BACKYARD THROWDOWN WITH SCHOOL'S TRACK UNDERGOING RENOVATION, AGOURA'S JOHNSON FINDS UNCONVENTIONAL METHOD TO TRAIN IN DISCUS.

Byline: IVAN OROZCO

Staff Writer

AGOURA - Derek Johnson is out of discs again. That means another long trek up the hill, past the trees and through the bushes in this picturesque canyon nestled amid the Santa Monica mountains.

After a few minutes of searching, Johnson gathers a handful of discs, then makes his way down the hill again. The Agoura High discus thrower will repeat this ritual more than a few times today, just like he has for the past month in preparation of the Southern Section championships.

Step one in the quest starts today at the CIF Southern Section Div. II prelims at Moorpark High.

Ideally, Johnson would still be practicing at Agoura High, but that plan was dashed when the school pushed forward with a major renovation project on the football field.

Thankfully Johnson landed here -- the backyard of Agoura teammate Nicholas Haraden, whose father Marshall transformed about 150 feet of rough terrain at his Agoura home into a makeshift training site.

It's not the most ideal situation for the nation's second-ranked discus thrower, but Johnson isn't complaining.

"It's better than not having a place to throw," said Johnson, who on April 11 signed a national letter of intent to attend Cal State Bakersfield. "This is the best place I've thrown at. If I wasn't graduating I would continue to throw here.

"It hasn't been a problem with my throws. Because I can't tell how far I'm throwing, it helps me focus on my technique. It's probably helped me. I get a pretty good idea how far the throws would be on an actual field the way the discus slides out of my hand."

He has Marshall Haraden to thank.

Haraden, who runs a construction company out of his sprawling home built on 10 acres, poured about $1,600 into the backyard project.

It took workers just one day to build a regulation-sized cement throwing platform, grade about 150feet of rough terrain that leads onto a 50-foot high hill, then level off about a quarter-mile of dirt road from his home's driveway to the practice site.

To reach the throwing area, Johnson drives his four-wheel drive Dodge Ram 1500 pick-up downhill to the bottom of a canyon away from other area homes. A two-wheel drive car would remain spinning its wheels trying to climb back up to Kanan Ave., at least three miles west of the Highway 101 exit.

For Haraden, this was a no-brainer. As soon as he found out the Agoura track and field team didn't have a proper workout site, he immediately opened his home to Johnson.

"I'm just a nice guy doing a favor," said Haraden, a good friend of Agoura athletic director Jason Rosenthal.

It was Rosenthal who planted the original seed.

"He told me he would feel pretty stupid having the best discus thrower in the state and not providing him with a place to practice," Haraden said.

Other Agoura athletes are taking advantage of Haraden's property.

Some of them spend afternoons training by running up his hilly backyard. They often end up relaxing in one of Haraden's two outside hot tubs or the swimming pool after workouts.

"I told (Agoura head coach) Tracy Spencer he should have the runners come to my property and train when I found out the field and track was being remodeled," Haraden said.

Johnson is benefiting most, although it has taken some getting used to.

All that surrounds Johnson during practice are brush, dirt and noise coming from some of Haraden's workers cutting and pounding wood while erecting an office building next to his house.

The toughest challenge is climbing the hill when he runs out of discs. The projectiles often bounce off trees, forcing Johnson to search the bushes for discs, much like a crime detective searching for clues.

For Johnson, it's all about technique. At 6-foot-3 and 198 pounds, Johnson's throwing motion resembles one of a figure skater. He starts his spin with arms open wide, and then brings them in close to his body, then opens up again at his release.

"That's when he comes out with a pop," second-year Agoura throws coach John Amneus said. "That's what separates him from others. He has three things: speed, balance and that crazy pop and jump."

It's that pop and jump from Johnson that keeps him practicing at his new facility. He wants to keep improving to help him become a top college thrower.

That's the reason why he chose to attend Cal State Bakersfield, where Johnson hopes head coach Alan Collatz can help develop him into an Olympic athlete. Boise State and Oregon also showed interest in Johnson.

"It's really all about the coaching," Johnson said. "I need to get stronger to compete at the next level. I want to represent the United States team and I believe coach Collatz can help me reach that goal."

Johnson, who placed sixth in last year's state championships, hasn't been affected negatively by the new training digs, and says he's exactly where he needs to be heading into today's meet.

"Nothing has changed much," Johnson said. "Confidence-wise, it's getting better."

The was evident when Johnson's first official throw after a couple of practice sessions at Haraden's backyard traveled 150 feet at the Ventura County Championships last month.

He went on to win his first gold medal with a toss of 187feet, 9 inches.

Last week, Johnson won the Marmonte League title with a mark of 198-8, setting a new league finals record and sending him into today's prelims as the top-ranked thrower.

However, it wasn't his best throw of the year. That came last month at the Antelope Valley College Throws Fest, when he threw a then national-best 205-5(bul) toss against international throwers.

In the process, he beat out Darius Slowik, a Canadian Olympic team member.

In addition, Johnson earned gold medals at the prestigious Mt. San Antonio College relays and at the Arcadia Invitational with throws of 197-2 and 192-6.

Johnson's national-best mark lasted for nearly a month, but was eventually topped by Geoffrey Tabor of Ardane High in Oklahoma with a mark of 209-5.

Johnson insists his best throws are ahead of him. The question now is, did the training site change help or hurt him?

"I don't know how this will affect his throws the remainder of the season," Amneus said. "It's definitely an obstacle and he'll have to get through it. Luckily, he has a lot of experience. He continues to produce good throws. That's caught the opposition's attention. All eyes will be on him to see how he finishes the season."

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CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) Agoura Hills senior Derek Johnson practices throwing behind Marshall Haraden's home along Kanan Road.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

(2 -- color) JOHNSON

Box:

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