Pole???

[Maverick986]

i'm looking to buy a pole here...the high school i coach at this season bought a UCS/Spirit 12' 170 flex of i think 16.5. i was put in charge of breaking it in b/c the head coach's experience in the past w/ Spirits was they were really stiff out of the box....this one wasn't i was blowing through it w/in the first day landing in the back of the pits on a 4 step.

i plan on staying w/ Spirit just because i have had a very good experience w/ them in the past. the coach i've been working w/ suggested i get a 13' 170 but wasn't sure what flex i should get....i was thinking the same as the 12' i was blowing though....because i don't want it to be too stiff to jump on...

i've only been jumping for a year now and when i jumped in hs, my sr. year, my pr was 8'.....but i also jumped w/ my takeoff foot having a stress fracture in it for almost the entire season....i came back about 8 months later and after jumping for like 2 days i put the bar up and cleared 10' w/ no form at all...since then i've been just working on some form stuff but since i don't have a good enough pole to jump on i haven’t tried any heights just getting my form down.

any suggestions out there?

[rainbowgirl28]

i was put in charge of breaking it in b/c the head coach's experience in the past w/ Spirits was they were really stiff out of the box...

any suggestions out there?

That coach doesn't know what he is talking about. You don't need to break in poles. Nothing changes in the pole, it changes with you the vaulter.

[Maverick986]

i was put in charge of breaking it in b/c the head coach's experience in the past w/ Spirits was they were really stiff out of the box...

any suggestions out there?

That coach doesn't know what he is talking about. You don't need to break in poles. Nothing changes in the pole, it changes with you the vaulter.

To clarify. This is only the second year he has been coaching, and breaking in the pole was taught to him, or more so told to him by some other coach he has had along the lines. Also we have had some older poles that were really stiff and after he and I had jumped on them a few times they became softer so since you say you can't break a pole in then what does that mean?? That we are just weakening the pole or actually breaking it???

Oh, and I was not looking for a ridiculing of the coach I work with. A simple explanation that you can't break in a pole would have been sufficient, not to mention I wasn't even looking to know that here. I was looking for suggestions about buying a pole if I am making a good decision here or not.

[science geek]

With regards to "breaking in" a pole, it probably has more to do with you warming up, running faster and having better technique as you begin to vault than the pole getting softer. It is common when pole vaulting to go through a pole or two in practice since your technique improves and your body warms up.

With regards to the pole, the flex rating will change as you increase in length. When you increase in length and have the same flex the weight rating of the pole increases, sometimes dramatically. It is important to get a pole that is about the same weight rating as your 12' pole, not the same flex number.

[Maverick986]

Thank you for that information....I will defiantly include it in my decision making.

[MightyMouse]

Its important for everyone to get rid of the "break in" "warm up" the pole idea.

[vault3rb0y]

You are breaking in yourself, getting used to the certain pole :-P. But a 13 170 should be ok, depending on how much you weigh. If you arent getting much bend out of the 12 170 and just going through it almost stiff poling it, the 13 170 would be great, to give you more bend and more hieght. On the other hand, if you are crushing the 12 170 and landing in the back you might consider something around the lines of a 12'6 180? Its going to depend on what you and the coach think the length of a pole you can get on would be possible, and figuring out the flex from there. Good luck!

[vault3rb0y]

One a side note, henrietta NY, just curious where that is? Im from Section 4 right around Cornell, Dryden High School.

[Maverick986]

Well to begin with to answer vault3rb0y's question...Henrietta, NY is in section 5, it’s like around 15min south of Rochester.

On another note I guess I did leave some important info out....I am wayyyyy over bending the 12' 170...to the point where I had to stop because I was at risk of breaking it....I weigh about 165 +/- 2lbs and I am 5'7" tall...I’ve actually bent the pole to the point where I almost landed off the pits (behind them) and the pole hadn't fully recoiled yet.

Well I’ve also been doing a little research here and was originally going to get a Spirit...but am not totally sure any more. I've been looking at ESSX's site and have been quite impressed. But they don't have any 13' 170's I’d have to go up to a 13'6" to get a 170...or do I? I also saw that the ESSX's site says that they are stiffer poles...so has anyone out there switched from Spirit of ESSX? If you have were thy actually stiffer?

[AVC Coach]

With all due respect, if your PR was 8', I don't see any reason why you would be on a pole that would bend. You also said you cleared 10' with no form at all. One of the best ways to learn to vault correctly is to stiff pole until you establish some good habits and develop efficient technique. Then you will be able to buy a new pole with confidence without wasting money.

[Maverick986]

With all due respect, if your PR was 8', I don't see any reason why you would be on a pole that would bend. You also said you cleared 10' with no form at all. One of the best ways to learn to vault correctly is to stiff pole until you establish some good habits and develop efficient technique. Then you will be able to buy a new pole with confidence without wasting money.

I have been working on my form since then 10' jump and my form is back to where it was at the end of the last season and a lot better...the 8' jump was a fractured foot...actually the fractured foot was my take off foot which inhibited me from jumping well on it.

[SKOT]

if you are over bending the pole you might want to think about going with a stiffer pole before going with a longer pole. and Essx will make you a 13' 170. they might not advertise them, but they should make just about anything