PVDaddy wrote: I was referring to the initiation of that swing after the shoulder girdles are arrested and the full body coil is loaded. ...
Hmm ... I know that the shoulder girdles are the collar bone (clavicle) and shoulder blade (scapula), but I don't know why you're worried about the BONES. Why not just say "shoulders", which refers to just the muscles? It's the muscles that do the work! And why are the shoulder girdles arrested? Bad technique is not a crime, it's just a misdemeanor!
And I know what you mean by "full body coil", but I don't see the need for those words. Why not just say "stretch"? (This is a rhetorical question - please don't answer.)
I sure hope you're not using these terms on your proteges!
PVDaddy wrote: Does not the stretch-reflex action of the entire body coil occur naturally and automatically and the swing is therefore self initiated?
No. It's not like a fully compressed or fully stretched metal spring. These are human body parts that you're stretching (the muscles - not the bones, so why mention the bones?), and YOU have to control them! Another way to say this is that unless you keep all your muscles stretched, taut, and controlled by YOU, the timing and direction of this gymnastics movement isn't going to be optimal.
PVDaddy wrote: ... if it is and you just let nature run its course you would not have to be concerned with timing it.
Coach Vinson already answered this, but my answer is the same. YOU must take the initiative on this, not just "let things happen". I do see what you're getting at, but "letting nature run its course" doesn't really help at the elite level. At the beginner level, yes, but the higher you vault (or want to vault), the more you need to MAKE things happen in all of your gymnastic movements on the pole, rather than just LETTING them happen.
PVDaddy wrote: I believe you have also answered that in your reply and say that it is not, but must be timed, as learned from countless high bar swing drills.
So let me clarify a bit by way of an analogy with sprinting. Do sprinters "time" each stride? Well, yes and no. They won't be able to tell you the exact number of milliseconds each stride takes (unless they divide their 100m time by the number of strides they took). But that's not the kind of timing I'm referring to.
I'm referring to "knowing" (intuitively) the precise moment that you take each stride. And there is a precise moment. Just as one stride is finishing, you (intuitively) know exactly when to begin the next stride. So in that way, you are "timing" your strides. Ditto the time at which you start your "full body whip".
Now I think what you might be asking me is: "If it's timed, then how long do you wait before you start your whip?".
I've tried to explain this, but you're not getting it yet. So let me ask you: "If a sprinter is timing each stride, then how long does he wait before he takes the next stride?".
OK, that's another rhetorical question, so I'll just give you the answer ...
You DON'T wait! You do it as fast as you can! And the faster you can put one foot in front of the other (sprint), the faster your 100m time will be!
Ditto with the whip. You don't wait at all! If you wait, you will not start whipping and swinging early enough!
And I've said it before, but I'll reiterate for emphasis: This is not to say that you don't fully stretch before you whip. (If you did, you'd be pulling a la the 640 Model). You MUST do a full stretch, and then IMMEDIATELY pop/whip back out of it! When? AS QUICK AS POSSIBLE!
There is no such thing as doing this TOO quickly!
Kirk