While some students struggle to balance school, sports, and perhaps a job, Cabrillo High School senior Nicholas “Niko” Amescua works on a different balancing act. The pole vaulter excels at balancing—and then propelling his entire body—up and over a 14-foot bar.
Of all the track and field events he participates in, Niko said pole vaulting is one of the most difficult because of all the mechanics that go into accomplishing the task.
“You have to be really fast, you have to be coordinated, and you have to have upper body strength as well because once you start to jump really high, it’s like doing a handstand on a moving pole,” Niko said.
Niko started track his freshman year at the prompting of three friends. “They all quit after the first week because they thought it was too hard, and now I’m still out here four years later,” he said.
He said pole vaulting is difficult and uncomfortable at first. “It doesn’t feel natural at first,” he said. “The most challenging part is in your own head you’re doing something and your brain is telling you, ‘Don’t do that—you’re going to hurt yourself,’ and you have to say, ‘No this is fine.’”
Niko participates in four other track and field events—the 100 meter, the 200 meter, the long jump, and the triple jump. However pole vaulting is his main event.
His highest jump is 14 feet, 6 inches. And though he’s gotten over 16 feet it was over a bungee not a bar so it wasn’t official.
Russell French, Cabrillo head track and field coach, said to get that high takes years of dedication, explaining that Niko started at 7 feet and this year he expects him to clear 16 feet. “Most kids don’t have the stick-to-itiveness to do that,” he said.
Niko said he likes all sports and participates regularly in basketball, football, surfing, and snowboarding, but pole vaulting is unique.
“It’s so exhilarating when you’re up there and you let go of the pole and you’re like 15 feet in the air and you look down and you’re clearing this bar,” he said.
French called Niko a technically sound pole vaulter who he expects will make it to state this year.
“We’ll have a good feeling when we’re at the Reno [National] Pole Vault Summit in January. If he does 15 feet at Reno, you’re gonna really want to keep your eye on him,” French said.
This article appears in Oct 29 – Nov 4, 2015.