Unread postby vaultwest » Tue Jun 12, 2007 5:54 pm
Very interesting debate as always.
Personally I am a big bottom arm guy, but it has to be done properly which I think is what PV161 is trying to say.
In my 40 plus years of studying the vault I have seen vaulters be very successful with a passive bottom arm as long as the vaulter performs all of the other aspects of the vault extremely well. I have also seen vaulters vault well missing some elements of the proper takeoff but compensating for this by using a big bottom arm sometimes even blocking out with it.
To me the correct technical model has the athlete trying to put those two vault styles together and having a big bottom arm that is extended above the head and not blocking out in front and certainly not collapsing. The Athlete performs a free takeoff and leads with the chest, with both arms extending above the head. This not only allows the vaulter to effectively load the pole but also allows them to swing correctly.
The great small male vaulters almost all did this and Feofanova certainly does and at 5'3" and 115 lbs, vaulting on a 14'165lb pole clearing 16' is to me a pretty convensing argument. to say nothing of the Tim's, Greg's, Scott's, Jeff's and Joe's of the world.
Altius told me that once Bubka told him that if he could only tell a vaulter one thing to improve his vault whether he actually saw the vault or not, that he would say( and here I paraphrase and not quote) to drive both hands towards the crossbar throughout the vault. To me this sounds like what PV161 is saying.
Vault On
