It's kind of ironic that Jeremy Herr has the second-best javelin throw in the state, a toss reaching over 185 feet.
Ironic because both the Wishek junior and his coach admit his form isn't exactly refined.
"He is still learning the event," said Wishek track coach Jason Klusmann. "A lot of his throw comes from his arm and he is just starting to get his legs and whole body into it. God gave him a great arm and overall he is just really athletic. There is a lot of upside to him."
Herr is chasing only Lisbon's Joe Krivarchka in the event. Krivarchka's best throw of the year is a 186-11 mark thrown at the end of April. Herr's best throw this year came nearly three weeks later.
"Everyone says I don't really have good form, but that I have good arm strength," Herr said. "For a good thrower, a person has to have good legs and arm speed."
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That and the fact that Herr is making his first trip to the state track meet in the event makes him the ultimate wild card this weekend. He is the newcomer and will be given the opportunity to take a lot of people by surprise who haven't seen him throw before. But what Herr lacks in form and state experience, he makes up with exceptional arm strength.
"He has been one of the more consistent throwers in the area, throwing 170 feet or above consistently," said Klusmann.
Even with having another year to polish his craft, Klusmann said he preaches not looking at this year's state meet as a warmup for next year.
Qualified in the shot put and discus, fellow junior Jill Brosy is in a different situation.
"It is kind of opposite for what Jeremy has," Klusmann said. "She can go in, be relaxed and look to better her personal best. If she is fortunate to place, all the better.
"This will be Jeremy's first track meet and Jill qualified last year, so for Jeremy it will be something new. At state he will be throwing in the best flight. But I'm trying to tell them they need to take advantage of the opportunity this year. There are no guarantees next year."
"I'm really honored to have made it," Brosy said. "There are a lot of really good girls out there, but I have been working hard to get there all year. At the state track meet, I just hope to improve on my throws. It all comes down and how everyone can throw."
"Shot put is the event she takes a lot of pride in," Klusmann said. "(At the regional meet) she threw 35-8 and that is her personal best to date. She is consistent and she is always placing in top one or two in the area and has done well in the bigger events.
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"She is a short, compact athlete with good strength in the arm," Klusmann added. "We have been really concentrating in getting her legs into it because she uses a lot of arm. But her best throws are in front of her yet. She has a great attitude and work ethic. She just works. She spends hours practicing."
While the shot put is an event that has come easily for Brosy, the discus has required a bit more patience. Brosy qualified for the event at during the Region 4 meet in Jamestown last weekend, taking first place with a throw of 99-5.
"She enjoys it, but it isn't her favorite. The shot put does come easier to her," Klusmann said. "We are working to get the full spin together. There she has to work more at it, because she has shorter arms. She doesn't have long arms to use to her advantage."
"It is a using your entire body event," Brosy said of the discus. "It takes a lot of dedication and working hard and learning what works best for you. You need to have an open mind and trying different things. A lot of girls use full spin, but might not be your thing. You need to be able to use your coaches' comments and not just shrug them off. It helps listening to other towns' coaches' comments during competitions, too."
The state meet, held in Grand Forks, begins Friday and runs through Saturday.
Sun sports writer Kalen Ost can be reached at (701) 952-8461 or by e-mail at sports@jamestownsun.com
