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contents
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FROM THE EDITOR
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Vault
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Basic College Q and A
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This is a world record that is so mythical
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From Backyards to Breaking Records – Downey High School
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REPORT: Masters PV Symposium/ Grand Haven Beach Vault
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Photo by Vaulter Magazine
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FROM THE EDITOR It is now August - time to start thinking about the end of summer. Once again, a fresh start is underway; especially for athletes, coaches, and students. Whatever you have been up to, we hope this summer has been full of fun. We are happy to say that this month’s issue has a very intimate theme. It is full of even more personal stories and insight you are sure to enjoy. We know for sure one person, whom we all have come to love and respect, has had an eventful summer: Bubba Sparks. This month Bubba has written some fun-toread reviews on two events he attended this summer: the Masters Pole Vault Sy m p o s i u m / M e e t and the Grand Haven Beach Vault. Bubba shares in his article that, after a stressful summer last year, he wanted to make this summer all about having fun. From what we can see, mission accomplished. We know you will thoroughly enjoy hearing about his experience.
Penny Hanson has taken more time this month to answer some basic questions we might have regarding college. The answers to these questions will undoubtedly help our collegebound readers. If this is you, please take a look at this article. You won’t be sorry.
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Our article on Don Isett is inspirational to all. After not picking up a pole for years, Isett went back to vaulting after his 66th birthday - he hadn’t pole vaulted since high school. Currently, at 74, Isett is breaking records and showing us all that age is just a number, and doesn’t have to be a state of mind. This story is sure to give you a motivational boost to get going this fall.
Another very exciting piece we have for you is our cover story which features an inside look at Renaud Lavillenie’s training at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California. Lavillenie was good enough to let us have a look and answer some questions. We are so grateful that this elite vaulter took this time for us, and we know you will be too once you read about this experience. Do not miss it.
As we get into a new pole vaulting season, more fun is sure to be had. Of course this means more stories for you to enjoy. As always, thank you again for sticking with us. We will see you in September as we start to move into fall and another great vaulting season. Take care! Editor Doug Bouma editor@thevaultermag.com
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Vault By Sonya Schement
His wife bought him a pole for his birthday so that he could pick up pole vaulting again. Don Isett had vaulted in middle school and high school, but hadn’t touched a pole for many years. After staring at his new pole for about a month he decided to test it out. He snuck into a high school that had left its pole vault pit out, and began cleaning the rust from his gears. That was nearly nine years ago following Isett’s 66th birthday. “Don walks into a meet like a 75 year old man. He is hunched over, shuffles his feet and says hello to everyone,” said Chad Andrews. Who is one of the coaches for the Texas Express Track Club in Dallas, TX.
At the ripe young age of 74 Isett is
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defying gravity and breaking world records in the masters division of the pole vault. The road to becoming a well-oiled vaulting machine has been a winding one for Isett. It all
started many years ago, back before fiberglass poles and soft landing mats were in the picture.
Don Isett
“We used to vault in the front yard,” said Isett.
His friend in high school was a pole vaulter who pulled the TV antenna off the house and said to Isett, “we can vault with this.” The duo built a pair of standards and jumped about eight feet in the air. Landing on nothing but the ground and their own two feet. “Nowadays everyone is jumping eight feet,” said Isett.
Isett admitted that in high school he was never that good and didn’t even qualify to go to regionals. In college, Isett walked onto the
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track team at The University of Texas, but didn’t pole vault again until he was 66.
Don Isett
Picture this. An old man with white thinning hair under a signature track cap, worn backwards, he is in a matching sweat suit and has legs that look like they might break if he shuffles too quickly. He greets everyone he sees with a warm smile and chipper hello. Everyone thinks he is someone’s grandpa come to watch the meet. Then he starts to jog. Then he picks up a pole, and pretty soon he is running full speed at the pole vault pit. When people don’t know whom Isett is they are thinking, “is this old man going to jump?” “They think he might kill himself,” Andrews said.
