Brad Walker ties for first in Jockgrim, plus some blog posts featuring Kara Patterson...

JOCKGRIM, Germany--University of Washington alum Brad Walker's (left/photo courtesy USA Track & Field) return to the site of his first career six-meter jump was a partial success, as he and two vaulters tied for the victory at the Internationales Stabhochsprung-Meeting Wednesday.

Walker, along with the German trio of Raphael Holzdeppe, Bjorn Otto and Malte Mohr all opened at 18-4 3/4 (5.61m) with all except Mohr clearing on their first attempt.

After passes at the next two heights (18-8 3/4-5.71m and 18-10 3/4-5.76m), Holzdeppe, Otto, and Walker all cleared 19-0 3/4 (5.81m) on their first attempt, with Mohr needing two tries.

The quartet passed the next height of 19-2 3/4 (5.86m), then Holzdeppe went three and out at 19-4 3/4 (5.91m).

Walker, Otto, and Mohr each took three tries at a meet record and 2012 world leading mark of 19-8 1/2 (6.01m) but were unsuccessful.

According to a thread on polevaultpower.com, Holzdeppe, Otto and Walker all decided not to jump off to break the three-way tie.

Complete results of the Internationales Stabhochsprung-Meeting are available here.

Before leaving the United States for London, Vancouver native Kara Patterson blogged about what she eats when she travels to a big meet overseas.

You can read her post here.

Here's a link to an interview with Patterson written by womentalksports.com contributor Cara Hawkins where she talks about last month's Olympic Trials, how she got started in the sport, and her expectations for the Olympics.

You can read the post here.

If you're looking for Kara in the Parade of Nations on Friday at the Opening Ceremonies of the London Olympics, don't count on it, as she tweeted a few days earlier that she wasn't participating to take some stress off of the left knee that she hyperextended in round four of the Trials finals.