Vaulting from 4 lefts

[kcvault]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7QQ5hvrhcU

This is me jumping from 4 lefts. The first four full jumps are on a 15 ft 16.0 spirit with a 13-10 grip at a 14-6 bungee. The rest are at a 15-6 bungee holding either 13-10 or 13-11 on a the 16.0 spirit or on a 15 ft 15.2 carbon essx.

I am now going to move to five lefts for the next four weeks and would like to just focus on two or three things to work on. So please tell me what you see and what you would find as the most important changes. (Note I am slowing down into the take off because I am recovering from a hurt right hamstring and dont wont to risk pulling it by doing a full penultimate step.) Anyway tell me what you think.

[KirkB]

KC, if you can swing Petrov style then I think you should DEFINITELY be working on that in your short runs off-season (i.e. NOW!)!!!

If you continue to tuck/shoot ... especially in your short runs ... then you're just going to get into the bad habit of tucking ALL THE TIME!

I think that with a couple months of focused practice with a free takeoff and a full swing ... in a CONTINUOUS CHAIN OF MOTION thru the extension (no tucks, no pauses) ... you'll realize that you can improve your 5.40 PR substantially.

Kirk

[VaultPurple]

Most noticeable things... Lack of swing, and you throw your head back. I believe in tweaking different techniques to make them fit you but your technique does not follow that of a tuck and shooter, or a petrover.

If you were going to tuck and shoot, you would want to drive your chest deep into the pit with your trail leg back, then whip it to the chord and then tuck to cover the pole to make up the time you lost from driving.

Your 4 left videos compared to your 5m video you posted earlier look better as far as chest drive (in the rainy video you seem to plant then swing to diagonal almost instantly because of just swinging from your speed and plant, not because you are kicking through). But still in the 4 left video (this one) you could do a little better getting your leg back and swinging through. I think the biggest thing is that your are trying to swing a straight leg instead of kicking, you need to break at the knee a little (try kicking a soccer ball without bending your knee slightly, it does not work).

Also you are throwing your head back almost instantly after take off, this does not help you go to vertical, it actually hurts because when you bend your neck backwards it causes your spine to arch backwards, causing your feet to fall forward. You make up for this by tucking both your legs in.

I think it would be very easy for you to switch to petrov model just because all you would have to do is not drop your head and swing through faster and you will swing up on top of the pole instead of having to fight against your back arching and tucking your feet in. (well you would also have to use your left arm a little less to let your swing through instead of under).

But if you want to improve a tuck and shoot technique you should probably increase the drive phase to get a bigger stretch and and more powerful swing to the chord to move bigger poles to vertical. Then once you hit the chord of the pole try to work on not actually tucking your your feet in, but just folding at the abs really tight (maybe a little leg tuck but as little as possible (like Pauli)). But keep that chin in to keep your abs hallow!

To get the swing back and drive better just think about once you jump at your take off, think about tapping your left toe backwards behind you for a split second, then whip it through really fast. (Byrd Bend?)

hope that helps some... like I said I believe that some models can be modified and blended some to meet the needs of the vaulter, but its always good to at least have some kind of big picture of what you want your vault to look like in the end.

ps. you said your not fast but you jump 5.4 and are powerful, how tall are you?

[kcvault]

Also you are throwing your head back almost instantly after take off, this does not help you go to vertical, it actually hurts because when you bend your neck backwards it causes your spine to arch backwards, causing your feet to fall forward. You make up for this by tucking both your legs in.

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This and not having a free take off is killing how I come off the top of the pole. I forget to focus on not throwing my head and it makes alot of the other things i'm trying to do imposible, so thanks for noticing cause I often forget to look for if.

ps. you said your not fast but you jump 5.4 and are powerful, how tall are you?

I am 5-11 185 what really saves me is that I have a 48 inch running verticle.

[altius]

Have not looked at the film but will state simply that you should definitely not be trying to improve your technique ' while recovering from an injured hammy!

[kcvault]

Have not looked at the film but will state simply that you should definitely not be trying to improve your technique ' while recovering from an injured hammy!

My hamstring was a strain not a pull, but I have been doing alot of strengthening exersizes on it and it feels 100% when I sprint with out a pole at least after i'm fully warmed up I dont feel it. I am just hesitent to do a full penaltimate step because fear of re injuring it.

