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These campers' eyes will be on the stars


Photo provided
Olympic gold medalist Andre Phillips (right) looks on as hurdlers perform a drill at last year's "On The Road' Track & Field World Tour camp at Lenape High School.
"ON THE ROAD' TRACK & FIELD WORLD TOUR

When: July 15 and 16

Where: Lenape High School

Still spots open: For more information, contact Mike Pascuzzo at (856) 231-9696 or MPScooze@aol.com. The camp's Web site is verticaladventures.org.

Who's on staff: Dwight Stones (high jump), Doug Nordquist (high jump), Mike Vukovich (high jump), Mike Pascuzzo (high jump), Andre Phillips (hurdles), Roger Kingdom (hurdles), Norm Tate (long jump/triple jump), Jason Grimes (long jump/triple jump), Pat Manson (pole vault), Scott Huffman (pole vault), Augie Wolf (shot put/discus), Knut Hjeltnes (shot put/discus), Rob Muzzio (decathlon/heptathlon), Ringo Adamson (middle distance/distance), Tom Pukstys (javelin), Thomas Jefferson (sprints) and Andrew Valmon (sprints).

Photo provided
The staff of the "On The Road' Track & Field World Tour, here pictured in 2005, will be at Lenape High School beginning July 15.


Thursday, July 6, 2006

By KEVIN CRANSTON
Courier-Post Staff
Where in the world can a track and field athlete attend a camp where every event is headed by a former Olympian? Where is there a track and field camp where the staff consists of such legendary names as Dwight Stones, Roger Kingdom and Andre Phillips?

Try Medford -- July 15 and 16.

On these two days, the 14th edition of the "On the Road" Track and Field World Tour will take place at Lenape High School. Open to boys and girls ages 13-19, the camp is an intense weekend of instruction from some of the greatest track and field athletes ever.

"I don't know another camp like it, and that's kind of the point -- to offer an experience that people can't get anywhere else," said camp organizer Mike Pascuzzo, the assistant track coach at Lenape who was a six-time All-American in the high jump while at the University of Maryland and a three-time U.S. Olympic trials competitor.

Pascuzzo began the camp in 1993. Offering high jump and pole vault only, the camp attracted about 60 athletes.

Along with Pascuzzo, the first staff members included Stones, the two-time Olympic bronze medalist and former world record holder in the high jump, Earl Bell, the former world record holder in the pole vault, and Mike Tully, the former American record holder in the pole vault.

Pascuzzo's reason for starting the camp?

"For many years, people would ask me where's a good camp to go to or do you hold a camp and my answer was always no," he said. "There were never any camps that I felt were run like a camp should be run. So after a few years of repeatedly saying this, my wife (Loretta) said I should do a camp the way I thought it should be run. And we did and that's what we have now."

And since 1993, the camp has grown tremendously in both the number of areas covered and the number of athletes who attend.

Now, high jump, pole vault, hurdles, long jump, triple jump, shot put, discus, decathlon/heptathlon, javelin, sprints and distance/middle distance are all offered.

And just last year the camp had its largest turnout of more than 400 athletes coming from around the world.

Along with the main camp in Medford, Pascuzzo is also involved with booking clinicians and occasionally attending similar camps in such cities as Torino, Italy, Cork, Ireland and Moscow.

According to Pascuzzo, the camp is very hands-on and is a learn-by-doing experience.

Much of the two days are spent by instructors teaching campers the techniques and training methods that made them into great performers. Instructors also spend a great deal of time watching campers perform in their particular events and helping them make adjustments.

Stones, who has been involved with the camp since its beginning, knows exactly what the staff members can provide for the campers.

"Year after year, we see many kids leave this camp and go on to win or place high in their state meets," Stones said. "That's the legacy we have. Kids improve by going to this camp."

For Kingdom, the two-time Olympic gold medalist in the 110 hurdles, this year will be his first year on the staff. And although he works many other camps throughout the year, the chance to help athletes improve never gets old to him.

"I love kids," Kingdom said. "They have a lot of energy. They inspire me. They help me just as much as I do them. At camps, I compete with them and work with them to get better. It's so exciting each and every camp."

