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october 2014 issue
contents
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FROM THE EDITOR
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Mental Heights: Flow Psychology — The Zone!
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Seniors! It’s time to submit your college applications!
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Enjoying the Game at GCU
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Squat master
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ALAN LAUNDER Tribute
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FROM THE EDITOR The autumn season of 2014 comes with much excitement at Vaulter Magazine. To start with, Dolf Berle has written us a very inspiring piece. Mr. Berle has some sound words of wisdom about being in “the zone” and taking pole vault training to a new level. Getting to through those mental blocks while training can be difficult, but this article will help with some advice on how to get past it. Don’t miss it.
Penny Hanson has added even more very useful information about college applications as well. It is time to start thinking about those teacher or counselor recommendation letters and where you want to apply to. We know this article will help you sort this out, so please read along and take in this very necessary input.
Also in this issue is some information on a wonderful new invention by Bernie Miller. He has invented the Squat Master and it will revolutionize workouts for all athletes. Mr. Miller has been involved with many inventions and ideas, as well as personal training and fitness. Once you read what the Squat Master can do for you, you will want to run out and get one for yourself. Please check this out. You won’t be sorry.
Our featured college this month is Grand Canyon University. The vaulters at this small Christian university are jumping high, but also reaching new heights as people. Coach Lehman’s words about his team can’t help but show his passion for where he is and the vaulters he coaches. You may
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Bonnie Draxler
just want to take Penny Hanson’s skills and fill out an application once you read this inspiring piece.
However, inspiration can sometimes be followed by sadness. Unfortunately this month we share a more somber piece remembering the late Alan Launder. We lost him in August of this year and he will be missed. Steve Chappell of UCS Spirit has written a lovely memorial about his life and accomplishments. Even though we are saddened by the loss, we hope you will join us in remembering Mr. Launder fondly and hold on to his legacy in a very positive light. Please help us remember Mr. Launder, this month and always. And please continue to value each day we have to vault and live life to the fullest. We will see you again next month. Take care.
Editor Doug Bouma editor@thevaultermag.com
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75 SC STATE CHAMPIONS, 10 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS, AND 3 “TEAM USA” (WORLD TEAM) SINCE 1998.
www.ShealyAthletics.com Rusty@ShealyAthletics.com
803-315-5998
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Mental Heights:
Flow Psychology — The Zone! By Dolf Berle Pole Vaulting is widely recognized as one of the most difficult physical endeavors a human being can perform. A famous USA Today article in 2003 labeled it #3 on the 10 Hardest Things To Do In Sports list. As such, the physical aspects of pole vaulting deservedly receive a tremendous amount of attention from coaches and athletes. In competition however, the mental aspects of our sport are more often the determining factor in our success. What is often the largest determinant in the following list: clearing or no-heighting; vaulting better in practice than in meets; vaulting well in poor conditions? The mental factor plays hugely in these scenarios. In my experience, one of the best ways to determine who has the best mental edge is to see which athletes consistently outperform their going-in ranking at big meets. The athlete ranked sixth who makes the podium has something special over
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the second ranked athlete who does not medal. Increasingly world class athletes are talking about how their training is one third physical, one third mental, and one third technical. In my own experience, I bumbled into this reality after years of experimentation and discussion with mentors like Bubba Sparks and my coach Chad Andrews. Once I had the physical training and technical sides of my program dialed in I found tremendous gains by investing in the mental game.
