Achieving the heights.

It's All in the Last Three Steps!

I am thoroughly convinced that what a vaulter does or does not do during the last three steps of his approach will largely determine the success or failure of his vault.

For the vaulter to achieve his optimum height potential based on his speed, strength, agility, etc., he has to do a lot of things just right, maybe perfectly.

We know that a lot of vaulters can achieve a decent height on athletic ability alone. If, say, a boy is fast, strong, and agile, he may do quite a few things wrong and still outjump the athlete who has perfect technique, but is slower and weaker.

Obviously, then, a coach's No. 1 priority should be to improve his vaulter's athletic ability with a comprehensive program of weight training, plyometrics, gymnastics, and speed work. A vaulter may perfect his plant, takeoff, and every aspect of the entire vault, but if he doesn't have speed, strength, and agility, he will never vault very high.

Coaches should search for potential vaulters among the sprint types who have good jumping ability and an aggressive nature (i.e., long jumpers, high jumpers, and hurdlers).

Following are the things to look for and develop on the last three steps of the approach and takeoff:

Speed is undoubtedly the paramount factor in determining potential. But it must be controlled by the vaulter. He must make certain that his run-up is long enough to enable him to achieve full speed without having to strain.

Acceleration. An aggressive attitude is a must. If the vaulter has confidence, he will attack the box. If not, he will slow down at take-off (listen to footsteps).

Early Explosive Take-Off. Many vaulters execute their plant and simply let the pole jerk them off the ground. The vaulter must anticipate his take-off and jump outward and upward, timing it to coincide with the pole tip hitting the box and with his top hand reaching its apex. Unless he anticipates, he will always have a late take-off or get jerked off the ground.

Good Posture & Preparation. One cannot have a good take-off with no preparation. A slight settling on the next to the last step will help the vaulter get the dynamics needed to effect a good take-off. His posture should be similar to that of a good long jumper - leaning ever so slightly back and staying as tall as possible at all times.

Good Trajectory. The focus should be outward and upward. If the vaulter thinks only upward, he will not penetrate and load the pole as he should. His focus should be between that of a long jumper and a triple jumper, with his hips slightly ahead of his shoulders.

High Early Plant. Best description of a good plant: "A two-step plant that starts three steps out." Unless the top hand starts up from the hip on the third step out, the plant will invariably be late. The plant must be straight overhead at take-off, with the vaulter overcoming the tendency to plant in front of his head.

He should keep his right hand close to his body as it comes up behind or in line with the ear. (If he can see his hand at any time, it is too far out during the plant.)

He must drop the pole tip in the box and not slide or poke it in.

If the take-off foot, pole tip, and top hand reach the apex at the same instant, the result will be a clean or efficient plant, one in which very little kinetic energy is lost at take-off.

Note: Literally thousands of walk-through, jog-through, and run-through plants and take-off drills are needed to develop this efficient, or clean, plant.

Upon reaching the third step out and starting his plant, the vaulter must make sure the tip is just slightly over his head and that he has kept his left hand high while planting. He must then lower the tip by raising his right hand rather than by lowering the left hand (very important).

Press Up/Drive Out. This action is similar to rubbing your tummy and patting your head at the same time. While the vaulter must press upward with both arms at take-off, he must drive his chest and hips outward.

Proper Take-Off Mark: The vaulter must take-off directly under his top hand to not more than three or four inches outside his mark. A vaulter with a very dynamic take-off can enhance his vault by taking off outside about three or four inches.

Now that the vaulter is off the ground, the position he is in and the actions of his body and the pole will be greatly influenced by what he did or did not do on the last three steps.

For instance, I'm often asked, "How do I get my vaulter to drive his right knee out, hang his left leg back, and penetrate and separate from the pole as he should?"

My answer is: "These aren't things that you do. They are things that happen!" And they happen because your trajectory and focus are right. And the dynamics of your plant and take-off are correct.

Almost all fails during or at the end of the vault can be traced back to a mistake or failure during the last three steps of the approach. Some examples:

1. If the vaulter's take-off point is too far under, it will be virtually impossible to penetrate as he should and to obtain the swinging action from the lower body needed to effect a good rollback and dynamic flyaway. So he will most likely come up short and come down on the bar.

2. The right knee is a reflection of the vaulter's dynamics during the last three steps, particularly the penultimate step. If he is aggressive on all three steps and jumps outward and upward off the ground, his knee will be out where it should be.

The same is true of the left, or trail, leg. If the focus or trajectory is correct, the left leg will be fully extended behind the body during the penetration phase of the vault.

3. When the plant is late, or low, it will greatly affect the pole's readiness to bend. As the vaulter increases the efficiency of his plant, it will allow him to hold higher and utilize much stiffer poles.

By this time, you should be able to get the drift of what I am saying: Pole vaulting needs highly motivated coaches and dedicated athletes who are willing to spend the time and make the effort to perfect and develop all the things we have referred to here.

There are no shortcuts. The strength, speed, and agility must come from many hours, months, and years of hard work in the weight room, gymnastic room, on the track. The mechanics of a good pole carry, run up, plant, takeoff, and vault can only come from numberless drills and hours of patience and perseverance by both coaches and athletes.

The intensity and concentration required to achieve excellence are so great that very few athletes ever achieve their full potential. Coaches must expect and demand perfection on the last three steps if they are to succeed.

Coaches who allow their athletes to vault over and over again while doing everything wrong are committing a crime. (The athlete can and will be injured.) If you can get the athlete to execute properly on the last three steps, good things will happen.

The key is drills - lots and lots of them. Until the vaulter begins hitting his take-off mark consistently and executing his plant and take-off with reasonable efficiency, he should not be allowed to vault the bar.

You must keep him on a training pole, holding low with a short run, then work up slowly to a bigger pole and a longer run as he improves his mechanics.

Caution: Place extra padding around your pit at both sides, the back, and around the box, and cover the base of the standards.

(Anyone interested in private tutoring, training videos, or information on the vault are invited to call or write Coach Don Hood: 4073 Caldwell Road, Abilene, TX 79601. Phone: [phone].)

The Power Underneath The Hood

One of America's top track coaches, Don Hood not only won 10 NCAA II championships over the past decade and sent eight athletes to the 1988 Olympics and five to the 1992 Olympics, but established a large reputation as a pole vault guru - having coached more 18[feet] vaulters than anyone else has done, two 19[feet] vaulters (Billy Olson and Tim Bright), and seven 17[feet] high school vaulters - while coaching at Abilene Christian University and directing the famous "Over the Top" vaulting camps.