Head injury scared to jump HELP

[lifecaster9]

so to make a long story short I normally jump on a 14 170 and I we bought a 15 175 I tried jumping with it didnt penetrate but got a big bend and my top hand slipped and fell head first into the pit on the metal split my head open and got 5 staples luckily no concussion or brain damage of any kind just a deep cut. I just recovered and should go back to practice tommarow and im terrified just thinking about it my heart is racing and I dont know if i will be able to jump at all im so scared of this happening again. has anyone gone through this??? How can i overcome this feeling of being so terrified to jump! thank you

[rainbowgirl28]

You almost died because you and your coach don't understand how much bigger a 15 175 is than a 14 170. Please print this chart and review it with your coach: http://www.skyjumpers.com/articles/pvpr ... table.html

If he doesn't realize the error of his ways, you should stop vaulting until you can find a good coach because this one is going to kill you. That fear you feel is justified in this case...

[lifecaster9]

Even you told me to try the 15 175 lol Remember my post "how hard will this pole be to get on" you said to try a shorter run with the 14 170 which i did and still went deep with great bend so then I went 7 lefts with the 15 175 like you said to try. I dont blame you at all lol im just putting that out there. But honestly I dont think it was the pole it was that my top hand let go/slipped everyone said I had a good bend and it looked as if I was going to have good penetration but it was my top hand.

[rainbowgirl28]

I also strongly recommended getting some poles in between.

Were you gripping at the top of the 15'175?

Your grip slipped off because it was too high of a grip and/or too big of a pole for your takeoff. That's not a problem that is magically going to get better. The only safe way for you to proceed at this point is to find some intermediate poles. Your grip slipped off for a reason, it's not a fluke thing that just happened.

[rainbowgirl28]

Also, how many left were you running from when you were blowing through the 14' pole? Have you been doing measured pole runs from 7 lefts on the 15' pole? Where were you gripping on the 15' pole? Did you try to swing?

[vaultmd]

Even you told me to try the 15 175 lol Remember my post "how hard will this pole be to get on" you said to try a shorter run with the 14 170 which i did and still went deep with great bend so then I went 7 lefts with the 15 175 like you said to try. I dont blame you at all lol im just putting that out there. But honestly I dont think it was the pole it was that my top hand let go/slipped everyone said I had a good bend and it looked as if I was going to have good penetration but it was my top hand.

This is what rainbowgirl28 wrote. Parts are bolded for emphasis:

Go to a shorter run on the 14' pole first. When you're blowing through it from 4 or 5 lefts, then you can try backing up to 7 lefts on the 15'175... it will probably still be pretty tough though. Don't swing upside down until you've taken a bunch of vaults where you're making it in the pit easily. You really would benefit from borrowing some bigger 14's or 14'6s to help you make the transition. The 15'175 will feel approximately 25 pounds stiffer than the 14'170.

[aseinc]

I believe his real question is how you overcome a real fear. not who is or what went wrong. if you have ever been in a car accident then you know how you react after that to quick stops or other cars moving in on you, it takes time to relax and not panic. You get back in a car and drive but you use more caution and redevelop your confidence in your ability to drive, same goes for the vault, your were very lucky, so learn from it. If and when you decide to vault again start out low and slow. as you gain confidence in your ability then start to go up in pole size but be smart. If you never jump again that is OK, it makes you know less of a person. good luck

Dan

[73-vaulter]

The first time I tried a back-flip off of a diving board, I was about 12 years old, I hit my head, on the board, and got 7 stitches. Five days later the stitches were taked out and I nailed the back-flip. Get back on the pole and jump. Granted you should start with a smaller pole, but jump.

[rainbowgirl28]

Sometimes fear is a healthy thing. I'm not going to advise a kid to overcome their fear when I think doing so means they could kill themself.

[lifecaster9]

hey sorry for not posting awhile..well i think ive gotten over the fear and its about 7 or 8 months till the season starts and i really wanna start doing some offseason training what should i be doing?

[fishman4god]

Pole runs, strength and speed work (intervals 100,70,60, 50, 40, 30's meter sprints/stride work) Drills,Drills, Drills and some 2-3 mile running/jogging. Work on plant and run technique (no pit or takeoff's) just focus on good technique and strength work (high bar work, rings work, bubkas etc.). When you do decide to get airborne short run/low grip stiff pole drills for a couple weeks and then short soft/ short run drills for timing and technique. Patience and safety first. Good luck and be safe!

[VaultMarq26]

Get into a gymnastics gym if you are able. Also pool vaulting is good technical work that can be a lot of fun to do outdoors in the summer