First time judge for high school vault

[Livininthepast]

Tomorrow will be my first time running the vault competition.
Any advice?

[drcurran]

Livinginthepast -
There is so much to suggest / cover. I'll hit on a couple of things. Before all else - check that the facility is safe for the vaulters - if not get meet management to make it safe or don't officiate.

1- Get to the site early enough that you can zero out the standards, mark the runway, and know how accurate the standard readings are for the bar height.

2 - Know which rule book you are working under and have a copy of that rule book on hand.

3 - Know how to run 5 alive if the numbers warrant it being used.

4 - Insist from meet management at the very least yourself and 2 helpers (4 would be better).

5 - Have the "stuff" you will need. Clip board, stop watch, measuring tape, pencils, and such.

6 - Find out from the facility manager how do they measure the bar, and know how to work their measuring device.

7 - Give the athletes ample warning when the runway will be closed for warm ups. (Suggest 30 min. left in warm up, 15 min. left in warm up, 5 min. left in warm up - or something like that. Don't just shut the runway down and leave some kid hanging)

8 - Meet with the athletes introduce yourself and go over how you will run the event. How standard depth will be set (flip cards, they tell the pit crew, they tell you and you tell the pit crew), how time limit will be enforced (flag or visual clock), any athletes in another event?, any athletes passing some bars, let them know if they can look over your shoulder at the sheet
to see when they are coming up, if the 5 alive will be used. Anything else that might be unique to this meet and this event.

9 - Don't be afraid to "fix" a mistake if you make one and the mistake can be corrected in a way that is fair to all competitors.

10 - Enjoy - you are running the best event there is at any Track and Field Meet! Good luck.

PS - Lots more I could go over, but this really is learn by doing.

[rainbowgirl28]

How big of a meet is it?

drcurran has some really good advice, but some of it will vary a bit on the size of the meet.

#1 - This was implied, but just to make it clear, measure the bar before you start warmups. HS standards are often wayy off.
#2 - if it is a high school meet hosted by a high school then it will be the NFHS rule book. The coaches there should have a copy.
#4 - definitely make the meet management help you here. You don't want to have to recruit people.
#7 - very good advice. Make sure you have the runway set up at least 30 minutes ahead of time, and yell to the kids when it's ready. HS kids usually procrastinate about warming up.



If it is a small meet (just a few schools less than 15-20 vaulters per gender), then:
#3 - shouldn't be an issue. I try to avoid 5 alive with high schoolers at all costs. They have probably never seen it before and will get super confused, and if you are not an experienced official, you'll get confused.
#8 - For early season dual meets I don't time them. I tell the kids they have 90 seconds when I am going over the rules. It's usually only an issue if they abort without fouling more than once. If they stop, run back, try again and stop, I tell them they have one more chance. My HS had almost all home meets, so the past two years I've been doing a lot of HS officiating and never had it be a problem. If it's an invitational or championship meet definitely time them. Early in the season they are still learning the rules, and 90 seconds is usually no problem as long as they are ready when you call them up. For kids in other events, remind them that they have to check out with you when they leave. For running events, they can usually check in with the clerk at first call, then come back to the vault, then go straight to the start line. Make sure to let those kids jump out of order (another reason 5 alive is a nightmare for HS meets) so they can get their attempts in. Check with the meet director to see how long you should wait for them.



My other advice is know how to break ties! The first tiebreaker is misses at the height cleared. The second tiebreaker is TOTAL MISSES. There is no third tiebreaker. If there is a tie for first you can have a jumpoff to break the tie, but check with the meet director about if they want you to do that (sometimes they don't).

Also, know that the high school rules changed this year. If a high school kid aborts an attempt (runs down and tries to stop before taking their vault) it is not a miss if in the process of trying to stop their feet leave the ground (as long as they don't break the plane). It IS a miss if they take it up and front bun it. It is your discretion whether or not it looks like an attempt. That is different from last year, so make sure to remind the kids when going over the rules with them.

[1yeldud1]

1. I always have a set of home made tools to put up the cross bar with. I've used broken crossbars, broken poles, a pair of 1 by 2 boards about 5 foot long with nails driven in them, heck I've even used a couple of house hold brooms to replace the crossbar. LOL

2. I always measure and mark the pegs with a paint marker on the standards as far as what height they are with the standards all the way down before the meet starts - this will be a great help with making a quick glance to make shure the standards are set right.

3. Make shure that the standards will move from 15 1/2" to 32 1/2"

4. I always carry a can of spray lube to grease the standards and free up tight or stuck bolts, I also carry a plastic drink cup to dip out the box with, Always bring a roll of paper towls to wipe the box out if it has "nasties" in it, I always carry a plumb bob to insure that "0" is "0" as far as the standards settings go (be sure to hang the plumb bob off the FRONT of the cross bar when checking this measurement - the top edge of the back of the box !!!!!!)

5. Always have a series of vaulters ready - such as " Jones is up, Waters is on deck and Smith is in the hole

6. i always have a couple of pieces of chalk to mark the runnway with ( for competitiors who forget their's) -- I also always pull a 150 foot tape measure and tape it down on the side of the runnway before the meet starts so EVERY vaulter doesn't have to repeat this process

[belmore]

outstanding tips, only thing I can offer is to bring duct tape and a small first aid kit and pliers. Oh, if you can be there early enough, set two cross bars between two hurdles setting the just the bar on the hurdles right before the rubber ends. When the bar rolls to a neutral or hanging position make a mark on the top of the bar. Slide the hurdles out, set the flat end of the rubber ends on the hurdle and make sure they sit evenly, mark that with a sharpie so if the slip you can quickly adjust em and that they go up on the pegs the same way.