drills to learn a proper plant (mostly rigid bottom arm)

[marshall]

how is my plant supposed to look like. from what coaches have told me my plant seems to be decent.

3rd to last - pole parallel with runway
2nd to last - pole up to head level
last - pole up high

the things that i notice myself doing wrong on my plant are that my bottom arm collapses, my trail leg is hardly ever straight, my lead toe is not flexed up, and i dont keep upright long enough.

more recent videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RzLJyjCGWI

back in august, 11'1 on fresh legs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BivGFLlkwec

couple weeks ago, attempt at 12'3. bottom arm collapses again, but this is the second time i've used that pole so its still a transition.

[powerplant42]

You drop your left hand too far down during your plant, which makes the planting motion hurried... You also turn your shoulders like the pole is an 18' 350.

[marshall]

i noticed the shoulder thing too. wow hahah i'm guessing that costs me some pole speed...

[quick]

Sorry to bring this topic back after so long.

powerplant- Is a late plant the main factor in taking off under the pole?

[powerplant42]

Not necessarily, but if you have a very late plant it is EXTREMELY difficult not to run yourself under. But I guess I would rate it as the most common reason people are under (if you remove being TAUGHT to take off under...)!

[quick]

Thanks. Also, back to the question, what would be good drills to work on a proper plant when a vaulter is not jumping from a full run, regular heights, etc (I've heard it is wise to sometimes practice from a shorter run with lighter pole, focusing on form, so that the vaulter can get more jumps in a practice). I think these days would be perfect for working on a proper plant, even if it is with a lighter pole and a shorter run.

I was at a meet a couple months back watching these kids who were not big by any means (more on the small side), completely blow through 14-15 ft. poles, clearing around 15-6. They were pretty fast but I wouldn't describe it has blazing speed. Are they just incredibly strong for their size? Or are they just doing something that others their age weren't. I know it takes time to work through pole sizes/weights but are there any drills, workouts, tips on improving the plant, therefore moving on to bigger poles?

Sorry if this is the wrong thread.

[KirkB]

Not necessarily, but if you have a very late plant it is EXTREMELY difficult not to run yourself under. But I guess I would rate it as the most common reason people are under (if you remove being TAUGHT to take off under...)!

Hmm ... which came first ... the chicken or the egg?

While a late plant and being under are flaws that often occur in the same vault, they're actually 2 distinctly different problems ...

Quite simply, being UNDER means that your steps are off. Either you overstrode ... or you didn't start from the right mark on the runway ... or didn't hit your midmark ... or some combination of these 3.

A LATE PLANT ... on the other hand ... is simply the result of not getting your top arm fully extended by the time the pole hits the box.

You can have a late plant if your steps are under ... because your timing is off ... and you haven't yet fully raised your top arm by the time the pole hits.

But if you plant late, this is highly unlikely to cause you to overstride ... causing you to be under.

You see ... they're unrelated.

Kirk

[rainbowgirl28]

I disagree Kirk, my experience as both an athlete and a coach is that when an athlete is late getting their hands up, their body will subconsciously respond by striding out at the end to try and give them a little more time to get it up.

You can definitely have other reasons for the run being off, but it's hard to take off in the right spot with a late plant (and it doesn't do much good anyway).

This would be a good thing to look for if the MID is on but the takeoff step is under.

[KirkB]

... when an athlete is late getting their hands up, their body will subconsciously respond by striding out at the end to try and give them a little more time to get it up. ...

Your experience might be different than mine ... and that's OK ... but in my experience ... things happened so fast at plant/takeoff time ... that whenever I was under, I didn't have time to fully stretch my top hand up. I never realized this until it was too late. I was under ... but didn't realize it ... so CONSEQUENTLY I didn't get my top hand up in time.

The reverse ... which you say is your experience ... would be if you REALIZED that "you're late in getting your hands up" ... you would CONSQUENTLY subconciously stretch out your step.

I just never had that experience. For me, I found out that my plant was late when the pole hit the box ... not before. Of course, if I hadn't finished my plant, then I also hadn't finished my takeoff, meaning that my takeoff foot was still on the runway ... and it was too late to fix it ... no matter what I did.

Incidentally, the time I landed on my face the track was one of those rare decisions I made where I decided to try to finish the vault ... even though I was under. Stupid decision! I cleared the bar at 15-6 on that jump, but I also cleared the pit.

Perhaps the difference between our experiences is that (by intent) I finished my plant AT THE SAME TIME as I stretched off the ground during my takeoff and THEN the pole hit the back of the box, whereas maybe (by intent) you finished your plant before you took off? So maybe you didn't normally do a free takeoff?

Kirk

[altius]

If split gets a clinic organised at his high school in early June I suggest you come to it!!

[vault3rb0y]

A late plant and being under and definitely related, and fixing one can sometimes fix the other! Think about reaching for the box with your hands, not your feet. I know this sounds flawed but this mental attitude will make your hands speed up over your head, and if you have done enough plant drills, it also automatically keeps you from over-striding your last 3 steps.

[marshall]

hey guys thanks for answering my questions. i appreciate it.


well i figured out the answer to my question (putting up bottom arm) on my own eventually and it turned out a matter of just doing it. just punching out the pole and looking at my left hand in front of me. my plant has got much better over the last year or so, although its a little inconsistent - sometimes i'll get my arm all the way up, sometimes a little broken in. i started blowing through my poles after i finally hit my plant and now i'm scrambling to find something for league and city, etc.

this was me a couple weeks ago:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdfCm6zQ67M


pole is a 14' 170 spirit. i was holding around 13'7 or 13'8, very close to the top.


the problem i have now is that i'm hitting my plant and my swing is stagnant since im not used to a pole returning so quick. im working on keeping my arms moving throughout my takeoff and rolling onto my back quicker. i haven't been able to get vertical on my vaults yet. =/

EDIT:

i just got the pole i ordered last month and i PRed on it a few days ago. its a 14'6 165 carbon with a 18.9 flex. grip is about the same 13'8 or 13'9:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2t1Gu7kkcg

here's a better view of the last jump at 14'1:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YreUfWX8-m0