Breaks aren't going in VanAernam's way (Binghamton)
Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2010 7:58 pm
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Empire State Games: Breaks aren't going in VanAernam's way
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By Ken Mcmillan
Times Herald-Record
Published: 2:00 AM - 07/25/10
AMHERST — It seems as though Eric VanAernam has been through this before.
Break a leg while pole vaulting. Heal. Use the Empire State Games as a comeback meet.
On Saturday morning, VanAernam was perfect through three heights, topping out at 15 feet, 3.25 inches. He should have cleared 15-9 but one mistake on his final attempt messed up an otherwise perfect jump, and VanAernam had to settle for third place and a bronze medal.
The medal is nice, VanAernam says, but it's the restoration of his jumping faith which is the best end result.
"It has helped me toward recovering," VanAernam said of his two ESG experiences. "It's a big confidence booster, ever since I broke my leg twice."
VanAernam first broke his right leg two years ago as a senior at Wallkill High School. The good news is Binghamton University did not pull its scholarship offer, and he went on to place fourth at the 2008 Empire State Games.
VanAernam was certainly making progress in his first two years for the Bearcats. In December he set a personal mark of 16-4.75, and he was sure a 17-footer was coming his way this spring.
However, at a New York Armory meet in January, VanAernam failed to finish his take-off and landed straight down into the metal box.
"As soon as I tried to get off the pit, I was like, 'Yep, that's broken,"' VanAernam said, crushed not by the injury but rather the knowledge his jumping aspirations for the year were ruined.
He actually had two breaks in his right leg, this time closer to the ankle. The good news is the breaks did not occur in a weight-bearing bone so his recovery was more certain, and he took a medical red-shirt for both the indoor and outdoor seasons.
VanAernam never doubted he would return to pole vaulting, and his doctor offered no reasons why he shouldn't.
"It's really funny," VanAernam said. "Parents always ask my parents, 'How do you let your kid do that? Why don't you just tell him no, that he can't do it?' They say 'He's always been free-willed. We can't stop him, he loves it and he's good at it. Let him do it, let him have fun.'"
Following eight weeks in a soft cast and several more weeks in a brace, VanAernam resumed training drills in late May and was in good enough shape to win the Hudson Valley Region qualifier in June — going up and over the bar successfully at Middletown High erased any jitters he might have had.
"Pole vault is scary," VanAernam admits. "It's a scary sport, but the more times you do it comfortably and right, you don't feel fear anymore, it goes away."
VanAernam said the recent break left him disappointed, a bit angry and wondering why this was happening to him again. Being able to jump again has made him much happier.
"I describe it to people that you give this kid his favorite piece of candy and then you take it away for five months and then you give it back to him," VanAernam said. "It's going to mean the world to him. That's what it's like for me."
VanAernam, who turns 21 next week, felt like a kid in the candy store on Saturday. A number of friends were on hand to cheer him on, and the world seemed right once again.
"It was a great day," he said. "I am really pleased. I couldn't be happier. This is probably one of the better experiences of my life, pole vaulting at Empires. I love the Games and the Games love me back."
Empire State Games: Breaks aren't going in VanAernam's way
Text Size: A | A | A
Print this Article Email this Article
ShareThis
By Ken Mcmillan
Times Herald-Record
Published: 2:00 AM - 07/25/10
AMHERST — It seems as though Eric VanAernam has been through this before.
Break a leg while pole vaulting. Heal. Use the Empire State Games as a comeback meet.
On Saturday morning, VanAernam was perfect through three heights, topping out at 15 feet, 3.25 inches. He should have cleared 15-9 but one mistake on his final attempt messed up an otherwise perfect jump, and VanAernam had to settle for third place and a bronze medal.
The medal is nice, VanAernam says, but it's the restoration of his jumping faith which is the best end result.
"It has helped me toward recovering," VanAernam said of his two ESG experiences. "It's a big confidence booster, ever since I broke my leg twice."
VanAernam first broke his right leg two years ago as a senior at Wallkill High School. The good news is Binghamton University did not pull its scholarship offer, and he went on to place fourth at the 2008 Empire State Games.
VanAernam was certainly making progress in his first two years for the Bearcats. In December he set a personal mark of 16-4.75, and he was sure a 17-footer was coming his way this spring.
However, at a New York Armory meet in January, VanAernam failed to finish his take-off and landed straight down into the metal box.
"As soon as I tried to get off the pit, I was like, 'Yep, that's broken,"' VanAernam said, crushed not by the injury but rather the knowledge his jumping aspirations for the year were ruined.
He actually had two breaks in his right leg, this time closer to the ankle. The good news is the breaks did not occur in a weight-bearing bone so his recovery was more certain, and he took a medical red-shirt for both the indoor and outdoor seasons.
VanAernam never doubted he would return to pole vaulting, and his doctor offered no reasons why he shouldn't.
"It's really funny," VanAernam said. "Parents always ask my parents, 'How do you let your kid do that? Why don't you just tell him no, that he can't do it?' They say 'He's always been free-willed. We can't stop him, he loves it and he's good at it. Let him do it, let him have fun.'"
Following eight weeks in a soft cast and several more weeks in a brace, VanAernam resumed training drills in late May and was in good enough shape to win the Hudson Valley Region qualifier in June — going up and over the bar successfully at Middletown High erased any jitters he might have had.
"Pole vault is scary," VanAernam admits. "It's a scary sport, but the more times you do it comfortably and right, you don't feel fear anymore, it goes away."
VanAernam said the recent break left him disappointed, a bit angry and wondering why this was happening to him again. Being able to jump again has made him much happier.
"I describe it to people that you give this kid his favorite piece of candy and then you take it away for five months and then you give it back to him," VanAernam said. "It's going to mean the world to him. That's what it's like for me."
VanAernam, who turns 21 next week, felt like a kid in the candy store on Saturday. A number of friends were on hand to cheer him on, and the world seemed right once again.
"It was a great day," he said. "I am really pleased. I couldn't be happier. This is probably one of the better experiences of my life, pole vaulting at Empires. I love the Games and the Games love me back."