Tom Pukstys also will be making his first appearance at the "On the Road" camp. Pukstys is a two-time Olympic team member and currently the national team javelin coach.

"When I was competing, I would ask myself what I was offering to mankind, and other than a mild form of entertainment, that was it," he said. "But now that I'm a coach, I don't ask myself that question anymore. Now I get the satisfaction of being able to help someone else."

That same satisfaction is what has Pat Manson coming back to the camp for a second time.

Manson, a former All-American at Kansas and Olympic team alternate is looking forward to working with the pole vaulters.

"Every once in a while, you see a kid who's really into the event, asks all the right questions and really improves during their time at the camp," Manson said. "That's what this camp is all about."

For this star-studded staff that will be present at Lenape, they understand what it takes to be great. "Once your competitive career is over, all that knowledge, wisdom and experience is trapped in your head unless you share it with other kids," Pascuzzo said. "It's always fun to give back to the next up-and-coming generation of athletes."

I went last year and I'm going again this year....its only two days but its pretty intense! I also heard that Scott Huffman unfortunately won't make it. Either way, I would definitely recommend it!

My daughter went to this camp last year. She was offered alcohol at the camps hotel. I would think twice if you are going to send your child here. Apparently a clinicians daughter had a bottle of rum in the hotel and apparently the rum was purchased for her by her mother.

I could not believe I put my daughter’s life in the hands of these people.

NO ADULT SUPERVISON!!!!

Thats terrible, but its also important to realize that it probably isnt the organizers offering alcohol to the campers. There are always going to be kids with alcohol, regardless of where they get it, and the camp counselors and directors might not be able to do much about that, other than declaring that no alcohol or tobacco will be tolerated. I agree something might need to change, maybe reporting this to the camp director would spark some changes.

Anyway, i just think you could find this at any camp, unfortunately. It doesnt reflect the quality work that is being done. It just needs to be reported and not blamed upon the camp as a whole.

I agree. But, there are some major problems with this.
1. More adult supervison. I was told there was none.
2. I think the parents of this child should be remove from the camp. The camp don't need people like this.
3. Its realy sad that an adult would buy alcohol for a child.

When i went to this camp i saw much of that behavior in the hotels, there was absolutely not control over the campers. i think that much of this is because they take way to many kids, so there is little individual attention given to each athlete. But I will say that there are some great coaches there.

[quote="Bonevt"]When i went to this camp i saw much of that behavior in the hotels, there was absolutely not control over the campers. i think that much of this is because they take way to many kids, so there is little individual attention given to each athlete. But I will say that there are some great coaches there.[/quote]

Yes alot of GREAT ATHLETES and Coaches. I'd say 98% of them realy are doing a wonderful thing for kids. Its a shame that one bad apple would spoil the whole basket.

What year did you go?
How long has this been the norm. at the camp?

I went here twice, but I commuted, so I can't really comment on the hotel situation but that is a shame that that happened.

Guys,

Running an overnight camp with young athletes is tough for ANYONE. Many times coaches and assistant coaches at these camps are "off" after the vaulting and camp sessions have occured and free to have time to themselves. I have been at camps where the staff gets to go out at night when the kids are "sleeping".

Watching over someone else's kids is very difficult, if someone has their mind set on sneaking away there is not a lot you can do to prevent it. Short of airport-style searches, it is nearly impossible to find and confiscate alcohol.

Some kids go to camps for the sole purpose of having fun and do things like drink, flirt, and sneak off with boys/girls. You just have to try and find competent staff who is willing to work round the clock and make sure everyone is aware of the rules.

I helped at a camp with constant supervision - there were adults hired to specifically stay up through the night and watch each floor of the dormitories on 2 hour shifts to prevent kids from sneaking out to drink, be with members of the opposite sex, and just plain be teenagers and do stupid things. Let me tell you my 3-5am shift was hard to get up for, but I was able to rest easier knowing nobody left their rooms at night. The days were planned to the hour and there was roll call 7-8 times during the day to ensure nobody was lost along the way from track to dorm to lunch etc etc.

The major downside of having a well run camp with adequate supervision is that the kids dont feel like they have had as much "fun" and feel like things can be too strict.