Aligning the Vaulter with the Pole
Using your arms correctly is a key to maintaining proper alignment, relative to the pole. As with every other phase of the pole vault, alignment affects other aspects of the jump, so if the vaulter’s alignment is off it’s going to cost the jumper distance. Two-time American Olympian Jeff Hartwig discussed alignment issues at the 2013 Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association’s annual coaching clinic.
Alignment’s a little different than balance. Balance is what your body’s doing. Alignment is how you receive the pole, what position your body is in, relative to the pole, that allows you to maintain your energy and get picked up off the ground, or to run into the air without getting knocked out of position to swing.
Tucking the Elbow:
For anybody who’s a hardcore, ‘You’ve gotta tuck your elbow,’ I’ll challenge you. Grab a pole and try to climb the pole. If somebody were to hold the pole you could climb it just like you would a fire pole at a fire house. Now, grab the pole and tuck your elbow. Now try to climb the pole. Number one, you’re going to fall. Nine times out of ten, if you’re tucking your elbow as soon as you pull your body off the ground you’re falling to the right, if you’re a right-handed pole vaulter. The other thing is, how do you generate power at the takeoff if your intention is to tuck your elbow? You’ve got no power. So you’ve got to keep that elbow out. You can turn the wrist under a little bit, to push up through.
Hands Above the Shoulder:
The problem is, when you plant right over your head it locks your shoulder joint. If I plant over the shoulder, my plant is still directly above my takeoff foot, but now I’m balanced and I can actually be 3 inches taller, because I’m not over my head any more. The other thing is, by being over your shoulder, now that opens that shoulder joint and allows you to run under your hands, so you don’t compromise your body posture. Your torso can stay perpendicular to the runway longer. My problem was, we were taught to plant right over your head, so as soon as you plant over your head and your shoulder joint doesn’t open, well, if your shoulder joint doesn’t open, where’s all the pressure go? Right in your lower back. And every year in high school I hurt my back pole vaulting. Every year I had at least a two-week period where I hurt my back, because I’d have one jump where I was a little bit off on my timing, and as I’d take off the ground I’d get all this pressure in my lower back. When the hips go forward, now all of the sudden it’s harder to hold your knee up. If you could hold your knee up and swing, you’d probably break your back. So what happens is, that causes guys to pull their legs in, your hips are going forward, you lose pressure on the pole, which doesn’t move the pole very well.
To demonstrate how important it is to stay forward with your chest, go have your kids jump up on the high bar, and hang. And for the kids that are strong enough to pull their legs around, you say, ‘OK, try to get a little swing going and just pull your legs around.’ Some can get upside-down. Now take that same kid, hang him on the high bar and push into the small of their back and put their hips out in front of their shoulders. And tell them, ‘OK, now swing upside-down,’ and you hold their hips out in front of them. I’ve never seen a kid that could do it. It’s so hard, and you’ll hear them say, ‘That hurts my back.’ Well, when you plant right over your head, and your shoulders get knocked back off the ground, that’s the position you’re putting yourself into right off the ground. So the important thing is to be high over your shoulder, and that way your shoulder can open up and your head can stay forward. And what your arm does is a function of how high you’re holding.
Read more about the pole vault:
Pole Vault Basics
Pole Vault Approach Run
Gripping the Pole
Carrying the Pole
Planting the Pole
The Pole Vaulter’s Balance
How to Hold the Pole (coming soon)
Alignment’s a little different than balance. Balance is what your body’s doing. Alignment is how you receive the pole, what position your body is in, relative to the pole, that allows you to maintain your energy and get picked up off the ground, or to run into the air without getting knocked out of position to swing.
Tucking the Elbow:
For anybody who’s a hardcore, ‘You’ve gotta tuck your elbow,’ I’ll challenge you. Grab a pole and try to climb the pole. If somebody were to hold the pole you could climb it just like you would a fire pole at a fire house. Now, grab the pole and tuck your elbow. Now try to climb the pole. Number one, you’re going to fall. Nine times out of ten, if you’re tucking your elbow as soon as you pull your body off the ground you’re falling to the right, if you’re a right-handed pole vaulter. The other thing is, how do you generate power at the takeoff if your intention is to tuck your elbow? You’ve got no power. So you’ve got to keep that elbow out. You can turn the wrist under a little bit, to push up through.
Hands Above the Shoulder:
The problem is, when you plant right over your head it locks your shoulder joint. If I plant over the shoulder, my plant is still directly above my takeoff foot, but now I’m balanced and I can actually be 3 inches taller, because I’m not over my head any more. The other thing is, by being over your shoulder, now that opens that shoulder joint and allows you to run under your hands, so you don’t compromise your body posture. Your torso can stay perpendicular to the runway longer. My problem was, we were taught to plant right over your head, so as soon as you plant over your head and your shoulder joint doesn’t open, well, if your shoulder joint doesn’t open, where’s all the pressure go? Right in your lower back. And every year in high school I hurt my back pole vaulting. Every year I had at least a two-week period where I hurt my back, because I’d have one jump where I was a little bit off on my timing, and as I’d take off the ground I’d get all this pressure in my lower back. When the hips go forward, now all of the sudden it’s harder to hold your knee up. If you could hold your knee up and swing, you’d probably break your back. So what happens is, that causes guys to pull their legs in, your hips are going forward, you lose pressure on the pole, which doesn’t move the pole very well.
To demonstrate how important it is to stay forward with your chest, go have your kids jump up on the high bar, and hang. And for the kids that are strong enough to pull their legs around, you say, ‘OK, try to get a little swing going and just pull your legs around.’ Some can get upside-down. Now take that same kid, hang him on the high bar and push into the small of their back and put their hips out in front of their shoulders. And tell them, ‘OK, now swing upside-down,’ and you hold their hips out in front of them. I’ve never seen a kid that could do it. It’s so hard, and you’ll hear them say, ‘That hurts my back.’ Well, when you plant right over your head, and your shoulders get knocked back off the ground, that’s the position you’re putting yourself into right off the ground. So the important thing is to be high over your shoulder, and that way your shoulder can open up and your head can stay forward. And what your arm does is a function of how high you’re holding.
Read more about the pole vault:
Pole Vault Basics
Pole Vault Approach Run
Gripping the Pole
Carrying the Pole
Planting the Pole
The Pole Vaulter’s Balance
How to Hold the Pole (coming soon)