Highs and lows

Low-key attitude works well for Trupin

By: Justin Feil
   Princeton High boys’ track coach John Woodside was one of the few that believed Ryan Trupin could be a big-time high jumper this season.
   "He’s flown under the radar," Woodside said. "He snuck up on a lot of people. He’s really had a dominating season."
   The truth is Trupin is just fine with laying low. In fact, he sort of prefers it.
   "It’s not that I love being in the shadow," Trupin said. "I just don’t like it in sporting events when people get full of themselves and assume they’re going to win everything. I kind of look down on myself if I get a big head."
   So even though the PHS senior will compete in his first Meet of Champions this Sunday at Princeton University’s Jadwin Gym, he’ll do so without any special bravado.
   "I never think of it like that," said Trupin, who qualified as a wild card after tying for seventh in the Group III meet. "When I was training in the past, I was in the shadow of the greater athletes. I never developed a large ego for that.
   "Personally, I’m happy with what I’ve accomplished. I’m happy I got over 6-2. The Meet of Champions is the best thing I could have hoped for this year. Winning most of the meets I’ve been in, that’s just a bonus. I wasn’t trying to blow out the winter season. I was just training for the spring."
   Trupin will have his final tune-up for the spring in winter’s grand finale. Other area athletes competing are Montgomery High’s Chris Treble, who tied Trupin at the Group III high jump, MHS’ Brad Forbes in the 200 meters, West Windsor-Plainsboro South hurdler Sifiso Takirambudde, MHS shot putter Chris Kondorossy, WW-P North’s Joey Mastrangelo in the 200 and WW-P South’s Joe Ennis and WW-P North’s Roland Bisio in the 3200. On the girls’ side, WW-P North’s Jade Phame and MHS’ Jenn Carson will compete in the high jump.
   "For Ryan, this is gravy," Woodside said. "There’s no pressure. Whatever he does is sort of an extra addition to all the things he’s accomplished. He can go in with a reckless ‘Let’s go for it.’ He’s at Jadwin, where we practice a lot. That gives him a comfort level. He’s got every advantage that he could have.
   "If he makes 6-2, he could sneak in there. There are not too many guys jumping over 6-4. You never know. You go out and put the best out there and see where the chips fall. I would love to see him get in the Top 6. If that doesn’t happen, I think a Top-10 finish is a real goal."
   And even if Trupin should medal, don’t expect an all-out celebration. Trupin’s content to take a medal and look to do better in the spring.
   "I would be overwhelmed with enjoyment, but it still wouldn’t change anything," Trupin said. "I’d feel better about myself. But there’s no use imposing that on everyone else and making everyone else feel bad."
   Trupin remembers all too well how tough his first years of high jumping were and how many winners could have made him feel bad. Trupin has done a lot of winning this season – all but the Group III meet and one dual meet in which he couldn’t use his usual shoes – and done so with class. The winning is new, but it’s deserved.
   "He’s worked really hard," Woodside said. "It’s a testament to his hard work and his dedication. I’m really happy to see it’s paid off for him. He’s really dedicated. He helped the team immensely this season. He’s a big part of what we’re doing."
   Trupin began his junior season jumping 5-feet-6, but cleared 6-feet by the end of the spring season.
   "But he only jumped 6-feet one time," Woodside pointed out. "He jumped 5-10 a bunch of times. This winter, he came out and started making 6-feet after a couple practices. That was a normal thing. By the middle of the season, he was practicing at 6-2 and he ended up jumping 6-2 in a meet.
   "As a junior, he obviously took a big step up," he added. "The thing about Ryan is, you see in some guys they progress to a certain level and don’t go beyond that. They don’t keep working. He has really strong legs and he’s continued to work hard and work on his technique. I did see flashes when he was younger. It was not until he got physically mature that he came along and consistently made those heights."
   Trupin also believes that a large component to his success had to do with a boost in the mental side. Clearing 6-feet as a junior helped him clear a mental hurdle.
   "I guess I reached a mental maturity where I was accepting clearing higher heights," Trupin said. "When I hit 6-feet, I thought, ‘I can do this.’ It helped me get over the bar."
   Trupin has been aided greatly this winter by being able to concentrate solely on the high jump. In the spring, he hopes to clear to 6-6, but his practice time will be split between high jump, long jump, triple jump and possibly even some sprint work.
   "I was even dabbling with pole vault last year," Trupin said. "It was definitely a relief not having to devote other days to other kinds of jumping. It was nice to concentrate on one thing for once.
   "I’m not exactly fond of the triple jump, but I do it. Long jump I care about. I hit a peaking point in long jump and I haven’t been able to continue it like high jump. My hopes is I’ll be at a good point for long jump when I pick it up in the spring."
   Trupin certainly couldn’t come in any higher off a winter that has seen him exceed any pre-season expectations. Never had he seriously considered making the Meet of Champions.
   "Not at all actually," he said. "I didn’t think I’d get to the Meet of Champions. It was kind of a surprise. It didn’t hit me until I actually made it. When I was jumping all the years before my senior year, all sorts of guys were jumping 6-feet. That was kind of a personal goal.
   "I kind of look at the winter season as a tune-up for spring. There’s a small possibility I could place. Coach told me that. It boggled my mind. I didn’t think I had a chance to place. As far as my ambitions, I’ll take it as far as I can. I’ll do whatever I can. If I don’t place, I won’t be upset."
   If Ryan Trupin does, he won’t go wild. He’ll just be a little more visible on the state’s radar.