Electric Hurdles
Hub / HURDLING / 10

What Kills Speed

Pole Vault, the Braking Step, back kick, Upward Jumping, swirling. Each one adds time.

Founder method
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01Teach from here

The Pole Vault

The cut step starts too far from the hurdle.The hip swing expands into a full or reaching step, landing ahead of the center of mass.The planted leg vaults the athlete over.

Coach notes
  • It replaces down-and-back propulsion with braking and extended support. It can be seen in takeoff position, contact relative to center of mass, ground-contact time, flight time and clearance path.
SourcesKU-015Z; KU-015AA
02Teach from here

The Braking Step

A contact ahead of the center of mass slows the athlete like a car brake.It is the cardinal sin.Through hurdles one to three, every ground contact belongs behind the center of mass.

Coach notes
  • The point where that rule changes later in the race has not been stated.

Open on this screen

  • Unresolved Whether and where the behind-center rule changes after H3.
SourcesKU-015AA; WALK · b6
03Teach from here

More Ways to Lose Time

Back kick kills speed.Jump is a bad word.No swirling, no twirling.Arms flying out to the sides like a T, like an airplane, bleed forward momentum.

Wanted

  • frontside mechanics
  • Pop
  • straight lines
  • arms tucked, sprint arms

Rejected

  • back kick kills speed
  • Upward Jumping
  • swirling, twirling
  • arms out to the sides like an airplane
Anti-patterns
Coach notes
  • The airplane-arms fault comes from a third-person summary of a founder video review, where he asks for sprint arms tucked tighter to the body rather than flying out wide.
SourcesWALK · b4; WALK · b7; KU-015AC; PRAC-VID
04Teach from here

The Scorecard

Total flight time across the hurdles.Total ground-contact time across the race.

Coach notes
  • The founder proposes these two cumulative measures as the race's scorecard and the way to expose Pole Vault cost. Definitions, instruments and reliability still need to be set.
  • The claim that inaccurate takeoff doubles or more than doubles clearance-related contact time is unverified.

Open on this screen

  • Unresolved How accumulated flight and ground-contact time are to be measured.
SourcesKU-015AB

Related

  • The Cut Step -- At hurdle speed there is no time for a full cycle. The cut step is an abbreviated, stiff strike from the hip.
  • Stiffness, Pop and Bounce -- Stiffness is the hurdler's superpower. Pop is good, jump is bad, and the bounce goes forward down the track.
  • Hitting the Track -- Hit the track before you hit the track. The effective strike lands slightly behind you and sends you down the track.

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