In my opinion must-ready study for coaches and athletes seeking new mental heights is the study of Flow Psychology, more popularly known as “The Zone.” Professor, author and holocaust survivor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi has dedicated his life to pioneering this field of positive psychology. What coaches and athletes
need to know is that it is possible to be in the zone a great deal more often in practice and in meets if you manage a number of conditions. If being in The Zone happens only randomly for you, reading the professor’s book entitled Flow, The Psychology of Optimal Experience, or even reading the Wikipedia notes on Flow Psychology will teach you how to better create optimal performance. According to the professor, the creating the zone requires: • clear goals • immediate feedback so you know what to adjust • finding the level of challenge that is optimal (neither too easy or too overwhelming), • eliminating distractions (the importance of the presession talk and refocusing over a session) • creating an environment where there is no worry of failure
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If one is successful in creating the conditions, you have a good shot at putting the athlete in The Zone where they are: • in the moment • not self conscious • time flies • the activity becomes an end in itself
As you might imagine Csikszentmihalyi found that the condition of being in the Zone
applied to all aspects of human endeavor. We see it in other sports, musical performance, academic moments of greatness, even when we help friends in their times of need. More than anything else I can think of however, pole vaulting serves up a chance to be in The Zone for us every time out. Pole vaulting is so difficult, so thrilling, and such a test of our overall being, that it deserves and com-
mands The Zone that every one of us has inside. In that way, pole vaulting makes us better people, and more capable in everything we do. Dolf Berle 2013 World Masters Pole Vault Champion M50-54 2013 National Champion and World Bronze Medalist in the Decathlon USA! USA! USA!
Dolf PV World Champs
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Cody Smith
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Seniors! It’s time to submit
your college applications!
I wrote this article explaining how to submit a college application last October. When I was writing for this month’s magazine, I felt that it was important to get this information to current seniors again this month. I hope that the article will make it easier for you to move forward. Your application process needs to start NOW. It is GO time! Good luck!
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College applications are made up of several pieces. Although they are all relatively similar, you need to pay attention to the specifics of each of them to guarantee that you have submitted a complete application.
If you use the Common Application to apply to your schools, all of your “common” information will be forwarded to the college. Common information is your personal information, family status, personal and family education information and your list of
activities. Each of your colleges will have supplements in addition to the “common” portions, so you will need to complete these as well. When you apply to schools that don’t use the Common App, you will apply directly on their website and provide all of the requisite information specific to that school. Pay attention to the application pieces your particular school requires. Each college will ask for some combination of these components:
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Teacher and Counselor Forms and Letters of Recommendation: Some schools will ask for letters of recommendation and then some, like Cal Poly, will tell you in no uncertain terms that they will not even look at them if you send them. Even if you use the Common App, ALWAYS ask your teacher for a letter of recommendation in person! Teachers, especially the favorite ones, are asked to write many letters of rec and this is time consuming for them. Please respect their time and effort. If you have not asked your teachers for letters of recommendation, you need to get on this right away! If you are submitting the Common Application, your counselor will need to complete the requisite school forms. If your school uses Naviance, all of your recommendations and the counselor report will go through the Naviance school system. Each handles this part differently. Your school may require you to complete a questionnaire to give to your teacher when you request your letter of recommendation, while other schools require that you request the letters through Naviance. You will need to find out the specific procedure for your school before you ask teachers and counselors for their recommendations. **When you complete the Common App, your teachers and counselor
will be notified that you have requested their recommendations, but you will need to reconfirm with them that they got the request. DO NOT ASSUME THAT THEY ARE WORKING ON IT WITHOUT TALKING TO THEM!
When you request letters of recommendation either from a teacher or a counselor, it is helpful if you give them at least two weeks to complete. Don’t ever ask for a letter of recommendation at the last minute! For example, if you need your letter by October 1st, ask your teacher to have it completed by September 27th. Remember to take weekend days into account when establishing your timeline! DON’T FORGET TO THANK YOUR TEACHERS AND YOUR COUNSELOR! Penny Hanson
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E s say / P e rs o na l Statement/Questions: I discussed the essay last month so I won’t go into a lot of detail here, but when a school requests a personal statement, they are looking for more information about who you are and what makes you tick. This is your chance to impress them with your positive, inquisitive and educated attitude! Many schools will use some version of this question: “How do you think you could enrich our diverse and inclusive community and what are your hopes for your college experience?” You will want to answer that question by stating that you are open to new experiences, you bring diversity and individuality to their campus with your unique ________ (Juggling talent? Pole vaulting ability? Interest in helping wounded soldiers?) If you don’t know what to say for this, look at the school website to find out what clubs, activities or events interest you and then explain how you will become involved in those and what experience you bring to that arena.