Isett broke the indoor world record for the masters (M70) in Albuquerque, NM raising the bar to 10’8”. He also holds the American record that is set at 10’7½”. He won all 10 national championships for the past five years, and won the world championship in 2011 in Sacramento, CA. Today, Isett resides in Van Alstyne, TX. His backyard is complete with a shooting gallery, airstrip for his single seater plane, and a pole vault pit built on a raised runway. Every
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pole vaulting Texan ought to have these essentials at their disposal. Isett explained that pole vaulting is his job now, and he deeply enjoys what he does. Isett even began coaching pole vault at the local high school. Coach Andrews explained that Isett travels to extra meets just to cheer on his fellow teammates, who are his grandchildren’s age.
another world record height. The entire arena went silent and watched Isett’s final attempts at the height.
“The whole stadium just stopped and started slow clapping for Big Don,” said Andrews.
Don Isett
“He is such a great man. We can’t brag about him enough,” said Coach Andrews.
At the annual Pole Vault Summit that is held in Reno, NV Isett showed up to the meet at seven in the morning to watch the youngest vaulters of the Texas Express Track Club. Meets are set up where the youngest age groups compete in the mornings and the very last competitors to compete are the masters. At the Summit there are several pits set up so that hundreds of vaulters can compete simultaneously. Isett stayed at the Summit all day spectating and shouting, while he patiently waited for his chance to jump. At the end of the day it was finally the masters’ turn to show off their stuff. Isett was the last competitor left, and found himself staring at yet
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the bar, but the moment is one that Coach Andrews will never forget.
“It gave me goose-bumps and I almost cried,” said Andrews. Isett touches the lives of every vaulter he comes in contact with. In an interview with CBS 11 News in Dallas, former teammate Victor Iwuagwu said that Isett makes him want to keep vaulting. Andrews said that Isett has changed his life in more ways than one.
Isett will turn 75 on May 16th. This will place him in the 75-80 age group for the masters division, where he plans to continue his winning streak. “You just gotta get out and do it,” said Isett. “Put aside the thought of embarrassment.”
Having a slow clap is almost a right of passage. Every jumper, from the triple to the high jump, knows that they better go big if someone starts a slow clap for them. To have a couple thousand spectators slow clap for one athlete is something that is normally only seen at the Olympics. Isett didn’t make
Now that his gears are cranking smoothly, Isett won’t quit until he has lasted as long as the legendary Poppa Bell. The notorious barefooted, 91 year-old pole vaulting champion. “It’s true what they say,” said Isett. “If you don’t use it you lose it.”
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Don Isett
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Basic College Q and A I have received several emails and phone calls with a variety of questions about college, so I would like to answer them in this column just in case there are other students and parents with the same questions. As in all subjects, there are no stupid questions! A. What does a “safety school” mean? A “safety” school means that you meet the entrance requirements and are very certain you will be accepted. I don’t like to use the term safety school because in my opinion, there really are no guarantees in college admissions. However, if your GPA and your test scores are far above the average entrance requirements of your school, you will most likely be admitted. B. What does a “reach school” mean? A “reach” school is one whose entrance requirements are at or above the upper limits of your resume. These schools may admit students with higher GPAs and higher test scores than you have or they may look for talents that you are not your strong suit such as fluency in a second language. While you need to keep a realistic view of your chances to be admitted to this college, I encourage you to apply to reach schools. While I cannot guarantee that you will be admitted to these schools is you apply, I CAN guarantee that you will not if you don’t!
Penny Hanson
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C. How many colleges should I apply to? There is no absolute number of college applications required. The best way to answer this question is to do research colleges before your senior year. Your best success will come from applying to schools that fit you best. If you have done proper
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research, a reasonable number of applications is between 3 and 10. Be careful that you are not applying to a large number of colleges simply to impress your friends, your parents, or your teachers. It is expensive to apply to college. If you have no intention of attending a “popular” school, I would suggest that you do not apply.
