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Pole vault Drills And Technique

Pole Vault, Start Here

Everything you need to learn proper vaulting technique. From essential mechanics and progressive drills to deep insight from one of the country's top vaulting coaches.
cover of pole vault start here course

What you'll get

included with the course

19 on-demand video lessons

Learn at your own pace on any device. Watch as often as you want, whenever you want.

Instant Lifetime Access

As soon as you enroll you are good to go. No monthly or annual fees. The course is yours!

certificate of completion

As soon as you finish the course you will receive a customized certificate of completion.

100% Money back guarantee

Complete protection by our no-risk guarantee. See our refund policy for details

what you'll learn

TRAINING, DRILLS & LESSONS DESIGNED to maximize performance

Grip & Pole Drop
Upper Body Mechanics
Plant Mechanics & Drills
Coordination & Posture
Pole Vault Speed Development
Spatial Awareness
Grip Height Progression
The Approach & Takeoff
Moving The Pole To Vertical
Progressing Safely
competition success
More
pole vault technique demonstration on mobile devices

course content

Lesson plan and chapter descriptions

Course Duration: 1 hr, 33 min
Number of Lessons: 19
class sample
Coach Brown shares what a great vault feels like and the sensations he experienced as a vaulter. He also dispels some of the myths about pole vaulting and breaks down the mechanics into their simplest form.
Coach Brown goes over the premise of the pole vault and covers overarching principles that are at the core of successful vaulting. Technical elements include: Establishing a proper grip, dropping the pole and introduction to proper hand movement.
Plant mechanics are at the core of pole-vaulting technique. The technical elements of the plant are the same whether you are a beginner or a world-class vaulter. This chapter covers each of the 3 phases of the plant and drills to begin developing proper technique.
Plant mechanics occur in the last three steps of the approach. The first step is curling your hand up to your ear to put you in an open position. Then you press your hands up to move the pole to the vertical position and then you jump off the ground. In this chapter Coach Brown reiterates plant and swing initiation mechanics.
Coach Brown has seen many vaulters take off from the wrong leg. Learn how to determine which leg a vaulter should take off from and why using the incorrect leg can cause several technical issues in the vault.
Now that we’ve gone through the three-step plant mechanics – curl, press and jump, we’ll progress that into running and jumping. As always, the most important focus is moving the top end of the pole to the vertical position. Coach Brown shares some helpful drills to begin this progression.
In order to effectively coach the pole vault you need to understand what’s occurring throughout the vault. In this lesson Coach Brown discusses the similarities of coaching the pole vault and coaching the long jump.
In the second phase of progressing plant mechanics, we’ll move to the long jump pit. The premise is always the same – to move the top end of the pole to vertical. In this chapter, Coach Brown shares drills that work anticipation of take off, jumping off the ground and pole movement.
The pole vault can be dangerous if the athlete progresses before they are ready. A common error is moving the grip height up before a vaulter is prepared – this creates safety issues. Moving the pole to the vertical position and moving into the pit safely are required before progressing to a higher grip or longer approach. Coach Brown shares his philosophy on this and how to safely get vaulters to a longer approach and higher grip.
And now the fun part! This chapter covers the next progression in learning the vault, which is actually taking vaults. Building on the drills, progression and technique from the previous chapters, in this lesson, you’ll learn how to apply what you’ve learned to start vaulting into the pit.
Now that you’ve learned how to progress to taking vaults, Coach Brown teaches you how to dial-in your approach so your takeoff is in the right position on the runway. As the grip is raised, you move back on the runway. In this chapter, you’ll learn the right way to adjust as you progress and the technique to look for as you do so.
All the previous drills and progressions have led to the top end of the pole moving to the vertical position, getting in the right position and the right step for the take off. Now you’re ready to initiate the swing. Coach Brown covers how to begin this phase, queues to use to ensure correct technique and common errors in the swing phase.
The drop step, when the pole begins to drop down in the approach, may be different based on each vaulter. This is determined based on grip height, length of the pole, stride length and speed of the vaulter. Coach Brown shares how this is determined and provides examples of drop step number for vaulters he has worked with.
In this chapter, Coach Brown goes into further detail on approach technique. The tip of the pole should start high and stay high until you reach the drop point. He reiterates how this drop point is determined and how to ensure you have a consistent approach even in competition, where you may run harder or faster.
After plant mechanics, takeoff and swing have been developed you’ll progress to raising the grip and begin to focus on dropping the pole at the right moment. In this chapter, Coach Brown explains how to identify the step at which the pole should drop.
Coordination and posture are vital to a successful vault. In order to execute the fundamentals of pole vault, you must understand the correct movement and coordination of your arms and legs as you run your approach. Timing and position of your arms and legs as well as an upright, tall posture lead to more effective vaulting. In this chapter, Coach Brown discusses the important elements of coordination and posture, drills to achieve correct technique and common errors to watch for. He also shares wisdom on maximum controllable speed and how to achieve this.
The pole vault requires constant movement and work throughout the vault – you can’t just plant the pole and ride it over the bar. In this chapter, Coach Brown shares some the most helpful queues he uses throughout the vault to help focus on the technique of each phase. These queues should be adapted to fit how each athlete understands the concepts of vaulting. Communicating and teaching the mechanics in the way that connects with an athlete determines the usefulness of the queue. Additionally, Coach Brown discusses the universal versus the individual elements of technique.
Coach Brown discusses pole-vaulting studies that examine the determining factors that influence height. Other topics in this chapter include the importance of developing spatial awareness and drills he uses to help vaulters get comfortable being upside down.
Coach Brown shares the advice he would give himself if he could travel back in time and speak to his high school self. He also gives general advice for beginning vaulters and what makes the pole-vaulting community so unique.

