CLCPV04 wrote:http://www.texastrack.com/pole_vaulting_article.htm
Nice Excerpts include:
"The objective is to bend the pole past 90 degrees (top of pole must be at least horizontal with the runway with both hands at least level with the runway while you are still on the ground.) The longer the pole the easier this becomes so don’t expect this too soon especially with short poles."
"The jumper must let the pole do most of the work, so bend it and let it throw you over the bar. The bigger the pole the more throw you will get at the top. The ideal position of the hands at your plant should have their front hand higher than their back hand. This can only be accomplished when they bend the pole over 90 degrees."
"[How does the vaulter bend the pole?]They simply keep the pole away from them as they run under the pole while planting. "
Now with out a doubt I am getting over my head and I am going to make an a** out of my self. With that said.
"The objective is to bend the pole past 90 degrees"
Well the real objective of pole vaulting is getting over the cross bar and having it still be there when the official raises the white flag. BUT in fact the pole does bend more then 90 degrees (at least in most/all of my jumps
www.fliptography.com/adam)
"The longer the pole the easier this becomes so don’t expect this too soon especially with short poles."
This little quote doesn't really have too much information but the length is kind of independent of how stiff a pole is. It is the flex. When the author was writing this he probably meant that the vaulter has more leverage on the pole. That is just a guess. Besides the point the high you hold the closer you are to the cross bar. If you can high then you don't have to push off near the amount.
"The jumper must let the pole do most of the work, so bend it and let it throw you over the bar."
Honestly, when I have a good jump thats exactly what I feel like happens. I run, jump and hold on for dear life. Once I let go of the pole I watch the cross bar and hope that it doesn't touch me. I know this isn't exactly true because when i work on technique with my amazing coach (lon), he tells me to do things and I do them while jumping.
"The bigger the pole the more throw you will get at the top."
Well. I know from my small amount of experence that when i get on a pole that is too big for me i go very high, then I end up landing in the box or on the front buns. Looking on the other side of the scale. when I am on a pole that is too small, I generally land in the very far back of the pit, occasionally falling off the pit and injuring my acromial clavicular joint. (when are they going to make those mats bigger!!) but my little side tracked story doesn't exactly refer directly to the quote. According to Brian Mondishine (i think), people stiff poled with simular push offs then with bending the pole. Besides, at reno I believe a speaker said that the pole does not "throw" you. I honestly do not know how that all works, I just benifit from it.
"The ideal position of the hands at your plant should have their front hand higher than their back hand. This can only be accomplished when they bend the pole over 90 degrees."
Depending what you call the "plant" makes this statement a little strage. I call the plant the final lowering of the pole. If your back hand is lower than your front hand then the pole tip would not make it into the box. If you called the plant when you are "driving" into the pole or what ever you would call it then it would make sense, the author is just repeting what he said in the first sentence.
"[How does the vaulter bend the pole?]They simply keep the pole away from them as they run under the pole while planting. "
My roommate Branon Banda is a prime example of this. The first time I saw him jump, he jumped 16'6" from 8 steps(4 lefts). He simply ran into the pole, literaly. Then the pole bent and he continued his attempt. This went on out whole practice and I was amazed. Personally I try to jump up at the plant, it is usually not that successful but in the case of my roomate, a 17' jumper it works.
By far that was my longest post. It may not make sense but I tried my hardest to do my homework for pole vault and skip out on ten minutes of my school homework, just for Alan!! Hopefully I get a good grade on this homework because my homework grades in my other classes aren't too hot. I honestly hope I helped some one or did somthing positive with this long post.
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