Wood vs. Metal

This is actually quite a popular topic in my gym, which do you prefer to vault on, a wood or metal springboard? Personally, I prefer wood. As a gymnast, I just liked the sound a solid underset made when I pounded the board. I suppose that’s an immature way to debate the wood vs. metal argument, but I actually like wood better as a coach too. When my girls accidently “balk” I find it is so much more painless for them when its a wood board. Often times toes get stubbed on the metal and things get ugly. While we’re discussing vault, no matter what board you use, a proper underset it ESSENTIAL to any vault whether it be a squad on or a yurchenko. I could spend days describing the details of an underset, instead I’m going to share the best vault advice that I can give. Chest up on the board. This is so important for heel drive and fuels your vault in the right direction, whatever it may be. One other tip, because I can’t help myself with my pet peeves, make sure you jump on the right part of the board! This would be at the top of the board but not too far up, pretty much directly above the first row of springs. Coaches, put duct tape as a guideline for the gymnasts so they know exactly where they are aiming for. The type of board can play a large role in how comfortable a gymnast is in vaulting. My thing is, when you go to a meet, you don’t get a choice, so get used to vaulting on any springboard. However, when training, comfort is key. I recommend the Gibson springboard, my gym has a few of these carpeted springboards and they’re loved by all. In fact, when one of our girls when to nationals, she took the board with her! These boards make it hard to slip because of the carpeting and furthermore, getting springs in and out is not a huge hassle so as little time as possible is wasted.

http://www.gibsonathletic.com/inventory.asp?CatId=%7BB084FF25-D971-47D6-AC8F-1B7B269B8717%7D