HOW TO MAKE YOUR POLE VAULT AND HIGH JUMP PITS
LAST (ALMOST) FOR EVER!
(OR MAYBE I SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT THE RIGHT PIT)

There you are, sitting alone in your office, trying to find a way to explain to your Athletic Director that the pole vault pit you bought two years ago needs to be replaced. You remember telling him even though you were paying a little more for this pit; that this brand pit was used in all the big meets. Also; this pit has a warranty that lasts almost forever. How could you go wrong?

The day the pit arrived you unpacked it, set it up, and then convinced the athletic director to come down to the track so you could show him how good the pit looked. The athletic director smiled at you. You were just about happy as a coach could get. For a few weeks everything was fine. Then you noticed that maybe everything wasn't O.K. after all.

The first thing you noticed was that the quick-release snaps holding the top pad to the base and tri-slant (front buns) units were starting to bend and break. Upon closer examination you could see that the breather material on the top pad was also pulling apart. Oh dear...Time passed, you manage to get through the season but the pit just continued getting worse.

In August, you called the manufacturer and told them what happened to your pit. They gave you the old song and dance, told you to box up the top pad and ship it (you get to pay for the shipping) back to the factory. They will repair it for free. (Wasn't taking the foam out of the top pad fun?) They said you would have your top pad back by November. November came and went, so you gave the manufacturer a call to find out the status of your top pad. They said they were working on it and you would have it before Christmas vacation. December came and went; still no top pad. It's now January and you need your top pad, tout suite! You call the manufacturer again and you find out that they haven't even started the repair.

Early February you finally get your top pad and you think everything is going to be fine, this time. Within a few week all the problems you had last year start to happen again. By the end of the season, the top pad is a mess, the breather material on your base unit is torn, and the adhesive that was used to glue the base unit foam has died and gone to heaven.

"Honey, wake up, you'll be late for school." Wow! It was just a bad dream... or was it? What I just described to you has actually happened to a high school coach in my area. So, once you get your pit to your facility, how do you make it last (almost) for ever?

This year I am entering my 35rd year of pole vaulting and my 7th year in the sports equipment and clothing business. During the last seven years, I have been making on-site repairs to high jump and pole vault pits in the San Francisco Bay area. I've learned why many high jump and pole vault pits fail prematurely. Making your high jump and pole vault pits last for many years isn't as hard as it seems. Let's see what can be done to keep your athletic director happy by making your pits last longer.

First and foremost you must always be sure, prior to using your pits, they are correctly assembled. The base and tri-slant units must all be buckled together. To ensure that these units don't slide apart I tie the D-rings together with BUNGY cord (you can get this from your local hardware store). I then make sure that the top pad is buckled to all the D-rings on the base and tri-slant units. As soon as one of the quick release snaps or D-rings fails, it must be replaced. If not repaired immediately, the force of landing on the pit will be distributed over fewer points of support. This will cause accelerated failure of the remaining points of support on your pit. At present I am experimenting by tying BUNGY cord from the top pad quick-release snaps to the D-rings on the bottom of the base units. This allows some of the force of landing to be distributed to the bottom of the base units. This should help reduce stress at the D-rings on the top of the base and tri-slant units.

Next, you should always inspect the foam in the top pad, tri-slant, and base units periodically to ensure that the seams are still glued together. If the foam begins to tear you must fix it immediately! What I use is Vangrip SBR General Purpose Adhesive. This adhesive comes in a aerosol spray can for easy use.

An inspection of the vinyl and breather material seams should be done at least monthly. The heatsealed seams are typically ultrasonically heat sealed but do sometimes come apart. If a seam is failing I use HH-66 Vinyl Adhesive. This adhesive is much more than a contact cement; it actually makes the two pieces of vinyl become one.

While you inspecting the heat-sealed seams you might as well inspect the sewn seams; especially where any attachments (quick release snaps, D-rings, or plastic buckles) are made. Depending on how bad the seam is determines how it will be repaired. If only a minor amount of sewing is required I use a Speedy Stitcher Sewing Awl to make the repair. Sometimes I will reinforce the area by gluing (with HH-66 Vinyl Adhesive) vinyl or breather material over the area first then sewing the area for added reinforcement.

In September 95 I was asked to repair a base unit with a seam failure that was 13' long. This was more of an undertaking than I had ever attempted. I knew I didn't want to sew this by hand; so I spread the base unit out on the patio and looked at it for a while. While I was pondering a solution to this problem; my girl friend at the time, Sue Mehl, stated "I can sew that on my sewing machine." "Right!" I thought to myself. She continued, "My Pfaff sewing machine is guaranteed to sew through 6 layers of denim". I figured, "What have I got to loose?" So, I glued the seam together with HH-66 Vinyl Adhesive. The next day we went and purchased the strongest polyester thread we could find that would also it into the needles we had to use. We also purchased "Ball Point Needles". Sue said this type of needle will cause less damage to the material during the sewing process.

The rest is history. Sue actually managed to get that 13' long base unit bag through that little sewing machine. She used a ziz-zag stitch, so as to reinforce the material. We put the foam back into the bag and tested the repaired base unit seams by vaulting on it for two months before we returned it in great shape to its owner. It really worked!!!

Finally, your pit should be kept clean by using a mild soap and water. After I clean my pit and weather cover, I apply good coating of Armor All. Do not Armor All the top pad! Armor All will make the top pad very slippery. I use Armor All because it guards against the effects of heat, ozone, and ultraviolet rays. Heat, ozone, and ultraviolet rays really destroy your pits and the weather cover.

Now you know how to make your pits last longer but where do you find all the stuff you need to make these repairs? You moght find it in your local hardware store, but I doubt it. You don't have to look for it. I've already done all the leg work. You can get everything you need by calling: Personal Record Sports at (707) 645-8555. Good luck... Don't have any bad dreams!!!



EDDIE