Field tests revisited

[altius]

When I put up the 'Field tests' topic i was not trying to carry out a piece of research. However what has emerged on this forum recently is immensely interesting and I believe has implications for the training of pole vaulters. For while the Field Test topic registered less that 150 hits and no responses, one dealing with the bench press quickly amassed over 5000 and one dealing with pull ups got over 1500!

To me this suggests a number of possibilities. The first is that many young vaulters have got their priorities wrong - they would rather look good physically than be good on a pole. The second is that few vaulters understand the impact that a program of field testing can have on improving their physical parameters and thus their performance in the vault - The phrase "What is technically desirable must be physically possible " sums this up. But what is needed is all round physical ability - as evidenced by the number of vaulters with decathlon or heptathlon in their background - not just success in isolated areas with limited relevance to performance in the vault.

Since i have outlined the advantages of field tests in a seperate chapter in BTB i am not going to restate them here. However to make the point i would suggest that one simple field test can have an infinitely greater impact on improving performance in the vault - especially with many of the younger vaulters who visit this site - than any number of bench exercises or pull ups.

The six step take off test is what agapit terms an auto corrective exercise in that as you try to test yourself, you will automatically improve your take off. Given that my observation of US vaulters suggests that the vast majority do not take off effectively this would seem to be important.
Recent comments about taking off flat and what appears to be a general the lack of understanding of this issue seem to confirm this view.

With the six step -three lefts - test you simply run in, plant and take off with a grip that you can easily get onto the pad - while keeping the body long behind the pole. However you then raise your grip on every jump -first by a hand then by three fingers ,two, and finally one finger - all the time trying to drive the pole to the vertical until you can only just land on your feet onto the front of the pad past the box. You then measure how high you have been able to grip and record that height. The next time you come to the test you can start two hands down from that and begin the same process. This test is not only a very good test of take off efficiency - one used by Bubka in the past - but it will force the athlete to improve their plant and take off - with little conscious effort on their part.

[Carolina21]

Altius,
For comparison sake do you know typical grips heights achived by say Bubka, 19fters, 18fters, 17 and so on? Basically something akin to DJ's mid mark chart. If you can achieve X grip from 3 lefts you should be able to jump X height PR.

[altius]

The rule of thumb Petrov applied was that whatever height you achieved from six steps - stiff pole naturally - was the distance from which you should be able to take off from using your full run. In Bubka's case this was 4.25 metres, In jamica in 2002, Sergey confirmed that they used this test.

As you know many vaulters simply allow themselves to be ripped off the ground with no attempt to actively drive the pole forward with an upspringing jump at take off. Unfortunately if they clear a height which enables them to achieve a short term goal -usually related to local performances - they are more than happy and see no reason to change what they are doing. I believe that this test will expose the limitations of their method and - combined with their performances in the long jump for example - may confirm that they are not achieving anything like their real potential in the vault. While i realise it is a lot more complex than this i believe that at the very least athletes will be encouraged to improve their take off by moving it OUT and making it more dynamic -this can only be beneficial -not only in terms of performance but also in terms of safety. The folk who land in the box are the ones who rely only on horizontal speed at take off, take off under, get ripped, compress the pole early and then get kicked up or back into danger.

What I am interested in doing now is precisely what you asked for -by getting vaulters to submit their results - in this and other tests -in order to build a wider range of correlations at all levels of perfomance.

[ryansanta]

If I'm reading it correctly, 6 step highest stiff pole grip = the takeoff mark for a full run vault. My highest grip was 12'6 meaning I can takeoff potentially from 12'6 on a 14-16 step run.? That's about right, however the farthest I've taken off from was 12'1.

[altius]

So you could theoretically improve your performance by taking off further out - and therefore using a higher grip.

[Carolina21]

Very interesting stuff, I had never heard of this correlatiopn until now. I will try this next week and see if my normal take off and grip height achieved are close.

[CrossBarHOpper]

does it have to be a stiff pole my flexible pole vault is 12'6'' and my 7 left take off mark is 11' . i dont think i did this right

[altius]

Yes it has to be a stiff pole! That prevents you from cheating at take off. However readers should note that I not saying this correlation exists at every level of performance - rather i am trying to find out what level of correlation exists across the board - with this test and others such as the long jump - in fact any training activity which relates to the vault. Remember at lower levels the biggest variable is in technique.

However this test may prove to be a useful guide for folk trying to improve their take off -and that should be just about everyone! If nothing else it will encourage vaulters to focus on their plant and take off and stop worrying about their performances in the 100 sprint or the bench press!

To clarify how simple it is - carry out the test -determine how high you can grip -put the pole down with the tip touching the back of the box - now place your take off foot level with the point of your highest grip - now take a pole and grip it vertically above that point. Clearly this is based on the notion that that is the optimum take of point. Since 80 % of US vaulters take off under this may present a problem. You cannot take off under in this test and hope to perform well -that is why it is autocorrecting - if of course you are 'autocorrectable'.

[SlickVT]

I think the rest of the world take off outside.

[baggettpv]

We have been using this same test for years now. One difference tho. We measure the difference between the standing top hand grip to the "In the pit straight pole takeoff" Grip..
My better jumpers are 6'+ over standing grip and boy when we do this (Starting in Jan) they really get competitive.
and yes what Alan says is right, and when you blend that with Dave Johnstons info you start to get an INTENSE FEELING for what must Happen at takeoff. The body jumps the pole to vertical in the same arc as the grip. The bigger the arc created the better the takeoff. doh...
How far over your standing grip can you still get into the pit?

Rick

[IndyCoach]

I have been doing this for about a month now as a drill we do one or two days a week to work on moving our pole to verticle and staying behind the cord. My better vaulters are able to about 8"-12" below ther normal hand hold and still penetrate with great inversion. This has been more beneficial in building confidence and teaching them how to move up off the top of the pole with power and not just use their swing momentum to carry them verticaly. Is this activity pictured in BTB? If so which page would i find it on to make sure we are doing it correctly.

[altius]

Figures 11.10 and 11.13 in BTB. But with the test the vaulter does not invert -just stays long behind the stiff pole and lands on their feet on the ---front edge --- of the pad. If they have maxed their grip, for that particualr take off, the pole should stop moving forward just as it gets to the vertical.