What happens to a pole when?

[Robert schmitt]

I Started coaching at a local high school 3 years ago and was given a delapitated pole vault progam. Most of the poles were 10 yr+ old pacer III. there are a few that are....umm wierd. It seems like there is no deffinate soft side any more. When you roll the pole in your hand and let it settle the same side never comes up. I don't let anyone jump on them any more after that fist year. Now I started coaching there with three wks left in the season and two of the guys were vaulting with the wrong side as the soft side!! I assume this probably ruined the bend charactoristics of the pole. I was curious since we have so many guys in the know. What happened to these poles, and are they good for anything other than tent posts . ( I Still have kids do pole runs with them, when we don't have enough poles to go around).

[VaultFreak]

I am a senior in high school and I am no expert, but here goes... Yeah, those poles stink. But they definitely are good for planting and running drills and such. I don't think, however, that a pole can "lose" it's soft side. And I think that those poles sound kind of dangerous, especially if you don't have the right ones for the vaulters. If you have no available resources to get new poles for the school, I suggest borrowing. I've done it at meets many times because I grew out of my pole and didn't have enough time in the season to get a new one, I guess. My coaches ordered two new poles for me this year. In Arizona we have many many very good vault programs and connections to get poles, and we have so many vaulters that it's not REALLY a problem (from what I've seen) to find a school/club that can lend them to you until you get your own, or if you have to practice on these poles, at least borrow from athletes at the meets, vaulters are very outgoing and nice so I don't think you'll have a problem. I could also just be full of crap.

[Robert schmitt]

Thank you for your reply
I'm working on our pole selection and I already borrow more poles from other schools than we have. I also coach other schools vaulters if they contribute at least one pole a year to us. Thier vaulters always have priority over a new pole but after that kid graduates it becomes one of ours. It's kind of my fee for coaching and use of our pits/ runway etc...

Any way I know these pole are not probably safe just for the fact that you may carry it wrong because the bend in the pole varries. I'm not saying the soft side changes. I'm just wondering if the sale/sail piece (I'm not sure which sail is correct) get damaged when bent improperly.

[PVJunkie]

The Pacer III pole is responsible for more WORLD records than any other pole there young man ("THOSE POLES STINK"). When storing poles, if they are not stored properly for extended periods of time, you can alter the soft side (some of this depends on the temp. conditions also). Stor poles upright or flat, supported in at least 2 spots (with a span of approx 60% of the over all length of the pole) and do NOT set or hang anything from them. If there is no damage to the pole (nicks, scrapes, bruises etc) then their should not be a problem with useing them. If you are in doubt we here at Gill can do a pole recertififcation for you. We bend it on our mach (ALL CO. THAT MAKE POLES HAVE A BENDING MACH), if it breaks........ we dont charge you the recert fee but we dont replace it for free either, trim it to length, flex it, mark it sticker it, tip it and add a topper to it. Heck, if you take all the old tape off of it we will even wrap it with a fresh layer of base tape and put a new sticker on it. We only do this for our poles though. NO SPIRITS PLEASE.

[Robert schmitt]

What happens to the pole if stored or used improperly that causes it's soft side to be altered. (What physically changes in the pole due to this abuse?)

[PVJunkie]

Take curved stick from your yard and weight it down so the bend is taken out of it, it doesnt have to be anything drastic, but time and pressure will take its toll. The stick will straighten or even bend in another direction. It does not change the physical proporties of the pole (or the stick). Its still the same on the inside and the soft side of the pole SHOULD still be in the same place. The problem comes when you assume that the sag in an old pole is the soft side and try to vault on it that way. There is a physical (sag) soft side and a mechanical soft side to all poles. If the two are not lined up you will get twister poles or even stiffen the pole slightly. Stiffening the pole that way is bad because it will want to spin and you are bending the pole in a direction that it was not designed to be bent. By doing this the pole is far more likely to break than by useing the mechanical soft side. How do you find the mechanical soft side you may ask?! You can look for it a couple of ways. On a Pacer, Skypole, Mystic or Carbon you can look at the top of the pole. there are marks engraved into the glass showing the top and bottom of the soft side. Line the marks up (they are made at the factory the day the pole is made) and you are on your way. All co. put the stickers on the poles so the label faces away (on the stretch side) from the soft side or into (on the compression side) of the pole. So really nothing mechanical changes about the pole but physically it isnt giving you good info.

later, B

[rainbowgirl28]

Wow! That is very interesting... I have used some poles before that felt like they should bend one way... but if I used them that way it always twisted somewhat in my hands. Now I know why!

[Robert schmitt]

PVJunkie, I was hopeing you would respond. That was just about as perfect of an explanation as I could and did ask for.

Thank you

[PvaultinGirl]

wow. i know this thread is kinda old and all but i find it really interesting about the old pacer III poles. that's because that is what i use. A VERY old pacer III pole that's about 13'6 and is for 120lbs. it's great and i have always wondered why there are those little grooves at the top of the pole. i thought that most poles were made so that when the sticker-side faces down before you start you run, then you have it positioned correctly. hmm....weird. I just thought that it was some kind of coincidence the way the sticker faces (so that i know if i have it right or not) and that my coach was just making it up when he told me that.

[vaultin chris]

we dont charge you the recert fee but we dont replace it for free either, trim it to length, flex it, mark it sticker it, tip it and add a topper to it. Heck, if you take all the old tape off of it we will even wrap it with a fresh layer of base tape and put a new sticker on it. We only do this for our poles though.

Can u post more info on this recertification process, cause we have loads of old pacers 3's. Also i have bunch of old sky pole and catapoles how much would u recommend i sell them for.

[VaultFreak]

This is a bit of a delayed reaction, but I am a young woman thank you very much...

[hardflex]

usually when you find poles that old that aren't in someones bag, they were probably twisters to start with. that's why nobody used them up.