National Pole Vault Safety Certification

[rainbowgirl28]

Jan Johnson just got his national safety certification system in place. It is not required yet, but he hopes to have it mandatory nationwide within the next year or two. Go check it out.

http://www.pvscb.com/

They have not decided yet what they are going to do about states like WA that already have a safety certification program in place.

My only concern right now is that the cost (40 bucks) is a bit steep for those coaches who are really poor and their school won't cover it. I talked to Jan about that and mentioned maybe making the t-shirt and the HS rule book optional.

But yeah go check it out and post your thoughts!

[achtungpv]

It has always bugged me that the pole vault safety board is pretty much run by guys that stand to profit from the rules and equipment standards they come up with...equipment dealers and camp coaches.
It'll be interesting to see exactly whose pocket that $39.95 for safety certification goes in. Wait hold on...I'll give you a condensed version for $29.95...don't hold too high on too soft of a pole, make sure the facilities meet specs put down in the rules ten years ago, and don't be a dumb a**. There ya go. Feel free to mail me that cash or money order.

Just a personal opinion.

[zack]

Definitely a step in the right direction but I have to agree with achtungpv.

[Decamouse]

Being a bureaucrat one should understand that most things are not free - and he who provides a service -espicaaly on the front of the wave can charge for it - lets see - what is the cost of the Rule Book - that fee is small compred to many professional fees and lic. - and most important - if it helps the sport survive (helps keep insurance rates lower) then it probably is the "old cost of doing business"

[Robert schmitt]

Well I'll tell ya what it's like after sat. I'm going to the WA cert training that is req up in bellingham.

[Robert schmitt]

I think that training coaches on safty is very important, one question I have is why is the certification good for only one year. I don't think the world of pole vault safty is evolving at a rate that would require that freq. of recertifacation. In WA the cert. is good for three years.

[rainbowgirl28]

I think that training coaches on safty is very important, one question I have is why is the certification good for only one year.

Email Jan and ask him. jan@skyjumpers.com He'll probably say that he will be constantly updating the information, etc. I think the idea of paying 20 bucks every year to Jan is a little crazy...

[lonpvh]

I agree with Devereaux,
I'm not gonna take a certification until I know where that money is going to. Someone please find out. I'm getting suspecious of the rash of people looking to make quick money off of us. LB

[rainbowgirl28]

I would not recommend taking any certification until it actually means something. Right now none of this counts for anything...

[zack]

Well for Washington it will count next year.

[rainbowgirl28]

Well for Washington it will count next year.

The WA certification is a totally separate deal. And yes it will be required by the end of next year I think for WA coaches.

I meant that I would not recommend anyone pay 40 bucks for any online certifications that mean very little now.

[dstarkey]

Hey Guys,

This is Dean Starkey here. I am one of the directors for the PVSCB and want to help clarify some of your issues.

1. Frequency of certification- We biggest reason we think that getting certified annually will be to ensure that all new rules are learned by all coaches. However this is still up for debate and may change.

2. Cost of the certification- Both Jan and I make decent money in our normal jobs. For the past 5 months we have put aside a considerable mount of time and money trying to get this project off the ground. I have turned down many paying jobs over these months which I will probably ever fully recover. This will also be an ongoing job for us. No one is getting rich from this! It is costing us money.

Someone had to finally make the commitment to do someting like this but who has the time or money to spend? This is one of the reasons it has taken so long to get sometihing like this going. This was no easy task.

The cost to build the site was not cheap either. I have a developer that works for me at eSellSolutions that I normally hire out at $125 an hour working on this for a few months.

To date we have not personally recieved one penny in compensation and will not for quite some time.

It is time to make take safety to a level of professionalism rather than treating it like a hobby. Yes, its going to cost some money.

Where some of the money will actually be going-

Part time Salary- Jan Johnson
Part time Salary- Dean Starkey
Safety study grants - We provide grants for research into saftey issues.
Operating expenses- office supplies, administrative, advertising, postage,
etc.
Board meetings, Travel expenses, Clinincs,


We are also working on a way to help coaches and schools that have a very tight budget. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Regional Safety Certifications- We know there has been some work done
regionally on safety certification. However, this country needs an
nationally accepted program that has the ability to educate ALL coaches, in the basics of pole vaulting the same way. We cannot rely on individual regions, or clincs to do this on there own because their is no assurance that the curriculum taught at these events will be adaquate. Our plan is to build a nationawide network of coaching clinics and camps that help coaches and vaulters pass a national certification test. It is our hope that this will help reduce accidents and liability. We feel we can do this by offering a generic program that educates and tests vaulters and coaches the following areas:
1. HS rules
2. Safety
3. Basic skills progressions
4. Pole Vault Energy equation and landing in the PLZ

Our basic goal has been to develop a program whereby the beginning coach and or vaulter will be able to understand and participate utilizing basic pole vaulting techniques and concepts assuming they have never participated before the PVSCB course.

I welcome all comments.


Sincerely,

Dean Starkey
P.V.S.C.B
dean@pvscb.com