"I don't ever recall thinking about that," Durden said."I don't think about money; I'm not over here stacking it up to see how high it can go. Like Bear Bryant used to say, 'You always play like you're behind and don't ever look at the scoreboard.' That's kind of the way I've always done my business."
"When I was 16, my grandmother took me to the hotel and told Foy, 'I have done all I could do with this boy, so I want you to put him to work,'" Durden said. In 1978, Durden had the idea of building the largest sign south of Birmingham. The structure, called a uni-pole, weighed 18 tons and required a 36-inch pole. The billboard is still around today, as it was refurbished earlier this year.
Over the years, Durden has built other unique displays, including Troy University's scoreboard, and he was one of the first in the area to start constructing helicopter displays.