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I'm trying to overcome looking at the bar. I have a tendency that when i come in low around 12 feet i drop my hips and flag out. At times i might hit the bar on the first attempt. When the bar is set higher at 13 13'6 i clear by 6 inches or more each time. How might i overcome looking at the bar?

The bar is the way to keep track of who's winning the meet (obviously). But for you as an athlete, you should not be focussing on the bar ... you should be focussing on getting your technique "right" on every jump. If your technique is "right", then you're going to project your body in a certain arc that worked for your PR jump ... and will work again as you improve your PR. Your technique for all other jumps BELOW your PR should emulate your PR technique. This is what you should focus on ... getting that technique down pat at the lower heights ... in preparation for a new PR later in the meet.

This means trying to vault with the identical pole, grip, run, plant, jump, and swing. Maybe slight adjustments on pole size and grip during a meet ... as you warm up, and as the adrenaline kicks in ... but not much. If you're doing all these things THE SAME ... and focussing on doing them all THE SAME ... then you shouldn't even be thinking about where the bar is. On the lower heights, you should be getting plenty of air on all 3 sides of the bar ... so looking at the bar is pointless.

Put yourself in the frame of mind that I just described, and you might forget all about the bar ... and focus more on improving your TECHNIQUE.

Kirk

EDIT: Fixed a typo.

I can relate to this as I have the same problem when opening at lower heights. If I see myself flying over the bar before I've punched the hips and dropped the shoulders, I tend to flag out and often land on the bar. For me, it is important to start at a height that is at or above my effective grip (this is a no-brainer for advanced vaulters, but may be helpful for HS vaulters). This can be a tough sell to a HS coach, who probably wants to make sure that your 12' vault scores points in the meet rather than the possibility of a NH when starting higher. One possibility is to open lower on a shorter run, with a smaller pole/grip, getting over 12' from 6 steps or less with good technique, then passing to heights that are better suited for your big pole/long run and focusing on the same good technique.

One way that I have tried to overcome this problem is by always practicing at a very high bungee, or by vaulting with 2 bungees, one set at the height you are trying to clear, and one set 3 to 4 feet higher. The goal is for you to kick your feet over the top bungee, which forces you to finish your extension and focus on the higher bar rather than the lower bar. If you can kick your feet over a bungee at 17' or 18', you should have no problem clearing the lower bar at 14' or 15'. Anybody else ever use this technique? It also comes in handy if you have a crew of vaulters at different levels practicing together...

Ultimately, a vault at any height in which you focus on the bar is poor technique, so you need to find a way to key on something else in practice (maybe your hands coming together with your hips), in order to build better muscle memory for better finishing technique. Try the two bungee idea and see if it helps at all...Don Hood always used to say, "vault the vault, not the bar!"

good luck,
TS

Thanks for your suggestions and i will try them.
Thanks,
Nick

Stop trying to clear a bar, and start pole vaulting. -6P