Burks was born to fly
He just didn't know it until he got to Royal
By Thomas Gase tgase@theacorn.com

WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers MAN ON A MISSION- Royal High senior Phil Burks has his sights set on breaking the school record in the triple jump.

Sometimes big things happen when a person least expects it. This is the case with Phil Burks.

Even though Burks' father, Wes, was a track star in high school and later in college at Eastern Kentucky University, the 17year-old Royal High senior hadn't participated in many track and field events before his freshman year at RHS.

So when Burks decided to give track and field a shot and first lined up for the triple jump four years ago, the last thing he expected was to break a school record and become one of Royal's most successful athletes.

"I was a little intimidated about having the first jump line so far back," Burks recalled. "It also was weird that you had to land on the first jump with the leg you took off with."

Burks proved to be a quick study. He broke the RHS freshman triple jump record with a mark of 42 feet in only his third career meet.

"He just shattered that record," Royal track coach Jay Sramek said. "Anytime you have a freshman jumping that far, you just know they're going to be special."

Over the years, Burks gradually improved in the event, and by his junior season he posted a mark of 46 feet, 4 inches- just four inches short of the school record held by Tim Ross.

"The one thing I really want to do before I graduate is break the school record," Burks said. "I'm getting close, and before I graduate from Royal I think I'll do it."

Sramek also believes the Highlander senior will soon be No. 1 in the record books and is no longer surprised by his accomplishments.

"When he jumped a 46-4 it was a real eye-opening event, but I wasn't shocked," Sramek said. "I mean, he's kind of put the triple jump event on the map here. Before he did it, nobody even really knew what it was, including me. Now all kinds of kids are looking to compete in it."

Although Burks has excelled in the triple jump, it's hardly the only event he shines in for Royal.

The senior also competes in the long jump and the 100- and 400meter dashes. Burks' involvement in the 400 also came as a bit of a surprise.

"I suggested he try (the 400) in practice since he had a really long stride," Wes Burks said. "He's very versatile, so I wanted to see how good he'd be at it."

Later that day in practice, Burks posted the team's best mark in the 400. After that, Burks said he "was basically forced to compete in the event."

Burks would later go on to become the Marmonte League champ in the 400 during his sophomore and junior years. He's also the reigning league champion in the long jump.

With Moorpark High's Nick Karam, a four-time Marmonte League triple jump winner, having graduated, Burks feels the time is right for him to claim a league title in the event.

"This year I'm a lot stronger, and I feel there's nobody in the league that can beat me," he said. "I owe a lot of that to my coaches, including my dad, who made me into the jumper I am today."