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http://www.suntimes.com/output/prep/cst ... ack27.html

Winder vaults into record book



March 27, 2005

BY TINA AKOURIS Staff Reporter

Plainfield South junior Jake Winder just wanted to have a good time Saturday at the Class AA Illinois Prep Top Times track meet at the University of Illinois Armory in Champaign.

What he got was a great showing, a meet record and the award for most outstanding male athlete.

Winder won the pole vault with a meet-record effort of 16-feet, 3/4 inch. Winder's vault was more than a foot and a half higher than last year's winning vault of 14-6 and broke the record of 16 feet set in 1992.

"I was just thinking about my technique,'' Winder said of the winning vault.

"Earlier [in the meet] there were some setbacks, but as this rolled on I got better.''

Winder said a switch to a new carbon-weave pole helped him get the winning vault.

"That made the difference,'' Winder said. "It was a lot faster.''

Winder's first few indoor meets this season were disappointing, but he started jumping 15-feet and 15-6 right before Top Times, preparing him for the strong finish at the Armory.

But even though Winder was on a roll with his vaulting, that didn't mean he was going to rest on his laurels at Top Times. He said the competition was better than last year and it kept him on his toes.

Phil Hanson of Pontiac was second with a vault of 15-6, and Ben Hinds of Kaneland was third at 15-3.

"The competition was like I had never seen it before,'' Winder said. "There were four or five of us left at 15-3, then it went down to 15-9.''

Winder was sixth in state in 2004, but he wants a better finish this year.

"There is a lot of room to improve,'' Winder said. "I'll take [the win] and put it behind me and start working again after spring break.''

it was an amazing jump

http://www.vaultchicago.com/Videos/TOPT ... BOYS19.wmv
it's the second jump

http://www.suntimes.com/output/prep/cst ... ack24.html

Winder vaults into state spotlight


March 24, 2006

BY TINA AKOURIS Staff Reporter

He's the only returning state champion, and Plainfield South senior pole vaulter Jake Winder is already making waves during the boys indoor track and field season.

Winder shares the mark for the highest indoor vault recorded in state history after a leap of 16 feet, 7 inches on March 11 at the Rolling Meadows Pole Vault Summit.

Winder tied the record held by Tim Johnson, who won the 1973 and 1974 state pole vault titles when he was at Bloom.

"I didn't know about it until Tim Johnson came up to me afterward and told me,'' Winder said. "My goal is just to have consistency from last year, and do 16 feet.''


Winder won the 2005 state meet with a vault of 15-6. The state outdoor record is 17-1/2, and it's a mark that Winder has in the back of his mind.

But before he even thinks about an outdoor state record or defending his state title, Winder wants to win the Class AA Top Times indoor meet April 1 at the University of Illinois Armory in Champaign.

Winder has won the pole vault at Top Times -- which is considered the unofficial indoor state meet -- for two consecutive years.

Winder will be battling Pontiac's Phil Hanson -- who finished second to Winder at the outdoor state meet last year and is ranked behind him in Top Times -- as well as his younger brother, Josh, a freshman.

In an interesting twist, Josh doesn't go to Plainfield South. He attends Plainfield Central.

When the new Plainfield North opened and the schools were redistricted, Jake opted to stay at South and finish his senior year. Josh had to go to Central.

"It's hard on my parents because they want to watch us and be at both [of our] meets,'' Winder said. "But it's fun to poke fun at [competing for different schools], and we have made it into a joke.''

As a youngster, Winder played basketball and baseball, but wanted a sport where he could depend on only himself for the results. He started vaulting in eighth grade.

"I wanted to have something where it was just me,'' Winder said. "If I work hard, I do well -- and if I lose, it's because I didn't do something right.''

The Winders' stock in pole vaulting runs deep. Their father, Tim, won a Class A state championship in 1979 for Woodlawn when he was a freshman. Tim Winder went on to vault at Texas A&M and now coaches pole vault at North Central College in Naperville.

"He was the biggest inspiration for us to vault,'' Winder said. "I'll ask for advice and he'll help me, but he likes us to figure stuff out on our own.''

And Winder's pole vault coach at South, James Houston, pole vaulted for Tim Winder at North Central.

"I think Jake enjoys the pressure -- but at the same time, he hasn't changed,'' Houston said. "Jake's dad has instilled in me -- and Jake hears it from me and his dad -- that it's all about technique. My goals for him are, as a senior, to have fun, work hard and stay healthy. He will be successful whether he wins state or not.''

Winder's training partner at South is senior Adam Werner, another Top Times pole vault qualifier. During the offseason, Houston said, the pair would get up at 5 a.m. for a workout.

"Adam is my buddy, and the great thing about my team and the school is that they support me and they really get into my vaulting,'' Winder said.

Besides pole vaulting, Winder had the opportunity this indoor season to compete in other events. Plainfield South boys track coach Jason Crowe said Winder threw the shot put and high jumped 5-10 at a dual meet against Lincoln-Way East earlier this season.

But once the outdoor season starts, doing other events probably won't be an option, Crowe said.

Winder has verbally committed to pole vault at Alabama, where he'd like to major in education.

''I have to get through this year without screwing up too bad,'' Winder said. ''College will be interesting, but whenever vaulting stops being fun is when I'll stop.''