Track and Field | 5/12/2023 11:20:00 AM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
Caden Carlson is at Wichita State to study aerospace engineering and pole vault, in that order and working together to enhance the other.
 
"It's the positive output from both that keeps me going," he said. "I don't feel like I'm losing out on grades to do track. I see it as complementary. The friends I've gotten from track, the experiences I've gotten from track are just irreplaceable."
 
Carlson, a freshman from Aurora, Neb., earned one of three Harry Gore Memorial Scholarships, worth, $64,000, in 2022. Started in 1952, the Gore Scholarship is awarded to freshmen who display outstanding potential for leadership.
 
Steve Rainbolt, director of track and field, realized he had a different type of freshman when he heard about teammates leaning on Carlson for studies. Carlson is the rare freshman who tutors in the athletic department. He tutors physics, a subject that is rarely staffed by a student because of its difficulty.
 
"They're going to him for help and he's an incoming freshman and they're a junior in engineering," Rainbolt said. "You meet this guy, and you instantly know you're talking with a person of substance, a quality young man."
 
Carlson will compete this weekend in the American Athletic Conference Championships. The meet begins Friday and ends Sunday at the USF Sports Complex in Tampa.
 
Wichita State is the defending men's champion after ending Houston's streak of five titles. UCF won the women's title in 2022 at Cessna Stadium.
 
Carlson enters Sunday's competition tied with teammate Kolby Caster at No. 10 among AAC vaulters with a height of 15 feet, 3 inches. He finished 10^th in the indoor championships in February with a height of 15 feet, 2 ¾ inches, tops among Shockers. He cleared a personal best of 15-5 indoors in early February.
 
Volunteer coach Tyler Knight, a former Shocker vaulter, appreciates Carlson's expertise understanding energy, motion, and momentum and how those principles apply to the vault.
 
"The pole vault can be a really technical event," Knight said. "The physics knowledge he has is way beyond his age. He has a grasp on how things work. You have to understand how your movements affect how the pole moves. It's really easy for me to explain that to him, because he understands physics and force diagrams."
 
The improvement from his high school best of 14-9 shows Carlson his practice is paying off. He considers his time on speed work as particularly helpful.
 
"I'm ready to get a big one at conference this week," he said. "The most important part has been my speed and strength. Coming here, where all fall we did sprint training, it's really changed the way I run. More speed down the runway increases kinetic energy, which is more energy to put into the pole, which is more energy that it can give you vertically."
 
He works on speed with roommate and fellow vaulter Malakai Schaad. Schaad is quicker at the start. Carlson's height gives him an edge. Most important is that they work together and push each other.
 
"Caden is an extremely hard worker," Schaad said. "If there's a workout that we're doing and I'm not feeling great that day and he's pulling ahead of me, I'm not going to let that fly. If we're doing anything longer than about 100 meters, his long legs really give me a run for my money."
 
Carlson balances the demands of classes and track with organization and attention to detail. He logs every appointment and deadline in his Google calendar. His desk holds a lamp and a laptop. He has a framed certificate of a scholarship award on the wall. His bed is always made. Keeping the room organized and simple clears his mind for the rest of his day.
 
The book "Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life . . . And Maybe The World" inspired Carlson to keep his space tidy.
 
"I've ever known that I was such a messy person until I started rooming with Caden," Schaad said. "I am the messy roommate and that's not from a lack of cleaning on my part. He is very, very, very clean and very organized."
 
The relationship is also helpful off the runway. Both love country music – Carlson's favorite is George Strait.
 
"Pole vault can sometimes be frustrating, so can be nice to have that person that understands," Carlson said.
 
Carlson comes from a track and field family. His father vaulted at Nebraska, when Rainbolt served as an assistant coach for the Huskers, and coaches the event at Aurora High School.
 
With that background, combining academics and a spot on a track team in college was a must. Carlson visited with Shocker coaches and athletes while in Wichita for the Distinguished Scholarship Invitational and decided to make Cessna Stadium his home for the event.
 
"There's no greater sport," he said. "The feeling of planting the right pole and falling through the air is one of the best feelings."
 
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.