Originally Posted by
-_RebelRidin'_-
I have my doubts on Carbon Fiber now, Our school track and field team had catastrophic event, our star pole vaulter went down the runway, went to vault, and it snapped when he was up. he came down and hit with head trama.
Most vaulting pole breaks (fiberglass or CF) are caused by one of two things:
1. It has a BIG scratch or someone spiked it by accident. This is why its a HUGE faux pas to step on, kick, trip over etc a pole with spikes, or even with shoes. This is also why at most meets they have someone catching the pole before it hits the ground.
2. It's not the right pole/you're pulling on it. If you vault on a pole that is too soft for you, its very obvious, and you don't jump well. If you pull, you over-bend it and are basically trying to break it. And you won't jump well.
IMHO a CF frame wouldn't be worth it. Sure it would be really light, but there are so many ways a frame can get a gouge or scratch. For recumbent or road bikes, it would be great, but is it worth all the trouble of searching the entire frame before each ride or fall when you can find metal frames that are also extremely light?