This cache series is a celebration of the USA's victories in the 2012 London Olympics. Each cache will be named after gold medal winning athletes/teams or noteworthy accomplishments.
The twenty second cache in the series celebrates Jennifer Suhr's gold winning performance in the Women's pole vault competition.
Pole vaulting is a track and field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole (which today is usually made either of fiberglass or carbon fiber) as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, Cretans and Celts. It has been a full medal event at the Olympic Games since 1896 for men and 2000 for women. Pole vaulters' poles are among the least-regulated of any Olympic apparatus. The pole can be made of any material or combination of materials and may be of any length or diameter, but the basic surface must be smooth. The pole may have protective layers of tape at the grip and at the bottom end.The runway is at least 40 meters long. Vaulters can place as many as two markers on the runway. Competitors plant their poles in a one-meter long box that’s 60 centimeters wide at the front and 15 centimeters wide at the back. The crossbar is 4.5 meters wide.
Once the vaulter leaves the ground, he/she may not move the lower hand above the upper hand on the pole, nor may he/she move the upper hand higher on the pole. Vaulters also may not steady the bar with their hands during the vault. A successful vault is one in which the crossbar remains in place when the vaulter has left the landing area.
Competitors may begin vaulting at any height announced by the chief judge, or may pass, at their own discretion. Three consecutive missed vaults, at any height or combination of heights, will eliminate the vaulter from competition.
The victory goes to the vaulter who clears the greatest height during the final. If two or more vaulters tie for first place, the tie-breakers are: 1) The fewest misses at the height at which the tie occurred; and 2) The fewest misses throughout the competition.
If the event remains tied, the vaulters have a jump-off, beginning at the next greater height. Each vaulter has one attempt. The bar is then alternately lowered and raised until only one vaulter succeeds at a given height.
London 2012 was the second Olympics for Suhr, having won the silver medal in 2008 at Beijing. Amazingly, Suhr began pole vaulting only 4 years prior in 2004. On August 6, 2012, Jenn Suhr won the gold medal in the women's pole vault at the Olympic Games, defeating Cuba's Yarisley Silva on countback after both competitors had cleared 4.75 m.
Congratulations to Jennifer Suhr, Olympic Champion!
This is one of the more difficult caches in the series. The container is a pill bottle that is not extremely well hidden, but could be very hard to reach if you are vertically challenged or have a short reach. The area should be fairly muggle free except for the occassional car driving by. Be careful on the embankment.
Please be sure to only attempt this cache if you return the cache and it's camo to the proper hiding place.
Probob
OldChronoMan
andrewstevepotter