Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, April 24, 1993 TAG: 9304240013
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-11 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: BRIAN DeVIDO SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
It's seventh-period physical education class, and he's already missed half of the softball game outside.
Not to worry. Von Lewis quickly takes a bat and knocks the ball deep into the outfield. His 6-foot, 150-pound frame, aided by long strides, easily carries him around the bases.
This is a typical afternoon for Lewis. Taking it easy isn't in his vocabulary.
Take football.
As a senior this year for the Christiansburg Blue Demons, he started at split end on offense and free safety on defense.
At least he got to leave the field for kicking situations.
"Actually, I punted, too," he said.
Oh.
Or take track, his best and busiest sport.
He competes in five events: the long, high and triple jumps, the 110-meter high hurdles and the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. He'll be doing some or all of them today when the Demons compete in the All-American Relays at Radford High.
Beyond that, He has a good chance to qualify for the AA state tournament in all five events.
And although he's the team's leading point scorer, Lewis is important to the Blue Demons in more ways than one.
"He's probably the most popular kid on the team," head coach Randy Bailey said. "Earlier this week in a meet, John Cochran, his teammate, was going for a height in the high jump that would've put him ahead of Von. Von didn't care. He was standing right next to the high jump pit and was cheering John on."
But don't think Lewis doesn't care about winning. He knows his events like the back of his hand. His personal records and assessments of the five events:
\ LONG JUMP: Personal record: 20 feet, 4 inches. "I'm not that fast, so the long jump's hard for me. This event gives me the most trouble."
\ TRIPLE JUMP: Personal record: 41 feet, 5\ inches. "It uses speed, power and strength on one leg. Form is the most important here and my coach teaches us good form. I didn't excel in it until this year."
\ HIGH JUMP: Personal record: 6 feet, 2 inches. "I liked it when I first tried it. I like to jump. My friends call me `Leapin' Lanny'."
\ 110-METER HURDLES: Personal record: 15.7 seconds. "I've got my goal set on the school record, which is 14.9 seconds. My stride length helps me in this race."
\ 300-METER HURDLES: Personal record: 42.2 seconds. "I call it the `horse's race.' It's a sprint, but an endurance race, too. Your legs get really tired in this one."
The result of these five events? A workout grueling enough to make even Evander Holyfield wince.
"After a meet, my legs are so dead," Lewis said.
But both Lewis and Bailey agree that in this case, more is better.
"Doing more events actually helps my nerves better," Lewis said. "It helps me stay more focused and keeps me in the meets mentally, since I'm always doing something."
Bailey said doing a variety of events is good for Lewis for a different reason.
"If he does bad in one event, it's better for him to keep occupied than to sit and stew about it," he said.
Last year Lewis qualified for the state meet in both the high jump and 110-meter hurdles. He didn't place, but will give it another shot this year. To place in the state meet, he must place among the top six finishers.
Bailey said he thinks Lewis can place in those two events this year.
"In the hurdles his long stride helps. He can step over them while other kids tend to jump 'em'," he said. "And for the high jump, he doesn't have breathtaking speed, but he has great spring in his legs."
Lewis plans to run track while attending Bridgewater College next year. He said he'll "cut back" on the jumps and will just compete in the high jump. He'll also continue hurdling.
Bailey, for one, has seen more than his share of leaping while coaching Lewis.
"When he first came out for the team as a sophomore, Von used to try to touch the backboard," he said. "Now, he can dunk a basketball with either hand."
by CNB