plant and hitting the pole on the way down

[artesia]

I have a few questions about my vault. I recently got into this season a week ago, after being for a while. I've easily been clearing 10' and 10'6" in practice, but when i took up my opening height of 8', i knocked the bar down everytime with my feet on the decent. What could i do to prevent this? My part time coach said that it was because i was looking at the crossbar and my body movement changed so my ankles would hit the bar. How should i fix this? Also, my coach wants me to move to a 13'6" skypole, and i took up one vault today holding two hand grips higher than my hold on my 11' pole, and that vault did me in. I had no penetration and my plant was thrown off by a nasty crosswind. How should i adjust to this pole?

[powerplant42]

A switch from an 11' pole to an equally weighted 13'6" pole is totally inadvisable. That's a 10 pole gap.

When you say "easily been clearing x in practice", do you mean over a bungie, a bar, what? Try practicing with a bar. If you are actually cleanly clearing 10' or more consistently, then don't come in at 8', come in at 9' or 9'6" unless you feel like crap. Also, practice with your standards set all the way back. Then do that in competition too.

[artesia]

when i said easily clearing, i did mean over a bungie. during my meet, i wasn't penetrating into the pit. when holding on the 13' pole, i am only two hand grips higher than the 11' pole. ill use the bar more in practice. thank you powerplant