Transcripts and Test Scores:
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All colleges will use your transcript and test scores to make their admission decisions. With that said, there is a growing trend by colleges to allow you to self-submit your test scores. This is called “test optional”. Regardless of the lure of optional scores, I require all of my students to submit their test scores. Colleges ARE using those scores to determine admittance and you do not want to provide an incomplete application. If you do not submit your scores, they will rely on the other pieces of the app to determine your eligibility and there is always the question of why you did not supply them. They have them anyway….. Most schools will only accept scores sent directly from the testing agencies (ACT and CollegeBoard), so you will need to request the scores be sent directly through your account on those websites. If you listed this particular school to receive your scores when you took the test, you will not have to submit them again. Your transcripts must be sent through your school. (Many transcripts will have your test scores on them already). You will need to follow your school’s procedures to request and send the transcripts.
Application Fee: For most of your applications, you will pay a non-refundable application fee. These range from $25$80 depending on the school. Often, if you meet certain GPA criteria or apply early, the fee is waived. Check the school’s website for details on that. If you are unable to afford the fee, you may request a fee waiver. The procedure for this will be listed on the college website. These waivers will require authentication from the high school counselor. If you request a fee waiver on the Common application, you only have to do this once; it will be applied to all Common App schools. Other possible application components:
Depending on the major you are applying for, you may be asked to submit a portfolio of your art, media or theater work. You may also have to schedule an audition for theater or music. You may be required to interview with an admissions officer or alumni. CHECK THE DEPARTMENT’S WEBSITE FOR ADDITONAL REQUIREMENTS! **Please note that all of this information is separate from
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athletic components such as videos, coaches meetings or interviews, etc. These pieces are to be submitted to the school itself, regardless of your athletic participation. Dates and Deadlines: Each college will have their own list of dates and deadlines, but typically they have two to three types of application deadlines. Early Action allows students to apply before the regular application deadline, usually no later than November 15. Early Action is a non-binding process. If admitted Early Action, students will usually be notified of the admissions decision prior to December 15. Early Action is a wonderful option because it allows the application to be considered against fewer applicants when schools have the largest number of openings. Another application process is Early Decision. This decision is binding and students should ONLY apply Early Decision if the college is their number one choice. Like Early Action, Early Decision applicants will be notified early, again before December 15. If you know for a fact that you are interested in one college, you can put all of your eggs in one basket
and apply Early Decision. Be aware that if you are NOT admitted Early Decision, you will have to scramble to send other applications out ASAP after you are notified. This will put you into the Regular Decision applicant pool and your notification will come in late spring. Regular Decision deadlines are usually in midJanuary. When you apply Regular Decision, you are considered with the greatest number of applicants and you are notified of your admittance in late March or early April. Recently many Ivies and highly selective colleges have implemented Restrictive Early Action. REA is restrictive in that a student is allowed to apply Early Action or Early Decision to only one school. In some cases, an REA college will allow early application to one additional public university. The REA criteria are different for every school, so you will need to pay close attention to the details of each school’s REA policies! I counsel my students carefully to decide which process is the best for each of them. If you aren’t sure which way to go, I suggest that you speak with your counselor or college advisor to make that decision.
One More Thing: If you will be applying to schools in the University of California system, the UC application portal (www.admission.universityofcalifornia. edu/), opened on August 1. CSU Mentor, the California State University application portal (https://secure.csumentor.edu/), will open on October 1st. You may submit your applications on these sites November 1-30 ONLY. You will be notified of the admissions decisions March 1-31.
The most important thing to remember when applying to college is to check, check and recheck your information, your requirements, your deadlines and your process! I hope this information has been helpful. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns! Penny Hanson Hanson College Consultants penny@hansoncollegeaccess.com
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MAGAZINE Amy Hop
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Lindsey Wright
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Enjoying the Game at GCU By: Michelle Walthall
“Grand Canyon University is a private Christian university located approximately 4 miles west of Downtown Phoenix. We are the Antelopes or ‘Lopes’ and our school colors are Purple/Black/White,” says GCU Pole Vault Coach Todd Lehman. He is the only pole vault coach, and has some great things going with his team. “I’ve been coaching collegiately since 1993,” Coach Lehman continues, “starting at the USAF Academy (9395), moving to Indiana State University (95-97), and Paradise Valley CC (98-13). I have helped coach the pole vaulters at GCU since 2011, and in August of 2013 I left PVCC to join the GCU staff full-time as Associate Head Coach under our Director of Track and Field
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Tom Flood. I’ve also partnered with Greg Hull running pole vault camps and here in Phoenix since 1998. I went to Greg’s camp as an 8th grader in 1983 and never left. We now are partners and co-owners of the Kiss the Sky Vault Camps and Sky Athletics Vault Club working with kids of all ages, from beginners to Olympians.”
