Trail Leg Slide Drill
By Tony Veney
Everybody has done some trail leg circles, now we are going to get into trail leg slides. One of the reasons why I like this particular drill is it really requires the athlete to get themselves in the proper position, gets another good stretch into the hips, but it also forces the athlete to get into the necessary positions for the trail leg action. So Nick already has himself set up. The great thing about this hurdle drill is you’ve got a little cap here right from the post and you’ve got a post here, so he’s going to slide his foot from post to post and he’s going to stop when he gets it to here. Go ahead, execute.
And he’s going to stop there and then he’s going to slide back. Look at the opposite foot is here, that way he doesn’t have to stay on his toe all by himself using his body weight. Now, he can keep that heel nice and high and if you want the heel to get higher, all he’s got to do is slide his foot back a little bit deeper into the arch and it’s going to raise his hips a little bit, so now what Nick is going to do, he’s going to execute three slides and then he’s going to slide his foot off into a touchdown position. Let’s go.
Notice how his knee comes up as he slides forward, the knee rises. He’s going to slide back one more time now he’s going to run off his hurdle and right off into this position. Notice that the take off, that the foot here is under the hamstring. His shin is pointed down toward the ground which means, that when he comes off the hurdle, he’s going to push right down under his hips and he’s going to sprint forward, so once he brings his shin to this position, looks what happens to his shin angle if he moves his foot toward the wall.
Now all of a sudden his shin is pointing up and down, which means he’s going to go that way, his foot is on the ground, he’s going to slow down. There is some deceleration that is going to occur here. So he’s going to execute one more time, three slides, again, notice how he keeps those hips nice and tall and he’s going to rotate right of in front, very good. Okay, good. And come on down. Good.
Recommended program for hurdlers and hurdle coaches: Developing the High School Sprint Hurdler
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Tony Veney is one of the most respected individuals in track and field. He has over 35 years of track and field coaching and teaching experience, including stints on the staffs at the University of Oregon, Portland State, UCLA, and currently Ventura College. During his extensive career, he has coached numerous all-conference and All-American track and field athletes. Coach Veney has experienced success coaching youth, collegiate, and elite sprinters and hurdlers. A 1976 graduate of UCLA, he was the 800 meter record holder for the Bruins and was a member of two NCAA outdoor track and field championship teams. Veney is a USATF level I-II-III instructor, with a Master of Coaching Certificate. From 1987 to 2000, Coach Veney was a regional and national Sprint Development Coordinator for USATF.