Tips for people going to the Pole Vault Summit

[rainbowgirl28]

Post your advice here!

My advice to the high school athletes is WEAR CLOTHES when you go to the meeting at 9am on Friday. Many of you will be going straight from there to the Livestock Arena to pole vault. This involves going outside where it could be snowing. So spandex shorts and flip flops aren't going to cut it. You should wear layers and be prepared for anything.

My advice to everyone is to bring snacks and a water bottle on the trip.

What advice do you have?

[VTechVaulter]

BE OPEN MINDED

yes the pole vault is a great social event and yes its an opportunity to pole vault BUT i feel as it is equally important (for younger vaulters espcially), to try and learn from all of the coaches and speakers and more experienced vaulters.

[bjvando]

My advice to the younger vaulters is to talk to vaulters from other schools and States! The networking can be great and you can learn a lot.

My advice to older kids.. "younger eyes are watching"

See you all there!

[vaultwest]

Ron Morris of On Track wanted me to also let everyone know that we will have a table at the summit selling instructional materials as we always do and that we will be offering a summit special for both Alan's, From Beginner to Bubka and Isinbayeva Too, book and DVD. The summit special price will be $75.00 for both, the DVD will be in a paper sleeve attached to the inside cover of the book.
Vault On

[rainbowgirl28]

I learned this one from Brian last year... never get the orange juice at Rosie's. It is about 2oz worth and you do not get refills.

The East Tower has the nicer rooms.

[rainbowgirl28]

In-N-Out Burger is a very easy walk from the hotel, about a half mile.

[rainbowgirl28]

Unfortunately, a few people at the Summit had valuables stolen from their room by this scam:

The cleaning lady is cleaning the room and has the door open. A guy pops in and tells her it's his room and he is just going to grab a few things.

I know from now on I am going to keep my valuables hidden when I am not in the room.

[rainbowgirl28]

^bumped up for 2010...


Has anyone else noticed that the Nugget is horrible about underage drinking/gambling? At the Hilton they carded religiously, I always had to get one of those bracelets and even then I got carded all the time (I look young). At the Nugget I think maybe I got carded once when I ordered a drink from a bar, never when I was hanging out on the casino floor. There were tons of underage college kids out there. I LOOK about 16, I'm the type of person that should be carded a LOT.

Also, don't count on that airport shuttle to get you back to the airport. I almost missed my flight because that shuttle that is supposed to run every half hour didn't come for over an hour and 10 minutes and I finally had to take a cab and they wouldn't give me a voucher and it took a whole bunch of phone calls over several days to get that money back (my husband got laid off right around that time and we needed that $20!).

[rainbowgirl28]

Here are some more thoughts I had about the Nugget:

- The buffet is not that good relative to the price. Unless you're a BIG eater I recommend sticking with Rosie's or the Noodle Hut
- Give yourself a LOT of time for getting breakfast. The lines get really long.
- Pack your swimsuit, there is a pool! It's big and fun and there is also a big hot tub.
- Read the earlier post about theft at the hotel. Do NOT leave valuables laying about your hotel room. I don't think there are room safes. If you have to leave something in your room, hide it well. You may also consider forgoing room service if you have valuables.
- The internet costs money. If you don't use it much, you might want to just coordinate with a roommate ahead of time about bringing one laptop and splitting the internet cost.
- No free coffee in most of the rooms, you gotta go to the Starbucks in the lobby or one of the restaurants.
- There are not refrigerators in the rooms.

[rainbowgirl28]

I sometimes get asked if the Summit is as fun for underage people (under 21) because so many of the hotel activities are 21+.

I first attended the Summit when I was a senior in HS and have been every year but one since. I think I had just as much fun the first time as I do now.

I assure you, the younger crowd has a great time too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyO5YrkWk_4

[rainbowgirl28]

Anyone have any more tips?

[vaultmd]

Stay focused on why you are there. A lot of young people get distracted by the social opportunities.