PoleVaultPower.com

I was thumbing through the May 22 issue of Machine Design magazine, and came upon an article about Nate Ball, an engineer and host of the PBS show Design Squad (sorry, I haven't seen it). What caught my eye was the listing of the last book he read: From Beginner to Bubka.

I hadn't heard of him or the show, but I'll try to tune in, as one of my daughters has expressed some interest in engineering (and she vaults).

Here's the link:
http://machinedesign.com/ContentItem/72636/CareerProfileNateBall.aspx

You have to click on a link at the bottom to see The Rundown, where it mentions his interest in Pole Vaulting and Coaching the Vault.

I am pretty sure Nate went to MIT where he jumped over 5 meters and proceeded to win numerous engineering awards and design competitions. Pretty awesome.

I met Nate a couple if times. From 2002-2005, I "trained" at MIT's indoor facility once or twice a week during the winters. At the time, Paul Slovenski coached the women's team. Eric Abel was a graduate assistant who helped coach also. Nate was simply an all-around "good guy." And, if you didn't know, MIT usually only lets in people with some serious brains & work ethic. Nate is no exception.

Since his graduation, Nate has also been coaching vault at MIT. Unfortunately, he won't be our coach next year since he's had a hard time both coaching and working.
But he's awesome.