Dylan Hinks waited years for this moment.
The Niagara Falls senior was a constant presence at track and field meets. People knew his name. They knew his place as one of the area’s top jumpers. But they also knew he was usually hurt and not at his best.
Plantar fasciitis. Lower back problems. A pulled hamstring. Hinks battled all kinds of injuries during his high school career, and they often grew worse when he competed in the triple jump.
He’d never earned Section VI’s coveted blue patch, never had the chance to stand atop the podium on Western New York’s biggest stage. Something always got in the way.
“I always had somebody in my corner saying, ‘Oh, you’ve got a chance to go to states if you just stay healthy,’ and then I end up getting hurt,” Hinks said.
Through all the frustrations and shortcomings, Hinks never gave up, never switched sports, never changed events. His patience paid off last weekend with a sectional championship, and this weekend he’ll finally get the chance to compete in the state meet.
Hinks’ leap of 45 feet, 6 ½ inches on his final attempt was not only good for first place in Class A but it was also the best triple jump mark in all Section VI. And Hinks didn’t just win — he exceeded his old personal record by more than 2 feet.
“Honestly, I feel like this is like a true Cinderella story,” Falls coach Justin Speidel said. “He always knew what he could do. He just waited for his moment.”
The day did not start promising for Hinks, however. He fouled his first two jumps.
“We always joke, it’s his big toe, it’s his big toe, it’s his big toe. He’s always over the line by his big toe,” Speidel said.
Said Hinks: “I was like, ‘This could really go really bad for me right now, or this could really turn around and go in my favor.”
He made sure the latter happened.
On his third jump, Hinks set a personal record, jumping more than 43 feet. It was good — but he knew he needed better. Lockport’s Matthew Towns, last year’s Division I champ and state qualifier, had already jumped over 44 feet twice.
Hinks had one last chance.
Speidel said: “He looked me in the eyes, he said, ‘Coach Speidel, I got this.’”
Said Hinks: “Everything I’ve learned has to be right here in this jump.”
Speidel said: “His foot placement was as perfect as you can get it … and he knew, instantly when he landed in that sand, that he had done the jump that he wanted to do.”
Said Hinks: “Honestly, when I jumped, I was shocked. … I was like, ‘Please just don’t be a foul, don’t be a foul.’”
Speidel said: “When the official did say, ‘forty-five, six-and-a-half,’ it was just the moment of four to five years of hard work that had just finally paid off in that one jump.”
Said Hinks: “It was just every emotion you could think of was just flowing through my body — happiness, all of the excitement, everything was coming.”
A year earlier, Hinks couldn’t even compete in the triple jump at the state qualifier meet after pulling his hamstring. He’d heard plenty of people tell him that he could be a sectional champion, but he’d never proven them right. Until now.
“People still did it this year,” he said. “I agreed with them, but I kind of kept myself humble by saying, ‘Yes, this, that could happen,’ but I also have to prove it to myself.”
The opportunity was worth the wait.
“One hundred percent,” Hinks said. “It goes to show that once you put in a lot of work and you’re dedicated and are so motivated to the point where you really want something so bad that you’re willing to do anything for it … it’ll eventually come.”