Brimley Jumper's Leap Soars On as Finals Best
June 6, 2019
By Dennis Grall
Special for Second Half
BRIMLEY – Thirty years ago this spring, John Payment became an unlikely part of Michigan high school track & field history.
In some respects, it almost seems like yesterday the Brimley High School senior soared 7-feet, 1 inch, to set an MHSAA Finals high jump record that still stands. In fact, Payment is the only Upper Peninsula athlete in this sport to own an all-Finals record – meaning his performance remains the best all-time from any class or division in either peninsula.
Payment is still approached by strangers about his performance that 1989 day in Marquette, and is stunned people remember what he did.
Think about it: A high school senior with a minimal high jump history from a tiny Upper Peninsula town accomplished a feat that has not been duplicated by hundreds of athletes from big cities like Detroit, Flint and Grand Rapids.
It is mind-boggling it happened, and mind-boggling the record still stands. Talk about doing something very notable well beneath any radar screen.
"It is kind of neat to say no one in the state of Michigan has ever done this," Payment said in a telephone interview on the eve of the 2019 Upper Peninsula Track & Field Finals. "It is actually kind of weird to say it.
"It is very humbling. It is amazing people haven't forgotten. It never gets old."
Payment still finds it hard to believe it happened. He had never been able to break the 6-10 barrier in a meet, even though practice jumps convinced him he could surpass that mark.
At the U.P. Finals, he even passed until the bar got to 6-11. He missed twice at 7-0, then easily cleared it on his final try, by a couple of inches. He then asked officials to put the bar at 7-1, but his next jump was delayed until the height could be measured officially to ratify the record attempt.
By that time, the public address announcer had explained Payment’s opportunity to the huge crowd in attendance at what remains the Upper Peninsula's largest one-day prep athletic contest. The meet basically came to a stand-still as athletes in the infield gathered around the high jump bar.
"(The official) stood on a folding chair and measured the bar at 7-1," said Payment. "He then told me, 'Son, if you do this, it is a state record.'"
After clearing that record-setting height, Payment said, "I was excited. Then I tried 7-2, but my legs got rubbery and I just couldn't do it. They said I cleared 7-1 by 3-4 inches. I just couldn't do it anymore. I had an adrenalin rush, but I just wore out."
Obviously very excited at what had just happened, the request to go at 7-2 came up instantly – and he never really had a chance to collect his thoughts and rejoice.
"I couldn't wait for the other jumpers to jump because they were done. It was like boom, boom, boom. I couldn't just sit down and let it sink in," he recalled.
In the immediate aftermath, Payment said he understood what had just happened. "It was huge; it was like a sigh of relief that I just did 7-feet. I was more in awe than anything. (But) I didn't get a chance to savor it."
The realization of what he did hit home on the way back to Brimley when he learned the Detroit Free Press was trying to contact him for an interview. "It was like, wow, this is something. Now it is a bigger deal. It took a little while to have it soak in about the caliber of the jump," he said.
Payment and teammates Bob Carrick and Kevin Sutton finished 1-2-3 in the high jump in U.P. Class D that day, and Payment said having good teammates and their competition helped him reach record heights. In fact, Carrick helped him adjust his approach by having Payment start a step closer on the blacktop rather than begin on the grass.
"I had three teammates always helping. We would be laughing and joking. It wasn't stressful. That was helpful. It was an individual event, but we made it our individual event," he said.
He also adjusted from a J approach to a straight-on Fosbury Flop to clear the bar.
Blessed with strong legs, Payment said he "messed around in the gym" and then his coach, John Morrison, said he should try the event. "I cleared it pretty good," said Payment.
As a junior, he drove to Mount Pleasant and worked with the Central Michigan University coach, who later came to Brimley for some on-site coaching. "We just jumped. It was fun," he said, indicating he quickly was clearing 6-8 but the mental block struck at 6-10. "I couldn't get past it," he said, even though he was sure he could clear that barrier.
He is still shocked at the response of athletes and fans who focused on his state record effort. "High jump is not a flashy sport, it is not the main (track & field) attraction," he said.