According to Coach Lehman, the requirements to join the Antelope vault team are as follows: “Men: 15-6 and up, Women: 12-0 and up.” And he tells us, “We currently have 10 vaulters (9 men/6 women) including the decathletes.” He also lets us know, “We jump primarily with UCS/ Spirit poles and pits. Our jumping facility is excellent
and we are fortunate that our administration has been extremely supportive with providing us with all the tools we need to be successful.”
Here is some of the team breakdown, and some accomplishments from the proud Coach Lehman. He tells us, “We are in our second year now as a NCAA Div. 1 program and therefore are very young. We are led on the women’s’ side by sophomore Jenny Rolph who jumped 4.00m last year as a freshman while earning freshman of the year honors at the WAC Conference Championships. We graduated two other 4.00m women (Lauren Graham and Amy Hop) last year. Lauren was a twotime NCAA DII All-American (5th Indoor/5th Outdoor – ’13)
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for us. We also had DII AllAmerican Brittany Warren (6th outdoor ‘12) graduate in 2012. Our women swept the top three spots at the WAC Indoor (1-2-36-7 -29 points) and Outdoor (12-3-7 – 26 points) Conference Championships in ’14.” Of course, the men must not be forgotten. Coach Lehman says this about them: “Our men
are led by sophomore Cody Smith who jumped 4.90 (45cm above his HS PR) last year as a freshman. We are excited to have Scott Marshall join us this year as well. He is a local vaulter that jumped 5.20 as a senior in HS. He transferred back home from Wake Forrest Univ and will be redshirting this year as he did not obtain a transfer release from WF. As a DII program we
2014 WAC Championships
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had All-American twins Eric and Vince Frawley jump for us too. Vince was NCAA DII runner up outdoor in ’12 and ’13 with a school record 5.30 and Eric was 5th outdoor in ’13 with a jump of 5.10. We had a freshman from Santiago, Chile jump 5.21 for us last year in Daniel Zupeuc. He moved back home to Chile at the end of the year to re-enroll in his home university.” “We are in the Western Athletic Conference and compete at the Div. 1 Level now,” Coach Lehman says of division and competition. “Having moved up from D2 last year we are in the middle of a compliance proba-
tionary period that all schools moving up are required to serve. We are able to compete at our Conference Championships, but are ineligible to compete at NCAA Post Season Competitions for 4 years. Our freshman last year will have one shot at the NCAA Championships after taking advantage of a redshirt year. Our freshman this year will have two, etc. until our freshman in ’17 will have the opportunity to compete 4 full years after using one redshirt. Does that make sense? As for competition, without disrespecting the vault programs in the WAC I’d like to focus on saying our main competition is gravity. We aim to,
and will, be one of the top pole vault programs in the country and will be competitive with any of the top programs quickly.”
“We are so early in the year that there isn’t anything super interesting to report yet,” continues Coach Lehman. “We are looking forward to our inter-squad meet in early December (12/5) where we will have a small exhibition that includes a number of Olympic and World Championship level vaulters jumping here in the middle of our campus.” Vaulting practice started for the “Lopes” on September 11th,
Grant Sisserson
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Left to right Joseph Castellanos (fr), Joaquin Castellanos (fr), Keith Williams (jr), TJ Ryan (fr), Scott Marshall (so), Austin Tilley (fr), Lindsey Wright (jr), Timmy Johnson (fr), Chloe Roy (fr), Cody Smith (fr), John Arnold (fr), Jenna Ingram (jr), Athena Masolini (fr), Jenny Rolph (so), Rachelle Green (fr) Coach Todd Lehman the vaulter magazine 2014
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Renaud Lavillenie
MAGAZINE
Cody Smith
but Coach Lehmans says, “…we won’t do much with poles until early October. I try to give the vaulters the summer off to rest. I feel strongly that it’s important to get away from the vault for a bit each year. Some of our jumpers do go home to their
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HS or club coaches during the summer to jump. I encourage that too, but stress to them that the summer is a time for fun and doing things that are outside of the pole vault. I like my kids to have other interests than just pole vault. It is such an
addictive sport that I think it’s healthy have sports or hobbies outside of the event so that they are able to navigate the ups and downs (no pun intended) of the season. Some of my vaulters also help out as counselors at my summer camp in Northern
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Arizona every summer. We do a ton of teaching and motivating, but we have a lot of fun too.”
