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Hammer blades, what do they do? |
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dl_buffy 
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Joined: 3/14/07 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1507 |
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 Topic: Hammer blades, what do they do?Posted: 6/14/12 at 3:57pm |
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Yep, that is the question I am asking. Been using these things solid at every practice this year and I still haven't figured out what I am supposed to be feeling, or doing different in my hammers.
If I sit too far back on my heels they pop out of the ground, if I get too far up on my toes I lose my balance.
Seriously, I feel like I am just standing there the same as I would with out them. I have no idea where in the orbit I am supposed to be using the blades to help me with speed or balance.
(Hell I even tell the crowds watching that the blades are so that you don't whip yourself off your feet when swinging it around fast, but have NO IDEA what that even means.)
Advice or thoughts much appreciated.
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jsully
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Posted: 6/14/12 at 5:17pm |
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if you don't know what they're for then you're not moving the hammer fast enough. ;)
what are your hammer numbers?
when I get the hammer moving fast (fast for me) I can't keep a solid hold on the ground with my feet. Even the 16lb hammer whips my feet around. The blades anchor my feet.
If you're losing your balance when you're up on your toes, I'm guessing you're losing it forward. In which case, you probably aren't sitting back down/countering your hips fast enough.
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mthompson33
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 7:47am |
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When you say you are popping out of the ground if you lean too far back, do you mean that the blades are blowing out of the dirt or do you mean that they are pulling out of the holes? Either way, work on a little steeper insertion angle. You are up in MO where most of the grass is Fescue. Fescue = ZERO root system. It isn't like Bermuda grass. With Bermuda grass all you have to do is get in below the surface a bit and it will hold together. Up in KC I had to work up some pretty deep holes and the surface of the ground was still flexing more than I liked due to the lack of root system.
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Matt Thompson
"If you wake up and you're not in pain, you know you're dead." -- Russian Proverb |
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thegnome
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 7:52am |
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I thought they were for kicking the other people in your class...sorry guys, my bad.
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Andrew G
Vada a bordo CAZZO!!!! |
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Daniel McKim
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 9:16am |
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Not to cloudy the thinking here (don't want to overload you) but remember to work the ball on the right side -- chop the wood. Work it to the right, and bend the knees some (I think of "sinking" more than "bending"). You might be too straight up. It seems that if you're too straight up and the ball is drifting to the left side, then it's easy to lose your balance. Work the right side.
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dl_buffy
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 9:53am |
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Thanks Dan, I do need to remember to stay focused on my orbit and that chopping wood idea could help. I'll try it this weekend's practice.
My current hammer PR is just over 110. Problem is I have been stuck there for going on two years. That is why I decided to start being very consistant with my boots in practice. Seems I am just not figuring them out yet. (Heavy pr is 86') In practice I have been super diligent about working out my stretch and orbit to make it smooth and long. Also found out where the orbit needs to be for me to best activate my hips/knees.
I could very well be too slow, but problem is that when I go faster I have these balance issues.
Matt, yes when my heels are on the ground, the blades will pop up through the grass. It has happened so often that I really think I am still in same body position I was when not using my boots. <shrug> My blades are pretty straight in front of my boots. Not pointed down like I see other peoples, nor do they have that step that I see in other people's blades.
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I have very few social interaction skills, so I just throw stuff instead. |
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dl_buffy
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 9:54am |
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If I give up on hammer then I may just take Andrew's advice...
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I have very few social interaction skills, so I just throw stuff instead. |
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C. Smith
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 10:17am |
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Dig in deeper.
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Daniel McKim
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 11:34am |
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My blades are lawn mower blades ... for real. Love 'em. I don't think the step or the downward action is necessary. Like Craig said, sometimes you just gotta dig. Maybe we should do a clinic and I can see what you're doing?
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jsully
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 11:41am |
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+1
go to home depot and get the cheapest mower blades you see there. I think they're $9/each. cut off one side of them just below the 2nd bolt opening and then cut it to a point and there you go. You don't even need to drill them.
Here in AZ, unless I'm throwing in my backyard, nicely watered bermuda hybrid, I can't get anything else to dig and stay in. I bought Brocks blades a while back and they got in, but would pull through, like you're saying. It's just too hard and dry here. Not bad blades, they're just too thick and stiff for our ground. The thinner more flexible lawnmower blades work fantastic and I can use them everywhere. . Andrew Hobson also uses sawblade steel, if you have access to that. Takes a bit more prep-work but works well too.
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mthompson33
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 1:49pm |
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As I learned from Dan and the guys in Wichita last year, If the ground is dry, take a couple of bottles of water with you. Start the hole, then pour some water in and then finish digging the hole. I am liking the digging in deep. Also, +1 on keeping the low point on the right. I watched all the guys in Arlington do this back in May and it clicked. My distance at KC was not incredible, but it was the first time I have EVER won a hammer event... And it was by far the best it has EVER felt... The blades make it possible to wind fast AND with the low point on the right... Without blades you can wind pretty fast with the low point straight ahead, but not off to the right.
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Matt Thompson
"If you wake up and you're not in pain, you know you're dead." -- Russian Proverb |
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dl_buffy
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Posted: 6/15/12 at 1:55pm |
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So, to get back to what I should be feeling...are you all loose in the ankles or are you moving your body with your feet? I mean are you like...lifting your toes inside the boot to hold on against the blades? (This is when my boots pop out of the ground, when I actually try to torque with my feet.)
Sounds like ya'll are basically standing, winding so fast that the blades are holding you down. You are not actively trying to use the boots (think like if your feet were under the bar on an incline sit up bench) to move you around??
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I have very few social interaction skills, so I just throw stuff instead. |
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Speer
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Posted: 6/19/12 at 10:38am |
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Those photos are spectacular.
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jsully
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Posted: 6/19/12 at 5:34pm |
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I only use them to keep my feet in place. I don't actively press my toes against them or anything like that, they just prevent my feet from going everywhere when the hammer gets going really fast. I read somewhere that they were invited for "smaller" guys because they couldn't keep their footing. When the bigger guys saw what advantages they had, they started using them as well.
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dl_buffy wrote: