Sequoia High Pole Vaulter Leaps Over 1956 School Record

REDWOOD CITY, CA -- Sequoia High student John Horan catapulted himself into his school's record books last weekend when he broke a pole vaulting record that stood since 1956. The record was 14 feet, 1 inch. The teen topped the mark by another 5 inches.

The track team member told Patch his goal is 15 feet, a noble quest - especially for a budding college prospect who has his sights on attending California Polytechnic State University as an economics hopeful. The engineering school's threshold for a vaulting scholarship is a foot higher.

There are no Olympic dreams in his portfolio wish list as he's a bit of a realist.

"A lot of things have to line up," he said.

Horan stands 5 feet, 11 inches.

"It does help you if you're taller," he said. He holds solace in knowing he's about the same height as the world record holder. Frenchman pole vaulter Renaud Lavillenie cleared a mark of 20 feet, 2 1/2 inches.

"Everyone kinda has their own flavor. Honestly, my form isn't that great," he said.

Horan admitted his advantage is avoiding serious injuries. He's had no broken bones. Most of his ailments are caused by overuse.

"There aren't a lot of old pole vaulters," he said.

Albeit a lesser known sport, the technology has changed dramatically in the last half century.

Pole vaulting has been around a long time. But in the 1800s and early 1900s bamboo was used until about 1950. At that time, steel poles were introduced and they were around for about 10 years.

After about 1960, fiberglass became the standard, and then carbon fiber was introduced. Today’s poles are either carbon fiber, fiberglass, or a combination of both. Horan’s poles are made by UST-ESSX, and are carbon fiber.

Horan's coach David Stahler, whose father was a pole vaulter at Stanford in 1957, met Horan as a freshman and watched him grow physically and in the sport for three years.

"When I first was assigned to Sequoia High, I noticed there was no pole vault coach and very old and dilapidated equipment. But (Horan) cleared a few heights and has been a dedicated athlete, and this year it started to feel like a reality," Stahler said. "I am so proud to be his coach and to have watched this progression over time."

The coach's relationship with Horan has morphed into the personal, having taken road trips with he and his family to meets and to Reno for a pole vault convention. The teen's father, Gerard, has become friends with Stahler. There are pictures of poles covered in snow on top of Stahler's car,

Stahler arranged for the purchase of a new pole vault landing pit in 2017 to replace the 20-year old one. He raised about $10,000 from local businesses to offset the cost of the pit. Sequoia Boosters contributed the rest. He even dug into his own coffers to buy about $12,000 worth of pole vault poles with help from boosters and others.

The public high school with about 2,200 students has been "incredible as an environment to teach pole vaulting to kids," Stahler said. For the last three years, the coach has run a pole vault club on campus called the Peninsula Vault Club.

Established in 1895, Sequoia is the oldest high school in San Mateo County.