Siloam Springs Junior Doesn’t Let Size Bother Her

Gay Stands Tall As Pole Vaulter

Samantha Baker/NWA Media
Taylor Gay of Siloam Springs competes in the pole vault March 20 at the Tiger Relays in Bentonville.
Samantha Baker/NWA Media Taylor Gay of Siloam Springs competes in the pole vault March 20 at the Tiger Relays in Bentonville.

— Some track and field coaches may look at Taylor Gay’s small stature as a disadvantage in the pole vault, but don’t count Siloam Springs head coach Tad Davis among that group.

Gay, a junior, officially measures 5 feet, 2 1/2 inches tall. She competes with an 11-foot, 6-inch pole, which is two times her height with still more than a foot to spare.

What Gay lacks in height, she makes up for in other areas such as speed and agility — both of which are equally important in pole vaulting, Davis said.

Colleges tend to prefer taller pole vaulters, Davis said, because they have more leverage and when you jump you want to be as tall as you can to create more whip off the ground.

In Gay’s case though, her speed at the plant of the vault and her ability to contort her body over the bar would be an advantage a taller athlete might not necessarily have.

“I really think her biggest advantage is her ability to run and get down the runway and once she’s in the air be able to get over the bar as quick as she can,” Davis said.

Gay has been pole vaulting since she was an eighth grader and enjoys the event.

“I really like it a lot. It’s a lot of fun,” she said. “It’s really cool when you’re up in the air. It doesn’t feel like you’re as high as you are.”

Gay didn’t join the track team until she was an eighth grade and before she could volunteer to try the pole vault, Davis had already chosen her for the event.

“I do the best I can to get kids I know are competitive and athletic to at least try the pole vault,” Davis said. “That’s why I pulled her out as quick as I could to get her over there.”

Gay’s best score in the pole vault came last year as a sophomore when she cleared 9 feet, 6 inches.

In just two meets so far this year, her best is 8 feet, however she hasn’t had a lot of time to practice because of her participation in girls basketball. Before that, she was a starting defensive specialist for the volleyball team in the fall.

“This year I haven’t quite gotten to where I want to yet,” Gay said. “I think in the first meet I only cleared 8 foot, and then the second meet I had an off day. Coming in from basketball season it definitely takes some time, but we’re getting there.”

With more practice time and meets, Gay figures to get her scores in the event back to where they were last year and eventually surpass those.

“By the end of my high school career I’d like to get to 12 foot,” she said. “I don’t know if it will happen, but I’d like to. That’s the height that gets you scholarships.”

Gay also participates in other events for Siloam Springs. This year she’s run in two relays — the 4x100- and 4x400-meter relays — and plans on participating again in the heptathlon for the second straight year in May.

Gay is very coachable, Davis said, and is willing to attempt anything she is asked to do on the field.

“Taylor will do anything you ask her to do — she’ll try,” Davis said. “She hurdled last year for the first time at the heptathlon and did really well. That’s probably an event we’ll see her in before the year is up.”

Davis said Gay is one of the hardest working and most competitive kids he’s ever coached, and that goes for any sport.

“She is relentless about working and getting things right,” he said. “I think that is what’s made her do so well at it.”

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