Merrill Foto News

Top Menu

  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
  • Business Directory

Main Menu

  • Local
    • School
    • Health
    • Business
    • Sports
      • Sports News
      • High School Sports Scores
  • Covid 19
  • Courts
  • Opinion
  • Obits
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Our Legals
    • Legal Ads
    • Statewide
  • Video
  • Subscribe
  • E-Edition
    • Merrill Foto News
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
  • Business Directory

logo

Merrill Foto News

  • Local
    • School
    • Health
    • Business
    • Sports
      • Sports News
      • High School Sports Scores
  • Covid 19
  • Courts
  • Opinion
  • Obits
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Our Legals
    • Legal Ads
    • Statewide
  • Video
  • Subscribe
  • E-Edition
    • Merrill Foto News
Uncategorized
Home›Uncategorized›Wockenfus excels in wheelchair debut

Wockenfus excels in wheelchair debut

By Foto News
June 10, 2010
1081
0
Share:

With a record crowd of 8,500 clapping in cadence Saturday, New London’s Kaley Wockenfus lowered her shoulders and powered herself down the 100-meter course in a personal-best 29.10 seconds to become Wisconsin’s first wheelchair-bound competitor at the WIAA State Track and Field Meet.

Wockenfus, who graduated last week from New London High School, was one of nearly 2,900 athletes competing in the two-day state meet at Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Nine other wheelchair athletes also competed Saturday after Wockenfus’ debut, including eight in boys’ events and Oconomowoc’s Melanie Watson in the 1,600-meter race. Wockenfus later competed in the 400-meter race, recording a personal best of 1:58.15.

Wockenfus was born with spina bifida, a defect in which the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth. The affliction made it impossible for her to participate in sports until this year when the WIAA opened track and field competition to wheelchair athletes.

“I had wanted to be in a sport since I was a freshman, so when I heard about this through the high school, I decided to try out,” Wockenfus said Saturday afternoon while waiting to receive her gold medal in front of the awards podium and packed stadium.

She said the experience was everything she had hoped for, with classmates, school staff and track team members supporting her efforts the past three months.

Coach Robert Smith said he was pleased to see Wockenfus join them team when training began in March. With advice from team trainer Kim Calder and assistance from teammate and personal manager Tylan Mastaw, a freshman, Wockenfus practiced and worked out Monday through Friday, racing and building up her wrists and shoulders to improve her performances. Smith also credited Kaley’s mother, Brenda, who attended daily practices to work with her.

Their combined efforts paid off at state.

“It was great to see Kaley achieve two personal-bests today,” Smith said. “It was kind of unfortunate she didn’t have another girl to race against, but she did the only thing she could do, which was race against herself and go for personal bests. She did it and that’s all you can ask.”

Wockenfus said competing before the large crowd, with everyone focused on her race, boosted her adrenaline.

“It was really exciting,” she said. “At first it was really hard, but then I just concentrated on beating my times.”

Wockenfus competed in a special racing wheelchair she borrowed for track season and soon learned it differed greatly from her regular chair. Race-chairs not only steer differently with a third wheel extended out in front, they require a different stroke to power them. The racer avoids the larger wheel’s hand rim and instead propels the chair with more of a fist stroke on the smaller exterior push rim.

Those differences also require a special racing glove, which has a hard surface under the thumb and atop the middle fingers. Racers press their thumbs against the push rim almost at the top, and keep pressing against it as the wheel turns, almost making a full circle. The more pressure they can put on the rim, the more power and speed they generate.

Unfortunately for Wockenfus, the different gloves and power-stroke techniques proved difficult and caused blisters and hand cramps. She found it easier to use regular gloves and then concentrated on building up her hands and icing them after workouts.

Now that track season and high school are over, Wockenfus isn’t sure if she’ll keep racing. She said she might compete in local running events when possible, but for now is content to have been one of the original 10 wheelchair athletes to compete at the state meet.

Likewise, Smith doesn’t know when he’ll be coaching another wheelchair athlete.

“You hope to see the wheelchair competition expand and more kids to get involved at this level,” he said. “For coaching, it’s actually pretty easy to get a wheelchair athlete into the mix. It’s definitely one of the more interesting coaching experiences possible. We don’t know of anyone in the high school coming up next year to compete, but the opportunity is now there.”

Previous Article

Submit your stories for all to read!

Next Article

Merrill Foto Home Page

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Related articles More from author

  • NewsUncategorized

    Grampa?s Farm

    October 8, 2013
    By Foto News
  • NewsUncategorized

    Brickyard School

    October 8, 2013
    By Foto News
  • AroundLincolnNewsUncategorized

    MAPS Board to consider moving fifth grade to Middle School

    October 11, 2013
    By Foto News
  • NewsUncategorized

    Public hearing on Merrill water rate increase

    October 8, 2013
    By Foto News
  • AroundLincolnNewsUncategorized

    Merrill Area Public School receives $14,627.25 for energy upgrades

    October 8, 2013
    By Foto News
  • AroundLincolnNewsUncategorized

    Town of Merrill home destroyed by fire

    October 8, 2013
    By Foto News

Leave a reply Cancel reply

About Us


The Foto News (ISSN 0191-8958) is published weekly by Multi Media Channels LLC, N2919 County Road QQ Waupaca, WI 54981. Subscription price by mail: $100 per year, domestic U.S. Mail only, nonrefundable but transferable. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the FOTO NEWS, 921 East Main Street Merrill, WI 54452
Copyright © 2020 Multi Media Channels LLC.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted without the prior written consent of Multi Media Channels LLC.
×