Bottom hand slpiing down, can't swing

[mcminkz05]

Ok, this is gettign really frustrating, and my coach sint being much help, he always gets distracted too easily and never helps me for more than 30 seconds at a time at meets.... so maybe you guys might know whats goign wrong. My indoor season opener was yesterday,a nd i NH'd because i had the same problem iv had for a while. i ahve a good run, a pretty good plant, and i get up well. I also have a fine swing, in pop-ups and drills i get completely inverted easily. but when i start swinging up in my full vault, i get like halfway and just stop, so im no where near inverted, and in like a sittin position going at the bar, so it gets kicked off, rather than me clearing it by 3 feet like i should be.... if anyone has any ideas of what im doign wrong, or how to fix it, it would be much appreciated!!

[vaultin chris]

i think u have found ur problem now just fix it. dont stop the trail leg- swing it to the top, drop the shoulders, and get closer to the pole.

[mcminkz05]

see i dunt stop my trail leg though.. short runs my swing is great, and thats like stiff-pole'ing. when i do full vaults i cant ever get more thna half way inverted.... and if this helps any, another thing to note is that lately my bottom hand has been sliding down like a foot when i plant....

[rainbowgirl28]

and if this helps any, another thing to note is that lately my bottom hand has been sliding down like a foot when i plant....

That would make it hard to swing

[jhesch]

basically as a rule of thumb, the wider the grip the easier it is to bend the pole, and the narrowe- the easier to get inverted. play around with your grip, that might help. ive seen similar problems with a team mate, it seems he just was goin in slow mo, really didnt have any power in his swing.

[mcminkz05]

yeah, see im getting the idea its a problem with my bototm arm, but my coach isnt really paying attention at the last meet, and im not sure how to fix it. but if i focus on letting my bottom arm flex, but not at the plant. im not sure when i should break it in to let me get inverted.

[RoySloppy]

is this the same coach you were raving about in the summer?

[mcminkz05]

haha, yeah actually it is.. But at these big indoor meets he has me and like 10 other of his vaulters to coach, plus hes always talking to the other coaches, so i really cant get him to help me out for too long at a time.. hes a great coach if theres not too many distractions... And my school coach just quit , so im kinda on my own for indoor season.

[wubka]

evaluate and consider the following with the help of your coach:

you're getting pulled off the ground at takeoff.
you may be holding too high for your takeoff ability.
jump at bars in practice and solve the problem there.

drills:
short run vaulting
sliding box
low grip stiff pole into sand pit - stay upright and land on feet

[swtvault]

i have a good run, a pretty good plant, and i get up well. I also have a fine swing, in pop-ups and drills i get completely inverted easily. but when i start swinging up in my full vault, i get like halfway and just stop, so im no where near inverted, and in like a sittin position going at the bar

You really cant expect to take the same technique from a short run immediately to a long run. What you should do is start on that short approach, and work your grip up real gradual. Move your run back a stride when you feel everything is the way you want it. Until you get it right from a short run, all that a longer run (more speed) will do is complicate things. If you do it right you should be able to reach your PR height (what is it??? 12'0 or so?) from a run of 3-4 lefts. I worked with a kid this summer and got him to jump a foot below his PR from 3 lefts! It was hard at first to get the message across, but he eventually got it. What you have to remember is that it doesnt take tons of speed to jump 13 or even 14 feet--case in point , Derek Miles jumping 13'7 from 2 steps (yes, right left boom!) Your goal should be to become as efficient as possible from a shorter run so that when you move your run back and get more speed, you are using it to your advantage. Most male vaulters can run fast enough to jump over 16' but inefficiencies keep them stuck much lower.

[mcminkz05]

yeah, i worked on that in practice today, gradually moving my run back.. I also found out my main problem.. mayeb it is my plant.. my arms are going out in front, rather than above my head, and thats forcing my bottom arm down, blockign out my swing, etc...

[VaultNinja]

yeah, i worked on that in practice today, gradually moving my run back.. I also found out my main problem.. mayeb it is my plant.. my arms are going out in front, rather than above my head, and thats forcing my bottom arm down, blockign out my swing, etc...

That sounds like it makes sense. The more you open up your shoulders and have your chest over your toe at take off, the easier it is to swing, blocking will kill a swing very quickly. But from some of the things you said earlier it does kind of sound like you might be gripping too high when you get back on your full run. Because if things are working from short, they should be working from full. How much higher do you grip when you move back, and what is the step difference from your short run to your full run?