Flying Tigers invite is unsafe for vaulters

[tim hutzley]

That meet sucked. The official only gave us two runs for warmups. after I waited about three hours for everyone else to go so I could come in she only gave me one jump. On every jump you would hit the ground cause the pit was too small, It was deffinitly not a legal pit. The standards bowed out at the top and the pegs bent down, so If you even tap the bar it falls. But the official made me most mad cause by the time i started jumping she wanted to go home, so any mistakes I made she called.

[Peepers PV]

What kind of mistakes are you talking about? Where was Flying Tiger Invite? But that is no fun- sorry you had to put up with that kind of sad officiating.

Here in fla this week and next week are our state meets, and unfortunately, throughout the state series we've had some shameful officials repeatedly and unreasonably DQ'ing people.

[rainbowgirl28]

That meet sucked. The official only gave us two runs for warmups. after I waited about three hours for everyone else to go so I could come in she only gave me one jump. On every jump you would hit the ground cause the pit was too small, It was deffinitly not a legal pit. The standards bowed out at the top and the pegs bent down, so If you even tap the bar it falls. But the official made me most mad cause by the time i started jumping she wanted to go home, so any mistakes I made she called.

If you're hitting the ground when you hit the pit, it sounds like a good meet to NOT jump in. I don't know what mistakes she was calling on you? All I can think of is wind, and I can say about that, is it's up to the official, they don't HAVE to call wind.

[jmayesvaultmom]

Jodie's school was supposed to jump at a meet last Tuesday in Springdale, Arkansas. When they got there, the standards wouldn't move back past zero and the opening of the pit around the box had about one foot of exposed concrete all the way around the box....with no box collar. The winds were very high and there was a crosswind. She decided not to jump and pointed out the things that were unsafe to the other vaulters. She told her coach and point blank said it was illegal without the box collar and not being able to keep the standards at 15 1/2 and back. They were going to try to pick up the standards every time!!! When one of the hosting coaches asked her whether they were going to vault, she flat told him their setup was not legal. They cancelled vault. With those crosswinds and the standards on zero, someone would've ended up in the box!

[hurstiger]

Excellent!!! Unsafe conditions should be pointed out to the unknowing. Congrats on passing up a chance to vault even though you've worked for that opportunity all week. I wonder how many would just "overlook" the problem just to jump????

[Carolina Extreme]

You did the right thing Jody. You may have also prevented someone from getting seriously injured.

As much as vaulters want to compete, you have to know when to say "No". If the conditions are bad, remember this.... Hurt vaulters don't win meets or advance to state finals.

We had a meet a few years ago, that the conditions were unsafe. The pit was to small and there was concrete curbing standing up about six inches high, two feet from the pit, not to mention the steel drainage grate by the side of the pit. I pulled Chase from the competition and tried to pull the others, but the head coach insisted that the others vault anyway. So I refused to run it off and left. Before I left I told our throwers to line the back of the pit in case someone flew off. It's a good thing they did because one of the guys caught a vaulter as he flew off the back. I made sure that place was mentioned in the statewide newspaper article about PV safety as being unsafe. They quit vaulting there until they upgraded. Made the coach mad because he had to try and defend himself.

[Rhino]

I have to disagree here. When I was in high school (small Missouri school in the mid 70's) we never vaulted on anything nearly as safe as the pit you describe until state meet. I had my entourage gather around the pit when I vaulted and always landed on my feet. Never saw anyone get hurt.

I watched Joe Dial and Greg Duplantis vault at the Golden South in Winter Park, Florida in '81 or '82. There was no top pad on the pit, and they debated whether or not to leave the weather cover on to keep them from falling through the cracks. They both cleared 17' 4" without incident.

The pits were routinely dragged back a foot and a half for the good vaulters so the front of the pit wouldn't inhibit pole bend. Pits were never move than 16' wide.

Sure, you have the right to not vault, and the right to call the failure to conform to standards to the official's attention, but I wouldn't celebrate it.

[Carolina Extreme]

I have to disagree here. When I was in high school (small Missouri school in the mid 70's) we never vaulted on anything nearly as safe as the pit you describe until state meet. I had my entourage gather around the pit when I vaulted and always landed on my feet. Never saw anyone get hurt...

...Sure, you have the right to not vault, and the right to call the failure to conform to standards to the official's attention, but I wouldn't celebrate it.

Pole vault safety rules are in place to prevent serious and catastrophic injuries. We do not need to do anything, for a few points or selfishly for a record, that might risk serious injury or the demise of the event, as has been the case in some states already.

Most of us jumped in unsafe conditions in the 70's, because we didn't know any better. We were very fortunate if not seriously injured. I landed on my head on a steel base that our pit sat on (that might explain some things today ) and I was three feet to the right of the box, which is padded today.

By making an issue of it, I may have prevented serious or castrophic injury from happening. SAFETY FIRST! The athletes are worth a hell of a lot more than a few points. I am not celebrating it.

[rainbowgirl28]

Most of us jumped in unsafe conditions in the 70's, because we didn't know any better.

Mmm well that and there weren't usually safer things available.

Pits have grown increasingly safer. The fact is, "back in the day", coaching was generally better. It HAD to be because the risk was higher.

But that is not where we are today. There are a million rules in place to make the pole vault as safe as possible. It's not worth it to jump in a place where you are at risk of getting hurt.

Sometimes a place that is safe for one person is not safe for another. Plenty of high school kids jump at Shoreline Stadium without problem, but when Matt Phillips jumped there a few years ago (he's the guy in orange and blue on the front page of this website), he bottomed out on the pits and hurt his back. Now when we have the Seattle International there, we drag the pits and indoor runway from UW, just to make sure no one else gets hurt.

You can argue that if a kid has good coaching, it shouldn't matter if the pit is too small or if there is exposed concrete or anything like that. But the truth is, accidents happen. The best equipment in the world can't keep anyone completely safe, but if a facility is an unnecessary risk to you, it's really not worth it.

[cnfsedcaligal]

flying tiger....yeah, the lady that was trying to use the "5 alive" system....their set up is in need of some help, they actually had extended the pit this past year that you are talking about, it's just about a billion pieces, they don't acutally have vaulters at the school there..i believe it's at hemet high school...i was more concerned about the 4 inch gap between the end of the runway and the box.... the standards where very touchy....but none of that bothered me more then the officals voice and the fact she had no idea what she was doing.... if she had at least let someone who knew how to run it help her, then it would of been better.... but there is only so much you can do....i remember a few people coming back down the run way....but that can and does happen alot of places... she was calling weird stuff.... but to vault sometimes you have to just go and talk to them, correct it and go again....if you love it it's worth it to put up with high shreaking voices of a lady that should of been selling tickets or refreshments, not running the pole vault pit. It is however a really good run meet over all...