Many pole vault alumni from GCU have had success. Coach Lehman says, “My pole vault alumni here at GCU include the aforementioned:
Lauren Graham (D2 AllAmerican ’13, was also D2 runner-up at University of Colorado, Colorado Springs in ’11 - She did all this while being a ROTC cadet and top nursing student), Brittany Warren (D2 All-American ’12 - currently coaching HS and club in Phoenix), Vince Frawley (D2 All-American ’12 & ’13 younger brother of USAFA AllAmerican Nick Frawley), and Eric Frawley (D2 All-American ’13 - twin of Vince and brother of Nick Frawley). My pole vault alumni from Paradise Valley Community College: Dason Phelps (NJCAA Champion in 1999 & 2000 and NJCAA Record holder indoor (5.55) and out (5.48) - Only junior college vaulter ever over 18’), April Steiner (Bennett) – NJCAA Champion in 1999 and former NJCAA Record holder at (3.86) - transferred to Arkansas and was All-American there, 2008 US Olympian, and Trent Powell (NJCAA Indoor and Outdoor Champion in 2002 - Transferred to BYU and was NCAA Runnerup on misses in 2003). In 15 years at PVCC I coached 13 athletes that won 23 NJCAA pole vault titles.” “I assist my partner in camps and club, Greg Hull, with our elite program. With that relationship our vaulters are able to interact with and watch top-level jumpers train throughout the year. Phoenix
has become a training base for some of the best vaulters in the world over the past 15 years. We will be working on some level this year with the following elite vaulters: Nick Mossberg, Kylie Hutson, Tori Pena, and Melinda Owen Withrow,” says Coach Lehman. It looks like his team also has some amazing training opportunities.
Most importantly, the “Lope” vaulters focus on a higher purpose for themselves. “We try to remember that pole vaulting is a game,” says Coach Lehman. “We do it because it’s fun and challenging. Sometimes the training part or the challenges of the event get in the way of the fun. That said, I try to keep practices fun by playing music. I’ve been known to take on some different characters with different accents during practice as well. Our kids typically don’t need much coaxing to have them bond, although each year the group takes on a different personality. I enjoy watching how they support each other with the vault, but also beyond that. Grand Canyon University is a small Christian university that creates an environment of sharing and philanthropy. I’m proud that our studentathletes find time to do mission work and often volunteer their time to the community… and best of all… they enjoy it.”
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MAGAZINE Joel Fraser
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www.thevaultermag.com Jenny Rolph
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Squat master By: Bernie Miller
Fitness enthusiast and inventor Bernie Miller has been coming up with ways for athletes to have a great time and stay in shape for over 30 years. He can’t help it, it is in his blood. Born to a mechanical engineer, Miller seems to have followed in his father’s footsteps by building and
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inventing. It all started with “The 15-Minute Total Body Workout” video for his fitness training clients. Soon to follow was the development of the first folding leg incline/decline dumbbell bench. All other creations were then pushed aside when Miller helped his long-time friend, Randy
Cut, develop the Spooner – a surfboard for land, which also functions like a skateboard. Randomly invented from the cut-off top of a dog igloo, he called this one “the next hula hoop” back when it came to be and he was right as the Spooner was voted Astra’s Best Toys for Kids, Creative Child’s Toy
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of the Year, and Learning Express’s Best New Vendor and Most Innovative Product in 2011 (according to www.spoonerboards.com).
