Between seeing punctured lungs and people paralyzed, it's no wonder UNM pole-vaulting coach Scott Steffan says the sport appeals only to risk takers.
Steffan's got two athletes who fit that bill perfectly.
Junior Derek Mackel and freshman Whitney Johnson said they pride themselves in being a bit over the edge.
"You have to be a thrill seeker and possibly a little bit crazy to pole vault," Johnson said. "My dream is to go skydiving. I'm saving my money."
It's fitting a sport such as skydiving should cross Johnson's mind. After all, she uses a 13-foot-7-inch pole to catapult herself 13 feet in the air over a bar she says has taken a liking to her shins.
As she goes over the bar, her shins are constantly smashing into it, leaving her with a pair of matching bruises that travel from her knees to the top of her feet, she said.
Mackel said he's got another idea about what risk-taking sport he wants to try next.
"I've been craving something like bungee jumping for a while now," he said.
At least in bungee jumping, the bungee keeps him from having a facial date with the ground. When he pole-vaults, he's soaring over 17-foot high bars with no strings attached.
Mackel is the seventh-ranked pole vaulter in the country. Johnson was an All-American pole vaulter last year as a high school senior, and said she has her eyes on qualifying for the Olympic trials leading up to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China.
"Hopefully in a few years - 2008 - I'll be good enough to make it to the Olympic trials and the Olympics," she said. "That's my ultimate goal. I'm three feet away from the world record right now, and I think there's only seven women in the U.S. over 15 feet. It's attainable right now because it's such a new sport for women."
Johnson has cleared 13 feet 1 inch on record, she said, but added she's topped 13 feet 6 inches in practice.
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Mackel said he's just happy things have turned out so well for him over the past four years. Steffan had some caustic words about what Mackel's pole-vaulting skills were like when he came to the team as a freshman.
"Derek came here roughly four years ago as a walk-on, and, truthfully, when Derek came here he would be no good for women," Steffan said.
He said Mackel has improved his height by more than six feet since arriving. That bodes well for Mackel, who Johnson said would have caught more heat from her because her pole-vaulting height coming to UNM was higher than his.
Both Johnson and Mackel owe some of their success to other sports and the friends they said got them into pole vaulting in the first place.
Johnson grew up as a gymnast, something she says is helpful because of the flexibility and core strength she developed. When she quit gymnastics her freshman year of high school, she had to decide on another sport. She said one of her friends - who she described as "4-foot-5" - was good at pole vaulting. Johnson said she had no idea how she couldn't be better than someone that short.
Mackel said his second-degree black belt in tae kwon do helps him tune out all the extraneous factors - wind and the crowd - that can interrupt his rhythm. He said the sport just looked fun when he saw some of his friends in high school doing it.
Mackel said he had no idea, though, what track and field event he would take part in at UNM. He said he was a borderline competitor in anything.
Steffan said Mackel was a good runner, so he decided to let him have a go at pole vaulting for the team. Things couldn't have worked out better.
Mackel and Johnson have both qualified for the NCAA Midwest Regional that takes place May 27 and May 28. There, they will have a chance to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships on June 9 if they place in the top six.
A top-six performance by both athletes might be the perfect impetus for a bungee jumping and skydiving celebration.
