WAG Level 5 Vault

[Deanna]

Okay, my DD is 7 and will compete L5 this winter/spring. She is small for her age. (about 5% on height and weight). She gets up and over the vault, that's not an issue. (at the right height and without a spot). She may look like a sway back horse going off the back end..but she gets it done..lol
The thing is..she runs full tilt till three or four step before the spring board, then it's almost like you can see someone put her in slow motion. If it was quiet enough in the gym I suspect you would be able to hear the creaking of an old door as she goes over..lol.
She says it's scary. She knows that the coaches would never ask her to do anything they didn't think she could do. And she is fully aware that she CAN do it. But she has that hesitation.
I am by no means trying to coach her. I know better than that. I was just wondering if there was something else I could say or do to help her be more confident in herself and her abilities? Should I say anything at all, or just let her work through it on her own? I think her age plays a big roll in this (for me anyway), if she was older I think I would go with the, let her come to me concept (at least that's my plan..bahahaha), but as a Momma it bothers me to see her so uncertain of herself. But I love the fact that even though she might not believe in herself to the fullest yet, she does believe in her coaches enough to go for it anyway.
What should this Momma do? I promise I'm not crossing over into the CGM...promise...lol

 

[Deleted member D3987]

she'll work thru it in time. just keep telling her to keep working hard. the "slow down" is an obvious sign that she thinks that her steps feel like they are not spot on as she approaches the board. she is wrong of course (she goes over even with a compromised run), and i'm sure her coaches have told her that. it'll come in time.

 

[Deanna]

Thank you dunno..sometimes the mind knows, but the heart doesn't want to listen..lol

 

[kimskids]

My daughter is 10 and had the same issue until very recently. Our old gym did not work vault much and our new gym is very strong on vault. It has taken 7 months but she is finally getting over that fear and not slowing down as she gets closer! My daughter is also small for her age and her run is the only power she gets so when she would slow down it was not pretty! Lol! She just scored a 9.25 at her last competition and we were all so excited for her! Until then a 8.45 was her highest score. It will come in time. Good luck!!

 

[gymmomof1]

Yup my dd was the same way at that level and there were tears involved as she hated vault. One of the HC said to us " yes it is scary running full tilt at an object bigger than you but you will get use to it." Sure enough by the end of the season she conquered that dreaded vault lol. Wishing your dd the best in her vaulting!

 

[Gymmonkeymomma]

Both of my girls (the big giant one and the teeny tiny) would slow down/stutter-step right before the spring board. It IS scary running fast towards a big non-moving object. Figuring out the "right" steps, too, can be a challenge. She will get it

My little one who just hit 10th percentile for height and 25th for weight FINALLY figured it out around the beginning of Level 7 (her 5th year doing handspring vault) and her scores exploded into 9.5-9.6's. It just takes some kids more time than others

 

[2gymmies]

I have an itty bitty Level 5 too - she is 7 now and is 44 in and almost 40 pounds. She doesn't have the slow down issue but the coaches say she is just too small to really do well on vault - she gets over and they say her shapes are correct throughout, but she is just not big enough. How do judges handle the itty bitties on vault? Are the expectations adjusted for size? She obviously is not going to go as high and as far as anyone else. It's going to be a huge bummer after the high scores from Level 4 vault! As for your dd, at least she is getting over! I think the have to go over by themselves to get the confidence. Does she have her steps and hurdle measured? I know they have had to adjust my dd's steps, hurdle and board to make everything click.

 

[Deanna]

Thank you everyone!

 

[gardenia01]

My dd was a tiny 7yo Level 5 and had the same issues on vault. Just expect that the scores will not be that great. She would get high 8s and 9s on every other event but her best vault score was an 8.5 and mostly she was in the 7s or low 8s. I did not see that the judges adjusted scoring at all. If she's arching off, she's probably not blocking and that will be a big deduction. But at least she is getting over!! That was a huge hurdle for my dd. Eventually she will get more confident with the run and it will get better.

 

[beamer]

Oh, that bugger of a handspring vault!

Normal-sized DD has progressed like this:

1st year L5: Old granny run to front limber off the table. Spectators worried.
2nd year L5: Casual lope down runway to formless handstand with slight block off table. Spectators semi-worried.
L6: More urgent run leading to push from springboard to table with tight body, block...but in pike position. Spectators unconcerned.

Planned L7: Urgent run to springboard, propulsion with tight, straight body off board onto table, block, nice flight, land. Spectators clap.

We'll see how that goes.

 

[wallinbl]

DD's (first year L5) is decent, not great, but given that they do this vault for three consecutive levels, I assumed it was expected that it wouldn't be immediately great.

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

You don't want the judges to go 'easy' on them because the are little. If the judges did, they would not see the scores rise when they actually improve.