No two athletes are the same, but there are some things all pole vaulters have in common.
“Athletic and just a little bit crazy,” said Branson Head Track Coach Kevin Blackwell.
Exhibit A: Branson junior, Reagan Ulrich.
“It’s probably one of the most important things to have as a vaulter because if you’re scared of the box, you’re going to mess up your technique or you’re going to slow down and some aspect or some factor is going to change,” Ulrich said.
It’s not just a daring attitude and willingness to be upside down.
“There are multiple aspects on how to carry the pole, the distance your hands are, how far down your hands are on the pole, the weight of the pole, the flex of the pole, the size, where your standards are put,” Ulrich said.
It’s piecing all of those factors into one fluid motion that’s allowed Raegan to break his own school record by vaulting 16-feet, four-inches.
“Now 16 [feet] six [inches] is the next goal, which would put him third or fourth in the nation. So once we get that we’ll go 16 [feet] nine [inches] and then 17 [feet] hopefully by state time.”
Of course, a vaulters approach on the run way and in the air is important, but Reagan says you’ll never clear a height, without first clearing your thoughts.
“It’s all mental, once you get down on the runway you have to know what you’re doing so you can just run down and plant it,” Ulrich said.
Helping his teammates learn how to do that might be what makes Reagan most valuable to the Pirates.
“He’s coaching everybody as well, he’s saying why don’t you try this and why don’t you try this, things I don’t know because once your upside down it’s a whole different ballgame,” Blackwell said.
Being upside down is what Reagan does best, making a really complicated process look pretty easy.
“Run fast and just hold on, let the pole take you for a ride,” Blackwell said.
Especially when it’s a ride right to the top of the state leaderboard.
