Call It an Eventful Discovery : Corona del Mar’s Michael Bain, Forsaking Pole Vault, Becomes Southern Section’s Premier Discus Thrower

If Michael Bain of Corona del Mar High School had his way, he would be soaring to new heights in the pole vault rather than throwing the discus.

But if there’s one thing that Michael Bain is, he is a realist. That’s not to say that the lesson came easy.

It took nearly two years for Bain to realize that he’ll never be a champion pole vaulter. Corona del Mar track Coach Jim Tomlin finally threatened to dismiss him from the team.

Simple mathematics should have been all Bain needed to realize that he wasn’t destined to fly. He never went higher than 7 feet, 6 inches as an aspiring freshman pole vaulter. An average height at this level is 9 feet.

But Bain was determined. The event looked like fun, and he had always envisioned himself as the next Bob Richards. Finally, Tomlin set the young man straight.

“You don’t have the quickness to go down the runway to become a good pole vaulter,” Tomlin said. “Either try the shotput or the discus, or get off the team.”

The change didn’t sit well with Bain.

“I was upset,” he said. “I couldn’t see myself throwing the shot or the discus. I tried the shotput, and I didn’t like it. It didn’t seem natural. I was constantly pulling my back.”

Bain reluctantly went to the discus pit. He threw the metal saucer 75 feet on his first attempt and decided to give the event a try. By the end of the season, he was throwing 111 feet.

That summer, he joined the cross-country team. The idea was to improve his speed in another attempt at becoming a pole vaulter. Three weeks later, he quit the sport after his knees became inflamed.

By then, Bain was getting the message. He was a discus thrower, not a pole vaulter. He began his sophomore season throwing 130 feet and improved to 152-3 to break the school record in his second meet of the season.

“I started enjoying it,” he said. “I looked over at the guys at the pole vault pit and told myself, ‘Those guys are crazy.’ ”

This season, Bain has emerged as the Southern Section’s premier discus thrower. He established another school record at 174-2 at the Arcadia Invitational and will be the favorite Wednesday in the state qualifying meet at Valencia High.

Bain’s personal best of 178-6 is the top mark in the section. The top five performers at Valencia will advance to the state championships June 6-7 at Cerritos College.

But in keeping with his nothing-comes-easy career, Bain almost failed to qualify for Wednesday’s meet. He fouled in his first attempt in the Sea View League championships and then slipped on his second try.

“My coach told me to just throw standing still so that I would qualify,” Bain said. “I threw 155 feet to reach the finals and then had my personal best at 178-6.”

But that didn’t come easy for Bain, a 16-year-old junior. He’s competing with two basic handicaps. First, he’s self-taught. Everything he’s learned about throwing the discus has come from attending clinics and studying instructional tapes.

Second, he doesn’t lift weights. Never has, never will. In a sport dominated by iron-pumping athletes, Bain relies on natural ability and flexibility to win.

“Most of the discus throwers I know lift weights like mad, and I’m better than they are,” he said. “It’s all technique. I would say 95% of throwing a discus properly is flexibility and 5% is strength.

“I rely on the lock-out and flexibility for distance. The more I flex, the better I feel and the better I throw.”

Bill Cool, shotput and discus coach at Corona del Mar, credits quickness and work habits for Bain’s success.

“Michael has a lot of natural ability and works hard,” Cool said. “If he lifted weights, he’d be at 200 feet. I think he’ll challenge the national record (214 feet) next year.

“Michael is also very intelligent. He’s constantly reading and analyzing the sport. He tells me what to look for at a meet and basically coaches himself.”