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the plant, drive and swing phases are probably the most important phases of the vault. with out executing those phases correctly it is nearly impossible to put a maximum amount of energy into the pole. But what is the correct body positioning to capture that energy. at takeoff the foot should be directly under the rear. once the vaulter is off the ground I believe you should attempt to not only swing your trail leg into a rocked back position but also to extend your lead leg downwards toward the box. not so much that you've lost the penetration in your knee but enough to achieve seperation between the lead and trail leg. I believe that executing this motion will allow the vaulter to create more energy and achieve a greater swinging motion. If I am not correct in my thinking then I would like to know what motion can allow the vaulter to achieve seperation to allow a greater swing.

undertaker wrote:...but also to extend your lead leg downwards toward the box. not so much that you've lost the penetration in your knee but enough to achieve seperation between the lead and trail leg.

wow. you scared me for a second. I'd like to re-emphasize the KEEP YOUR DRIVE KNEE UP part of that...

At the Reno Pole Vault Summit, Pat Manson asked my group the question: what is the most important part of the vault? It's the run because, without a good start, you have nothing.

He also emphasized the fact that the aim of pole vaulting is to go UP and over the bar, and so all movements of the arms in the plant, the lead leg drive, the chest, etc. should be moving towards that goal. I would think that anything against that general motion would only hurt, not benefit, your energy moving through the swing and rock phases.

If you are looking for a larger/more powerful swing, don't drop your lead leg down. Instead, think of about attaining the "C" position with your trail leg and making sure that both legs are engaged in a powerful swing (the trail with the extended whip, the lead leg with the bent drive) to inversion.

Ok, rip it apart

undertaker wrote:the plant, drive and swing phases are probably the most important phases of the vault.

The drive is NOT a phase of the vault. Rethink your technique.

Like spinning in a bar stool, if you extend your arms you will spin slower and when you pull them in tight you spin faster.

Therefore if you drop your drive leg you will swing slower.

I've seen a lot of the more tall, lanky vaulters drop their lead knee, and I'm not really sure why they are the group that most commonly does it. I assume its because since they have a better takeoff angle than the rest of us, they can get away with not having to jump up nearly as much.

Also, I think some people believe it is helpful to drop the lead leg because it keeps the center of gravity low earlier in the vault, and helps to bend the pole more. This very much hinders the swing though and doesn't necessarily aid in rotating the pole. An example is Jeremy Scott...being 6'9" certainly helps rotate the pole by itself, but he doesn't achieve the whipping swing that he could have if he kept his lead leg going up.

Pat Manson is also right, and I have worked with him a few times, in saying that everything must contribute to going UP, and that if your run (and swing) is well structured, that will take care of you getting in.

sometimes you might want to delay your swing, this might be a way of swinging up but slower. my coach however says to try to keep the trail leg back a little for a couple seconds before swinign it. IDK if its the same thing.

higherflyer:

Like spinning in a bar stool, if you extend your arms you will spin slower and when you pull them in tight you spin faster.

Therefore if you drop your drive leg you will swing slower.

I dont know if this is such a good example, because it could lead me to think that maybe if I didnt keep a straight trail leg, then that would be good because I could swing faster.


To Euroeva:

I would say try to reach your trail leg back farther after you take off instead of thinking about delaying the trail leg, which is a very inactive way to think about it. This will not slow your swing down, but will actually speed it up. Basically the farther back you get your trail leg, the more power it has when it recoils during the swing, so it will happen faster. But again, I think it is better to think about reaching your trail leg back as far as you can instead of thinking about delaying the swing.

fx wrote:higherflyer:

To Euroeva:

I would say try to reach your trail leg back farther after you take off instead of thinking about delaying the trail leg, which is a very inactive way to think about it. This will not slow your swing down, but will actually speed it up. Basically the farther back you get your trail leg, the more power it has when it recoils during the swing, so it will happen faster. But again, I think it is better to think about reaching your trail leg back as far as you can instead of thinking about delaying the swing.

yea that's what I ment. he is always telling me to reach back but I always forget to.

The most important part is the ability to put it all together. Think of the vault as one continuous action. The greatest vaulters of all time were guys that didn't just do one phase well. They did the entire vault well.