The big K.O., as in Kerry Overfelt, was unstoppable at the Stone Mountain Highland Games and Francis Brebner filed this report with IronMind®.


2009 Stone Mountain Highland Games
by Francis Brebner
 
It was another knockout performance by Kerry Overfelt this weekend at the 37th Stone Mountain Highland Games in Atlanta, Georgia.  Overfelt has shown great consistency throughout the season, winning most, or placing in the top three, of the Games he has competed in.
 
This weekend had a very strong field of athletes, including Craig Smith, Eric Frasure, Mike Pockoski, Chris St. Clair, and Mark Valenti.  But not even Eric Frasure on home soil could not topple the big K.O.
 
In the first event with the 28-lb. open stone, Smith launched a fantastic put of 35’ that claimed the first win, with Overfelt pulling out a very respectable second place throw at 33’ 7.5”.  Pockoski took third place with 32’ 10.5”.
 
In the 56-lb weight for distance, Overfelt dominated with a clutch winning throw of 45’ 1.5” that just nudged out the current world record-holder Frasure, who had to settle for second place with a distance of 44’ 11”.  In third place was Craig Smith, with a respectable throw of 43’ 11”.
 
The 28-lb. weight for distance, however, had fueled some fire in Frasure, who won this event with a throw of 83’ 5”.  In second was Overfelt with 79’ 8” and just behind in third was Pockoski at 77’ 3.5”.
 
The 16-lb. hammer was a close competition between the top three athletes, with Overfelt coming out on top with a winning throw of 126’ 8”.  Tying at 125’ 3” were Smith and Frasure.
 
In the caber, which was 20’ long and 135-lb., Smith showed great form when producing the winning toss of 12:00.  Pockoski was in second place with an 11:00 toss, and Valenti rounded out the top three with a 10:00 toss.
 
In the 20-lb. sheaf toss, Frasure took the win at a height of 32’, with Overfelt in second place at 30’ and St. Clair in third spot also at 30’, but with more misses.
 
In the final event of the competition, the 56-lb. weight over the bar, both Overfelt and Chris Chafin tied at 17’ doing the non-traditional spin, with Frasure in third place also at 17’, but with more misses.
 
Final placings:

1.  Kerry Overfelt
2.  Eric Frasure
3.  Craig Smith
4.  Mike Pockoski
5.  Mark Valenti
6. Chris Chafin and Chris St. Clair (tie)
 
The next Games in the U.S. circuit will be the Meadow Highland Games & Celtic Festival (formerly the Richmond Highland Games & Celtic Festival) at Doswell, Virginia this coming weekend.