Am I Ready For Pole Vault?

[Colin W.]

I'm currently a junior in High School and I've been thinking of trying out the Pole Vault sometime this year during my Outdoor Track season. I'm just curious to see if others think I'm physically ready to pole vault and not flat out embarrass myself trying. I know this is more of a technique event over anything, but seeing how I've never vaulted before I figured I could just list off a few things about my build/strength.

-I'm 6 feet tall
-I weigh 142 pounds right now, usually i'm 140 or slightly below during my running seasons.
-I run XC, PR for a 3 mile race was 17:37 (I had a hip injury at the time though)
-I also run Indoor and Outdoor Track, and I usually run the 800 and will sometimes run the mile or the 400. My mile PR is 5:07, 800 PR is 2:14, and my 400 PR is low 59 (all indoors, still resting during my practices to recover from an injury so I wasn't in the best shape I could've been in)
-Since I run basically all year round I have a rather lean build. My arms aren't that big but I'm decently defined. Most weight I've benched was 155 pounds 8 times, haven't bothered trying anything more for lower reps. I can do at least 75 push ups and the most chin ups I've done has been 24.
-I try not to workout my legs too much, at least not in season, because that's what caused my last injury so I don't want to have that backfire on me again. I feel like the workout my legs need is achieved through my runs.

That's pretty much all I've got for general stuff. If anyone could give me their opinions, advice on what workouts to focus on the most, etc... that'd be great. Thanks!

[rainbowgirl28]

It has a lot more to do with how coordinated you are and how well you can jump off the ground. Pole vault takes a long time to learn, so if you want to try it, you need to tell your coach right away. You can't just wander over there halfway through the season.

[Colin W.]

My season starts next week so I'm planning on asking him within the first day or 2. We won't be able to actually practice pole vault until the snow melts, which should be in 2-4 weeks, but until then I'd imagine we'd do a lot of drills to prepare us for it. I'll have to look into some ways to improve my jump off the ground though because mine isn't anything special, maybe just a little above average. Thanks for the advice!

[rainbowgirl28]

Anytime you are in the gym, practice jumping off one foot and touching the basketball hoop. As you go through the day, if there is something that is high, try to jump off one foot and hit it

[KirkB]

Anytime you are in the gym, practice jumping off one foot and touching the basketball hoop.

But start by trying to touch the net!

Then work your way up to the hoop ... and don't be discouraged if it takes you a couple years before you touch the hoop.

Please report back to us how high on the net you're able to touch ... now and maybe next fall. You'll have to also tell us how high you can clear in the HJ. LJ and TJ are also good events for improving your spring off the ground in PV.

While you're waiting for the snow to melt, test yourself on a standing LJ ... with a 2-legged takeoff ... and report back to us on your distance.

It's a good idea to try these tests every few months ... so you can watch your progress ... and give yourself some incentive to improve.

Kirk

[MattM]

I was 90 pounds and 5'5 as a freshman, and my best 100 meter time in the season was 13.83. My vaulting PR for that season was 11'6, which for a freshman I'd have to say isn't too bad.

Pole vaulting takes a lot of coordination, you look far better physically than I did physically. If you put the time in and the effort to improve, of course you can be a pole vaulter.

[vault3rb0y]

can you be a 16' vaulter in a year? Probably not. Can you get a lot better, and being 6'0 and clearly athletic enough to run mid 17's in a 3 mile (although different types of training, still shows athleticism) can you vault 13' with a good coach in a year? Probably . There are a lot of variables that come in to play, but you will NOT be embarrassing yourself.

[EIUvltr]

If you're already a junior then a "hockey player mentality" would be very beneficial. Basically if someone tells you to do something, you do it. If someone tells you to grab this fiberglass thing and run full speed and jam it in that metal boxey thing, and you say "okay" and do it... you're ready.