Vaulters Come From Far & Wide For 'The Barn's' Camp & Competition


It was a busy week up in Warwick, NY, as one of the premiere Pole Vaulting facilities and training grounds held a whirlwind of camps and competitions over the preceding week.  Hosted by the Hudson Valley Flying Circus, "The Barn" saw a two-day girls camp on Monday-Tuesday, with the boys camp coming for Thursday-Friday.  Then, to culminate the season, the Great American BBQ Meet closed out the weekend with good competition, and even better food.  With music playing, and vaulters vaulting, the local hot-spot for the Pole Vault saw over 100 competitors come on through.


Headlined by Tim St. Lawrence and Hugh Cauthers, the program went back to basics for the two day clinic, slowly perfecting the little things needed for a big jump.  Among the pair were a host of other talented coaches and athletes, helping guide the vaulters through the program.  Some faces were familiar to the participants, such as NY State Runner-Up Kaeli Thompson (Warwick), Indoor Easterns Champ Abby Norwillo (Pittston, PA), and NJ State Leader Liam Landau (Pascack Hills). Also included were current coaches from around the area, from up in Albany, down to the Jersey Shore, as well as former Big East Champion Stephanie Duffy (Washingtonville '07).


Among the staff's guidance, the athletes were treated to a wealth of apparatus to train on vault-specific drills, each made to fine tune a unique aspect of the approach and takeoff. Then, grouped by abilities, they students would filter to one of six full regulation pits, and get repetitions in.  Starting from the three-step approach, they would gradually raise their grip, and let it rip.


The vaulting would continue all week, with the competition limited only to Saturday.  There, the HVFC would bring in some Elite Vaulters of their own, and it was high flying in the air while the BBQ was flowing.  The appeal of the event drew in athletes from all over, as far away as North Carolina.  The allure of surrounding yourself with other athletes who appreciate the event the same as you do was too hard to resist.  The Barn holds numerous clinics and competitions throughout the year, and is available for hire during the school year for private session.  There is already planning being done for an Indoor Clinic at the Armory this Winter, with more details to follow.  Until then, you can check out the club website at http://www.hvflyingcircus.com/



Girls Clinic


Boys Clinic


Club Records