Poles for beginners

[birdi_gurlie]

I'm helping coach a HS pole vault team. Now, it's a little different than some because it's a homeschool team that practices in a park and has track/mat access once a week. But the part I need help with is deciding what poles they need. Because it's a homeschool team, they don't have any poles. We're not sure if we can borrow some from another school in the area. However, we are fairly close to a guy who rents out pole vault poles, about 1.5/2 hours away. That said, I'm a new coach. I know you don't want them bending the poles right away because they need to learn on a straight pole. What lengths are good? How close to their weight should the pole actually be?

[rainbowgirl28]

What are the kids like that you have? Boys, girls, heights, weights?

[birdi_gurlie]

I have 4 guys, 2 girls. I haven't gotten heights and weights but I plan to. (I know, shame on me!) I'll get it this Saturday, when I see them next.

I'm trying to do it the cheapest way possible...but also safely, obviously.

[Andy_C]

Yeah, will need details if you want others to help out.

For running and planting drills you can get basically any pole. Heck you can even buy some damaged poles that are too "at risk" to jump on for a heavily discounted price probably - you're not jumping on them anyway, just running and planting.

In terms of straight pole drills, if you can find some old school metal pole vault poles you can use them. They'll probably be impossible to find but cheap to buy (relatively speaking) since they're not being used anymore.

IMO, the most effective way is to aim to get poles that will start bending from 8-10 steps (4-5 lefts). That way you can work on straight pole drills where they matter the most, between 2-6 steps. And once you start pulling back into a full run up with a higher grip the bend will come naturally so you're getting two birds with one stone. That said, you'll need the athlete details to figure out what these poles will be!

You're going to have to know the kids really well (ie. where their grip will be at what distance) if you want to approach it like that. Otherwise I'm sure you can get some good general estimates if you give the height/weight/gender of the kids you're coaching.

-Andrew

P.S. Congrats on becoming a coach!

[birdi_gurlie]

Okay, I have 8 total; 4 guys, 4 girls. Of those, 1 girl and 2 guys forgot to get either height or weight and should be emailing it to me tonight.
Girls:
1-106lb, 5'4"
2-111lb, 5'2"
3-99lb, 5'2.5"
5-140, 5'6.75"

Guys:
1-156lb, 6'3"
2-141, 5'7" (brother of guys 3 & 4; will vault if he can share a pole w/ a sibling)
3-147, 5'5.75"
4-120, 5'7"

I'll add the 4th girl's and the last two guys' as soon as I get their emails.

Side note, could you list two potential options for each, in case the guy we're renting the poles from doesn't have the first choice? Guy 2 will only vault if he can share a pole with one of his brothers (he's not as serious or excited about it as his siblings).

Thank you all so much.

[rainbowgirl28]

Small vaulters so far! I will wait until you post the other ones.

[birdi_gurlie]

Thanks. Yes, they're on the smaller side; the team started as an XC team. They're trying to branch out now. One of the guys is fairly muscular, though he's somewhat short for a vaulter. I'm excited though because they're all very excited. And two of the girls are in 7th grade (a rarity in my state; there is no middle school teams in this state.) They're all excited and so far, they enjoy all the drills I've taught them, even if the drills look strange and we're doing them in public park! I'm very excited to work with the team.

[birdi_gurlie]

All right, all the heights and weights are up! These are all 1st time vaulters.

[rainbowgirl28]

If you're renting poles and for sure not buying, then you have a lot of flexibility. My advice is based on that...

Girls:
1-106lb, 5'4"
2-111lb, 5'2"
3-99lb, 5'2.5"
5-140, 5'6.75"

For girls 1-3, I would get an 11'120. They probably won't need anything different until they start being able to bend that, and they won't need to worry about making weight. Second choice would be an 11'110 for girls 1 and 3, and 11'130 for #2 or she can get an eating disorder trying to make weight for the 110.

If girl #4 is remotely athletic (let's say 100m dash under 14 seconds, can long jump more than ~14') then start with an 11'6 140. If she's really slow, start with an 11'140. Backup would be 12'140.

From there it just depends on how quickly they pick it up, but if you're renting, I would just cross that bridge when you come to it. And by come to it, I mean when they start bending and blowing through the pole.

Guys:
1-156lb, 6'3"
2-141, 5'7" (brother of guys 3 & 4; will vault if he can share a pole w/ a sibling)
3-147, 5'5.75"
4-120, 5'7"

Guy #1 - I would start with a 13'160, but with his height, if he has any speed he will probably need a bigger pole before the end of the season. Second choice would be a 13'6 160 or 13' 165.

Guys #2 and #3: 13'150. Second choice would be 12'6 150 or 13'155.

Guy #4 needs to eat more wheaties! 13'130 for him, second choice would be 12'6 130 or 13' 135.



Those are good poles to get them started... from there it's a matter of where they are holding and what's happening when they start blowing through. My guess is you'll probably be able to make it through at least half the season on those.

[birdi_gurlie]

Okay, I asked Altius and he said 11'6 or 12' x 110 and a 12/140 for the heavier girl and for the boys 13' x 160 and 12 or 13 x 120/130.

How does this sound:
Girls 1&3:11’ 110
Girl 2:11’ 120
Girl 4:11’6” 145 or 11’ 145
I don’t want to get too close to 4’s weight or under 2’s weight because I don’t know if they’re going to gain a pound or two. If 4 gains even 1 pound, she can’t compete on a 140 pole. I don’t know how strict weigh ins are in this area. She said she was exactly 140 so I don’t want to get too close to her weight.

Guy 1: 13’ 160
Guys 2 and 3: 13’ 150 or 13’ 155
Guy 4: 13’ 130 or 12’ 130
I’d go with 1, 3, and 3 sharing a 160 but if 1 may have to switch out in the middle of the season, it’s going to be hard to split the rental cost up and get more money from everyone. I’d rather 1 rent a different pole than have to get more money later in the season if he needs a different pole. It will be less confusing for everyone that way.

[rainbowgirl28]

Do you know what brand of poles you'll be renting? Spirit and Gill don't make 11' or 11'6 poles in 5ln increments.

Is guy 4 athletic at all? Most HS boys would move beyond a 12'130 pretty quickly.

[birdi_gurlie]

I don't know. I think he has a random variety of brands, though I know he has some by Gill.
Guy 4 seems athletic. He's skinny but he's a bit wiry. Not built like a sprinter but not quite built like a cross country runner either.