D. Do I need letters of recommendation to apply to college? Not all colleges require letters of recommendation. There is a new trend in applications that asks students to submit simply their name, school and intended major. If the college wants you to apply, they will ask for the supplemental materials, including recommendation letters. Students need to look carefully at the specific requirements for each application. When submitting a Common Application, you will most likely need letters of recommendation. E. Who should I ask to write my letter of recommendation? When submitting two letters of recommendation, one of them needs to be written by a core subject teacher. Always ask a teacher who knows you well and who has seen your excellent performance. For example, if you are applying for engineering school, you should submit a letter from a math teacher. The Common Application will allow you to submit a second letter of recommendation from an extracurricular person such as a coach, a church pastor or an employer. If only one letter of recommendation is requested, ALWAYS submit one from a core subject teacher. F. What is the difference between “Early Action” and “Early Decision”? Early Action means that you are applying in the fall before the Regular Decision deadline in January. By applying Early Action, you are being considered with a smaller applicant pool and you
may be accepted at a reach school more readily. Early Action is non-binding. Early Decision is binding, which means that if you are accepted to a college where you have applied Early Decision, you must commit to attending. This process has tightened up immensely in the past few years. To apply ED, you and your counselor must sign a statement stating that you both understand this is a binding decision and that your intent is to attend this college if you are admitted. I would recommend that a student apply ED ONLY if they know without a doubt that this is their first and only choice school. The drawback of ED is that students will need to prepare “fallback” applications to submit when they learn they have not been admitted to the first choice school. Early Decision can be very stressful and I do not recommend it.
G. When will I know if I have been admitted? If you apply Early Action or Early Decision, you will most likely receive your decision letter before the end of December. If you wait to apply Regular Decision, you will not hear from the college until the end of March or beginning of April. H. When do I need to let a college know that I will (or will not) be attending? National Decision Day is May 1st. You must notify your colleges of your intentions by this date. I hope this has answered some of your basic college questions. I will have much more information about the application process in the coming months! Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have at the email below. I look forward to hearing from you!
Penny Hanson Hanson College Consultants 720-883-6800 penny@hansoncollegeaccess.com
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www.thevaultermag.com Stacy Dragila Pole Vault Camp 2014
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This is a world record that is so mythical By: Pole Vault Coach, Matt Sweet “This is a world record that is so mythical, and to clear it on the first jump, without touching; there’s nothing to say. It’s just a moment to savour.”
Matthew Sweet is entering his second year as the head pole vault coach at San Diego Mesa College after working as an assistant. He brings to Olympians 10 years of experience in the event split between years competing and years coaching. During his time, he brought multiple athletes to events such as Arcadia, Mt. Sac, CIF, and State. Since his arriving at Mesa as an assistant Mesa has led two individuals to State, a conference championship title in 2013. He is a USATF level 1 coach.
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This past spring I had the opportunity to visit the Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Chula Vista to watch my favorite vaulter train and prep for the Drake Relays and his 2014 outdoor season. In case you couldn’t guess based on the cover, it’s Renaud Lavillenie (@AirLavillenie)(pronounced ʁə.no la.vi.lə.ni or la.vi.le.ni). If you’re reading this you probably know the old record of 6.15m (20ft 2 1/8th in) fell and Renaud’s record is now 6.16.m (20ft 2 ½ in) with a good chance of being broken again and again after that.
The outdoor record of 6.14m was set July 31st 1994 while the indoor record was set in February 21st 1993 in Donetsk,
Ukraine. Both of Sergei Bubka’s records stood for nearly 20 years and it happened that the indoor record was broken in the same meet and at the same arena. 20 years earlier Sergei went into Donetsk’s annual Pole Vault Stars meet setting the indoor record just 8 days earlier while Renaud went into the meet being unbeaten 6 times in his 2014 indoor season including a season opener at 5.93m (19ft 5 ½ in), then a 6.04m (19ft 9 51/64 in) jump followed by a confidence building 6.08m(19ft 11 3/8 in) jump at the Pedro’s Cup in Bydgoszcz.
