It was an unlikely place to get into a discussion about track and field, but when one of the workers changing the oil in her car found out that Alexis Paine pole vaulted for the University of Alabama the question came naturally. “How high can you pole vault?” Paine’s best so far is 14 feet, 7¼ inches, the Crimson Tide school record. When the worker estimated that was higher than the building, she looked on in disbelief while he proved it with a measuring tape. “Once you clear like 14 feet it’s like, `Oh my gosh, I cleared a whole building at one time’,” Paine said. “It’s pretty exciting. I never thought I’d jump 14 feet, like, ever. I wanted to. I didn’t think it was possible.” Actually, the ascent of Paine (an All-American both academically and on the track) has been nothing short of remarkable considering that she is still rather new to the event. Originally a walk-on from Murphy High School in Mobile, she didn’t start to focus on the pole vault until after coach Dan Waters took over the Crimson Tide in 2011. In a way, she’s like the movie character Happy Gilmore, who considered himself a hockey player, but used what talents he had in that sport to be a successful golfer. While Paine had competed in track and field since middle school she’d primarily considered herself a high jumper. “I loved track,” she said. “It was the best part of my day in high school and I knew that I wanted to continue with it.” more
