Does Weather Matter?

[Skyin' Brian]

does weather matter?
ok, we have all heard this before that one contributing factor to the fact that vaulters in states such as texas and california generally have better performances is because the weather is better there and more conducive to vaulting for more of the year than some northern states. what are everyone's thoughts on this common perception?
i know that coaching, participation levels, etc play a big role, but what about weather?
again, this is only at the high school level. for college you can go where you would like, but at least for the most part in high school you have to stay where you are.

[Robert schmitt]

Growing up in WI and now living in WA which dosn't have the best weather I would say yes it matters quite a bit. Unless you have an indorr facility to practice in.

[rainbowgirl28]

Weather plays a factor, but you can overcome it. Washington has some of the best prep vaulters, year after year, yet the weather during track season is worse than many other states, say Georgia or Alabama.

WA is blessed to have a ton of knowledgable coaches. I think the biggest reason we have had overall success is Tim Reilly's camps. It's not just that the camps are good, they are inexpensive, and they draw vaulters from the whole state. Kids and coaches come to the camps every year and make friends with kids across the state. The coaches get to network, and are more willing to loan poles to other schools and stuff like that. Washington also has lots of summer meets, giving dedicated vaulters plenty of chances to compete.

WA was also one of the first states to come up with a mandatory statewide safety certification program. We are very lucky that the guy in charge of the WIAA is knowledgeable about the pole vault, and recognized the best thing we could do to improve pole vault safety in the state was improving the knowledge of the coaches.

So weather matters... but good coaches and a good community matter more.

[OAKPV2004]

Just for the record, TExas does not have Awesome ,great weather. It has rained here all week and It has rained at every meet i have gone to since April 2.........

[lonestar]

Just for the record, TExas does not have Awesome ,great weather. It has rained here all week and It has rained at every meet i have gone to since April 2.........

Yeah, but Duck man, you're from Houston - all it does is RAIN in Houston!

I have to agree though, we've been rained on in over 1/2 the meets I've attended this spring.

[jhesch]

i take the weather here for granted for sure. one meet was rained on and cancelled then rescheduled. EVERY meet is like perfect weather, 70-80 degree weather, sunny, slightly breezy (though past two meets ive blown through poles w/ headwind, shows how strong wind is here!) yeah id vote NM one of the better places for vaulting in terms of just weather

[belmore]

Texas weather is tough, Duckworth jumped 16' with the most viscious 20mph crosswind I have ever felt, plus it was 51 degrees. I was standing watching and shivering like I had hypothermia. The summers are blistering, the indoor season, dec thru early feb is nice outdoors, but fairly unpredictable. I really think its more about the history of the region and the want to of coaches and athletes. Where the vault has historically done well, it continues because it's just the way it is. Canada has hockey, certain pockets of the states have pole vault cause it just keeps getting handed down through the generations. At the high school level, a stock of poles is developed through the years, coaches keep up with the rules and improvements in pits and safety are followed. I don't think it's weather, it's history and a love for the event.

[lonestar]

Weather plays a factor, but you can overcome it. Washington has some of the best prep vaulters, year after year, yet the weather during track season is worse than many other states, say Georgia or Alabama.

WA is blessed to have a ton of knowledgable coaches. I think the biggest reason we have had overall success is Tim Reilly's camps. It's not just that the camps are good, they are inexpensive, and they draw vaulters from the whole state. Kids and coaches come to the camps every year and make friends with kids across the state. The coaches get to network, and are more willing to loan poles to other schools and stuff like that. Washington also has lots of summer meets, giving dedicated vaulters plenty of chances to compete.

WA was also one of the first states to come up with a mandatory statewide safety certification program. We are very lucky that the guy in charge of the WIAA is knowledgeable about the pole vault, and recognized the best thing we could do to improve pole vault safety in the state was improving the knowledge of the coaches.

So weather matters... but good coaches and a good community matter more.

Having come from high school and college in New York to having coached both in Texas, I have to say that yes, weather does play a major part, but there are other factors as well.

Swtvault once mentioned how 15' is regarded as an elite jump in Michigan high schools, where in Texas, it's average. Standards are higher in different parts of the country, and that has an effect.

The importance placed on sports in New York pales in comparison to Texas - sports (especially football, but all sports) are considered to be hugely important down here, and a lot of money, time, and support is put into athletics.

Don Hood's and Carl Ericson's camps have pumped out tons of good vaulters over the years, along with several other good coaches like Dave Butler, Joe Hester, Brian Elmore, and George Rodriguez. So there's a pretty good knowledge base here that we didn't have in NY, although that is changing up there.

I think Washington should be applauded and followed for having mandatory coaching certification - finally, somebody figured out that growing the pits, sticking helmets on people's heads, and writing more stupid rules isn't enough. The bottom line is knowledge and coaching, and if everyone were to follow suit, we'd have a whole lot less injuries annually than we do now.

[zack]

C'mon belmore complaining about 51 degrees? 51 degrees and dry is considered great weather for early spring in Washington. Try 40 degrees and raining for most early season practices and meets. I will admit that the summers are pretty much perfect track weather.

[OAKPV2004]

I went to a meet in Canada, It was the best weather i have ever competed in. Nothing like texas in July...70 degrees slight tailwind. Texas was probably 100 degrees on the same day. I remember one meet i went to at University of Houston when It was 100+ degrees, but a tailwind and I got the worst heat exaustion, everyone in the meet seemed like it. I never sweat so much my whole life, and I got 2 inches under my PR though. The funny thing is I like the heat like the heat in Texas.

[belmore]

Hey, I'm old and have to aclimate myself to 100 degree summers, wet windy days below 60 degrees and I need a snowsuit. People adapt to their conditions, poor unsuspecting souls that come to visit Texas in August will think they have vacationed in hell. 100 plus with 60 percent humidity. That's the central Texas area. Yeah, call me a wimp, I really can't tolerate cold weather, well what I call cold weather. I guess you guys in the colder climes could call me even worse.

[rainbowgirl28]

poor unsuspecting souls that come to visit Texas in August will think they have vacationed in hell. 100 plus with 60 percent humidity. That's the central Texas area.

Hey don't scare me before I get down there