The move to beat Sergei’s 6.15m jump was set off by Renaud’s January 2014 6.04 meter jump in Rouen – which Renaud considers to be “one of the most beautiful vaults of my career” and a national French record. He did this on a 5.20m (little over 17ft) pole with a 14.3 flex. Eventually he moved
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www.thevaultermag.com Renaud Lavillenie Donetsk, Ukraine 2014
to a 5.20m 14.0 flex which resulted in 3 missed attempts at 6.16m. However, Renaud said it was the first time he bent the pole. 6 days later at the Pedro’s Cup in Bydgoszcz, Poland he once again used his 5.20m 14.3 pole to clear 6.08m. After the jump the IAAF Online Diaries had him saying that “from now on, I really think that my goal can be to beat the world record, but the priority is to be regular above 6m.” The next meet was the annual Pole Vault Stars meet; the very meet where Sergei set the record. Renaud came into Donetsk’s Meeting of the Pole Vault Stars with a string of success. Renaud entered the competition at 5.76m (roughly 18ft 10 3/4th in) with a clear on his first attempt as well as his 5.91m (roughly 19ft 4 3/3’s in) jump. Both were no-brush clears with room to spare. The bar was then raised to 6.01m (roughly 19ft 8 ½ in). Once again he ran down with a 20 step/10 left approach and during the inversion came off the pole slightly sideways and pulled the bar off. For his second attempt he came down the runway very much the same, planted the pole with his usual low pole carry, drop knee drive phase, and tuck/shoot. Although the beginning phases of the vault went right through the center channel and the box,
the legs came off the pole to the right and pulled the bar off with the thigh during the apex. He cleared 6.01m (roughly 19ft 8 2/3’s in) with his final
attempt. The choice was made to attempt 6.16 (roughly 20ft 2 ½ in). He chose to use another 5.20m pole but this time with a 13.8 flex and a grip height
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Renaud Lavillenie
of 5.17m (about 16ft 11 ½’s in). The music played and the crowd clapped him down from the 20 steps / 10 lefts. He hit his 6 step / 4th left mid-step at 18m (roughly 59ft) and closed the distance to take-off in about 1.3 seconds running somewhere in the mid-9 meters per second and a stride length of about 7ft. He took off outside 14ft 6in and swung the trail leg right through the center of the box and kept it between his shoulders. He tucked and rocked back with his right knee just outside of his top arm shoulder and with the punch and turn timed with the upward extension and pull through he flew off the top of the pole and with the apex had a no-brush clear with a couple of inches under his thighs. Renaud knew he had the record when he nailed the
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flyaway and had time to clench his fist in victory while falling from the world’s new record height. After the vault he jumped off the pit and hugged his brother Valentin and coach Philippe D’encausse and with his mouth still open looked around the stadium to see it filled with people standing and taking pictures. Afterwards, he laid on the floor with his hands over his face in what I can only imagine was utter disbelief in his own achievement.
For the rest of us still vaulting, training, and following the sport we would love to know how it happened. For many of us vaulters Sergei is/was a vault god and the man to beat. He was 6ft 180lbs and had an average speed during his approach run of about 9.9 meters per second or about 22.2 mph. To put this in context Usain Bolt’s top max velocity phase is about 12.42 meters per second or about 27.79 (calculated using the 9.58 - .15 for reaction time). Sergei did his 9.9mps with a 5.20m pole in his hands. So what’s the point? Many people thought that his records of 6.14m/6.15m would be nearly impossible to break; and, to break it would take someone that was taller, faster, and capable of pushing longer and stiffer poles. Well, most of us got that one
wrong. Along comes Renaud Lavillenie from France. He’s 1.76 meters (5ft 9in) and 6975k (roughly 154lbs) vaulter w/ statistics most of the vault community looked past as the future record breaker. He’s shorter, smaller in weight, and slower than the former world record holder. His take-off mark was further back as well requiring more power to bring the pole to vertical. One of the biggest drawbacks people saw was that he had the wrong technique. I’m reminded of something Billy Olsen once told me while down at the Olympic Training Center last summer “There’s more than one way to skin a cat.” It looks like Renaud and his coach have found another way. Renaud Lavillenie
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During Vaulter Magazine’s interview I had the opportunity to listen in and watch Renaud’s jump session. These are a couple of factors that I saw that might provide a little insight into his success.
