Topic: running long jump rules-interesting...

[Thomas Edwards]

4. It shall be counted as a failure or foul if any competitor:
.....
(f) employs any form of somersaulting (front/back tucking) prior to contact in the landing area.

the rationale given is that somersaulting (flipping) in the air can allow the competitor to go farther than his best running long jump.

[Gearsighted]

Yes, actually Brad Gymnast mentioned this in a discussion on Parkour.net a while ago. He can apparently gain a lot more distance with a front flip than a regular jump. This is all good if your only goal is distance...but if it's practical distance, control and the ability to react quickly to any change in your landing area, then a flip is too dangerous to be practical.

[Thomas Edwards]

good point.

though i can see a place for a front tuck in parkour if one can see the landing area and knows that it is smooth and free of obstacles.  of course, only if the distance was needed, (i.e. gap-jump)

you would need crazy proprioception however, to not mess up somehow

[Ryan Ford]

i remember reading something about how olympic long jumpers failed to adapt a somersault in competition that was superior to the standard jump techniques they do today. You can cover a lot of distance with a front flip, maybe even more than you can regularly jump. BUT, that will never be more distance than if you perfect the standard long jumps that todays world class athletes can do.

[Kent]

And honestly, who would have the balls to frontflip a gap thats too big for them to running jump when out training?

[Quazar]

HeHeHe That made me laugh.  Very interesting though.  Finally someone suggested this, it needed to be said, I've been hinting at  the purpose and efficiency of what we so commonly refer to as "tricking," like this for some time, but we're still walking on thin ice with the subject and I don't wanna open up a can of worms.  Can you give me some more information of where you found this, I'd like to do some research.

[Asa]

4. It shall be counted as a failure or foul if any competitor:
.....
(f) employs any form of somersaulting (front/back tucking) prior to contact in the landing area.

For more information on this topic check out this discussion at parkour.net:

http://parkour.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=3110&forum=24&post_id=48154#forumpost48154

And if you want to check up on the facts, I already did the research for you, all you need to do is read it yourself at:

http://www.usatf.org/about/rules/2005/2005USATFRules_Article3.pdf

(read pg 48-49)

[Quazar]

fantastic, makes my life a little easier.

applause

[phragile]

Yes, actually Brad Gymnast mentioned this in a discussion on Parkour.net a while ago. He can apparently gain a lot more distance with a front flip than a regular jump. This is all good if your only goal is distance...but if it's practical distance, control and the ability to react quickly to any change in your landing area, then a flip is too dangerous to be practical.

Brad's insane! I train with him now and then and saw him do a front flip over a rail today. Wish I'd gotten it on film... I don't know if he's in any videos, but he's just an amazing traceur live.  Thumbs up!

Just thought I'd throw that in there. On a side-note, slightly off-topic, I intend to start flipping (front and back) soon, and know of a soft beach area that's perfect for it, but I'm guessing I should have a spotter or 2 with me, right? Is there less risk to one or the other (front vs. back) if I'm flipping from a stand-still position?

[Asa]

I would suggest to start a new topic, instead of taking this thread off-topic.

And check out trickstutorials.com for some great information and discussion about tricking.