M60 vaulter Altendorf threatens 13-foot barrier
What goes up must go upper. M60 John Altendorf of Oregon reported yeterday that he cleared 3.96 meters (12-11 3/4) at an all-comers meet June 29 at the University of Oregon’s hallowed Hayward Field. And he posted a video clip as well. That breaks his own pending world age-group record of 3.84 (12-7 1/4) from mid-June.
John wrote: “There were the necessary 3 officials there to observe so there is a good chance it will be accepted as a record performance.”
A few weeks earlier, he shared some details of his training, technique and physique:
“This year I worked my way onto 14-(foot poles). When my steps are on, my plant is high enough and I provide sufficient whip-swing, I can get on them. Not if but when those fail me, I have to bail on my jump; like on my last attempt at 4m. I’m 5’9” and 142 pounds. I was on a 150 pole in these videos. Being on that long a pole, I should easily jump 4m+, but somehow I haven’t put it together in a meet yet.
“I am currently relatively lean, about 7-8% body fat. I attribute that to several things, probably the most important is my wife prepares healthy, low-fat meals for me. And when I snack, it is usually a low-fat nutrition bar. I used to jog as my main exercise (age 40-55).
“Before I started vaulting at age 56, I had been working out on a Bowflex for a couple of years. That made a large change in my body condition and made me think if I was ever going to vault again, that would be the time to try. Once in reasonable shape, I haven’t really kept to a rigid regimen of exercise like some vaulters I read about.
“During the HS season I can’t help myself from demonstrating drills and actually jumping while coaching. When I’m not jumping so much I do simple exercises like push-ups and sit-ups, also bar work with Bubka like drills. I guess I am very lucky that once in shape, eating right (most of the time) and with just a nominal amount of actual workouts, I can keep good body tone.”
3 Responses
This is a remarkable achievement. What I find even more amazing is that he found a place to train. Finding a training area for the throws (particularly the hammer) is often extremely difficult. It has to be almost impossible for the pole vault.
Just for the record (no pun intended), the crossbar was actually set and measured to 13’0″. For this meet the bar started at 12′ and progressed by 6″ increments. So I think it is fair to say I jumped 13′. For records, I believe the requirement is to report metric. So 13′ converts to 3.9624 meters, but the requirement is to round down to the next whole centimeter. Therefore, assuming the application is approved, the record will be at 3.96m.
Regarding a training venue, I contacted a few high schools looking to see if I could trade some volunteer coaching for some practice time. That is what worked out best for me. I have also joined a pole vault club during the months when high school track isn’t active. In both cases, I have had the good fortune of getting coaching also. Dave Gable is the Crescent Valley HS coach and Paul Wilson is the Vertical Vault Club coach and founder.
– John
I just noticed something else. My previous jump in mid-June was 3.91m, not the 3.84 mentioned. I did jump 3.84 in that meet, but that was to better the American record. I then went on to clear 3.91m to establish a pending WR.
– John
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