vault tryouts - what to look for?

[dafox]

I suppose its a good thing, but I've had WAY too many kids want to vault from our HS track program. 45 of them for the preseason alone. Even with 2 pits, I cant coach all of them, nor is that even doable with 2 pits. So I've decided on tryouts, and only allowing ~20-22.

So how do you go about taking 100% brand new athletes, and testing them to see which ones will be best suited for vaulting? What drills would you try and what would you look for? And I only have a couple days of practice to do it in!

[achtungpv]

Anything that'll show their basic natural athletic ability - speed, explosiveness, coordination would be valuable.

time a flying 10m or 20m to get an idea of raw speed
overhead shotput toss to test explosiveness
6 step long jump/standing long jump
maybe running 5 low hurdles could give you an idea of their coordination
some simple high bar or ring work for strength/coordination

I wouldn't look just at their raw results either. It could be that stud freshman that is the best at every test is done developing. You see that all the time. You'll definitely be able to spot those undersized kids that have a thread of talent coming through even if their results are middling. Those are the ones that usually develop into great vaulters (think Tye Harvey as a 115 lbs HS vaulter).

i don't think i'd do anything with a pole though...unless you needed to par it down some more. Then you weed some out based on how well they take direction and coaching when learning the basics.

[rainbowgirl28]

If you are stuck indoors (OK not likely since you are in CA), have them run in a straight line from the side of the basketball hoop, just practice running and jumping up off one foot and touching the net/rim. I could not believe how few of my kids could do this.

You could also do a lot of walking pole drills, sand vaulting, until you scare off the kids who are less serious about it.

[dafox]

Anything that'll show their basic natural athletic ability - speed, explosiveness, coordination would be valuable.

I totally agree. But what I find difficult is reading my crystal ball and telling which one is going to mature and flourish, and which one is just not that much of an athlete. Cause when they're young, its kinda hard to tell.
The other thing I'm wanting to test (and looking for suggestions on how to test) is agressiveness. Especially with girls. Many are much too timid at takeoff, even after a year of jumping. Any ideas for tests?

One other question I'd love feedback on:
Would you rather have a kid who's just plain fast, or one that is incredibly observant/smart?

Becca- yea, I dont think ANY of my kids could come close to the rim. maybe my one 6'1 freshman. maybe.

[rainbowgirl28]

Becca- yea, I dont think ANY of my kids could come close to the rim. maybe my one 6'1 freshman. maybe.

It's not even who can come close to the rim, but who can do the correct running rhythm and jump properly.

I would much rather have a kid with zero talent who works hard and comes to practice every day over a talented kid who is a pain and flaky.

I'm in the same boat as you, I had 20 kids pole vault in meets last year (and probably 10 more try it), and most of them are returning, plus lots of newbies who have expressed interest.

[vaultmd]

For high school track, I'd take the smart/observant one. Doesn't take much speed for a girl to jump 10'6" or 11" and it doesn't take much speed for a guy to jump 14", which are fine marks in high school. You wind up pulling less of your hair out and your kids have some success and fun.

Everyone down there already knows what a coach you are, so I don't think you have to worry about your reputation if you don't turn out a 15'6" guy every year.

edited out a typo

[higherflyer]

Mr. Fox,
Wow, I only had like 25 for tryouts.

I haven’t cut anyone, but I am down to 10 now and will probably be down to 7 newcomers for the season.

Of course you first need to get rid of the people that can't walk and chewgum at the same time.

The reason most try out to pole-vault is that they do not want to run.
I work them out hard, I tell them that we work harder and longer than any other event so get used to it.

This will weed out the people that don't want to work hard.
I can teach anyone who wants to learn and work hard to get better.

I once had a freshman girl that jumped 7 feet.
Her senior year she jumped 12-9 and went to BYU on partial scholarship.

good luck

[higherflyer]

I agree smart and observant would be my choice.

The ones that end up being good are the ones that understand what they are suposed to be doing.

[vcpvcoach]

I ask a couple of questions of all of my vaulters. First, I ask if any of the kids had any gymnastic training. You'll find that mostly girls were gymnists.

Second, I ask if any of the kids if they are surfers (not many here in Illinios), snowboards, or skaters. Both of these questions lead to kids that have a natural kinestic awareness. Plus, I find they are less fearful in general.

Last, I ask if they are wrestlers. Again, better kinestic awareness plus they maintain their weight. Just a note, I never tell my athletes to maintain their weight. I tell them to eat smart and if they gain, I can get them a bigger pole. We have enough problems with eating disorders in this country, I don't want to add to it.

I have found good luck with these backgrounds.

Hope it helps.

[AVC Coach]

I tend to gravitate and spend more instruction time with the kids that seem to really love the vault. Those are usually the ones that eventually jump high.

[dafox]

I tend to gravitate and spend more instruction time with the kids that seem to really love the vault. Those are usually the ones that eventually jump high.

agreed. they're more likely to want to learn it - but unless I'm mistaken, there's just no way to know in a couple days of tryouts

[vaultmd]

I've been fortunate in that all my best listeners also happened to be really fast.