MileSplit.us recently talked with Davis Fraker, McIntosh HS, Throw1Deep, about his throwing success this indoor season. Davis gives a humorous, and sometimes serious interview below. MileSplit.us also talked with Mike Judge, founder and head coach of Throw1Deep (Interview below Davis'). Enjoy!
Davis Fraker Interview
MileSplit.us: I had the opportunity to talk with your coach, Mike Judge, prior to the Simplot Games. He thinks that you are a very talented and exceptional young man. When did you first discover your talent for throwing?
Davis Fraker: I started throwing the shot put in the eighth grade then started training with Mike Judge at the end of ninth grade. As soon as I started training with him I jumped on board and drank the Kool-Aid. It was never a matter of discovering my talent, but more so that I worked my way to where I am today. Working with one of the top throws coaches in the world, Mike Judge, helping me every step of the way, I never had a lack of knowledge in the sport. It was up to me what I wanted to do with that knowledge though. To answer your question, I guess I realized my level of potential sometime this fall and my expectations could not be higher since then.
MileSplit.us: Do you approach the weight throw with more of a focus on strength or technique?
Davis Fraker: The weight is heavy, thats why they call it that. There are lots of guys stronger than me who don't throw as far as I do. I use a combination of both, but the real secret to my throw is my mustache. (Editor's note: More of Davis' humor will be revealed as you read on!)
MileSplit.us: You have improved by 13+ feet in the shot and 22+ feet in the weight throw over the last 2 years. What has attributed to these big gains? Where do you see yourself at the end of the outdoor season?
Davis Fraker: Wow, is that all? I need to work on that! At the end of the outdoor season I see myself stretching the seams of a beautiful USA singlet on the Junior Team.
MileSplit.us: You are currently ranked #3 in the weight throw and #2 in the shot put. Are you eager to compete against Faldermeyer and Vena at nationals? Which event do you think you have a better chance of winning a national championship in? Have you decided which national meet you will attend this year?
Davis Fraker: The Frake Train is rolling into New York for NSIC. That is a good question, but I think you should ask them if they are excited to compete against me.
MileSplit.us: The 35-lb weight is rarely thrown in high school. How often to you practice with that implement?
Davis Fraker: The 35 was actually the lightest weight I threw all fall. In fact I think that is the reason I can grow such a great mustache! My biggest goal this year was to go to USA's in the shot put and weight. I have accomplished this which is something no other high school male has ever done in the throws. All of my training this year was not to be a great high school athlete, but to show up in the big scene of the 35 lb weight and the 16 lb shot. I would have felt bad to hold out on everyone for a whole other year.
MileSplit.us: Your coach said that you were fueled by disappointment in the shot put when you stepped in the circle for the weight throw. Was there any pressure knowing that you had to set the HS record to qualify for USA nationals? How did you handle the pressure?
Davis Fraker: By this point in the meet my especially tight spandex were starting to squeeze the blood into my head. The extra blood flow stimulated my thinking power. That along with the extra motivation and pressure from shot fueled me to have a big weight throw. I knew I had it in me, I just had to do it.
MileSplit.us: How did you harness than energy, control it, and turn it into the best throw ever for a high schooler? What does that record mean to you?
Davis Fraker: I didn't try to harness my energy at all actually. I was going absolutely berzerk for the whole meet. In fact if someone had harnessed me, I probably could have solved the energy crisis. My energy level was equally matched by my fellow club members and a few others as well. It was a very intense meet.
MileSplit.us: What drives you to keep pushing your limits with the weight and shot? Who is the biggest inspiration in your life?
Davis Fraker: I have a pretty hefty list of goals for my life and I am just getting started. Besides, all the great athletes have supermodel wives; how far do I have to throw to get one of those?
Mike Judge Interview
MileSplit.us: Can you give a little history of Throw1Deep? How did it start? Major successes over the years?
Mike Judge: Throw1Deep started in 1999 with one athlete (Naomi Elliot). Naomi was a senior and had never made it to the Georgia State meet. I trained her for 9 months and she won the state meet and broke the state record several times at the state meet. There were several articles written about Naomi’s success and her rise from nowhere to state record holder. After each article in the newspaper I received many phone calls to help other kids. The club grew from there.
Throw1deep has had over 110 High school All-Americans, 12 national high school champions, and 44 state high school champions. Two years ago Lauren Chambers made the Junior world team and competed at the world junior meet in Poland. Last summer, Enrique Gaitan, Daina Levy, and Davis Fraker made the youth world team and competed in Italy. This is the first year for the youth Olympics. That meet will be in Singapore. We are hoping to have 3-4 kids make that team!
MileSplit.us: How has the program remained so successful and become so deep with very talented athletes?
Mike Judge: I have gone through USATF Coaches Education courses and gotten many certifications to make myself the best coach I can be. Each year the kids in the club get better and try to beat the kids the previous year. Two year ago we graduated Wes Wright. Wes had thrown 63’ 6” in the shot put. Many coaches told me they felt sorry for me and It would take me years to rebuild the club. The following year after Wes Graduated we had Nabil Mubarak at 66’ and Davis Fraker at 64’ 6” in the shot. I believe I have found the right combination of training to make our program successful.
MileSplit.us: How long as Davis been throwing with the program? What events did he do when he first started?
Mike Judge: This is Davis’ 3rd year with the club. He was throwing shot and discus for his high school and his Dad Tom was hoping I could teach Davis the javelin. Davis was not successful in his attempts to master the javelin. We are hoping his high school weight PR is better than his javelin PR!
MileSplit.us: When did the hammer (specifically the college weight) become a focus for Davis? Why?
Mike Judge: Bottom line is Davis is an exceptional athlete. His real focus is the shot put. When you have talent coming out of your ears you can be good at almost anything.
As far as the 35 LB weight record was concerned, here is what happened.
If you had asked me before the last meet how Davis would throw I would have told you that he would throw the high school record in the shot and weight would go just good. We trained a lot of shot the week prior. We did not throw any weight. We were looking for over 60’ in the shot and maybe 62-63’ in the weight. Well it did not go as well as we hoped in the shot. (Only 58’ 11.5”). Davis, for the second time, was less than 4 inches away from qualifying for USA nationals. Davis was so mad that he decided the weight was going to go very far that day. He had one more chance to qualify for the USA Nationals. To qualify, he would have to break the National record. All of his club teammates stayed and cheered. (The 35Lb weight was the last event) There was a lot of intensity in the building and Davis did not want to disappoint anyone! When I saw his first warm-up I knew it would be a special day!
MileSplit.us: When did he start showing promise in the weight throw?
Mike Judge: As a sophomore Davis went to the Simplot Games in Idaho and threw a big PR. That ended up his PR for the year, but I could see something special was going to happen in the future.
MileSplit.us: Any other comments on Davis or Throw1Deep?
Mike Judge: Like I said earlier, Davis is a very special kid. He is the complete package. He has every tool he needs to be great. He listens to me and makes sure he follows the training and never ever has made an excuse. This year we hope to win Junior Nationals in the shot put and compete for the world junior title in the shot put in July in Canada.
In 2007, I was fortunate enough to have the Throw1Deep club granted Federal charity status by the US government. The donations we have received have helped many of our kids compete at out of town meets. For the weekend of the Simplot Games we had 19 kids competing. Before the Charity status we very lucky to have 5 be able to go.