We need more pit spotters in meets!

[CowtownPV]

I have always thought the officials at the Texas state meet do a great job and have seen many of them follow a vaulter into the box in case they come up short. Scotty did a great job this year and I have seen Elmore and others do it in the past. If a kid hangs on when they come up short an official can shove them to the matt. This prevents the pole from rebending and shooting them out or the vaulter sliding down the pole leaving a trail of skin on the pole. If the vaulter comes up short more than once there is a problem that needs to be addressed by the coach and athlete but even good hs vaulters my get caught with a bad jump especially when one jump was a tail wind and the next was a head wind. I appreciate the great work by all the officials at the Texas State Meet.

[tsorenson]

Cheers to Scotty for his excellent spotting, and also for making the best point on this thread:

that a pole speed check ("jagodin" or whatever you want to call it where you move the pole and don't invert) should be done to check for pole speed/penetration before taking a vault up (inverting). I always coach my athletes that this is the best way to stay safe in questionable conditions (wind/cold/etc) or when moving up poles. Basically, never invert on your first trip down the runway!

Tom

[KirkB]

If coaches had the courage to tap, vaulters would make the pit every time ... negating the need for pit spotters.

TAPS? In a meet? no way a tap has the ability to break a pole! Taps add about 20-25 lbs to the vault and load the pole.

... for more controversy grin: I did see 6 officials putting up the crossbars as well as setting the standards in the event ... To be discussed in the sales forum Smile

... GRIN smile

Bruce, I put the in my post for a certain reason.

Kirk

[mustang30]

I really think some of the safety issues that exist now are from over-coaching these young vaulters. I was away from vaulting for some time and when I got back involved, there are indoor facilities and private coaches. Kids travel all over to get information about what seems to be mainly technique based. I listen to them tell there athletes technical, biomechanical type info during a competition and it looks like to me that type of info puts the vaulter in a mind set that negates where he or she actually is during the jump. They are thinking about a biomechanical manuvers and not about where they are in relation to the bar; compounded by being on competition poles at a competition grip, trouble can occur especially in eratic conditions.

All of us that used to jump at a high level, knew pretty much exactly where we were during the jump. Our coaches, those of us who had one, just helped us with step, mid, pole selection, and standards. Technique was analyzed and manipulated in practice sessions and competitions were mainly for letting the jump happen the way it was practiced. In competitions the best advise I can give a vaulter is run tall, plant early and leave the bar on the standards. We will talk about technique in practice. Heck, a bunch of us used to jump 16'+ in high school and all we knew was mainly run good, plant hard, and go get the bar; with no coach, just a Don Hood video committed to memory.

Maybe it is just me, but the kids I watch today are like drug addicts for information about their jump, but I guess that is what makes it profitable. I really think as a coach I can do more for a vaulter by developing the athlete with training than honing a perfect technique with no power. We have all seen vaulters jump really high with completely different types of skills, but the common factor was usually they were trained physically to a high level and most of the time thoses athletes develop more confidence which enhances pole speed and creates a safer vault in my opinion, but there again I have been out of the mainstream for quite a while.

[ras]

This was nothing. You should have seen the javelin spotter. Now he was amazing!

[KirkB]

Now he was amazing!

WAS?

Kirk

[belmore]

I have to agree with mustang 30, the days of picking up a pole and just trying to jump have evolved into needing to be instructed every step down the runway. I didn't have a Hood video, hell we didn't have video, I looked at pictures in our library microfilm collection and my coached showed me how to run the old film projector. Bless his heart. He didn't know anything about pole vaulting, but he took the time to instruct me in the use of that high tech equipment of the day and threaten me with a fate worse than death if I screwed up that extremely confusing piece of machinery that made moving pictures. Just blurry moving pictures, no sound.

[Bruce Caldwell]

This was nothing. You should have seen the javelin spotter. Now he was amazing!

Now that is FUNNYT
No matter who you are that is a funny one!
especially with no javelin thrown in the state of TEXAS
LOL
Bruce

[ras]

especially with no javelin thrown in the state of TEXAS
Bruce

Well not any more!!!


ps It was nice to meet you at the River Vault & thanks for going beyond the call to get us the new pole.

[jerry hock]

Every year since I began vaulting in 1969, I have seen vaulters have near misses landing in the box area. I have witnessed vaulters falling into the box which resulted in broken bones. I have heard of other catastrophic injuries all over the country where vaulters falling into the plant box have suffered. This is the reason that I first developed the pole vault vault box protection pads. I made the first ones over twenty years ago and have been using them at meets ever since. Bruce Caldwell of Essx tried to help me with the concept a couple years ago trying to market them as the 'Hock Block' but I don't believe he sold any. The problem has always been that no one seems to care enough to use them. Gymnasts would never dream of practicing without spotting pads, yet vaulters take unecessary risks everyday. The solution is as simple as having a foam pad with a strap that can be easily thrown into the box. On my blog, polevaulthelp@blogspot.com I have pictures of a couple designs where I have the pad attached with elastic straps whereby it is easy to release, holding a rope at the side of the pit. Over the years I have worked hard to get peoples attention directed toward a remedy to this problem. My new design has a pad that comes from a box under the wing, much like a matchbox opening with the pad sliding out and covering the box. I am not an engineer but wouldn't it be great if an engineer would get involved and put their expertise into developing a pad that would fall, slide or roll into the box area after a vaulter leaves the ground so we could avoid the horrible accidents that have occured for decades?
Jerry Hock