Asheboro senior track and field athlete Aaron Tyson, right, will try to repeat some of the achievements produced by his mother, Keione Covington. (Bob Sutton / Randolph Record)
ASHEBORO — Once Aaron Tyson became hooked on track and field, his abilities blossomed and the Asheboro senior will be pursuing more titles in Saturday’s state championships.
In some sense, he’s also chasing his mother.
Keione Covington is one of Asheboro’s most distinguished athletes as a long jumper and triple jumper.
Tyson has qualified for the Class 6A state meet in four events — pole vault, high jump, triple jump and long jump — for competition at Greensboro’s North Carolina A&T.
“Track is what I do,” Tyson said. “Four events, and I go for four wins. … I want to feel like I’m flying all day.”
Covington wasn’t certain that Tyson would even tinker with track and field. When she was an Asheboro athlete, she captured six individual state titles, including going unbeaten in the long jump in four state meets, and later competing for North Carolina State.
That commitment to the sport didn’t automatically transfer to her son.
“He just wasn’t interested,” she said of sports. “I played all the sports – basketball, volleyball, softball.”
But Tyson eventually came to embrace track and field.
“I just had to find something that fit him,” Covington said. “His progress over the years has been pretty significant.”
Tyson, who turns 18 years old next week, has other interests away from jumping pits. He has a keen eye for artwork and that has become a cherished hobby.
“When I get home, when my body is tired, I unwind with some art,” he said.
The drawings didn’t necessarily stem from the classroom, instead because it’s something he just found a passion for.
“I’ve been self-taught,” he said.
Yet perhaps the art and the jumping have been intertwined.
“When he finds something he likes, he’s an artist,” Covington said. “That’s what he found in track.”
Tyson said the pole vault is his best event as he has cleared 14 feet, 6 inches and has a goal to go higher.
He didn’t delve into long jumping until he was a sophomore.
“It started feeling normal my junior year,” he said.
In February, he was the Class 6A indoor state meet’s Most Valuable Performer.
Tyson is 6-foot-1½ and 179 pounds. He said he still feels like an underdog.
“A lot of people seem surprised I jump so far,” he said.
Yet there’s the constant quest to make certain he’s in top form for these events that require athletic talent and technique.
“Every day I’m wary: Can I do my best?” Tyson said. “I try to stay humble.”
Asheboro coach DeNeal McNair also oversees Mid City Xpress, a track and field club. Tyson’s involvement with the club has made track and field a year-round endeavor.
“I do track all year. Wash, rinse, repeat,” Tyson said. “It makes me a lot more confident in my ability.”
His mother’s influence has been there as well as he keeps collecting track and field honors.
“I feel accomplished,” Tyson said. “But I’ve got a lot to live up to.”