Today, Miller says, “The Spooner is in 1,200 stores and 10 different countries” – certainly a success. Miller’s inventions have even benefitted the world of pole vaulting specifically. He has a trademark going since 2004 on RockBack pole cases, which carries cases for many other sports as well. The perfect combination of a love of fitness and health, being innately instilled in him from a young age, and his inherited gift of engineering has allowed Miller to have a huge impact on the world of sports. He even became a fitness trainer in 1979 before he graduated from High Point University in High Point, North Carolina in 1982. Appearing on the show “American Gladiators” in 1992 gave Miller a push into opening his own fitness training business, allowing all of his creativity and inventions to take shape. One of the latest inventions Miller has in production, which has been gaining much momentum, is the Squat Master – a fitness structure that is meant to help achieve the perfect squat every time to prevent injury. Miller states that in his 30+ years of fitness training, he sees that one of the hardest things for people to do is squat correctly, hence the Squat Master. Some benefits of the Squat Master are: squats burn twice the calories of running, it offers a complete-body workout, and, in Miller’s own words, “It does a booty good!” According to Miller, the idea for the Squat Master came about in 2003, but was one of the inventions put aside to make way for the Spooner. In addition to helping
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achieve perfect squats, he says the Squat Master can help with standing IB yoga poses as well. We are excited to see this invention coming to life, and we know you all will too. Squat Master Kickstarter campaign coming October1, 2014, get involved today!
To see the Squat Master in action, you can visit: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pirtJJQM370&feat
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ure=youtu.be.For more details and information on the Squat Master, visit the website: www.kickstarter.com/projects/348614109/19 54329447?token=8eae204e. Consumers like you are also able to leave valuable feedback at this link. If you want to be a part of bringing out this amazing product, there are also opportunities to do just that.
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Only Track & Field News can keep you fully informed about which athletes to watch, who’s hot and who’s not. We take you step-by-step, meet-by-meet, through the indoor season, outdoor conference championships, the domestic relay and invitational carnivals, the NCAAs, the U.S. Nationals, the Grand Prix events in Europe and of course the Olympics and World Championships. Each issue is packed with meet stories, performer lists and other useful stats, interviews and profiles of your favorite athletes, action photos galore, opinion columns and feature articles, and everything else you need to keep abreast of the total track scene. If high school track is your special interest, seven issues during the year carry prep top performer lists and reports. If you like track, you’ll LOVE Track & Field News. Call the toll-free number below today and we’ll start your subscription immediately.
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VAULTER
MAGAZINE Elena Isinbayeva
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ALAN LAUNDER Tribute This past month legendary vault guru, coach and author, Alan Launder passed away. Most recently known for his books, “Beginner to Bubka” and his coaching clinics around the world, Alan had a huge impact on our sport. I first met Alan at practice at the 1996 Olympics when he came out to watch his athlete, Australia’s, Simon Arkell at practice. As a personal coach he did not have a pass so I quickly arranged for him to get through security and get down on the field. We were friends from that day forward with him spending time at my Southern California home whenever he came to the states.
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We all have our stories about Alan, but perhaps none more revealing than that of Steve Chappell, owner/cofounder of UCS Spirit, and the National Pole Vault Summit in Reno every year. You see, Alan taught Steve how to vault in England when he was 11 years old. Imagine the impact a coach had that one day your student goes on to be a preeminent force in the pole vault world. Below is Steve’s story in Steve’s words. Enjoy! Bubba ALAN LAUNDER: … Early Years … RIP 8/31/14 Our sincere condolences and sympathy are with Jenny, David, Richard and their families in Australia. Stuart Storey called me on Sunday morning and I am indebted to him, our mutual friend over 50 years, thankful that it was he who delivered the sad news. Alan had died with his lifelong love and wife Jenny by his side. Perhaps doing what he loved best, driving between Pole Vault clinics, competitions and preparing
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to meet friends in Wisbech, the area where he grew up. Where shall I start? Mr A.G.Launder was my PE Teacher at Dr. Challoner’s Grammar School, a boys school of about 485 in Amersham, Buckinghamshire (which is 30 miles from London.)
