Need help with bigger pole.

[Roflberry]

Hello, I'm currently a High School sophomore vaulter and I'm having trouble transitioning from pole to pole.

I was using a 13' 150 Altius Pole and I snagged 12'6 with it but I'm starting to run into some problems...I'm starting to get a lot stronger and faster from workouts, witch is good, but I find that during meets when my adrenaline is pumping, I am killing my pole and I couldnt even get 12 last meet. The obvious choice is to move up poles, but the next pole up we have is a 14' 155. I'm not quite sure I have enough speed to plant it, and I find that my hand slips when I try to plant it sometimes, and thats something I never have had a problem with. I would love to get better but I'm afraid that I can't until I can get on a bigger pole that I'm not going to kill. Are there any tips you guys have for trying to get onto a new pole like this? I've talked to a coach about getting a 14' 150 so its softer that I can use in practice, and 155 for a little stiffer pole when my adrenaline is going in meets, but being that I don't do club (would love to but don't have the money to invest in it), that's almost a year away and I will more than likely be to big for it by then. Any suggestions?

[rainbowgirl28]

Check out this chart: http://www.skyjumpers.com/articles/pvpr ... table.html

A 14'155 is roughly like a 13'175, so it's a lot bigger. If you are holding at the top of it you are making the problem worse, and that's probably why your grip is slipping.

How any steps are you running from right now? I would move in to a shorter run on the 13'150 before going up poles, for example, instead of running from 7 lefts, run from 5. Then when you are blowing through from the shorter run, back up to 7 and use the bigger pole, but only hold the 14' pole at 13', don't hold the top.

The easier solution would be to try to borrow a 13' 155 or 160 or 13'6 150 or 155 in a meet if someone else has one.


If you can talk your coach into buying another pole, he should buy a 13'6 150 or 155, that would serve as a better transition to the 14' pole.

[Barefoot]

The other questions which need to be asked is how much do you weigh? and how high are you gripping on the 13' pole?... also remember that different makes have different max grips. For high school a 13' 1" Spirit has a top grip of 12' 7"... a 13' 1 pacer "may" have a grip of 12' 11" which all things being equal would theoretically make the pacer effectively 5 pounds heavier... so which brand of pole can matter

What I'm saying is: between brands a 13' is not a 13' is not a 13'. So if you are limited by your budget, as we all are, do your research and more info to make an informed purchase.

[Roflberry]

I weigh 146 and I was gripping at the top of the 13' 150 but I've choked down about a handlength, roughly 6 inches or so, and its what I have to deal with for right now. I dont kill it anymore but instead of getting the full recoil its a little more of a "stiffpole" jump. Someone at a meet let me try a 13' or 13'3 155 and it was almost perfect, just needed it about 5 more pounds heavier, probably a 160 and It would have done the trick if I had done some practice on it. (I use mainly Altius brand poles so the top grip is roughly 2-3 inches fromt he top of the pole.)

[Barefoot]

Since you are a sophomore lets assume you are going to grow, and from the sound of things new poles are hard to come by... A 160 is probably a good option going forward. Since you are gripping down six inches, your current pole is already a 160 by relative flex (albeit a 12' 6" 160). You could go for a 13' 6" 160, that's a 20 pound leap up in flex from your current pole. You may not be ready for the pole today, but going forward you surely will be, and you might be able to borrow your transition pole.

Jumping with less bend/not more on a 13' pole is not a bad idea, poles of that length are not supposed to bend like 15'+ poles anyway. What you may want to think about is increasing your jumping angle off the ground. It may allow you to regain the lost hand-grip without over-bending the pole and will definitely help when you move to longer poles. You want to free up your take-off. Remember also stiff pole vaulters could push over 3'. Don't confuse bending the pole with the ability to jump over your hand-hold. Also I have seen a number of HS vaulters who think they are crushing a pole when in reality they are taking off under and flat... this may not be the case with you, but it is something to be aware of... that drop in your hand-hold may simply be putting you step in the right place for a free take-off.

If your concern is the next meet, a 13' 160 with the same grip range is a logical short-term choice for you... but at your age you may move past that pole the day after tomorrow or less. DJ has an interesting post about HS vaulters only needing 3 poles to progress from 0' to 13' 6". Each of his poles are 20lbs apart. I think his statement is true, though it bucks most people's current thinking. His point is that its less about the pole and more about how you vault. Even with a pole you think you are crushing, adjustments can be made. And be aware that a good vaulter may find himself moving up poles very quickly when the run/plant and swing start to dial in. I've seen kids move up 20-30 lbs in pole in a single practice or meet. If you buy DJ's theory go to a 13'6" 160. The conservative compromise is a 13'6" 150. Ideally you find a way to finance both.

If you can get the school to buy a good progression of poles for all vaulters that is your best bet... 10 pound relative flex jumps.

And reread Rainbow's post cause she is pretty much spot on.

[Barefoot]

Roflb...

This thread in the Coaches forum has pertinent information to this discussion: viewtopic.php?f=28&t=19547