Clarification: Please note, while Parsons does not have a specialized Pole Vaulting Coach (like some big high schools), the Parsons High School coaching staff has worked many hours with Berry helping guide and assist him in every way they could in honing his skills. After his success last season, he sought specialized instruction in Wichita to continue to develop in his sport.
Kansas High School track and field events have kicked into gear and Parsons High School Junior Kaden Berry stands ready to break his own school record in pole vaulting this year, before heading off to Australia to compete this summer.
In his first year participating in pole vaulting last spring, Berry won at almost every meet he participated in within Southeast Kansas and broke the PHS record with a pole jump clearing the bar at 12 feet 8 inches.
His accomplishment is one Berry is very proud of given the fact he had no coach and was entirely self-taught.
“Pole vault coaches are hard to find because pole vault is not a sport a lot of people do around here,” Berry said. “A lot of people are scared to do it because you’re like upside down in the air with a pole.”
The 16-year-old’s interest was first piqued watching the sport at a track and field event. He decided to give pole vaulting a try and found he liked it… a lot. As he devoted more time to practicing, his passion for the sport grew.
Although he placed well at meets around Southeast Kansas last year, Berry said in areas with bigger schools and more fierce competition, like Wichita, he barely placed in the top 10, so he knew he needed to improve.
“This year I started going and doing it with a coach in Wichita. I’ve been driving to Wichita every day for practice. It’s worth it though. He’s helped me a lot,” Berry said. “He said everything I was doing was wrong and now I am doing it right.”
Berry wrestled from the age of two to age 16 and had grown tired of the sport. The switch from grappling on the ground to soaring through the air is gratifying, to say the least.
“Last season I had so much fun doing it,” Berry said. “It’s like my favorite thing to do now.”
“As a mother I am so proud of Kaden. He has great determination and drive when it comes to anything in life, but sports especially,” Bonnie Howell said of her son. “Kaden found a love in pole vaulting through taking up track and in 2023 went to the state competition for PHS. I have seen Kaden find a liking to individual sports where he is competing with others but succeeding on an individual level to better himself and I love this about him. I am amazed at how far he has come within this and look forward to being his number one fan and supporter.”
The first outdoor high school track and field meet is end of March and the season extends into May.
“My goal is by the end of the season to be jumping at least 15 feet,” Berry said.
Actually, Berry is already clearing that height, but he said that is when he is using the practice bungee and not the bar used in competitions. It is not a matter of being physically capable, but psychologically surpassing a mental barrier.
Bungees are more flexible and give if you fall on them, whereas the bars are stiff and do not have flex.
“It’s just a mindset thing, really. I can clear a 15-foot bungee,” Berry said. “Whenever I see a bar it’s like, ‘I’ve got to get over it because it counts.’ I get nervous, where a bungee doesn’t count.”
His high bar clearance is presently 13 feet 6 inches. While not where he wants to be for competition, that is a foot more than what he needed to be invited to compete on Team USA at the Coast 2 Coast International Track & Field Championships in Queensland, Australia. People come from all over the world to compete.
“Once you perform at a certain level you get invited to it. My friend Bryce Barkdull, I vault with him in Wichita. He is like number one in (Kansas) vaulting 17 feet 6.25 inches. He went last year. At first I didn’t want to go all the way to Australia to pole vault, but he said, ‘It’s really worth it and it will get your name out. A lot of colleges will see that.’ That’s the main reason I’m doing it,” Berry said.
The championship in Australia is July 7-18. For now, Berry said, his focus is on improving during this season so he has the height when the time comes for him to compete there. Those who would like to help Berry with the costs to be able to attend can Venmo donations to @Kaden-Berry-PHS.
“We appreciate all the love and support shown from the coaches invested and the community as well. As Kaden’s family, we love our Parsons community and we love being a part of the Vikings,” Howell said.
End of his junior year, he will begin focusing on where he wants to go to college. Last season he went to a lot of high school meets that were held at colleges, affording college level coaches an opportunity to see the high school upper classmen.
“Washburn, they were looking at me because I have a lot of speed and could see I have a lot of potential,” Berry said. “Same with WSU. That’s where I practice at.”
Another season of improving his skills will hopefully only deepen the interest of colleges in signing him. In college, he wants to major in business and economics and pursue getting a real estate license.