Renaud Lavillenie
Some of the biggest factors that I see as contributing to Renaud’s success is that;
1. He loves his event. He loves it enough to put a full size IAAF pit with a 21m runway in his backyard. For those that are wondering he can jump about 5.80m on it.
2. Sometimes during the frustration of training it’s great to have a familiar face that knows what you’re going through and is also not your coach. When you’re the 2012 London Olympic Gold Medalist, record holder, and world leader there aren’t that many people you can train with in that ability range. He has been fortunate enough to be able to train with his brother Valentine; a 5.70m vaulter himself.
3. A big factor is having breakthroughs. Renaud had one at 6.07 (that is the jump that wasn’t ratified because the bar bounced of the peg and onto the standard). The jump showed him that he
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could do more and wasn’t topped out yet. Moreover, with so many jumps clearing over 5.90m it gave him the confidence to push more grip. He figured if he could push 5cm more grip height it might translate to 5cm/10cm more bar height.
4. Find creative ways to train. He has been training for the hurdles for 10 years (Just so you know Stacy Dragila ran the hurdles as a heptathlete also) He enjoys this part of his training because it teaches you to run tall and have a
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consistent stride. I was told by another coach (a 13.71 second hurdler) that there is a very quick right step left step right before the lead leg kicks for the hurdles. In vaulting the last two have to be quick and powerful as well.
Now for Renaud’s training intensity and progression. His training program during the first training cycle from October to December he trains about 9 times a week with 2 jump sessions, 3 weight sessions, leg cycling exercises, and little hurdles. He does 2 and 4 steps for about 3 hours a session for a month. I have always been told that great athletes do the simple things extraordinarily well. He then moves to a 6 step followed by 8 steps thereafter. He doesn’t even put on spikes until early December. In about midDecember he moves to 12 steps and during this longer run he starts to work the runway. His coach stated he never practices from his full 20 step 10 left run; at most it is 16. As for weight training his 3 sessions consist of: 1, upper body and back 2, legs 3, posterior chain and heavy complex lifts. He works a lot on small step hurdles and leg cycling exercises because one of the things he excels at is his speed and if he doesn’t work it he’ll get slower. When the discussion turned to techniques, poles, and flexes both Renaud and his coach were kind enough to explain their viewpoint. In 2009 he was using a 5.10 (about a 16’9”pole) with a 14.6 flex and a grip of 5.05 (about 16’6”) that translated to a 6.01m vault. The 6.16m vault was a 5.20 pole with a 5.17 grip
and a 13.8 flex. His standards for that jump were 75cm.
He considers all of his 6m jumps close to perfection but insists that there is always room for improvement. When asked about the differences between his technique, and Sergei/Vitali’s 6.40m pole vault model he simply replied,
“I’m just doing my jump. I’m not thinking technique like Bubka technique, like French technique, like Russian technique. I think it’s more important to find the jump of the person […] you have to find the jump for your qualities and not for another one.” His coach reminded us that Sergei was a large athlete at 6ft and between 85/86kilos (between 187-189lbs) and was pushing flexes in the 10.5 and 10.7 and Renaud is 75kilo (about 165lbs) and pushing low 14’s and high 13’s so in many respects Renaud is pushing bigger poles.
One of the major factors Renaud said was that he never intentionally jumps under at take-off. It is always out and if he jumps under it takes 3050cm off his jump. He takes off just before the pole strikes the back of the box. In that regard it is like Petrov’s model but unlike Petrov’s 6.40m model
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the hands don’t follow the same path. However, in the end the result is the same and the goal is to put the pole as high as you can.
As for the drop-knee tuck and shoot style, Renaud is always working on it Phillip said and then expanded on the answer the drive knee shifts the flex up in the pole and they are working on it. When the knee is up it’s easier to rock back and consequently you have longer time for the upward extension.