[AVC Coach]

KC,

It looks to me like you're a little rigid at the take-off. When you start to swing, you transfer most of your weight to your bottom hand. That slows your swing and causes you to throw your head back and tuck your trail leg to get inverted. While all of this is happening, your pole speed is lost.

In your original post you asked what your major concerns should be. I would focus on a more elastic take-off and on keeping your weight in your top hand. You'll be surprised how many problems those two things will solve.

Good luck!

[KirkB]

It looks to me like you're a little rigid at the take-off.

When you start to swing, you transfer most of your weight to your bottom hand. That slows your swing and causes you to throw your head back and tuck your trail leg to get inverted. While all of this is happening, your pole speed is lost.

... focus on a more elastic take-off and on keeping your weight in your top hand. ...

KC, listen to AVC ... he knows what he's talking about.

Also ... get that DOWNswing going faster! That's what will get your hips rising sooner/higher! But you can't get a fast DOWNswing without a free takeoff.

Fix all these problems, and YOU WON'T NEED TO TUCK. (There is no pocket. There is no tuck.)

Kirk

[kcvault]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuEgkmWT3Gc

Today I tried to jump with a long trail leg, have not tried to vault this way for a couple of years so there is a lot more things to fix. Still on a 15 ft 180 holding 13-10. (15 ft bungee) (Went back to a swing tuck on my last two jumps, not on purpose.) (I was only running 80% today however because it was very cold and still scared with the hamstring.)

#1 I"m BLOCKING!

#2 still no free take off I am taking off from 11-6 which is directly under my top hand had one take off at 11-9 and one at 12-3 but dont think I got them on video.

#3 Cant stay tight to the pole on top because of not having a free take off but more so because I am blocking.

#4 still tuck shooting on the top because lack of free take off and blocking.

# 5 No elastic stretch due to lack of free take off, blocking, and to wide of grip. As a result instead of breaking at the hips I seem to almost swing my entire body a little with my trail leg. (Again I think this is mostly due to blaocking)


#6 Actually this list can go on for a long time so I way stop there.

Positive: landing deeper in the pit even though I am running slower.

Conclusion

I need to countinue to try to narrow my grip, try to force myself to have a free take off, and work on getting an elastic stretch at take off.

I am going to focus on theese things next practice and see if I could at least make it resemble the petrov model.

[KirkB]

KC, I like your attitude ... and I like your self-analysis. You KNOW what you want your body to do ... now you just need to TEACH it how to do it!

I have 2 very simple suggestions for you ... shorten your run and shorten your grip.

With the shorter run and grip, get used to the FREE takeoff ... the JUMP off the ground ... the full STRETCH to finish the takeoff ... the QUICK downswing ... and the CONTINUOUS upswing.

Rome wasn't built in a day ... so you shouldn't expect instant results. But you already show some true potential in fixing your "flaws". I put "flaws" in quotes becuz if you tuck/shoot by intent, then you wouldn't consider your flaws as "flaws" ... but if you're striving for "pure Petrov" then they ARE flaws.

From what I see in this latest vid, I'm very impressed ... particularly becuz you already KNOW what flaws to fix!

Kirk

[dougb]

Casey

You're probably not going to like this, but I think that your most glaring problem is in your flyaway.
When your left hand releases you are releasing your right hand at the same time and going into a pike position. In fact it looks like you touch your toe with your right hand. Watch the slow motion of Hooker in the second half of this vid at Berlin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIm0FqoQ7po

You can see how he keeps working the right hand and only slightly hollows his body.
I don't know where you picked up the extreme pike, but i suspect that ring vaulting at Jan Johnson's might have had something to do with it.

We probably will be discussing the Parnov/Hooker model a lot more in near future.

Anyway, you have a lot of people pulling for you and some good advice from others on the board. Remember that mine may be worth what you paid for it.

Doug Balcomb
PV Coach, Colfax HS

[powerplant42]

When your main problems are in the fly-away, you're jumping 6.80m+... Sorry. It might be something to be conscious of, but not something to WORK on.

I like the fact that you were able to keep your leg so straight so quickly. I think the drill for you is a running whip-hinge: Run toward a bar, jump to it, and swing LONG.