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I am currently a freshman attending the University of Maine on an academic scholarship. The school is DI, but it's track program is not extremely competitive (the school's highest vaulter is jumping in the 15' range). After talking to the coach my senior year of high school and being told that it was fairly likely that I would make the final roster, I was cut from the track roster as a walk on. I was told by the coach that I was not as strong as I needed to be to be competitive, and that was the reason for me not making the team. I want to continue vaulting but I don't know whether it's a better idea to tryout again next year, transfer to a school with a more appropriate track program for me, or just give up on vaulting all together. Any advice for this situation would be appreciated.

I was in the same situation and ended up transferring after two years at the first school. Transferring can be a pain, but it was worth it to me to have the experience of being a college athlete. Your eligibility clock has started ticking, so it is better to transfer sooner, rather than later.

Do keep in mind that some conferences have additional penalties for transferring within the conference. You'll need to start applying to schools ASAP, be sure to talk at length with the coaches and compliance department at schools you are interested in to make sure you would have a spot on the team and be eligible immediately. Don't just speak with the pole vault coach, speak with the head coach too. <--- all things I learned the hard way

If you are a male jumping 12'6 (as indicated by your profile on here). You should definitely look at DIII schools in the area. Going DI (and maybe the other divisions as well), you are going to need your schools compliance department to send an official release to any school you plan on talking to, regardless of being a walk on or not even making the team. This sounds harsh, but your PR is at the point where if you email most DI coaches asking to be on the team, they will just ignore your email. You have to find a place that works for you academically and just tell them you will be there regardless and want to know if you can be on the team.

I would really recommend finishing the year where you are at, hitting the weight room, and finding a near by club to jump at and try to get your PR up a little bit.

If your current school offers your major and your scholarship is for four years, I would stay put and look for a club to vault with. Don't turn down a free education; especially if you are planning on further education after college.

vaultmd wrote:If your current school offers your major and your scholarship is for four years, I would stay put and look for a club to vault with. Don't turn down a free education; especially if you are planning on further education after college.

Yeah what that guy said...

gyrgyr wrote: I want to continue vaulting but I don't know whether it's a better idea to tryout again next year, transfer to a school with a more appropriate track program for me, or just give up on vaulting all together.

You're a better scholar than an athlete, but that doesn't mean that you can't have your cake and eat it too.

While it must be disappointing to at first think you'll make the team, only to be told later that you're not vaulting high enough yet, you're still not out of options. Let's break this down ...

a) try out again next year,
b) transfer to a school with a more appropriate track program for me, or
c) just give up on vaulting all together.

As VaultMD and GreenSilver both said, (a) is your best option. But start NOW to join a PV club and improve your PR. It's a BIT late to hit the weights this year, but you can do a BIT of that. You need to find the right balance between weights, sprinting, gymnastics, and vaulting technique. Find a good club coach that can help you with this. If you can't afford to pay club fees, then lean on your parents, or get a part-time job (being careful not to work so much that your studies suffer). Maybe you can only afford one practice session per week - so be it.

Option (b) implies that you're putting athletics ahead of academics. In your situation, this is not a good option. Keep your academic goals as your most important priority, and reprioritize PV as your second priority. Even if you made the team this year, you wouldn't have won many meets anyway, so put that in perspective, and treat PV more like a recreational activity and less like the most important thing in your life - it shouldn't be (your education should come first). Be grateful that you had the brainpower and worked hard to earn your academic scholarship, and take pride in that! Most freshmen would give their right arm to be in your position! You earned it, so cherish it, and use it! Actually, this will pay off for you over your lifetime much more than any participation on a college sports team.

Option (c) is probably your worst option, as it robs you of a sport that you obviously like a LOT - even though you haven't excelled at it yet. DON'T GIVE UP. Just reset your expectations.

Who knows, maybe it will take 2 more full years of club training before you raise your PR high enough to make the team, but WOULDN'T THAT BE A THRILL to have persevered, and to SUCCEED? You may find that the JOURNEY is where the real enjoyment of vaulting is, and you don't even have to win any meets to feel good about yourself. Training is fun too, even if you don't compete. When all is said and done, you're competing against yourself, and an annual improvement in your PR is your payback! THAT'S the true victory!

Kirk