If you look at some of Sergei’s original black and white 6m jump he has a slight drop knee. My best guess is that the body does this in a natural reaction to help close the distance from take-off to the switch point by keeping the flex low during the drive phase in order to help with penetration before he engages the trail leg’s quad during the swing. Phillip looks to maximize the positives, and then he works on the negatives. He reminded us that when he gets a vaulter the first thing he looks at is the good qualities of the vaulter and why the vaulter is jumping the way he or she is. However, he says he always is trying to look at the big picture and work on everything and not get tunnel vision or locked into a specific model of vaulting.
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What to take away from this? As a coach and a vaulter I am always reading everything I can get my hands on regarding pole vault. Renaud and his coach Phillip left me with this lasting thought. There are several things that must be understood; after that, it’s style. 1. Don’t fight the pole during the run; it will decrease the transfer of energy. Renaud Lavillenie Donetsk, Ukraine 2014
2. Take-off in a manner where the hands are high, on time, and the most controllable amount of energy is transferred to the pole.
3. Never get so locked into a model, method, or technique that you become tunnel sighted; not every model fits every athlete.
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www.thevaultermag.com Stacy Dragila Pole Vault Camp 2014
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From Backyards to Breaking Records – Downey High School By: Michelle Walthall Coach Tim Meledy Luis Briceno at CIF
“I first saw pole vaulting on TV watching the Melrose Games indoor track in the 1960’s,” says Coach Meledy with Downey High School in Downey, California. “I was inspired along with my brother. So we went to the garage and found some poles and started jumping in our backyard. We had no coach so it was trial and error. I later made some makeshift standards and got a bamboo long stick for a crossbar and headed to the local high school in Pasadena (Blair High School) on my bike with a pole to jump on. It was not easy carrying all that stuff on my bike to jump. At Blair High School they had sawdust to land on. The problem is the saw dust gets wet and the sun later bakes it. So it is not an easy landing, but this was an adventure and I did not care. I went several times trying to do my best and improve.” The story of Coach Meledy’s start in pole vaulting gets even more interesting. He continues: “One day a gentleman walked by while I was jumping and was fascinated to see me doing this. He tried to give me some pointers on technique. Then he said he would be right back. He left and came back 20 to 30 minutes later with a book titled The Mechanics of the Pole Vault
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by Dr. Richard Ganslen - The 6th Edtion from 1965. WOW! I could not believe it. There is a book on how to do this! It had pictures, techniques, records, and interviews with top vaulters. I was so excited that the gentleman gave me the book. WOW! I read it cover to cover and studied the pictures to improve. I went back to the track several times to jump again - hoping the gentleman would show up and give me some pointers and I would give him the book back. I never saw him again and don’t know his name and I am deeply grateful to him for his generosity in
giving me a life-changing gift. This became like a bible to me and over the years I would refer back to it for inspiration and reviewing the techniques. I bought future books from Dr. Ganslen and now have 4 - Editions 6-7-8-9. They are falling apart now.”
From there Coach Meledy kept learning and moving up. “My brother and I improved our back yard and made a good pole vault set up in the back yard in the early 1970’s,” he says. “We could practice our techniques even though we did not have a coach. I helped my brother
break the old 1942 school record of 13’ at South Pasadena High School in California. He went on to Place in CIF finals in 1974.” “I went on to college (UCSB) and competed, graduated, then went to CSULA to grad school,” he continues of his own accomplishments. “I wrote my Master’s thesis on the pole vault. Ron Morris (1960 silver medalist in the pole vault) was on my committee. I started coaching at several local high schools and some colleges: Santa Monica, Cal Tech, and Biola. Many of these
Carlos Ramos, Brian Casillas, Luis Briceno, Coach Tim Meledy, Jesse Vargas, Richard May, Yonathon Pasada
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athletes went on to Division Championships and Nationals. At all the schools I have been with, I am proud to say I was there when the athletes broke their school records.”
