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I did a little side-by-side analysis of a vault of mine compared with bubka's... if you notice anything that i missed, please chime in.

First Picture



I obviously do not have a free takeoff and i am taking off under, but i've seen people clear much higher than i do, with worse takeoffs. My bottom arm is bent, but there's still pressure behind it. My drive knee is down, which sucks. But since this jump, i've been working extensively with the mid mark chart and my takeoff, and its gotten MUCH better.

Second Picture


bottom arm still bent, but not an awful position overall, i think. One thing i notice is that bubka's inverted "C" is smooth from top hand to toe, whereas mine is "disrupted" at my shoulder... probably because his chest is driven farther forward. i think this comes into play in the latter stages of my vault.

Third Picture



Pendulum... my drive knee is dropping unfortunately... and again with my shoulder... the straight line from top hand to toe is broken at my shoulder. Is this caused by a rowing motion?

Fourth Picture



In this frame, i captured the moment that the hips and shoulders form a line parallel with the runway. I don't notice much difference in our shoulders here, but his legs are much more tucked than mine, his trail leg is still straight, his drive knee is more driven. His ankles are so much closer to his top hand than mine are.

Fifth Picture



this is where my shoulders really trouble me. I paused here, where the knees are parallel with the top hand. If you drew a line from his top hand to his shoulder, it would almost point down at the plant box. If you drew that same line for me, it points back almost from where i take off. what is causing this? rowing?

Sixth Picture



Extension. Bubka is still moving to a vertical and the line from his top arm to shoulder is still pointing almost straight down. In my vault, i've stopped moving towards the vertical and am vaulting outwards more than 20 degreees from a vertical line. The line drawn from my top hand to my shoulder is pointing still out towards the runway. Dangit.

Final Picture



End result? Bubka is a bad mammajamma and i smash into a bungee. Epic Fail.

I think the first comparison is the only one necessary. Until you can look like bubka on the first picture, the take off, each successive picture will be harder to duplicate. Sure, some guys jump higher than you without a free take off, but that doesnt mean they wouldnt jump MUCH higher if they had a free take off, and it doesnt mean you cant jump higher than them if YOU have a better take off. It just sets you up so perfectly for the rest of the jump, there is no other solution. 95% of the problems you might have will be solved with a better take off, and the things you do well right now, you will do AWESOME with a better take off. Heres some ideas of how a better take off would help.

Second picture:
Your hips are sucked under your hands pre-maturely. A free take off will allow your chest to drive, while an under takeoff, by nature, leaves your hips under your hands. HUGE lose of energy. Good split position though.

Third Picture:
Its hard to tell for sure, but you might be pulling with your bottom arm? That would be a way to increase your swing speed, since an under take off forces a swing too early, and it is never as fast as a free take off swing. You rob yourself of the chance of adding energy into the pole.

Fourth Picture:
Now it becomes obvious you were not swinging as fast as you hoped. You revert to habit, to do whatever it takes to get inverted. That means pulling more with the bottom arm and balling up to get back in time.

Fifth Picture:
You pull very nicely, very tight to the pole. I would only guess that with a faster swing your hips would be rising faster as this point as well. Still good though, dont change this part of your jump.

Sixth:
You are doing just fine. Yes, bubka is more inverted, but he has farther to go and more energy to get him there. You only need to invert and pull for as high as your hips are going to go. All the details before this will help you add more energy into the pole, and you will be able to pull for longer, but this is about where you need to be for the angle. However, you should delay turning your hips for as long as possible. Rotate your upper body before you rotate your lower body. That willl allow your hips to rise as high as possible before you pike over the bar.

Final:
Premature turn+ lack of enough energy= skimming over the bungee.

Free take off+ pulling until you cant pull anymore, THEN turning= 15 Ib bigger pole + 1 1/2 feet over bungee .

P.S. your girlfriend is hott! lol

vault3rb0y wrote:P.S. your girlfriend is hott! lol

haha well thanks... i thoroughly agree

and as far as my vaulting... well, i guess its like learning it all over again.. but if thats what it takes to get where i want to be, then i gotta do it.

extremely discouraging though haha. oh well. i'm not afraid of hard work.

I did it last year. You just start with pop ups and hold low enough to leave the ground before the pole hits the back. You do it enough, and eventually you can hold higher and higher. Soon the pole is bending, and you learn how good it feels to have your take off be 'on'. It takes quite a while to get back to your long run, but its so worth it. I have PR'ed from about 15'6" without a great take off to 16'10" in just under a year, and i keep getting better with it.

vault3rb0y wrote:I did it last year. You just start with pop ups and hold low enough to leave the ground before the pole hits the back. You do it enough, and eventually you can hold higher and higher. Soon the pole is bending, and you learn how good it feels to have your take off be 'on'. It takes quite a while to get back to your long run, but its so worth it. I have PR'ed from about 15'6" without a great take off to 16'10" in just under a year, and i keep getting better with it.

i've hit them "on" a few times from shorter approaches, and you can really swing with some power when you do that.

are you doing that freefall pole drop thing? that really messes me up.

are you doing that freefall pole drop thing? that really messes me up.

The reason that is the main problem for most people (I think) with the free pole drop is that they use the wrong hand as a pivot: many times, people will pivot the pole around their top (at your waist) hand and try to keep timing with their bottom hand (at chest). What's wrong with this? It's difficult to keep the timing correct, and makes a good plant almost impossible! Instead, use your bottom hand as a pivot as you slowly move it away from your chest (to allow your top hand to come up easily) and control the pole with the top hand. You'll run a little bit faster, have a better timed drop, and will have a much better plant, because you're keeping your bottom hand HIGH as you plant. Try it!

Sam, I'd like to see the side by side of your jumps at Paul Babbits Camp. I bet you'd see a big difference from your first comparison (the one posted here) and the one from the camp. Later.........Mike

souleman wrote:Sam, I'd like to see the side by side of your jumps at Paul Babbits Camp. I bet you'd see a big difference from your first comparison (the one posted here) and the one from the camp. Later.........Mike

Give me a little time, and i'll get that up on here.

Make sure you post it on this thread so we can go back and forth from the two side by sides. Later.........Mike

Your technique is perfect!! In order to get the lift, you must do what you are doing 2' out in front of the bar. I was the slowest vaulter in the world, but i used the petrof model befor Bubka to set 8 indoor and outdoor world records as a senior 25 national titles and back to back world championships. I presently had 8 hs state champions this year. 7th grader#1 in the nation 105lb. Holdes 12-7 om a 13'154 essex and absolutly gets BLOWN up off the end. Let me make it simple--You put an arrow in a bow and pull it back, If you have guts enough to get COMPLETELY inverted EARLY and COMPLETE the vault EARLY!! You can be a super vaulter, because your technique is as good as BUBKA's. If the 19' american vaulters had your technique, they would be 20ftr's. Keep on doing what your doing, and find enough courage to complete the vault OUT IN FRONT, and you mwill fell like your shot out of a cannon. You must COMPLETE the vault BEFORE the pole straightens out. Charlie Polhamus Masters world champion and world rcord holder and proud of it