"It was definitely exciting (that day). Once I cleared seven feet, people went crazy. Believe it or not, but I just focused on doing it. I don't think I noticed the crowd until afterward. People shook my hand and asked for autographs. It was really something."
The accomplishment opened a whole new world to the innocent youngster. He competed in all-star track invitationals in Indiana and Chicago against athletes from across the country, quite a leap for someone from the shores of Gitchee Gumee just south of the Canadian border. In fact, he flew to Chicago, which was his first airplane ride.
His part of the world was so small, but suddenly it had enlarged well beyond his imagination.
College track coaches and recruiters were now after the unsung champion, who was somewhat uncomfortable being the talk of the town.
He turned down the chance to attend college and compete at the higher levels of high jump. "The opportunities were there, but for me it just wasn't my thing," he conceded, indicating it became more important to get a job and start earning money.
"It was a real eye-opener. You don't realize what is all out there, and to leave a small town and see what was out there," he said, adding more classroom work was not a priority.
"The schooling I wanted to be done with," he said, noting his parents encouraged him to attend college. "Maybe I was just scared. My grades were not the best. Life goes on, the what-ifs go on."
Payment, who also played football (wide receiver), basketball and baseball at 6-3, 175 pounds, for the Bays simply decided to move on with his life. He got a job with the road commission and still works there, although he now weighs about 275.
"The world is full of what-ifs. I've got some regret I didn't go on and try, but we've got four kids and four grandkids and another one on the way. I'm doing all right," he said.
Denny Grall retired in 2012 after 39 years at the Escanaba Daily Press and four at the Green Bay Press-Gazette, plus 15 months for WLST radio in Escanaba; he served as the Daily Press sports editor from 1970-80 and again from 1984-2012 and currently is in a second stint as the interim in that position. Grall was inducted into the Upper Peninsula Sports Hall of Fame in 2002 and serves as its executive secretary. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for the Upper Peninsula.
PHOTO: Brimley's John Payment flies over the high jump bar in 1989 to set an all-MHSAA Finals record in the event that still stands. (MHSAA file photo)
Jackson's Janke Recalled as 'Larger than Life,' Always Willing to Help
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
January 26, 2022
JACKSON – A few days before Christmas, Jackson boys track & field head coach Corey Pryor was called to meet with Charles Janke, the longtime former Jackson coach and teacher.
Janke was very ill and in the final days of his life. Janke, it turns out, wasn’t leaving anything to chance.
“He asked me if the stadium was ready for our big track meet, the one named after him,” Pryor said. “Believe it or not, that’s what he asked. He was always so organized and meticulous. He wanted to make sure everything was always on schedule.
“I am grateful for getting the chance to spend a few more moments with him.”
Janke, 85, died Dec. 30 at Henry Ford Allegiance Hospice Home in Jackson.
Janke was a track and cross country coach for Jackson who was recognized statewide for his commitment to high school athletics, student athletes and the two sports he loved the most. Although he retired from coaching nearly two decades ago, he remained very involved in high school sports. He was a leader in both sports across the state, a giant in the high school running community.
A Detroit native who went to Central Michigan University to play football, Janke had short stints at Southfield and Milford schools before moving to Jackson where he taught history and physical education. Although he got his start as a football coach, at Jackson he took over the track and cross country programs in 1966. He pulled double duty for years before stepping down as track coach in 1990, but he continued with cross country through 2003 while helping coach the distance runners in track for several more years.
If it involved track & field or cross country in Michigan, Janke was probably involved. He was an early pioneer in the Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association, the first statewide sports-specific association for coaches in the state. He founded several events, including the first countywide cross country meet in Jackson. He hosted, organized and gave presentations at coaching clinics for years and in the early 1970s helped organize indoor track & field meets through MITCA by contacting colleges across the state to see if they were interested in hosting events. He also was the first to publish a MITCA newsletter.
In cross country, he was among those who played a role in bringing all four classes together for a Lower Peninsula championship meet at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. He helped with the event long after coaching. He also served as head field events judge at Big Ten Indoor Championships and became a high school official after retiring as head coach.
