To Stiff Pole or Not to Stiff Pole?

[CAhighvaultage]

I just came back from practice which was primarily stiff poling and on the way back a question popped up in my head; if the purpose of stiff poling is to get your mechanics right so that when you bend the pole everything goes right, than why don't we just go ahead and bend the pole and work on the mechanics like that? You can probably get more short stiff runs in than you can long bending runs but that is the only downside in my eyes. Maybe I'm overlooking something...anybody have ideas as to why we stiff pole?

[altius]

[quote="CAhighvaultage"]I a question popped up in my head; if the purpose of stiff poling is to get your mechanics right.....

Pop the question right back where it came from -because you have already answered it. Yes indeed the purpose of stiff poling is get your mechanics right - for example it is very difficult to vault effectively with a stiff pole if you take off under. Then again vaulting on a stiff pole forces you to improve your swing - critical to effective vaulting on a flexible pole. If you do all your drills on flexible poles you will probably learn some bad habits such as taking off under and shortening the swing by picking both legs up bent etc etc.

That said make sure you include vaults - off 6/8 steps on a stiff pole over a bar at suitable heights - to help you build the rhythm and movement pattern of the entire vault.

Finally recommend to the take off test drill from six steps on a stiff pole. Simple. How high can you grip on the pole - measure it - and still drive t through so you can barely get on to the pad. Obviously start low and gradually push up your grip, Not only will this drill help tp increase the effectiveness of your take off but will be a good indicator of where you should be taking off from in a full vault.

[coachjvinson]

to begin with, in order to stiff pole well, the vaulter needs a good tall take off - reach with the upper arm fully extended - and a good vertical jump impulse in the take off - this is great foundational reinforcement for your ground up vault mechanics whether stiff pole or otherwise - basically, if your not doing the aforementioned well, then you will not vault to your fullest potential, at a minimum, stiff pole work reinforces this muscle memory and reveals how well the vaulter is executing this portion of the vault

[CAhighvaultage]

to begin with, in order to stiff pole well, the vaulter needs a good tall take off - reach with the upper arm fully extended - and a good vertical jump impulse in the take off - this is great foundational reinforcement for your ground up vault mechanics whether stiff pole or otherwise - basically, if your not doing the aforementioned well, then you will not vault to your fullest potential, at a minimum, stiff pole work reinforces this muscle memory and reveals how well the vaulter is executing this portion of the vault

Ok, that makes perfect sense. In response, the majority of our practices are stiff poling and I was wondering If we should also do some bent pole work too. I have two different coaches, the one who focuses mainly on stiff poling but throws bent pole in there some time with smaller sessions, and the other coach lets me do pretty much what I want to do. When I am with the second coach I take the opportunity to bend the pole and see how much I have progressed with the stiff pole drills. Is this the right thing to do or should I focus almost all of my practices on stiff poling?

[coachjvinson]

I would suggest to stay the course you are on, keep and maintain the training and work with the coach which emphasizes straight pole work and enjoy the freedom to plan the workouts with the other coach: you will need to make certain that you are not overtraining if you are vaulting numerous times each week and not vaulting in a fundamentally different manner from one workout to the next. You mentioned saving the legs during straight pole workouts, I am inferring that is due to the shorter runs: short runs are a great way to manage the training week and your intensity during the week. The great thing about straight pole work and vaulting from short runs is that it reveals if the vaulter has any movements which inhibit the momentum of the swing: you cannot simply rely on the energy of the run to get you into the pit. Also, because the vaulter has reinforced ideal and fundamentally sound run and plant/jump mechanics through repetition in the short runs, the vaulter is able to, in essence, do this part of the vault more automatically and confidently as the run is lengthened and the run speed is increased. In theory, as a result there are fewer mental distractions and anxiety that accompany increased speeds and higher vaults: the athlete is able to concentrate in a more efficient manner on the air work which is arguably the more technical aspect of the vault. Train your run and your plant in a systematic and repeatable manner and the rest is CAKE... not really, but you get the idea...

[coachjvinson]

When I am with the second coach I take the opportunity to bend the pole and see how much I have progressed with the stiff pole drills. Is this the right thing to do or should I focus almost all of my practices on stiff poling?

This is great IF it is with the same mechanics utilized in your PROGRESSIONS ie straight pole/short run, the bend should result from the increased run speed and the load placed on the pole following the vertical takeoff and subsequent swing initiation - all of the mechanics that you are building and reinforcing in the PROGRESSION part of your training.

[rainbowgirl28]

How often are you vaulting with each coach? Does coach #1 know you vault with coach #2?

[botakatobi]

Not to create confusion, but the stiff pole greats intentionally did not plant tall. They bent their arms to absorb the shock of takeoff. I have extensive pictures and lecture by Warmerdam who preached bent arms at takeoff. Again, I'm not suggesting this at all today!

[coachjvinson]

Not to create confusion, but the stiff pole greats intentionally did not plant tall. They bent their arms to absorb the shock of takeoff. I have extensive pictures and lecture by Warmerdam who preached bent arms at takeoff. Again, I'm not suggesting this at all today!

Thats good to know, thank you - that is an area I can definitely know more about, the historical milestones and developments of the sport

[altius]

Not to create confusion, but the stiff pole greats intentionally did not plant tall. They bent their arms to absorb the shock of takeoff. I have extensive pictures and lecture by Warmerdam who preached bent arms at takeoff. Again, I'm not suggesting this at all today!

True!! However what is critical is that they tried to take off out and they emphasised the importance of the swing after take off - important elements in flexible pole vaulting. What is not always recognised is that one of the advantages of flexible poles is that the shock of the pole hitting the box -which stiff pole vaulters had to deal with in the way you suggested - is amortised as the pole flexes away from them. So they can take off as tall as they can possibly manage - including as Bubka indicated in Jamaica - by actually being fractionally in the air when the pole tip hit the back of the box. A movement that by our calculations increased his pole ground angle by 5 degrees.

[CAhighvaultage]

How often are you vaulting with each coach? Does coach #1 know you vault with coach #2?

The coach that focuses on stiff poling, I vault with 2 times a week and the coach that doesn't focus on stiff poling which is my school coach, I vault with him 1 time a week right now but when the season starts I will vault with him all 5 days of the week.

[rainbowgirl28]

How often are you vaulting with each coach? Does coach #1 know you vault with coach #2?

The coach that focuses on stiff poling, I vault with 2 times a week and the coach that doesn't focus on stiff poling which is my school coach, I vault with him 1 time a week right now but when the season starts I will vault with him all 5 days of the week.

I strongly recommend not vaulting 5 days a week during the season and especially not vaulting 5 days with your school coach and 2 days with a club coach on top of that. Legs need time to recover, even for healthy young high schoolers.