Hands  Up  Drill

By  Alan Roark, Vault Coach, Amherst Steele High School, Amherst, Ohio

Many parts of the vault just don’t make sense.  The idea of pushing your hands up when you take off is one of those things.  It doesn’t make sense that you don’t pull yourself up onto the pole.  If you can show vaulters that it really is better to get both hands up, they’re more willing to do it when they vault. Most kids try to pull themselves up and end in the “fiber forehead” position with their front arm bent, their front hand at their forehead, and not much bend in the pole.  Here’s how I get the idea across to my vaulters. 

Buy a 10 ft. length of 1” pvc plastic pipe ($2 and Home Depot) and tape it like you would a pole vault pole.

Since it’s only 10’ long, hold the bottom end up off of the floor to get a more realistic angle. Have your vaulter hold the pole like they’re ready to take off.  Have them walk forward and move their front hand to their forehead and try to bend the pole as they walk toward you.  They will find it very difficult to bend.

Next, with the same set up, have them walk toward you and push both hands up as high as they can like Steve does below. 

They will be amazed how easy it is to move forward and how much the pole bends.  Tell them the same thing works with a real pole.

Notes:

Make sure their shoulders are square and their top arm is straight.

Tell them to look up and notice that their front hand is straight up above their head.

Have a stronger pole ready for them to use if they’ve already been vaulting with a low front hand.  They may go to a 10lb. stronger pole that day.

Praise them big every time they keep their hands up.  The new habit will anchor better if you praise it.