Otay Ranch High School student-athlete Dane von Guenthner capped his senior year by placing second in the boys pole vault event May 29-30 at the California state championship meet in Clovis. It was an elite setting in which to complete and an elite mark — 16 feet, four inches — in which to capture the silver medal.
“My expectations were definitely high,” von Guenther admitted. “At a meet like the state meet where the crowd is huge, nerves are high, and everything you worked towards all season is on the line, really anything can happen. The state meet opening height is already super high, set at 15-0 for the preliminary round and 15-2 at finals.
“I entered at those opening heights both days, as did pretty much everyone, and I felt real confident about it because my usual opening height is anywhere from 15-0 to 15-3. Knock on wood, opening height is never something I’ve really struggled with. I feel like I’m a very strong vaulter on the mental side of things, and it shows in my stats. I’ve only ever no-heighted once ever and it was at the nationals meet last year in the pouring Oregon rain along with 10 other athletes.”
The weather did not impact this year’s state meet as much as in past years when temperatures in the Central Valley routinely approach or even top the 100-degree mark.
“The temperature was definitely on the warmer side, but it wasn’t anything like last year (103 degrees) and they were honestly pretty similar to the recent conditions at the invites in San Diego, so I think the weather didn’t have too much of an impact,” von Guenthner assessed.
“The competition was honestly so much fun. Once the nerves were out and everyone kinda gets into their own version of flow state, it becomes a pretty social atmosphere. At the elite high school level, you’re vaulting with most of the same group of guys at each invitational. When you see the same people over and over then you start to grow pretty close with them and I’m grateful to have such a wonderful connection with these guys. I hang out with some of them off the track as well and it’s always a good time.
“Vaulting with the same group of guys over and over definitely teaches you a little bit about their style and what to expect from them, but I don’t really think it changes your vaulting strategy much. You just want to do as good as you can possibly do as an individual. Clearing high heights and making bars on the first attempt is always the goal, and the placement on the podium just comes along with that.”
Von Guenthner now holds the school record in the sport as well as the Metro Conference record, breaking the 16-0 by two-time All-American Xander (Law) Cooper in 2013.
“I broke his record at Arcadia Invitational which is something I will never forget,” von Guenthner said. “I proceeded to break the record twice more, at the Mt. SAC Relays and at the California state meet. Coach Cooper coached me during my freshmen season and being able to have gained a little bit of a personal connection with him during that time made this record so much more fun to chase.
“I would send him videos and he would give me advice over iMessage. I wasn’t exactly astandout athlete during my freshmen year, and I was originally a soccer player. I would finish track practice and go straight to soccer practice during my first two years of this sport. I vaulted 9-6 my freshmen year, 13-6 my sophomore year, 15-3 my junior year, and now I have a personal best of 16-4 at the end of my senior season.
“Not a lot of people are able to progress the way I have, and for that I feel very fortunate; but it definitely wasn’t luck. I love this sport so much and I wanted to be successful so bad. I wanted it more than I’ve wanted anything before, and I think I found the perfect balance between locking in and having fun with it.”
Not everything went smoothly. There was some adversity to overcome.
“I put in so much work behind the scenes during the offseason, but I think what made the most difference is the coaching,” von Guenthner said. “I had a pretty weird situation my whole high school career, I’ve had a different coach every single season. My freshmen year coach was our previous school record holder, Coach Cooper. During my sophomore year our head coach, Coach Valdez (Julian Valdez), stepped in to coach pole vault with no previous knowledge of the sport, and as a beginner I didn’t have much knowledge either. Working together to figure things out, I was able to progress an incredible three-and-a-half feet.
“After seeing my potential during that season, I started training with a club team called San Diego Pole Vault Academy. Training with Coach Thomas (Thomas Rusnak) at SDPVA was probably the most important decision I ever made regarding my success in pole vault. In only two meets with him, I improved by almost two feet, and he instantly turned me into a vaulter that could compete with other elite vaulters, and showed me that I have infinite potential.
