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so whats the key to making the jump from 15 foot poles to 15'6"s and 15'9s? im trying to make that gap!

nut up. run fast. jump off the ground. thats about it.

haha key word...." nut up"...im still working on that one LOL

if by nut up, you mean grow some bollocks then yes! lol i don't like people that pussy-foot around, getting scared and blocking or running through at take off. To be frank you shouldn't worry too mch just because your pole got a few inches bigger, most guys cope with the same scenario 8 times a day.

key points would be speed, but you know, make it all controlled. Nothing looks uglier than someone running down a runway like their a** is on fire. Second, make sure your plant is near perfect, tall and you get lift at take off. people think that being able to bench press a million pounds will mean you can penetrate more...wrong! I do about 150 lbs and i jump gripping 14ft 6 on a 16' 170. So all i can say is make sure you punch out your plant nice and high, and at speed and jump for your life. Easier said than done but you know the drills....

well as much as i agree with the basic principle of manning up... theres a few keys to makeing pole transitions

1. are you sure it needs to be a longer pole. video yourself, look at the amount of bend, where you are gripping. etc etc

2. dont be stupid. just because you were holding the top of a 15' pole, doesn't mean go right to the top of the 15'9 pole. if its practice, id even recommend dropping the grip and inch or so for the first jump if your worried about it at all.

3. stay relaxed. the worst thing you can do is getting amped and run your step way under. then you just get crushed and develop a fear of longer poles. just remember, your moving up poles because the other one was too small, so you dont have to do anything different.

4. if possible, wait until a meet to move up poles. in general adrenaline helps keep a lot of the mental issues out of mind.

All that smack about "having the balls" and "manning up" is irrelevant when moving up poles. You need to do that to get on any pole that is going to make you jump high, regardless of the stiffness. It is that reckless attitude that puts most vaulters at risk when moving up poles, and young vaulters (especially) don't need to read that stuff.

You need to remember to go in progressions and look for the right pole, that fits the right run, and with the right grip.
You only need to go up poles and grip if you are underbending the pole and are getting through it too much, or if you are getting the right bend with the pole being still too small.

TOO many people go up poles and grip, thinking that they will jump higher, without proper mechanics and end up losing pole speed.

You need to work on getting your grip higher, using the advice like getting taller, high plant, good takeoff and run mechanics, and not just go up a pole for the sake of saying you did. If you are ready to make the move, you will know, and if you don't, your coach should.

When you do go up pole lengths, the sale piece (stiffest part of the pole) moves up, for most length changes, and you need to have a higher angle of takeoff. Your time into the pit will change a fraction of a second as well.
It is just a matter of picking the right pole in the progression, and then you will not have a great change in your vault if you do it right.

Cheers, and good luck moving up sticks !!!

Boomer wrote:All that smack about "having the balls" and "manning up" is irrelevant when moving up poles. You need to do that to get on any pole that is going to make you jump high, regardless of the stiffness. It is that reckless attitude that puts most vaulters at risk when moving up poles, and young vaulters (especially) don't need to read that stuff.

Right on man!! Absolutely!! That 'nut up' crap has bedevilled US vaulting for years and probably lead to deaths in this great sport. The sooner the idea is eliminated the better. You can improve your grip height by improving your technique - there are no simple easy fixes in this sport - nor should there be - this is what makes it worth bothering with. If you want to take risks join the marines.

Two simple questions.
1. How high are you vaulting above your grip now?
2. What is the difference between your body weight and the biggest pole you use now - in pounds or KGs??

1. Should be at least 24 inches!
2. At least forty pounds!

Or dont bother going to a longer pole. Build your run/plant and take off --- meet those minimum parameters and then think about it again.

I think when vaulters go up stiffer or longer poles there is a confidence factor involved. For instance, I've been guilty several times of lacking confidence on going up a pole I've never jumped on. So what typically happens, I do the opposite of what I'm suppose to do, which is a less than stellar plant. Where if I would be confident in my jump and have a great plant/take-off/run speed/posture I would transition up the pole no problem. So the confidence I'm talking about can be referred to as 'manning up', 'nut up', 'bo up', etc. And I think that's what the previous posters are refering to. I can jump with perfect technique but if I slow down due to lack of confidence then I'm not gettting in on a bigger pole. Anyway, how I combat my lack of confidence is small, incremental changes...sometimes no more than 1 finger up the pole, or I transition to a longer pole rated at the same weight with the same grip height.

I agree that confidence is a factor when going up poles, and I agree with small incremental changes.
But I don't agree with just grabbing a pole because it is longer, without knowing exactly what the difference is, and if it will truly make the vault better.
Confidence can be given to vaulters by coaches who are able to ensure with them that they are only going up one pole, a small increment, with little change, and there would be no need to be not confident.
My vaulters will go up a pole without question, because they trust that the next pole is the next step up for them. Unfortunately, a good series of poles costs a good penny, and many people have series that jump up 2-3 poles at a time. That's when things get a little dicey in my opinion. I had to do that as a young vaulter, and confidence then becomes more of an issue.
I think there is a big difference in 'nutting up' and having confidence you are making a sound decision since you are in fact 15-18 feet in the air

when people say "how high are you vaulting above your grip?" Do they take into account the depth of the box, or just how high you are gripping from the bottom of your pole?

take off 8 inches for the box

not everyone has a coach.