How are you training and when?

[dj]

hey

play...play...play your way into shape... pop-ups..drills... 6 lefts...

don't "over-do"

play...rest...and ....play

dj

[vaultmd]

dj,

You forgot you're in the masters forum, dude! 6 lefts is a middle distance workout . . .

[vaultmd]

Bubba,

Welcome to the forum!

Wilson
Go Aeros

[Robert schmitt]

dj,

dude! 6 lefts is a middle distance workout . . .

word

[dj]

heheheheh

just need a little space to get the mo-men-tum going

dj

[Bubba PV]

This group is like a bad Halloween party in that whatever name a person uses, you know who's under the costume. MAN, a ton of people I love and respect here. WAY cool!!

I hear DJ's voice as much as ever during practice but the left wrist above the left elbow through the plant is my focus now. I find it easy to do physically but mentally you've gotta pay attention. I noticed some of the faster kids at The Woodlands HS (North Houston) lowering their hands and killing their runs in order to see where they were just before the plant. Then I looked at my own video from the session before and I wasn't much better.

Thanks for the input!! Bubba

[jr]

I'm 46 and try to run year round.Usually 6 to 8, 80-100 meter sprints at 75%,3 times a week.About twice a month I'll throw in a 200 meter work-out just to remind myself I'm not 20 anymore.I bought a total gym a few years ago and use it 2-3 times a week.Nothing wild,just enough to stay toned.I try to jump in between coaching, which is hard, but the kids deserve the time.I do make one meet a year and still jump in the 12'6 range.I've recently moved back to 7 lefts,man that seems like a long way to plant.I jump on a 13'9-185 Altius and weigh 172.It's still fun, so I'll keep jumping.

[master]

Hello jr, sounds like you should be in pretty good shape and you are jumping well. Why don't you jump in meets more often? Is it just not having enough time or are they too far away?

[jr]

Time is the big issue.I work monday thru saturday and sunday meets are far and few between.I take some saturdays off to watch my college age son vault and I can only take so many a year.Now my 12 year old son and 11 year old daughter are vaulting so my spare time is gone.I'm taking my sons to Bells this week-end and I'm going to vault there.Should be fun.

[Bubba PV]

If you have access to a place to jump you can form your own USATF club ($75 a year I think) and set up a schedule. Their liability insurance will name the school to protect them. I did this at UC Irvine for 14 years and am about to do it at our local high school in the Houston area. You can have meets when you want them and if desired, put on some clinics. We're using this model to raise money for the school/poles etc.

I find that a lot of vaulters are coaches, have kids jumping etc., so we're not able to vault when we want. A regular Sunday meet schedule could potentially work great for you. In the off season (which there isn't one of course) we always have a meet on the last Saturday of the month so kids (and fossils) can check their progress.

You can even make those meets fun. We charged a $3 entry fee with 1/4 of the pot going to the women's handicap winner, 1/4 to the guys handicap winner, 1/4 to the highest guy and 1/4 to the highest girl. For the handicap. Great example was when 19'r from Australia, Simon Arkell said his mark on a 15' pole from 5 strides (10 steps) was 16' 6", he was competing against and lost to a kid whose best was 7'6" but made 8'. Simon had the highest jump at 16' 6" so he recouped that 1/4. On Halloween we dress up in costumes (required) that don't affect your ability to vault. Jay Thorson came as a boxer and jumped 14' sliding the pole wearing boxing gloves. He gets an E for effort but got his butt kicked in the meet because his PR was 18' 1". Hope this helps you out some. Take care. Bubba

[vaultwest]

Hey guys
I am wondering what you guys think of this. I have always felt that my plant is one of the strong parts in my vault. It is early, high and my step is almost always under my top hand. I like to think I am doing the Petrov free takeoff and I coach this as well but recently I have reallized that I am missing a part of this free takeoff. My bottom arm is not perfect as I approach my plant, i.e. I am letting my hand drop to level with my elbow as I lower my tip instead of keeping it above my elbow and working my top hand up in back. I know this is an important aspect in the free takeoff model. I am just wondering since I am pretty slow now and jumping on relatively small poles if doing the extra work on changing my run / plant to get this going is worth the effort. Will it make enough of a difference in my vault. What do you guys think. I think I know the answer (just do it) but I am interested in what you all think. Thanks

[Bubba PV]

Hey Man! You're problem is my problem but it didn't used to be. I got away from some drills that were a staple of my warm-up. We pulled out an old Nordic 17/215 and gripped about 16' 6" and did a series of plant drills. Believe me, with that mutha, it falls where it wants so it teaches you how to run and plant with balance. Here's an incomplete sheet I started but you'll get the idea. http://www.bubbapv.com/Pages/VaultDrillOverview.htm

RATIONALE - I had read many moons ago that a series of "hang time" jumps were performed by Russian vaulters with FAT. The ones using big poles were pulled higher into the air and their hang time was significantly longer. So your taller, faster (I feel like I'm being sucked toward the box so it's an involuntary acceleration), get pulled into the air, etc. To me it's these type of technical edges that help us offset decreasing physical skills.

Does the series work? I had a decathlete from Germany with a 13' 9" PR (VERY dangerous guy) use this drill series to warm up every day. I reasoned that he needed to warm up no matter what event he was working on so he might as well be reinforcing better vault mechanics. I allowed him to vault only once a week from 4 lefts for six months. Four months later he jumped 16' 5". I'm guessing that his dangerous vault left him and his plant mechanics took over by sheer repetition. So I guess my answer is YES, go for it. I'll start again this afternoon myself. Thanks! Bubba