All of this experience has added up to an impressive coaching career. Coach Meledy says, “I have been coaching at Downey High School from 1988 to present. One of our past DHS track coaches was Jim Brewer. He set the national high school record in the late 1950›s. He then went on to USC with all their great jumpers of the past. Jim would tell me stories when he broke the high school record - he was inches from the world record. He said, ‘if I was just a little faster I could have held a little higher and maybe got the record’. He came close. Jim would train climbing a 20› rope with no feet very fast. Also, with his training partner they would do handstands and walk down the football field from goal line to goal line. That’s 100 yards WOW! Over all I have been coaching the pole vault over 30 years. I still compete as a Master›s competitor today.” While there are currently no sponsors attached to the Downey Viking pole vault team, Coach Meledy says he has been able to get “…past athletes Dillon Atchley and Kristie Greenlee to help out the last
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few years.” He also tells us, “We do get parents to come out and cheer on the days of meets and help score.”
The pride is evident when talking about his team. “Downey High School has been one of the top vaulting programs in the area for many years,” Coach Meledy brags. “There have been a few athletes and coaches that have come and gone, but we have been consistently the top program around. We do get challenged from our rival school in the district - Warren High School. Back in the 1960›s Paul Wilson was from Warren High School and was number one and still has their school record of 16›6». He went on to USC and broke the world record.” We also got a very in-depth look at how the success of the Downey High vaulters is accomplished, how their team is set up, and the equipment they use. Here it is in Coach Meledy’s own words:
“This season we have 15 vaulters in the program. Over the years we always had 10 to 16 jumpers. We train by doing pole runs, box drills, high kicks, raised runway take offs, rope drills, rings, pully drills, and stacking the pads up for the beginners to make the height (The Wall). I like to video the
Coach Meledy Stephanie Loza, Alexis Gomez Vargas, Maria Herandez, Sabrina Claros, Danise Herrington
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MAGAZINE Brian Casillas
athletes so they can see what they are doing and compare to the championship jumpers.”
“We have old UCS landing pads that are 10 years old. We use old 1980›s standards. We have training poles to teach the vaulters and sometimes we need to use them in the meet. We have a variety of poles (not all sizes and weights) to choose from, but the poles are thinning out as they occasionally get broken. It›s getting thin in the pole selection. I used to run a pole vault
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camp in the late 1990›s to early 2000›s and they did help athletes go on to success (Dan Churchill - DHS CIF Division One Champion: Pole Vault).”
Talented vaulters have certainly made their way to the Viking team and, once again, Coach Meledy’s pride is evident. He says, “Our program is great at getting male jumpers to 13› plus. We have had a lot of league champions and several going on to success in CIF. Dan Churchill- 1998 CIF D1 Champion and Andrew Gonzalez- 2012
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CIF D1 Champion. Andrew was a discus and shot putter and wanted to try pole vault. He improved over a foot a year and broke the 27-year-old league record with a jump of 14›10” his senior year. In 2013 Eric Enriquez broke our stadium record, league record, and school record jumping 15›3». He is now at UCI. This season Luis Briceno, a senior and good triple jumper, was around 12›6» to 13›6» during the early meets. Then in League Finals he made 5 PR›s and made 14›9». He went on to CIF and made 15› and placed in both the pole vault and triple jump and went on to the Masters’ Meet. We have an excellent sophomore this season in Brian Casillas, at 13›, who was unbeaten in League and Invitationals. He is the rising star of the future.” Coach Meledy continues with this of his team’s accomplishments and future expectations: “Brian Casillas, a sophomore, made 13›. For the boys’ frosh-soph we had 3 over 10› (that is good for our league over the years): Carlos Ramos (10›6»), Peter Silva (11›), and Brian Casillas (13›). For the girls we have mostly a new group [who are] learning for the 1st time: Danise Herrington, a freshman, made 8’ and should make 9’ plus net year. Maria Hernandez, Alexis Gomez Vargas, Stephaine Loza, and
Sabrina Claros should be 8’ plus next year. Besides the success of the vaulters we revised our old pit top cover foam with new foam, so now it is not dusty and lumpy any more. If you replace the foam and add tires under the pits you can get some more mileage out of them.”
