Up Date on Little Man Pole Vaulter and more now?

[poledad]

Hey guiy thought i would up date on little man. The 9 year old . ( in may, going into the 4 th grade) he cleared 7 ft and just missed at 7 3. He also tried his hand at long jump 13' 2 and high jumped 4 ' 3" on a straight roll. He is kinda scared of the flop thing. He was clocked at 1.98 in 10 meter.

The qestion is he in relations to others his age and more important when is it too much. Currnetly he loves it ( Daddy can we go today? huh huh can we/) yet i wont to be real careful not to burn him out. LEts face it it is about 3 years before he will be able to compete in the vault and Jr. High trace.

I need some advice on other things to do that will help him with all his skills but for it to seem like he is not working on them.

Thanks for the help guys this poor old fat 44 year old dad needs all the help he can get!

[Flying D]

wow that is really awesome for a 9 year old! i sure wish i started vaulting at age 9, i started at 15

as for the burn out thing, he should definitly keep vaulting, obviously i wouldnt have him vault everyday of his life until hes in high school, but i wouldnt go too nuts. my past season for a while i vaulted almost every day, and although it helped, by the end of the season i was a little burnt out.

but im not the expert, just adding my 2 cents! hopefully some one who knows more will comment, and keep up the good work with your son

[CrossBarHOpper]

My coach Joe dials Son who0 i think is in the same grade maybe older clears 7ft always he loves it. Everytime were there hes jumping with us. my only concern would be becareful on his joints and stuff i did alot of high impact stuff when i was that age and i had a limp for a year before a surgery fixed it so just keep his legs strong

[souleman]

I started when I was 7 and because I vaulted every chance I could I think I may have "overdone" to a point where I might have hurt myself. Lower back, slightly herniated disc.....bad knee etc. From a physical stand point I would get some advice for the "how much" part of it especially when he hits his growth spurt. Who knows (not I of course) It might be good for him or bad for him at that time. Get some answers from a good "bone and muscle" guy or gal. As to his mental well being? As long as it's fun and he doesn't wear himself out where he could get hurt..........let him jump! Get "the book" (Beginner to Bubka) and do what it says as to "teaching a young vaulter to vault". He will then develope habits that he won't have to replace down the road when he's competing. Work on getting him a safe place to jump. Adiquate mats, standards, crossbar, and box and pole. For a nine year old an 8 to 10 foot section of pole will work fine for him. You can find them all around most high schools and places where vaulting takes place. They are usually being used for crossbar "putter-uppers". Good luck. He'll let you know know when he's starting to burn out. Know the difference between "burn out" and "lazy". That's a very tuff thing for a parent to differentiate between. Later..............Mike

[poledad]

wow guys thanks for the imput . Soule man,crossbarhoppper and flying d We are knda new to this pole vaulting thing and it is nice to have a place to ask questions. His sis started int he 7th grade and her pr was 7 6 that was good enought to get her 3rd place in he conference meet. This year as and 8th grader she is as 9 ft breaking the old jr high record of 8 6 and this year she would like to get 10 ft as a 9th grader. Now you can see why the little guy wantS to pole vault because sissee does.

I will get the book and go over it to insure we are getting the basics.

While I do not know where this will lead I know they are bth having a great time and that gymnatic helped them out a lot. Sis was in gymn for 8 year and the little guy in gym for 3 years. Both where state champ twice in there gymnatic carrer.

Plese keep the advice comming and let me know what else an old dad needs to do, be careful of,and watch out for from all you seasoned vets of vault mania.

[souleman]

OK, one more for you Dad. Always keep in mind one very important thing. I want you to understand this. I understand that this thought has gone through your brain a number of times(I've been there done that). You say (or think to yourself) "Alright! 2 scholarships just a waitin' for us if we do this right". WRONG ANSWER! Do this with the kids to hang out with them and have fun. Make sure they have fun. If they get really good (even if they don't but want to get better)
when they get to that 13 to 15 year old age have somebody else coach them and then reenforce what the coach is doing. Do this even though you may end up knowing more than their coach. (done right you can coach the coach, but be careful not to step on any toes). I spent 10 years coaching my boy in baseball and about the same time involved with him in Scouts. Invariably I would assign him to one of my assistants or to the Scout master in our troop and I dealt with all of the other boys. We didn't have the father child friction thing that happens at that age and yet we were participating in the same activity together. Believe me, both kids enjoyed the space I gave them but at the same time they really enjoyed the fact that I was there with them. This is more "sports or activities Dad" advice than actual "how to vault" advice. Once again, have fun, and make sure the kids have fun. I saw a deal the other day that said, "people get bored with child hood, they rush to grow up and then wish they were children again". Good luck and keep us posted on the progress. Later.............Mike