What are you doing to start your outdoor season.

[grandevaulter]

I hauled the pit outside today. Set it up on skids and started cleaning up my indoor practice areas. I know that I've got a jump on the other schools in our league for the fact that I was able to set up inside. I still don't feel like I got enough accomplished with the new batch of vaulters. Between the seven day no contact period, spring break, flu and every reason that a kid could come up with, it just seems like too many lost days. But that's me, never satisfied and always wanting just a little more.

First outdoor meet for my Varsity team is this Wednesday and I'll sneak over to my daughters junior high meet on Tuesday and watch her vault. (I might be coaching her too). Anyone have any comments on what they are doing or did with the late winter and the start of their outdoor season. Seems the coaches forum is quiet lately. Anyone have a good coaches story ?

[grandevaulter]

Helloooooooo ! Any coaches out there that care to share ? It's rainy here today. Doesn't look good for outdoor practice.

[vcpvcoach]

I feel your pain, brother. Looks like we will dodge to today's rain because it's headed towards you. Same problems here in the Land of Lincoln. Could be worse, I have a house up in Door County, Wisconsin were I grew up and as of a week ago they had a foot of snow on the ground. Midwest vaulters have a tough go of it. I moved here from California and I will never forget the first year I was here. We had a mild winter with little snow. In April, we went out to the track to warm up. It started to snow and all I could like is, "I'm not in Cali any more."

[grandevaulter]

It's probably snowing in northern Wisconsin right now. Our state meet performances are often tied to the length of cold weather. They're calling for snow here on Friday.

[grandevaulter]

Well, so far every meet has been rain / snowed out. We're halfway through the season and have not competed in a regular format meet. I did get to see my daughter vault in her meet this week, so I got my track & field fix. Hoping to attend a relay meet on Friday night. Forecast is cold. Still managing to get some things done in practice. This beats arguing on the advanced forum.

[vcpvcoach]

Was up in northern Wisconsin last weekend. Six inches of snow and it snowed all day on Saturday into Sunday. Talked to my friend who works at the high school and they have not contested a single sport so far this spring. They are talking about eliminating regional and sectional tourneys to qualify for State.

Went to a meet last week and it was misting with no wind. I had half a dozen beach towels, a dozen trash bags, and plenty of caulk/ stickum. I had enough for all of the vaulters to keep them safe only to have had the AD cancel the vault. I planned on letting the vaulters warm up and, then, decide if it was unsafe before cancelling the vault. This was the first time in fifteen years of coaching that somebody with no vaulting experience has shut down the vault without consulting a qualified coach.

Hey, hang in there. I believe that we will see summer soon because spring is a lost cause.

[grandevaulter]

Tomorrow's meet has been cancelled due to the weather forecast. Calling for dry but 30f to 40f and strong winds. Today's middle school meet and Varsity practice cancelled due to a tornado watch. I'm getting ants in my pants for another track meet. Parts of the upper peninsula in Michigan still have over three feet of snow on the ground. Our season needs to be extended.

[grandevaulter]

We had practice yesterday. The kids are more than willing to do drills when there is a 20 mph / 30km head wind, light snow and the temperature is around 30f - 0 c. Our dual league on meet Wednesday will turn into a jamboree to get teams together that haven't met due to the terrible cold weather. I'm pleased with the great attitudes of the kids. We haven't had a meet in over a month. I think the element of outside competition and scoring for the school helps the kids focus on improvement.

[vcpvcoach]

Had all up one meet cancelled this week with snow on Friday. Sadly, the one meet my boys went to, didn't have the vault so they were not able to at least practice.

On a side note, it was a good thing for me that Friday's meet were cancelled. I was walking out the door to take my daughter to college when a moisture alarm in the basement went off. We got 6+ inches of rain in Chicagoland and my sump crapped put. Luckily, I had bought a new one last week just in case. It did suck when I the pipe going into the wall cracked and I had to run to Home Depot and get more pipe. Never would have made the meet. I couldn't afford the damage all that water would have done. Couple of my neighbor were not so lucky. Moral of the story, buy a water alarm for each of your sumps.

Hang in there. It's good to hear you got some jumping in.

[grandevaulter]

Glad you got your basement straightened out ! This is the run plant drill that I'm doing with my 13 year old daughter after many sessions of the 3 step plant drill. I hope she can get her hands this high in competition this Tuesday. ( If it stops snowing) http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php ... _processed

Appears she is moving the arm out and around and .33 of a meter under. I'm think I'm cutting her too much slack on the knee lift. Back to 20/20s and the legal copy of the Yelena drills.