The latest issue of Geezerjock magazine is online now, and the M45 high jump is a focus. The story is headlined: “Odd couple: Extroverted McBarnette and camera-shy Lewis set to square off in high jump at USA Track & Field Masters Outdoor Championships.” And the author did his homework (phoning me, for instance, some months ago.) The news is that Bruce and Dennis both promise to show up at Charlotte. Cross your fingers.

Here’s the article:
By Matt Murray
When the USA Masters Outdoor Track and Field Championships take place in Charlotte, N.C., August 3 to 6, there will be a number of intriguing subplots. The M45 high jump for instance.
In the high-jump pit in Charlotte, it is expected that Bruce McBarnette and Dennis Lewis will get a long awaited chance to compete head-to-head. While linked by their high jumping prowess, the two men couldn’t be more different, as Ken Stone of Masterstrack.com observed.
McBarnette will travel just about anywhere to compete. Lewis rarely leaves the state of Michigan. McBarnette makes sure every jump is recognized. Lewis is famous in the Masters circuit for an unofficial jump of 6 feet 11 inches he made in 2002.
For years, McBarnette, 47, a self described lawyer/actor/real estate investor from Sterling, Va., has publicized his many Masters track and field accomplishments via his Website. This year he has jumped higher than the official current Masters indoor world record on five different occasions, most recently during the first weekend in March, when he cleared 6 feet, 4 inches, only to better that mark by an inch 24 hours later in New Jersey.
His passion for competition is only surpassed, it seems, by his efforts to spread the word of Masters track. “It provides a good model for our sedentary society,” he explained.
In contrast, Lewis, 46, tends to shun the limelight. It is not uncommon for Lewis to show up at a meet at the last minute, set a new mark, and leave before any awards can be handed out. It was under just those circumstances that the Ypsilanti, Mich., native found himself at a meet at Eastern Michigan University in February. He cleared the bar at 6 feet, 8¼ inches, which is an unofficial world record for the M45 age group.
Lewis, however, has confirmed that he plans to compete in Charlotte. “This is my first season in five or six years. I’ve been to a couple of meets in the past month,” he said, adding: “I cleared 2 meters (about 6 foot 5 inches) last week. By the time I go to Charlotte, I hope to be at about 7 feet.”
In Charlotte, what both Lewis and McBarnette share a desire for is a gold medal, and both have the potential to set an outdoor M45 high jump record. The current M45 outdoor high-jump record is 2 meters, set by Asko Pesonen of Finland in 1988, according to World Masters Athletics.
Meet officials at the national outdoor championships will be watching for a record of their own. Meet director Dr. Gordon Edwards said, “From all indications, it looks like we could break the previous record of 1,508 participants.”
Edwards attributed the anticipated large attendance due to the central East Coast location, Charlotte’s accessibility as an airline hub and increased publicity in the mainstream press.