PoleVaultPower.com

I think my biggest problem is that I don't get my shoulders and head back but I'm not sure. Any help would be nice.


age: 16
pole length: 12' 6"
grip: 12' 3"
attempting: 9ft

http://www.treemo.com/users/spill21/cha ... em/307398/

I can't tell anything from that angle. Can you post some profile video?

video from the side would be much more helpful

From what I saw, you need to work on dropping your pole throughout your run, but you do have a high and early plant with a springy take-off. Then you start to collapse, literally... You're letting the pole get right to your face, since you don't keep your arms high/straight. You also are picking up your trail leg while you swing, which completely kills the rest of your vault. The natural reaction is then to curl up and kick out at the bar. Find a highbar and use it all the time.

From my experience, one of the biggest misconceptions that beginning vaulters have is the whole "I needed to invert faster" or "I needed to get my legs up quicker". Remember, you can only "invert" by doing things correctly during previous stages of the vault.

In this case, it looks like you drop your drive knee and you curl up your swing. If you watch elite vaulters, including the ones who tuck in their legs, they always first swing with a straight trail leg to the chord of the pole. This means they swing to the position where their top arm and their trail leg are in one straight line. After this point, they tuck in their legs. However, many coaches will encourage vaulters not to tuck in their legs at all, but instead maintain a straight swing leg throughout the jump (watch Bubka) in order to maintain the energy in the pole.

One other thing I observed is it looks like your overbending the pole a little? Try moving up 5 lbs in pole rating and dropping your grip a couple inches.


anyway, it's important to note that I'm not a coach or anything, so I might not always be accurate in everything.
Good luck with the rest of your season!

cool beans thanks guys