Grandfather Mountain, Nature on a Whole Different Level

BROCK NAMED SCOTTISH ATHLETE OF THE GAMES AT GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN

Larry Brock

GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN, NC -- Larry Brock, 30, offensive coordinator and line coach at Myers Park High School in Charlotte, won the 2009 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games "Scottish Athlete of the Games" award. Brock bested a field that included five of the top twelve ranked Highland Games athletes in the country in a spirited competition comprised of seven events.

The events, which have a tradition of hundreds of years, tested young Scottish men and separated out the best for battle with the English, or with other clans. Today the events are for fun but the competiton remains fierce.

Brock is the fourth ranked Scottish athlete in the country so he is used to competing at the highest level. Victories in the 56-pound weight throw (for distance), the 28-pound weight throw, and the 56-pound weight toss (for height) along with runner-up finishes in the Clachneart (putting the stone) and 22-pound hammer throw enabled him to edge Michael Pockoski from Las Vegas, the number 7 ranked athlete.

Brock sprained his ankle during the hammer throw, the fourth of the seven events that comprise the Games. He did not place in the next two and his nearest competitor, Michael Pockoski, closed to within one point of Brock by winning the Caber toss. They went into the final event, the 56-pound weight toss (for height), with the winner taking the title Scottish Athlete of the Games.

Both were up to the task. Each broke the Grandfather Games field record for the event, tossing the weight over a bar raised to 17 feet 6 inches. Brock accomplished the feat his first try compared to Pockoski's two tries so the record went to Brock and his victory was sealed.

Brock, who at 6' 3" and 285 pounds looks like an offensive lineman, was one. He helped clear the path for many running backs in Appalachian State's dominating football program. The 30-year old credits his football experiences for enabling him to compete through the pain of a sprained ankle. "I learned to play through pain at ASU. I once played with a broken leg," Brock said.

The overall Games victory, his second at Grandfather, was especially meaningful because the venue is where he got his start as a Scottish athlete.

Brock was a freshman football player and track team member at ASU at the time. His track coach encouraged him to try the Scottish athletic events and he won his very first event, tossing the Clachneart (stone). He got killed in the other six events but he practiced and came back to Grandfather a second time, and then a third. At that point, he felt he could complete with the professionals and he was hooked.

Today, Brock competes all over the world in Scottish events. He averages around 35 events a year but this year he is scaling down to 25. He leaves this Wednesday for the Canadian Scottish Team Championship which will have six two-man teams--two teams from the U.S., two from Canada and two from Europe. The following Sunday he leaves for Edinburgh, Scotland for the official World Championship of Scottish athletics.

Brock says, "I train for my events by competing in a lot of other events, lifting weights, throwing a lot of rocks and eating!"

The competition provided additional excitement. Eric Frasure from Greenville, SC, the third ranked Scottish athlete in America and the current world record holder in tossing the sheaf (a 20-pound sack of hay), broke the Grandfather Games field record with a toss over a bar 33 feet high. He then tried to best is own world record of 36 feet but fell just short.

Clachneart (tossing a 16-pound stone)
Eric Frasure
 Greenville, SC 48' 2"
Larry Brock
 Charlotte, NC 48' 0"

 

56-Pound Weight Throw – for distance
Larry Brock
   44' 11"
Kerry Overfelt
 Lovetto, KY 44' 11"

 

Sheaf (tossing a 20-pound sack of hay for height with a pitch fork)
Eric Frasure
   33' (new record)
Kerry Overfelt
   31"

 

Caber Toss (flipping a 20’, 120-pound telephone pole end over end)
Michael Pockoski
Las Vegas Perfect 12 o'clock (2X)
Eric Frasure
  Perfect 12 o'clock (1X)

 

22-Pound Hammer Throw
Michael Pockoski
 Las Vegas 112' 1"
Larry Brock
  110' 4"

 

28-Pound Weight Throw
Larry Brock
  82' 4"
Kerry Overfelt
   81' 1/2"

 

56-Pound Weight Toss – for height
Larry Brock (new record)
  17' 6" (first time)
Tie: Michael Pockoski and Kerry Overfelt
  17' 6" (2nd time)

 

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