What is the history and rules of the pole vault event in Track and Field?
ANSWER from Scott Davis on 8 November 2005: Pole vaulting has been around for over 100 years. The athlete runs down a runway with a pole and plants the pole in a small rectangular box. The athlete then swings up on the pole and tries to get over the bar without knocking it off. The poles used today are fiberglass and they bend when planted which acts like a whip to help the athlete get much higher. The world record now for men is over 20 feet!! For women, a Russian lady has gone over 16 feet!! Return to list of questions QUESTION: Did the Wright Brothers have a favorite childhood story? ANSWER from Steve Englehart on 20 January 2005: I’ve looked through all my reference material and I can’t find anything about their favorite story. As noted in our book (Countdown to Flight!), they loved little mechanical things like the helicopter, and they took the Bible very seriously (with their father being a minister). Return to list of questions QUESTION: Where, what and when did the origin of th
