One of the Relays' crowd-pleasers is the pole vault in the mall event. It's not complicated: six male and six female professional pole vaulters descend on Jordan Creek Town Center to wow a very up close and personal crowd. This was my first time attending this event. Starting at 6:15pm, I arrived at 5:50pm. I was able to stand in the second row on the upper floor behind a taller gentleman and his shorter wife. My view was partially obstructed, but I was still able to see most of the approach and vault itself. My photos didn't turn out half bad either. I didn't do a precise count - or any count at all actually - but I'd guestimate there was at least 200-300 people 'ooohing' and 'awwwing,' which is pretty much the max. Anymore than 3-5 rows back and you just can't see much.
It was actually a lot more fun than I expected. I don't know if I was more entertained by the vaults themselves or by the athletes' physiques. The only way to improve the event would be to have the men compete shirtless...