Meledy also tells us his vaulters have learned a lot from their training and their sport. He lets us know that, “The vaulters have all learned that hard work and proper training can get you a lot of success on the athletic field, a chance to get a college scholarship, the opportunity to travel to different locations, and a way to meet new people and have lasting friendships.” We know they will take these life lessons with them and have much continued success.
Coach Meledy also says: “We always seem to get male vaulters to place in League and go on to CIF. Most recently they have gone on to CIF Championship and placed and gone to the Masters’ Meet. Several years ago Brian Casillas andPeter Silva our past school record holder, Jeff Mckey (15’2”), made it to State and placed. Our school records are: Boys: 9th - 11’6”, 10th- 13’, 11th- 14’, and 12th- 15’3” and Girls: 9th- 9’, 10th- 10’, 11th10’6”, and 12th11’6”. Some of the vaulters will go to summer clinics and others will do some gymnastics training. Still others will go to High Flyers to get some more training.” In the midst of everything, Coach
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VAULTER
MAGAZINE Dave Lipinski
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REPORT:
Masters PV Symposium/ Grand Haven Beach Vault
By: Bubba Sparks
I had the distinct pleasure of being involved in two wonderful summer events over the past few weeks. After my stressful summer last year of chasing and tracking poles around Italy and Brazil for world championships, I really promised this summer would be just for fun. With the help and brotherhood/sisterhood of vaulters, and their families, it has been remarkable thus far!
First up was the Masters Pole Vault Symposium/Meet, which I hosted at my home and at Dana Hills High School, in Dana Point, California. To give you the purpose and flavor for the event, I share my introduction. In my greeting I stated that I intentionally chose not to use the word “Summit” in the event name, as not to tread on the wonderful historic work done by the National Pole Vault Summit. Then we all participated in a show of hands exercise. I began by asking for the hands of anyone who had been to a national championship, and asked them to keep their hands raised until it now longer applied to them. About 20 vaulters raised their hands! Then I asked how many had medaled at a national championship, and then who had won a national
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championship. With several hands still up I asked the same about who had attended a world championship, had medaled there and had won. Fewer hands remained but still impressive. Then I asked who had ever had an American record, and then who still has an American record; five then three. Finally I asked who had ever had a world record, and does anyone currently hold a world record. Only John Altendorf and Rita Hanscom remained as current world record holders. Then I said, “I count about 20 people who were able to raise their hands for these elite performances; THAT is impressive!!” NOW, every one of you got there by a different path that THAT is why we’re calling this a symposium. We want to all share what we do and what works for us, because clearly this room reflects a lot of success with a lot of different approaches. After the symposium part then we were off to the track for the meet. We had two pits and it was a blast. Bob Olsen is our first winner (M5512’4”/3.76m). The incomparable Mike Ramoska (C-Ram) and Hergie (Richard Hergenwrather) served as officials and masters of ceremonies and
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were just amazing fun. They continued that role over at the BBQ at my house afterwards. We told stories and laughed together for hours. I’m so honored to have such great friends and we expect a bigger crowd next year.
Grand Haven Beach Vault – I have heard about this event for years as a kid I coached in Texas who goes to Michigan every summer. When I set up my schedule for this year, I selected the GHBV as my main fun event and it was a huge success. For
the past 12 years, Kevin Patterson and Dave Meott have been refining this event in a way that serves everyone. With over 300 vaulters this year it needed to be run professionally and smoothly. There is no detail too small that these guys haven’t covered, and it showed every step of the way. Dave explained to me that for many years it didn’t matter whether they drove 300 miles to the south of 400 miles to east, that the final vaulters always seemed to belong to Dave and Kevin. This made them the perfect team for the credibil-
ity needed to get such a grand event off the ground. Unlike most meet promoters and management, these guys weren’t overstressed during the event at all. In fact, their preplanning and superb support made them actually the perfect hosts and the life of the party, as they were having a ball. This event is on my must do list for every year now and I encourage you to do the same. Thanks as always for your support!
Bubba
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VAULTER
MAGAZINE John Altendorf
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Mike Soule
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