His passion for the sport was evident.
“He had a genuine love for the sport,” Pryor said. “He always had his way of doing things. He was a special kind of guy.”
When Pryor was a high school sprinter at Jackson, Janke was an assistant coach who mainly worked with long distance runners.
“He coached hard,” Pryor said, adding that he never fully appreciated Coach Janke until later in life and especially after he became track coach. Pryor found pages and pages of handwritten notes with dates, times and athletes’ names.
“He even wrote down the weather,” Pryor said.
He and Janke had a lot of discussions, often over breakfast, about track events.
“He would be at almost all of the meets,” Pryor said. “He learned every kid by name. He told them he wanted to see them at the state meet. I welcomed him with open arms. When I began to see just what he meant to our state, I realized this guy was a diamond.
“I was blessed to see him behind the curtain. I saw he was the type of guy who really cared about people and wanted to see them succeed. He was more than a coach.”
Vandercook Lake cross country coach Dan Roggenbaum is one of several from the Jackson area who would seek out Janke for advice and mentorship. He said Janke approached officiating with the same rigor and commitment he did coaching.
“Charlie was always willing to help me out with any questions I ever had,” he said. “He was larger than life to me and most other coaches in our county. He was always willing to help and give advice to any of us who were a lot newer to the cross country and track & field scene.”
Two things Janke was most proud of was Withington Stadium in Jackson and the cross country course at Ella Sharp Park named after him.
“I always admired his love and passion for cross country, track & field,” said Ben Pack, now a coach and administrator at Manchester, but once a shot and discus thrower for Janke. “On days of track meets he would have the track set up before the school day started, with the blocks at the starting line, the hurdles stacked along the track to be placed for the first hurdle race, and the throws event areas lined. Every detail for the practices and meets were paid attention to.
“He didn’t do this because he had to do it; he did it because he loved doing it. He always wanted everything to be first class.”
Janke was admittedly a tough coach.
In winning the Al Cotton Award for his dedication to Jackson athletics, the Jackson Citizen-Patriot wrote this about Janke in 2003: “One does not need to talk to many of Janke's athletes or listen very long to get a clear picture of the type of coach he was. He was intense. He was in charge. He demanded respect and he expected the best, and he received a huge measure of both from those who followed his regimen.”
Janke was inducted into both the Michigan High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame and the MITCA Hall of Fame.
Pack said, “During high school we had a sign that read, ‘The mind controls the body.’ In PE strength class we often did exercises that helped us understand how much more we could push ourselves if we fought off the pain of the exercise. Without question, this built mental toughness. He taught kids how to set goals, and the step-by-step process to get to the goal.”
All told, Janke spent more than 60 years involved in track and cross country. His impact will roll on in both sports. A number of former athletes have gone on to become teachers and coaches themselves, like Pack, who not only was an athlete for Janke but coached alongside him. Pack served as Jackson’s varsity football coach from 1987-2002 and again in 2012.
“As peers we often would guide kids to each other’s sports,” Pack said. “Kids that I felt would be better at running cross country, I sent to him. Kids that he felt would be good football players he sent to me. Working together was an honor.”
Jim Martin ran for Janke at Jackson in the 1970s. He’s now in his 36th year coaching track and cross country, the last 26 at Sault Ste. Marie High School. He said he’s a coach today because of the impact Janke had on him.
“At a time in my life that I needed structure and guidance, he was the rock,” Martin said. “He was always there. There's no way I'm in this (coaching) 35 years without him. He was my role model. He cannot be replaced.”
Last fall, Martin took his Sault Ste. Marie team to Jackson for the Charles Janke Invitational. His Blue Devils team won. Going into the meet, he didn’t think that was possible.
“For the life of me I couldn’t figure out how we won that,” Martin said. “We were good, but not Jackson good. … That was the last time Coach Janke saw my team. Now I know why.”
A Celebration of Life service will be held at 2 p.m. on June 12, 2022, at, appropriately, Withington Stadium.
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTO: Charles Janke coaches his Jackson team during a cross country meet in 2003. (Photo by John Johnson.)