Fosbury flop applied to long jumping

[tynopik]

For a long time the world high jump record stuck around the same point until Fosbury realized that you didn't have to get your whole body over the bar at the same time. Instead you could just get a part of your body over the bar and then progressively move that point along your body.

Similarly long jumping right now depends on having the entire body covering that distance all at once. Might there be some way for a more progressive approach?

I'm picturing a diving jump forward, landing on your hands, and then doing a sort of tuck-and-roll that uses your hands as a pivot point to keep the rest of your body off the ground as it continues moving forward.

Of course this would also make long jumping much more entertaining as there's sure to be plenty of epic faceplants as people try to avoid putting their hands down till as late as possible.

 

[SamQuint]

you give that a try and let us know how that turns out.

ps record your attempts and put them on youtube for us to enjoy

 

[SearchMaster]

http://trackandfield.about.com/od/longjump/a/longjumprules.htm

"Somersaults are not permitted" - I assume that means upon landing as well and not just in the air. Also remember that "as it continues moving forward" is somewhat irrelevant as the terminal point is the first body contact (i.e. the hands in your example).

Interesting question though....I'm not much into track and field so I'm no expert on the topic.

 

[sdifox]

no such thing for long jump

 

[tynopik]

Also remember that "as it continues moving forward" is somewhat irrelevant as the terminal point is the first body contact (i.e. the hands in your example).

right, where the hands go down will count as your distance . . . provided the rest of your body makes it over your hands and you don't just belly flop

'as it continues moving foward' refers to the rest of you body that is behind your hands that needs to keep going and pass over your hands to land in front of your hands so as not to mar your distance

 

[tynopik]

http://trackandfield.about.com/od/longjump/a/longjumprules.htm

"Somersaults are not permitted"

i wonder why that rule is in there? safety?

i guess then you can start getting technical about what exactly qualifies as a somersault


also from the rules:

Jumpers must land in the sand pit.

so if by some miracle you jumped so long that you went beyond the pit, would you be disqualified?

 

[tynopik]

yeah, so apparently I wasn't the first person to consider this

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1088829/index.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sGQJjNpPA0

of course that isn't exactly what I was talking about

 

[Ben90]

You could jump into a helicopter that is hovering above the pit.

 

[tynopik]

this is actually closer to what I was thinking

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv__pkdYH20
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7H3na01HjQk

 

[DrPizza]

That's a really good question - could you consider it a dive, rather than a somersault? Then at the end, hop (on your hands) and land back on your feet, provided your feet hit the ground past the point where your hands hit?

However, before you delve much deeper into this, the record in one of your most recent links was 106.5 inches. The record jump from standing is over 131 inches, so that technique seems to be coming up over 2 feet short.

 

[tynopik]

However, before you delve much deeper into this, the record in one of your most recent links was 106.5 inches. The record jump from standing is over 131 inches, so that technique seems to be coming up over 2 feet short.

1) the jump to handstand is a stunt that's been done by 10 people on youtube, not world class athletes (admittedly slightly better than me though)

2) Note some random guy on youtube beat the Guiness attempt by almost 2 feet, so adding another 2 feet with better athletes and training isn't out of the question.

3) requiring them to hold the handstand severely limits them. If they didn't have to worry about holding it, you might see themselves jump with more, ah, 'abandon'

That's a really good question - could you consider it a dive, rather than a somersault? Then at the end, hop (on your hands) and land back on your feet, provided your feet hit the ground past the point where your hands hit?

yeah, now that i've seen a real somersault and then these handstand videos, i'm pretty sure there's some way around the rule

 

[DrPizza]

Then go for it. Do a standing jump, and compare it to a standing jump to hands, where you then drop back to your feet without somersaulting. Perfect the move & before long, we'll be calling it the tynopik flop. 🙂

Actually, though, from a physics standpoint, I don't think it would be too hard to analyze this. The key components are the body's center of mass at take-off, the launch angle of the body's center of mass, launch speed, and how low the body's center of mass is when contact is made with the ground (and how far forward from that point contact is made.) The rest is refining technique to make each of those components ideal.

 

[tynopik]

Then go for it. Do a standing jump, and compare it to a standing jump to hands, where you then drop back to your feet without somersaulting.

Pretty sure this is going to require someone with a little more coordination than me.

I'd end up looking like a less graceful afro ninja