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The angle of take off we should be looking at is the line from the toe coming off the ground through the hip. In sprinting that angle is 45 degrees according to Carl Lewis's coach Tom Tellez (Pole Vault Summit Sprint Mechanics Seminar). "It should be the same in all sprinters" according to Coach Tellez. You can see that angle in http://www.advantageathletics.com/sprints/boldon.html and http://www.advantageathletics.com/sprin ... hnson.html . The angle of take off in the pole vault from the toe coming off the ground and the hip is above 45 degrees. You can see that angle in http://www.advantageathletics.com/polevault/bubka.html , http://www.advantageathletics.com/polevault/harvey.html and http://www.advantageathletics.com/polev ... ipper.html . To read more about this and see photo comparison look under the subtitle "Gymnastics Tap Swing" in http://www.advantageathletics.com/polev ... pslam.html . However how much does the pole hitting the back of the box affect that angle? And how much of that angle change from run to take off is trying to jump up?

I believe a problem overlooked coming off the ground is the action of the hips. Too many vaulters let the hips slide forward out in front of the shoulders coming off the ground too soon. This can be controlled. Many things can affect the hips sliding forward too soon (or leaning back) . i.e. an under step, poor sprinting mechanics prior to take off... This puts your swing too far out in front of your pole or top hand. To counter act this your have to shove your top hand forward or split your legs apart on top pulling your lead leg past the top of the pole.

Another big factor in the vault is the angle of the body when the top hand, shoulders, hips and trail foot line up. At this time the body should be at full extension. That line should be at a 45 degree angle to the runway with the foot in the direction of the box. Look again at Skipper and Bubka or Tye Harvey http://www.advantageathletics.com/polevault/harvey.html to see those points. This is what allows the shoulders to get under the rest of the body leter in the vault when the body is fully extended and inverted.

Don’t mean to be argumentative at all, but I am thinking that the 45% takeoff angle that you are referring to is calculated in a different manner than the takeoff angle calculated by McGinnis, Linthorne and others. Anyway, in hoping to compare apples to apples, here’s a link to a Linthorne article which discuss the takeoff angle..

http://www.elitetrack.com/pvlinthorne.pdf

On page 209 and 210 in Figures 2 & 4, the takeoff angle is shown with the O with a “/â€Â

There are two different angles to be examined. One, the angle in which the vaulter/jumper applies force into the ground. This is the angle between the hip and the foot. The other is the angle of takeoff as determined by the path of the center of mass. These are not the same angles, but one does greatly impact the other.

Barto

After i take physics next year, i'll be sure to try to add to your constructive discussion.

Run jump and swing. and don't worry about a thing. It works for me. But don't listen to me I don't know how to vault real well.