meet the instructor

learn why this coach is so effective

Kevin Brown instructor profile

Kevin Brown

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Team USA Coach
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olympians
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National Records
The track and field wisdom Kevin Brown carries is built from a lifetime of experience in the sport. A pole vault All-American, Olympic trials qualifier and Atlantic Coast Conference scorer in five different events, his knowledge is rooted in direct training, struggle and performance. After concluding his own athletic pursuits as the most decorated vaulter in school history at the University of North Carolina, Brown began his coaching career in 1995 at his alma mater.
Learn more about Coach Brown

how it works

THE E-LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Every course includes lifetime access to our online learning platform. Check out the short video to see it in action.
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dive deeper

learn more about this course

Kevin Brown teaching pole vault

Technique

Fix bad habits or prevent them from ever developing in the first place.

Everything in the pole vault is built upon proper technique. From mastering plant mechanics to refining and maximizing the approach and drop. A vaulter’s full potential is only achieved once all of these areas are dialed-in. Once the fundamental technique is established, higher vaults are reached by adding a greater stimulus (i.e. longer approach and/or higher grip). The fundamentals that are taught in this course don’t change.

That’s why we start from the beginning and cover every key element of the vault. The SMART progression of this course provides a straightforward path to learning and dialing-in optimal technique. Each lesson provides actionable technique and strategies so you’ll start seeing improvements from day 1 and continue to build towards greater heights. 

Drills

Convert information into execution with cutting edge drills.

The pole vault is about technique. But it’s also about power, speed and athleticism. Every drill included works together as a progressive system that can be customized for the individual athlete. You’ll learn foundational drills to build and reinforce technique through every phase of the vault as well as drills to master the mechanics and safely progress to higher bars. You’ll also gain an understanding of when and why to use them.

Topics that are covered include grip and developing a proper pole drop, upper body mechanics, plant mechanics progression, coordination, posture and speed development, developing spatial awareness, progression of grip height and approach, moving the pole to vertical, takeoff drills and much more.
pole-vault-plant-mechanics
hurdles coach kevin brown south carolina

Deep Insight

Learn the lessons of a lifetime from a coach who has been where you are.

Go deeper into the technique and develop a true understanding of how it all fits together.

Coach Brown provides deep insight on pole vault technique and the methodology taught throughout the course. 

He also covers often overlooked training topics such as when to move up on the grip, dialing-in the approach, developing spatial awareness and more.
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100% Risk-Free Money Back Guarantee

You are completely protected by our 100% No-Risk Guarantee. If any course doesn’t live up to your expectations we’ll happily refund 100% of your money within 14 days. See our refund policy for details and eligibility.

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