Runway Length
A recent trend in the vaulting community is to see how high an athlete can vault from a short runway. Although no medals exist for vaulting with the shortest runway, a more concise approach offers several advantages for training purposes. For instance, you can:
Scale down the vault (smaller poles).
Take more jumps in a training session.
Work on timing and fundamentals.
There are disadvantages as well that coaches and athletes need to be aware of, like:
Shorter runs may lead to poor running mechanics.
It may alter the athletes’ comfort zones.
The timing is different between pole lengths.
The chart below references how high an athlete might be able to jump as they lengthen their runway. Of course, success will vary between athletes.
Step Progression Chart
Use this chart as a starting point. Have the athlete jump from only two steps, holding low on a reasonably soft pole. Move the crossbar up only 1 inch until three misses are marked. Work on that same approach every day for several weeks - taking many jumps, video recording each one, analyzing each jump, look for inefficiencies and ways to improve. Once you feel satisfied with the biomechanics of that vault, then move back two steps and repeat the process. It may take several months before the athlete is ready for their longest runway. I have known many athletes that only move back to their longest runway right before the season championships.
Ideal Runway
Regardless of the runway length an athlete currently uses, they should always strive to make it as effective as possible.
The ideal runway needs the following criteria:
The run should be long enough for the athlete to reach the desired speed.
It should promote optimal stride length, frequency, and rhythm with predictable marks.
Each step builds on the previous for a continuous acceleration and tempo - building to a crescendo.
It will allow balance, good posture, and relaxation.
Avoids any injury to the feet, ankles, knees, and back.
Runway Length
The runway needs to be long enough to allow the athlete the necessary speed to penetrate on the pole they are using. The longer and stiffer the pole, the more speed is required. Lengthening the runway two steps increases the velocity the athlete brings to the launch between 2.5 to 20 percent, depending on the initial length of the runway, eventually reaching negative numbers if too long.
An athlete should never “try” to run faster from the same length runway. If more speed is required, simply add a couple of steps to the run.
Runway length matters most during competition, as you are trying to reach your maximum velocity at launch. The chart below is hypothetical of a vaulter that can reach 10 m/s max, potentially leading to a men’s world record. For females, the scale would max around 9 m/s.
Relative velocity chart.