The javelin is one of those events in which a talented athlete - with lots of repetitions under their belt, good conditions, great competition, and nearly flawless technique - can PR by a lot on any given day.
Just ask Central Dauphin senior Justin Shirk. Or Central Bucks East senior Brett Millar. Or Springfield Delco senior Vincent DuVernois.
The three are first, third and fourth in the MileSplit national rankings this season. And PRs have been the name of the game for the three since they each seemed to hit their stride in April.
Shirk has been on the national radar the longest. He set the freshman national record of 207-5 in a dual meet in 2006. He finished 3rd at Nike Outdoor Nationals that year, and has won the last two state AAA titles after taking 3rd as a freshman.
By comparison, Millar was 12th last year, and DuVernois did not receive a mark in his first visit to Ship.
But a lot has changed in the past year. Shirk has gotten even better. And both Millar and DuVernois have got waaaaayy better.
Consider Shirk's progression... the 207-5 in a 9th grade dual meet (198-7 in invitationals); 219-4 in 10th; 221-3 in 11th; and this year's 235-3 which stands as the #2 toss of all-time with the new javelin. Shirk is a pretty good football player and will continue both sports at Bloomsburg.
Millar came to the sport from a life of baseball, football and wrestling. He began track as a sprinter - tried the discus as a 10th grader, and then after watching the javelin one day took a throw from a standing position and watched it sail farther than a football. The next day he launched a 158'. His PR that year was a 164-9. As a junior, he teased 200 with a season-best of 196-6 at the District 1 meet. This year, the breakthrough came at the Central Bucks West Relays when he threw 203 for the first time. The Penn Relays saw over a six-foot improvement to 209-5, good for 2nd behind Shirk.
DuVernois didn't compete until his sophomore year after a friend convinced him to give it a try. He took one throw, and Springfield Delco's throws coach Jeremy Darnia told him he had potential to be a good jav athlete. But an injury during a dual meet that year cost him the season. He recovered and continued as a 400 meter runner into his junior season, but dropped it in favor of the javelin. That year he PRed at the district meet with a throw of 185-10. This season, he started at 191 and hovered in the 180's to 190's all season until the 5th throw of the District 1 meet when he unleashed his 210-7. "I didn't surprise myself at Districts" DuVernois says. "My coaches (Darnia and Dr. Bob Sing - author of "The Dynamics of the Javelin Throw") trained me so that I would throw my biggest throws at Districts and States."
That 210-7 was all the motivation that Millar needed at Districts, because he was next, and he used the cheers for DuVernois to generate cheers for his own throw and a new PR of 219.
There hasn't been a new jav trio like this since the Sherwood - Jordan - Zimmerman era of 2002-2003. All three of those gents are on Jack Shepard's all-time list.
Ryan Sherwood, McDowell 229-1
Thomas Jordan, Cedar Crest 224-2 2003
Brad Zimmerman, Warwick 222-3
Shirk has thrown more relaxed this year. His 235-3 came, as his coach Mike Sage says, when he simply had more bounce in his approach and kept his momentum through the throw.
Millar says he is the faster to his plant than ever before, and it's showing.
All three have confidence heading into Saturday's showdown on the runway at Shippensburg University. Millar says he knows Shirk is at another level... but then he pauses to add..."But catching him is not out of the question. I'm getting better every meet, and a 20' PR is not that far."
So there you have it. Saturday at 12:30 in Shippensburg. A 210-7, a 219 and a 235-3. Plus a few others with 190's and low 200's, all believing, as these three do, that they are just a few strides and a good plant away from a big PR - and potentially, a state title.
Let the throwing begin.