“During that school season I didn’t even have a coach, and I thought we were gonna have to get rid of our pole vault program. That’s when my dad stepped in as a volunteer coach with no prior pole vault experience. Our new head coach/throws coach, Coach Bajet (Jonathan Bajet), also helped out when my dad couldn’t make it. That season was pretty rough and I suffered from stress fractures in my lower back, but it was an incredible learning experience and I still managed to break the 11th grade class pole vault record while being coached by my dad, which was really cool.
“This past season, I had the honor of being coached by professional pole vaulter Kyle Gibbs. Having a professional vaulter as my coach was such an amazing experience, especially because he’s still competing, and I was fortunate enough to get to train alongside him during the postseason.”
The goal has been ever upward. His previous best was 16-3 in April at the Mt. SAC Relays after clearing 16-2 a week earlier at the Arcadia Invitational.
“Top nine medaled at the state meet, and as soon as I cleared the second bar, I had guaranteed my spot on the podium, but that’s a big podium and I wasn’t exactly content with a spot at the bottom,” the Mustang vaulter said. “I knew I was in the mix as a top contender, so I stayed hungry and kept fighting for those first few spots I knew I was capable of. Being one of only six athletes to clear the 16-foot bar definitely motivated me a lot, especially because at that point, the competition was really narrowing down and I could feel that I was performing a lot better than some of the other athletes.
“I had kept a clean sheet up to this point and I knew that I could definitely clear the next bar; with a lot of the other competitors missing bars at lower heights earlier on in the competition, I had definitely set myself up for success.
“The feeling of clearing that bar was unreal. I went into the competition with confidence and knowing that anything was possible, but those are the kind of experiences that most people can only dream about. It’s definitely something I’ll never forget.
“The hard work really pays off when you get to experience moments that make you feel like you’re in a movie, and when the strategic planning you’ve been working to dial in with your coaches all season comes into play and you peak at the perfect time in the season to get a result like that. I was so stoked to clear a new personal best at the state meet.
“My attempts at 16-8 after that were also real close, I had to experiment with some stiffer poles and ended the competition on a pole 10 pounds stiffer from what I usually use. Transitioning from pole to pole can make a big difference, but in this case I just couldn’t get used to the feel of a new pole in time to make it work for a chance at a double PR. I know the height will come soon though. Clearing that 16-4 bar was definitely the turning point. I guaranteed myself a top three finish at the California state meet, and when that hit me, it actually hit pretty hard.
“I really enjoyed the constant pressure of vaulting with such an incredible group of guys all season. I think San Diego has the highest concentration of elite vaulters maybe anywhere in the world for the high school level. Having six guys over 16 feet in one CIF section is absolutely insane.”
San Dieguito Academy senior Dylan Yarbrough won this year’s section title by clearing 16-6. Von Guenther finished runner-up at 15-6. Yarbrough entered the state meet as the state leader at 17-1 but finished fourth by clearing 16-0.
Von Guenthner finished runner-up at the state meet to Arroyo Grande junior Riley Gash, who won the state gold medal at 17-1.5.
“During Dylan and my sophomore year, I remember vaulting 11-9 at the Jaguar Invitational,” the Otay Ranch standout said. “I then watched Dylan clear 16-0.5. When I heard we were in the same grade my mind was blown. As a new pole vaulter, I didn’t even know what he was doing was possible, I just knew I wanted to be like that someday.
“Dylan is a great guy and I know he had intentions of doing some pretty big things at the state meet and it’s tough that it didn’t work out. We’re all pretty close with one another, so it hurts to see someone not perform their best. Pole vault is such a community sport that you actually tend to thrive when your opponents/friends are doing well. When it came down to it, I was able to pull through when it really mattered, and I gotta say, it feels pretty good.”
His next endeavors will come at Utah State.