As 11 year olds passing an 11 + exam, we started our first day at Secondary School full of pride, ambition and hope. We were so fortunate to be at a great school with an academic bias. Through PE and Sport, Mr. Launder was determined to even up that bias and reputation. Alan was my teacher for 3 years from 1963 until he left for Western Kentucky University to pursue a Masters degree and work with the Track team there. Mr. Launder, or Sir as all male teachers were addressed, taught me to love sport , competition, the value of work , respect for your opponent , fairplay and to respect officials. All my early sport instruction came from PE, intramural inter-house competition and after school teams. This included pole vaulting with metal poles. (glass poles only came in after Alan left.)
Phill Erickson and Alan Launder
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In Athletics his main focus then was the throws -- including hammer and javelin, all track events including steeplechase even though it was just a grass track and naturally no water jump. I only remember myself and John Diebel with an interest in vaulting. However my brother Peter, 3 years older, had already shown me some back garden vaulting Alan got to us
at the end of practice after the other events. Behind Alan’s back I remember bending that metal pole… we couldn’t get it fully straight again, scared to death he’d find out and we’d get the slipper. I stood at the box with the pole at an angle and John came hauling in to grab the pole and I’d pull him in tugging the pole as best I could. John weighing about 130 lbs hanging on at 13’ on
a 14’ Accles & Pollock aluminum pole , that thing bent and didn’t straighten. There was even a name for that drill, ‘the Burkett drill’. Crazy days but what fun it was. We stayed late and I only had to walk 10 minutes to get home.
Alan, never one to go only half way on anything, decided to introduce Basketball in PE, a game in the 60’s that was Alan Launder
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virtually unknown in the UK. Eventually forming teams and trying to find schools to play was a challenge. Forging ahead though in our 3rd year, my school Under-15 team represented Bucks County. As so few schools played, there was no need for a County Tryout. Alan taught and drilled us in man to man defense, how not to travel and a basic ‘pass and cut ‘ offense. This we learned in PE, at lunch and after school in between football games. We were drawn to play London on a Saturday. Half the team including myself played soccer for the school at 9 am against Ashlyns G.S. With mud on our knees we took off to East London at about 1 pm. We , the ‘ hicks from the sticks’ won the game with David Benbow making all his shots in overtime , banking them all off the backboard. The thing is this, nobody taught fundamentals like Mr. Launder and he instructed us in all sports. Participation was expected and demanded. Truth be known, if London played zone defense, we would have had no clue how to attack, they would have slaughtered us. 30 years later Alan showed me the shot chart. Amazing he still had it, he must have been proud.
To say the least Alan was a tough and demanding teacher, sensitivity and understanding would have been lost on us. He was happy to oblige with instruction, rules, work ethic and discipline; a capital D on that last one.
Only many years later did Alan focus and pursue the Holy Grail in Pole Vaulting in Adelaide, Australia. Honestly I think it was his final challenge, he’d already mastered everything else in Athletics (Track and Field) coaching and all other Sports. He pursued, chased and gleaned knowledge from every source possible. In the 60’s in the UK , Alan took courses , classes , certifications and proficiency tests in Cricket , Table Tennis , Basketball , Weight Training , Athletics and likely more that I may not know. In Australia in the mid ‘70’s Pole Vault coaching and experimental days with Simon , Adam and others, I am absolutely sure the same premise of Instruction , rules , work ethic and discipline ruled the day. As with us in Basketball, beating London for crying out loud, fundamentals were key , and are and always will be the same in Pole Vaulting.
Alan made an impression and impact wherever he was. His footprints will remain in the UK , Australia , Europe and the USA. I’m proud to say he inspired my love for Sport and competition. I will always appreciate and remember those first pole vaulting lessons. There was a 10 year gap before I saw Alan again, it was at the Mt Sac Relays and he had brought a small group from Adelaide. What an amazing full circle we’d made , myself ending up in the Pole Vaulting business beginning in 1975 and he becoming a globetrotting advocate of serious Pole Vaulting , an Author and possibly the best ever Teacher of teachers. Above all else Alan considered Coaching as Teaching and to him this was always paramount. Alan touched thousands travelling as he did in the last 20 years. It’s unlikely we will forget his character, passion, anecdotes and pursuit for the highest standards. For myself and as one of many, Alan you made a difference in my life, thank you and Rest in Peace. Steve Chappell. UCS / Spirit
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Jacob Flores