Do dreams hold the answer?

[Mecham]

Okay, heres the story, a few weeks ago i had a dream that i was pole vaulting. Yes i know probably the coolest dream ever (i think i broke some record in it or something). But the thing about my dream is that i was pole vaulting left handed. Im a right handed pole vaulter. Or atleast i think i am. Ever since this dream i have been visualizing my self vaulting and it's been left handed. It seems to me that it makes so much more sense to my body to vault left handed. Is this weird? I am right handed. but i play basketball left handed. Do you think i should vault lefty too? What do you guys think i should do?

[Scott Go Pre]

I'm left handed in everything but pole vaulting. I write left handed and vault right handed. The only reason that I vault right-handed is because that is how I was taught-- all the other vaulters were right handed and I was the only left hander there!

Your dream could be just a mirrored dream. Before you try vaulting with your other hand, there are a few items that you need to answer first:
1. What level of vaulter are you (beginning, intermediate, advance, or elite)
2. How high do you jump?
3. Is your drive arm stronger than your trail arm?
AND
4. Do you think you will be able to jump left-handed of you without any odd distractions-- such as, jumping on the opposite foot, swinging up the other side of the pole, and turning with your other foot?

[polecat]

Another good question is "When you play basketball, what hand do you use to shoot a lay up on a fast break?" Shooting a lay up on a fast break is very similar to the run and plant technique in vaulting. The shooting hand in a lay up is like the top hand in vaulting, and the push off foot is opposite the shooting hand in basketball or the top hand in vaulting.

[mdavis2685]

i say try it start off slowly of course and see how it feels, if it feels more natural then there is your answer

[Bruce Caldwell]

Dreams are helpful ways to....
visualize the vault

Dreaming it or just visualizing in your mind before the jump is a good way to plan execution of the form.

Many World Class athletes use this method to refine their jumps

[Mecham]

I shoot left handed, but lay in right handed. The thing is, it just seems more natural in my mind to do it left handed. Or am i just flipped in my brain?

[Scott Go Pre]

Or am i just flipped in my brain?

You Too?

[rainbowgirl28]

The hand you write with is irrelevant. It doesn't take as much hand coordination as you think to plant the pole and swing. Whichever foot you jump best off of should be what you go off of.

If you already learned to vault one way, it can be very hard to switch. Unless you are a beginner, it would take at least a few months to get the hang of doing it the other way.

[saraf]

I write with my left hand. I throw a ball with my right hand and just about evey thing else righty, even gymnastics. So smart me when i started to pole vault I did it lefty. my legs arn't too strong so i don't know which is stronger but I KNOW that my right are is ALOT stronger then my left yet I am a lefty. Go figure. I guess it works. I think its just what you are "comfortable" with. even though running top speed isn't the most comfotable thing when you have a big pole in you hand, but still. thats my take