Mike, I am hoping that you or any of the other members of your message board would comment on the value of the pole vaulting technique of dropping the tip of the pole in the middle of the box as opposed to the more traditional style of planting where the pole tip is jammed into the back of the box. Thanks in advance to anyone who makes an effort to post a comment on this subject.
Pole Vault Plant
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Member
i think that when the pole hits in the middle it stops the vaulter's back from being "jammed". if the vaulter hits the back and cannot fully press with the bottom hand then the back and upper arm is forced in a violent motion backwards. so in short i think that it saves the vaulter's body so that they can last longer.
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KeymasterWhat you are referring to is sometimes called the pre-jump. That is, ground clearance is made prior to the pole hitting the back of the box (the fact that the pole tip hits the middle of the box first is just a result of this). This was one of the things that gave the Russian school vaulters such an advantage.
9000 is also right in that getting "jammed" is very rough on the body, especially the shoulders and lower back.
When you takeoff prior to or at the moment of pole impact, you impart the greatest amount of energy to the pole which means bigger poles are possible which means higher heights are possible. On the other hand, if your "takeoff" occurs after pole impact, you are essentially getting ripped off the ground and can't really jump into the pole to load it properly.
ELITETRACK Founder
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Member
yeah when you get "ripped" off the ground it is no fun. I went to an Earl Bell vault camp and on a few people's first run throughs that situation happened many times. I think Earl and the others just worked on consistency of the run then could adjust from there.
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Keymaster
Approach consistancy is as big or bigger a part of sucess in the pole vault than in any of the other jumps because of the dire consequences that a poorly positioned takeoff can have.
ELITETRACK Founder
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Participant
Mike, I have to admit, I???ve done quite a bit of reading about the free take-off (or the Aussie term of pre-jump) in an effort to understand the advantages of the system and to be aware of the vaulting techniques necessary to make the free take-off actually work for a vaulter. But I realize that a little bit of knowledge can also be ???dangerous.??? Therefore, I would appreciate very much your comments on whether or not I am on the right track in regard to the planting position.
It is my understanding that the pole is to be gradually lowered to where it is nearly horizontal to the runway at the time the next-to-last foot strikes the ground, at which time the planting process actually begins. The pole is then lifted with both hands, moving them forward. At the time the last right foot hits the ground, the pole should again be nearly parallel to the runway in a planting position. The right hand should be alongside the chin (or ear) and the left hand has been moved farther in front of the chest. I am thinking that the advantages of this planting position might be as follows:
a. In the process of planting the pole, the top hand is pressed straight upward above the head. The bottom arm is also raised, forming a triangle with an angle of approximately 45 degrees from the body to the pole. This movement of the arms will create a see-saw action which will provide a high degree of precision in planting the pole.
b. The posture of the body should be straight up and down at the time the pole tip hits the back of the box. This posture, in addition to the action of the arms lifting the pole high overhead will assist in creating a large angle to the runway, and will assist in having the top of the pole as much toward vertical as possible at the time of takeoff.
c. There is a quick, precise pole drop during the transition from the last right step to the takeoff step. The pole tip should strike the middle to last third of the box at the same time that the take-off foot hits the ground. The quick dropping action of the pole creates gravity which actually propels the vaulter faster so that he/she may have a better chance of being at maximum controllable speed through the take-off.
Again, Mike, I would be appreciative of your comments and the comments of any other member of the message board. And I am hopeful that this type of commentary will be of interest to those attempting to understand the free take-off.
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Member
to me the sequence seems right, however i have found it diffucult to vault with the upper hand style described in part a. i have found that with upper hand straight above my head that it has a strong tendency to "block" my body movement in the swing portion of the vault. i have found better success in having the top hand a little more towads its shoulder. also has allowed me better control of the pole.
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Keymaster
That sounds like a very good understanding of the plant. One thing I'd add that I wasn't sure if you understood or not, but it might actually be beneficial to plant the pole slightly in front of the head. This has the disadvantage of making the pole angle relative to the ground slightly lower; however it has some advantages which may outweigh that disadvantage:
1. By moving the top hand from behind the hip (prior to the start of the plant) to in front of the face (at the conclusion of the plant) you can actually start the rotation of the pole to vertical prior to pole impact.
2. It also puts the hands in a position where they will have a greater backwards range of motion after pole impact. Or from a different perspective, if the hands are planted slightly in front of the body, the body will have a greater distance through which to travel post impact. The movement of the body beyond the top hand after pole impact is one of the biggest factors in correctly loading the pole. By increasing the range through which the body can travel after pole impact, a greater transference of energy from the vaulter to the pole may be possible.
Other than that your description looked good. One more nitpicky thing though….the dropping of the pole doesn't create "gravity" because outside of an artificial environment, gravity can't be created but it does indeed accelerate the athlete into takeoff if done correctly.
ELITETRACK Founder
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Participant
Thanks, Mike, for your detailed comments. I am hopeful that vaulters and coaches will look more closely at the free take-off as the system does appear to have major advantages over the ???traditional style??? used by most American vaulters. And I am hopeful that vaulters and coaches will realize that you have the ability to answer questions that they might have about the free take-off.
I would like to ask one more question before leaving the discussion. I have the impression that the free take-off concept has been somewhat ???tainted??? by some of the vaulters taking off perhaps two or three shoes behind a conventional take-off spot. I believe you said in a post to an older styled message board on your web site that it takes HUGE cajones to successfully complete a vault when doing that! At any rate, I would appreciate your elaborating upon the proper take-off spot a vaulter should use when using the free take-off system. When executed properly, I???m thinking that the free take-off is NOT a wild thing.
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Keymaster
When I made that comment about needing big cajones to execute the free take-off I meant that it takes most athletes out of their visual comfort zone. This visual comfort zone is why I think most kids actually prefer to takeoff under….they're always in contact (whether by foot contact or pole contact) with the ground. This is far less daunting than flying through the air hoping that your pole will get to where it needs to be. In all, it's not so much a danger issue as it is a comfort issue…..in fact if executed correctly, it almost certainly would be safer than getting jammed up at takeoff.
ELITETRACK Founder
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