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Blake Lucas Jumped 5.55m at an interclub meet on Saturday March 28th. This is a World Champs 'B' qualifier. Yet another great athlete developed by Mark Stewart.

Wow, now I'm getting really impressed. He's had a new PR in just almost every competition he's been in for a little while! I still remember seeing him about 1.5 or 2 years ago (before he went with Mark) and he was struggling to get 4.80ish. Can't wait to see how well he jumps in Adelaide.

Blake has loads more to come ... after he improves his technique.

I know some of you 18-year-old guys would die for a 5.55 vault like his, but he's only just begun!

Here's some of his flaws ...

1. Not square enough to the runway on the plant.
2. Takeoff is way under.
3. Poor body posture post-takeoff.
4. Takes too long to get to the C.
5. Delays the downswing too long after the C.
6. Bends trail leg way too much after the C.
7. Tucks trail leg too much too soon after the Whip.
8. There should be no tuck.

On the plus side ...

1. Fast on runway.
2. Aggressive takeoff.
3. Plant is high.
4. Good lead knee drive.
5. Drives the chest thru.
6. Doesn't press with bottom arm.
7. Good leg speed on downswing.
8. Only 1-2 frames in the flat back position.
9. Nice extension in unison with the pole.

Just think how high he'll fly once he fixes up a few of his technical flaws!

Kirk

He does have a handful of technical flaws but they've improved a lot.

One of his biggest problems was that he used to carry the pole very low during the entire run. Now it's much more improved but he still keeps the pole low for too long in my opinion.

He also has quite a problem with over-striding especially in his last steps. He really has to develop his stride turn-over rate so he could ramp up his cadence at the end of the run. He needs to be able to put more steps down while maintaining his top speed, this should really help to break him out of taking off under. Unfortunately, developing a very high stride frequency can be extremely difficult and people with this talent are more often than not born with an inert potential to achieve it (ie. sprinters). Still, just because something is difficult does not make it impossible!

He seems quite gutsy and REALLY tall, not 100% sure but I'd say he's about 6'4 or 6'5. I used to see him around a bit when he lived in Sydney but to be honest I really don't know him very well (maybe exchanged words once or twice), so I really can't be too certain. But as anybody can see from the video he's got great potential.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjpWnVX6__0&NR=1

It seems to me, that his take-off is very passive. Seems to get no lift at all. This jump in particular, and the result is obvious. Spectacular pole break.

Seems to get no lift at all. TRUE - But guys - does he do anything right at all?????????? In your expert opinions?????

KirkB wrote: On the plus side ...

1. Fast on runway.
2. Aggressive takeoff.
3. Plant is high.
4. Good lead knee drive.
5. Drives the chest thru.
6. Doesn't press with bottom arm.
7. Good leg speed on downswing.
8. Only 1-2 frames in the flat back position.
9. Nice extension in unison with the pole.

Kirk

altius wrote:Seems to get no lift at all. TRUE - But guys - does he do anything right at all?????????? In your expert opinions?????

Not an expert. Just an observation.

I concur some of Kirk's points:
1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

2: Take-off angle to flat (IMHO)
Over striding is probably the root cause of this. Unable to determine if he's under (can't stop the vid at the right frame), but it doesn't seem like it to me.

4: Seems to let go of his knee and foot (kinda like a long jumper)
I'd like his knee a little bit higher (fractions), and the foot too stay closer to his butt (close to his other knee, and stay there until he starts the extension).

To Kirk's point 8: Tucked position. I would not call him a "tuck and shooter" (more like Gibilisco). He just needs a bit more energy (improve take-off) to do it like Bubka or Isi (with an almost straight leg), so he resorts to tucking.

Plant is EXCELLENT. Almost textbook

He got a lot going for him, and I'm pretty sure we will see more from him. Hopefully.

altius wrote:Seems to get no lift at all. TRUE - But guys - does he do anything right at all?????????? In your expert opinions?????

My son jumped 5.49 at 18 years old recently. I have received plenty of e-mails saying what he needs to improve on. I take this as a compliment to him, think what these two guys will jump when they do improve!!!!

i'm no expert, but i see both of these guys being 19'+ within the next few years. They have plenty of flaws lol. If i got to the point where no one could tell me to fix something in the vault accept get faster and stronger, i'd be extremely upset and say "screw you, i can fix plenty!!" I dont think i need to worry about that for a while tho .

vault3rb0y wrote:i'm no expert, but i see both of these guys being 19'+ within the next few years. They have plenty of flaws lol.

Even Bubka and Isi have plenty of flaws. Just not as many as the rest of us!

Kirk