College coach conflicts... input needed/ welcome

[rwelch]

Hi everyone. I am still relatively new to coaching (3 years exp) and this is the first time I've run into this situation. My senior (female) vaulter has been talking to a college coach who has told her that she need to be on a 13' pole, and that that is all his girls jump on.

My goal has always been to help these kids become the best vaulter and althete they can be, and hopefully get them some looks from college scouts. But in my opinion, how and what my kids jump on while they are under my watch is at my discretion.

Trust me, this is not a power trip on my part. I have the best interests of my athlete in mind. With that said, thoughts? Opinions?

[cdmilton]

Sounds like the college coach is generalizing a lot if they haven't seen your athlete jump. How high is this girl currently jumping? What pole in relation to her height/weight is she currently jumping on?

[rwelch]

She jumped 9'6" last year on a 12'4" altius at her weight, 125. She is at 130 now, so moving he up in length and weight is going to be a double whammy. She is phsically gifted (read fast) enough to jump safely on any pole her weight, but she has not committed herself to generating enough speed on the runway to do this yet. Perhaps that will happen this year.

[cdmilton]

Sounds like you are on the right track. Hopefully she hasn't lost speed with the increased weight. I would probably look to get her onto at least a 12-6 140 before you move to a 13-0 130. At that point she can still be "weight legal" and the transition would be easier.

[rwelch]

I have a feeling that my kids were lead to believe the "I can't bend a pole that is over my weight" myth, because everytime i try to move them up, they slow down, etc. Self fulfilling, you see. We have all season to work on this, though. I hope my budget allows for 1 at weight pole and one to grow into for each of them. Then we can place at state, instead of just attending

Thanks for the input

[cdmilton]

Sounds like you know what you're doing and are on the right track. If you need an example, two years ago I graduated a girl who's PR was 13-3. She was 5-9 140. She jumped on 14-0 165/170's regularly. Good luck this season!

[vaultwest]

rwelch
in my opinion You are doing the correct thing. Unless you have a female vaulter that is extremely tall (like 6') I would keep them on that length pole and spend your and your athlete's time learning to vault correctly. A longer pole is not the answer for your athlete vaulting higher which I got from your description. The college coach should realize that getting an athlete that is fundamentally sound and vaulting correctly is much better to get in and work to the next level rather than an athlete with a big hand hold height that is holding on for dear life and not vaulting anywhere near their handhold. Keep up the good work.
Vault On

[Soar Like an Eagle]

Hi everyone. I am still relatively new to coaching (3 years exp) and this is the first time I've run into this situation. My senior (female) vaulter has been talking to a college coach who has told her that she need to be on a 13' pole, and that that is all his girls jump on.

My goal has always been to help these kids become the best vaulter and althete they can be, and hopefully get them some looks from college scouts. But in my opinion, how and what my kids jump on while they are under my watch is at my discretion.

Trust me, this is not a power trip on my part. I have the best interests of my athlete in mind. With that said, thoughts? Opinions?

If she jumped 9’4â€Â

[SlickVT]

The college coach that is telling this is not a very good one.

[ladyvolspvcoach]

As a college coach, Rwelch. Let me encourage you to keep going as you are. You are on the right track!! A focus on mechanics and pole lengths will change naturally. I have girls jumping on 12', 13' and 13'7" poles and will probably move to a 14' for one of my ladies...

[lonestar]

Agreed. As a college coach at various universities over the past 7 years, I've had girls jump on anything from 11' poles to 14' poles. Bottom line: keep your kid on the pole that fits her (her top hand within the top 12" of the grip area of the pole) and preferably one at or above her body weight, which could be an 11'6 or 12'0 130-140. As she gains confidence, speed, and a better plant and takeoff, work that grip up to the band near the top of the pole. When she starts blowing through it, move to the next 6" length pole at her bodyweight. I've taken kids that were jumping on too long a pole, moved them down in length at a higher weight rating, and they've jumped higher. You're on the right track, stay with it.

[rwelch]

for your thoughtful input.

I thought that I might be right on this one, but it never hurts to ask. She is an incredible athlete with good/ excellent speed, but she hasn't developed the upper body strength to complete the rock back and extension properly. My fear, and rightfully so from your posts, is that she will be able to get up on a longer pole, but the added 6-12" in clearance will make he even less inclined to work on proper technique.

I am chuckling to myself, because that is what my HS coach did to me. We had nothing BUT 14" poles, and we didn't really care what weight the pole was. I managed to "Butt-lift vault" my way to 12'. How much differnce would a proper rockback, turn, and extension made? lol.

Once again, thx everyone. And vaultwest, I'll drop you a pm soon, as I do need to get some new poles. Thanks!