the type of zone where you’re concentrating on hearing the other guy’s name called out, but at the same time afraid that you are going to hear yours called out.  There were no words between Vince and I and I don’t even think we looked at each other.  There was a lot of tension on stage.