Universal Speed Rating helps quantify a true athleticism score, and now local athletes will have an opportunity to test themselves.

The USR Showcase: Idaho is in Pocatello on July 29 at the Mountain View Event Center, and Hansen Athletics owner Darren Hansen has high hopes for the participants.

Hansen has coached strength and conditioning at Utah State University and worked with Olympic sports and women’s soccer at the University of Utah. He has worked with NFL Combine prospects in California and started training out of his garage before eventually opening a 16,000-square-foot facility.

As a Highland High grad and Pocatello native, Hansen believed he could spread that knowledge to local athletes:

“I realized that training was missing a big piece from what I was seeing at the next level, and as I was building relationships with collegiate coaches all over the country and understanding what they’re looking for in athletes, I just felt like we were missing the mark a little bit in our high school programs,” Hansen told the Post Register.

“We’re very connected with what’s going on and different influencers and coaches and leaders in the space, where we can take pieces of information that we learn from them and then create the formula and really give kids an experience, right here in Pocatello,” he added. “… Where you wouldn’t think you can get the best strength and conditioning.”

The showcase will feature four events: max velocity, acceleration, change of direction and power.

Max velocity is a 30/10 fly where you sprint for 40 yards, the final 10 of which are measured. Acceleration is a 5/10, giving athletes five yards to build speed and 10 yards to count miles per hour. Change of direction is a 5/10/5, the same drill used at the NFL Combine, encompassing a five-yard sprint in one direction, a 10-yard sprint in the opposite direction and a final five-yard sprint to the center point.

“For the most part, you’re living and breathing in that 15-yard acceleration zone and deceleration,” Hansen said.

The power segment is a broad jump. According to Hansen, many people consider the vertical jump superior, but “broad jump is actually a lot better indicator of speed and acceleration.”

After the testing, athletes will have time with coaches to work on specifics: Where are you strongest? Where do you need to get better? How can we help you get there? They will also receive a printable PDF and information they can relay to college coaches.

“Let’s say it’s an athlete; maybe their weakness is max velocity, but they’re really strong in acceleration. They’re a basketball player: it’s like, okay, max velocity is not necessarily the most important thing for our basketball player. So, you’re actually doing really well on the things that you’re being asked to do on the court,” Hansen said.

Since USR hosts events all over the country, athletes will also have a profile reporting their athleticism score and rank among their age, gender and sport.

“They’ll be able to see kind of where they fall across millions of data points of other athletes that we’ve gathered over the last eight years with USR, and maybe even give them a prediction of, ‘Hey, you know, you should look at DII. You should look at JUCO. This is D1 potential,’” Hansen said.

This tailored approach to training is most popular among football players. However, Hansen expects this event to provide opportunities for those “under serviced kids,” like volleyball and soccer players, all of whom he has trained at his facility.

“I think there’s a wide-open door for all of these athletes to come and experience that,” he said.

The showcase will conclude with a competition element, which should demonstrate tricky-to-quantify information such as how hard an athlete battles, especially when lined up against someone they have never seen or met, and their self-confidence:

“How do they handle that pressure? Are they aggressive? Do they kind of lay back? What’s the response to that?” Hansen said.

Those interested can still register at the link above and use the code Hansen50 for 50% off.