Atkins Attack Vault Technique

[ladyvolspvcoach]

PVer's Dad, These comments are not meant to be a bash on the person, however judging just from these pictures there is no apparent improvement of the Petrov model. In fact you will see many of these pics showing a stiff and straightened left arm just after the athlete is off the ground. This is indicative of the wrong movement of the body. It actually prevents the correct application of mechanics from the take off to the finish. It actually prevents the middle phases of the vault from occuring as they should. Just an effort to explain what those of us who have been coaching as long as Mr. Atkins see.

[Cooleo111]

I'd like to hear from some more of the vaulters that have attended his camps. Are those pictures really represenative of what he's coaching?

Most athletes who use this technique find themselves overbending poles, holding too high, and sitting over bars, only able to get their hips above their bottom hands.

I went to Fiberbenders the summer after my freshman year in high school. From what I can remember, the pictures are pretty accurate. I remember an emphasis being placed on the bottom arm being the "fulcrum" which bent the pole. I also remember being taught to carry the pole across the body, which I also see from other vaulters who have not attended his camp, and to run on a certain side of the runway to plant in a certain side of the box.
In regards to my own technique, CLCPV04 pretty much nailed it...up until my senior year I could never swing past my locked-out bottom arm. After finally figuring out how to not block out and swing past verical, I almost immediately put 2 or more feet onto my PR.
Again, just my experience, but I would say that the pictures and most people's assumptions based on his website are fairly accurate.

[SlickVT]

I can't take this anymore.

First of all, I was a coach there for a couple of summers, and those pictures are AWFUL. They do not reflect the vaulting that goes on there. They are pictures of beginners, and if anyone can show me a picture of a beginner who has perfect "Petrov" form, I would love to see it.

Secondly, there are alot of people on here talking about alot of things that they do not understand.

Here are the facts from someone that knows Lance and everyone else there very well.

1. People bash Lance because his coaching style is different. I will not argue with you that stamping his name on a plant is a little out there, but he is a good coach.
Saying this, I have to emphasize that he is a good coach to people that are dedicated to making changes and then changing those changes. Going to one camp and thinking that that sums up the coaching there is ridiculous. The greatest gains, and he makes this VERY CLEAR at the beginning of camp are people that continuously come to practice and change and improve.

2. Lance has coached FULL TIME 2 of the last 3 Golden West champions, and since the year that I graduated high school (2002) I know personally over 20+ different people that FULL TIME vaulted with Lance and then went on to win a state championship. At one point, Lance FULL TIME coached 5 straight NJ state champions. Cooleo, maybe you should have come back.

3. Slippery Rock is a joke. Any camp that teaches that your top hand should be 12 inches from your bottom hand is ridiculous. I'm sorry.

4. If someone could watch video of any one of his last state champions or numerous other state finalists and show me one still-frame that looks like one of those pictures, I will put on a dress and vault in it at a meet.

5. People may want to watch what they say on here, because Lance is not the only person that has stamped their name on something that Petrov developed (cough cough).

6. If anyone can find another camp this side of Arkansas that has averaged over 4.5 state champions in the last 5 years, please let me know.

7. Most of Lance's girls (That vault full time) have PR's higher than most guys replying to this post. Aw.......

8. If this post gets edited or removed for any reason, its is a travesty in that I have read 4 pages of bashing and this is one post of bashing back.

EDIT: Fiberbenders has never taught to lock your bottom arm out. That is just dumb.

[rainbowgirl28]

Bing, I am not going to edit or delete your post.

[SlickVT]

Thanks Becca. I got flustered.

[rainbowgirl28]

Thanks Becca. I got flustered.

Why don't you name names of some of these vaulters he has coached that are better examples, and maybe some of us can come up with videos/pictures.

[jumpbackin]

Thanks Slick, it's a relief to know those pictures don't reflect what he's teaching.

[SlickVT]

Adam Sarafian, Jared Jodon, Myself, Jonas Tepaske, Dave Jackson, Anthony Abitante, Natalie Gengel, Julianne (though she won't admit it ((I still love you Jules))), Khalil (U of Maryland), Meredith Mante, the Kessler brothers were campers back in the day, Phil Detwiler, Eric Hughes, Mike Hulme, Jason Inzana, Justin Germani, Mason Ternay, plus lots of others from days gone by.

Thats only naming a few. All of them were state champions except for three, and they were either 2nd, 3rd or not yet graduated.

Pretty good resume'. And I missed a few, and thats only in the last 5 years (except for Mason).

Bash that.

PS The common denominator with everyone on this list is that they were at FBI on a continuous basis. No one camp and done. Vast improvement after 4 days and done is close to miraculous.

PPS I think it speaks alot of a coach's ability to coach good vaulters without having very fast vaulters. Outside of Mason, Anthony, Khalil and D Kessler, no one on that list is very fast.
...Except Adam. I can beat him in a race on the track, but put a pole in his hand, and he could probably out-sprint me to 100m. Freak...

[altius]

Quote from achtungpv "No coach should EVER take credit for athletes that have attended their camp. If you don't coach them day-in day-out you don't get credit. Who knows, maybe most of those vaulters may have jumped lower at his camp. We don't know. "

Quote from slickvt " Vast improvement after 4 days and done is close to miraculous."

Indeed it is ' close to miraculous' and thats what makes the claims unbelievable because any real coach knows that improving an athletes performances takes committed hard work over months and years - not four days -or even four days in successive years.

And by the way slickvt, you cant tell me all of those athletes were beginners -the first image yes, the next two maybe - but the next three definitely not.

Put up some video of the best of those athletes who will personally confirm that they were coached using this method - ideally show us one whose technique incorporates all of the improvements which have been made to the Petrov model. Then we can make a better judgement. Because at the moment I agree with achtungpv when he said that it sounds like a snake oil salesman at work.

[SlickVT]

And by the way slickvt, you cant tell me all of those athletes were beginners -the first image yes, the next two maybe - but the next three definitely not.

I'm confused... was that not my point?

You can tell that the "dangerous" pictures are beginners with coaches close by.

[rainbowgirl28]

And by the way slickvt, you cant tell me all of those athletes were beginners -the first image yes, the next two maybe - but the next three definitely not.

I'm confused... was that not my point?

You can tell that the "dangerous" pictures are beginners with coaches close by.

Because you tried to play off that none of those pictures reflect Atkins' technique.

[SlickVT]

Becca, I am gonna have to disagree with you.

I said show me one of his state champs or a regular camper/vaulter that look like that.

Most of the time beginners do, in fact, start out with bad technique.

This topic is getting old fast...