PoleVaultPower.com

Your Enemy the Vaulting BOX
Have you ever vaulted on the perfect pole in practice and gone to a meet and you could not get on that pole at all it was very stiff?

OR vice-a-versa you go to a meet and even though you have a bit more adrenaline you really mush out your poles that fit you in practice?

You scratch your head,
You wonder,
You are baffled.

Here is one possible answer that very few consider!
When vaulting boxes are installed they are done so properly and to the correct height required.
Over the years the runways have improved;
By adding asphalt to the existing surface and then at a later date add a rubberized surface,
[size=150]the box is now another ½â€Â

This looks like a re-post of an earlier post - since it talks about measuring the depth! When was the Rule changed to eight (8) inches? Used to be 20 cm - I could be mistaken

Decamouse wrote:This looks like a re-post of an earlier post - since it talks about measuring the depth! When was the Rule changed to eight (8) inches? Used to be 20 cm - I could be mistaken

20 cm /2.54= 7.87401574803" for you engineers

YES it is a repost for a good reason. People need to check any box that has had a runnway poured on top of the previous runway even in the big RELAYS coming up!!!!!![/

If you are going to check - might as well check it correctly - otherwise you look real foolish if you protest - i.e. put 1/8th re-surface patch - now is 8" deep

Decamouse wrote:If you are going to check - might as well check it correctly - otherwise you look real foolish if you protest - i.e. put 1/8th re-surface patch - now is 8" deep

SPLITTING HAIRS??? LOL
We are not recommending that one protest, as the facility could not change the box during the meet and could just cancel the event.

All we are doing is giving the athletes the information and tools to make an adjustment with the poles to keep them from getting hurt and being able to jump their best no matter the facilities .

We just went to a meet at at a Univ. near us and their box looked WAY deeper than 8"! It was the right size, but sunk down in the concrete in the back . . .

How about the difference allowed in H.S. rules for minimum standards?

40cm or 15.5" , when 40cm is really =15.75". Sometimes nothings perfect even when its a specification. It does bear to pay attention sometimes.

Some boxes also "float up" this time of the year because they are not permanently installed and water gets between them and the concrete base and they come up an inch or so in the back. We refer to this as "squishy box syndrom", and its a weird feeling when you plant.

vaultdad wrote:How about the difference allowed in H.S. rules for minimum standards?

40cm or 15.5" , when 40cm is really =15.75". Sometimes nothings perfect even when its a specification. It does bear to pay attention sometimes.

How about a lot of high schools don't know those are the rules

rainbowgirl28 wrote:

vaultdad wrote:How about the difference allowed in H.S. rules for minimum standards?

40cm or 15.5" , when 40cm is really =15.75". Sometimes nothings perfect even when its a specification. It does bear to pay attention sometimes.

How about a lot of high schools don't know those are the rules

That's splitting hairs considering probably 80% of all HS standards are eyeballed for alignment before they're bolted down.

Hell, I'm tickled pink when I even see HS standards bolted down.

We went to our state district meet last year as a coach I was restricterd to the coaches box. Our first jumper asked to have his standards set at 15 inches. When he jumped he failed to even come near the cross bar. My son then asked for the standards to please be placed on "zero" to check alignment and discovered that "the Zero" mark on these standards was actualy at a 12 inches setting. This placed our first jumpers standards at 27 inches rather than the 15 inches he asked for. IT was strange that all the home town vaulters knew of this but failed to share it with the rest of the competition until we discovered it. It worked out ok for our first vaulter but I would like to know does anyone else actualy drop a plumb bob to verify the actual placement ????? When my son was in jh we did this measurement at the conference championship and found the standards off almost 6 inches. Our teams vaulters were alerted of this anomilly and adjusted their settings accordingly.

1yeldud1 wrote:We went to our state district meet last year as a coach I was restricterd to the coaches box.

Wow, you guys actually get a coaches box? When we get kicked off the field down here, I make a point to show the coaches box suggestion in the rulebook to the official or games committee, and not once have they allowed us anywhere near the pit or runway area.

[quote="1yeldud1"]We went to our state district meet last year as a coach I was restricterd to the coaches box.

Coaches boxes should be manditory for all young ages (middle school thru high school)