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Does it make much of a difference if you completely lock out your resisting arm compared to alot of bend with semi locked out arm.

My senior of vaulting has not been the same. I was jumping in the 13's my junior year. Moved up on a 175 pole compared to the 165 I used to jump on. Now my jumpings just been off. One thing I noticed on video were my arms. I was completely locking the arm out. Yet I was getting mucho bend. I really dont care about the bend, as long as i penetrate into the pit. Can the bend make much of a difference?

what you are probably doing with your "resiting arm" as you call it, is blocking yourself out, and never letting it collapse. There is a point in the vault where tha arm must bend to allow you to stay close to the pole, and get fully rocked back. And i guess, if you are looking at it from a "bend" standpoint, yes it can make a difference, because when it comes down to it, we are not pole benders, but pole vaulters. You need not worry about coming in there and trying to get huge bends every time you jump...work on your technique, and bending the pole will happen naturally. If you want penetration though, hold lower, jump off the ground, and push up.