Jumping

“ You may read a dozen volumes about jumping, Tom, but a dozen jumps will teach you a dozen times as much as the printer's ink. And remember that a standing or an irregular jump, even if small, or that the leap of a pony, is harder to sit than a well-timed jump of twice the dimensions on a full grown horse. I have been nearly dismounted in teaching a new horse much oftener than in the hunting-field. It is only when your horse comes down, or when a bad jumper rushes at his fence and then swerves or refuses suddenly, that there is any grave danger of a fall in riding to hounds. ”

“ Jumping has always been popular with British athletes, and tradition has handed down the record of certain leaps that border on the incredible. Two forms of jumping are included in modern athletic contests, the running long jump and the running high jump; but the same jumps, made from a standing position, are also common forms of competition, as well as the hop step and jump, two hops and jump, two jumps, three jumps, five jumps and ten jumps, either with a run or from a standing position. ”

“ Although called "Jumpers," they only jump in a minority of the experiments, the word jumping really including all such phenomena as lifting the shoulders, raising the hands, striking, throwing, crying, and tumbling. Jumpers have been known to fall head over heels over an embankment on which they were sitting, on suddenly hearing the whistle of a locomotive ”

“ Jumping may well be left to boys and young men under twenty, but skipping with a rope, allied to jumping, is an admirable and beneficial form of exercise. It brings into action many muscles without putting undue strain upon any particular group. ”

“ The several varieties of swings, the hammock, see-saw, flying-jenny, merry-go-round, shooting the chutes, sailing, coasting, rowing, and skating, together with the fondness of children for rotating rapidly in one spot until dizzy and for jumping from high places, are all devices and sports for stimulating the sense of motion. ”

“ To jump with grace and assurance one should always fall on the toes, taking care especially to bend the knees on the hips: the upper part of the body should be inclined forwards, and the arms extended towards the ground. The hands should serve to break the fall when jumping from a great height. In jumping we should hold the breath and never alight on the heels. ”

“ Like other great sports, ski-jumping calls forth the qualities of courage, skill, and endurance; a good jumper must have a cool head, a quick eye, and, above all, a nice sense of balance; but, given these things, it is open to all to succeed in some measure, be they old or young, born near the north pole or the equator. ”

“ When a jumper comes down on his heels, instead of jumping from his toes, he is apt to make the skipping injurious by jarring his back. The players jump in turn over a long rope turned by two of the players. ”

“ The jumper, who starts some distance up the hill, descends at top speed, stoops as he nears the take-off and launches himself into the air with all his force. He maintains an erect position until he reaches the ground, alighting with bended knees, on both feet, one a little in advance of the other, and “giving” with his legs to overcome the force of the fall and to preserve his balance. Another feature is double jumping, performed by two persons hand in hand. ”

“ We, therefore, often find jumpers represented in pictures holding their arms stretched in front of them; and practical attempts in recent times have convinced us that the importance of the dumb-bells in jumping was due not so much to a backward motion communicated by them, as to the thrusting forward of the arms. ”

“ In the first place, then, it should be borne in mind that whereas every horse of every breed in the world can be taught to jump, jumping comes so aptly to some as to be perfectly natural, and no more trouble to them with a fair weight than walking or galloping. ”

“ It’s one grand ride, whether you take it by sled or by skis ... only, of course, it’s lots more exciting on skis. We figured this year that we’d grade the bank, too, and use it for a jumping off place. Whether you know it or not, ski jumping is the real sport. You may land on your head or back or some other part of your anatomy but that’s half the sport! And here Mr. Turner is so stingy that he closes his estate to the whole neighborhood! ”

“ Jumping for Breadth.—This is a more difficult jump to teach a new horse, because he is more fearful of a ditch than of a fence. From the nature of the jump, it can only be taught outdoors. The method of instruction is the same as for jumping for height. ”

“ The act of the jump itself is where the greatest effort of muscle and nerve is required. Just before coming to the take-off, say at the last step, the athlete should gather himself together and crouch as low as his great speed will permit, and bring his jumping foot down as hard as possible upon the take-off, at the same time throwing his hands forward and upward. ”

“ Moreover, the balance, when helped in this way, never improves, but remains permanently bad.
Correct position, narrow track, complete command of the different swings—all those things, in fact, which distinguish good style from bad—mean economy of force, and are therefore eminently practical. To say that jumping is a useless accomplishment may at first sight appear justifiable. In one sense there is not much practical use in jumping, for occasions are not very often met with in the course of a tour where a jump is the only way, or even the safest way, out of a difficulty. ”

“ In jumping, however, the rider must not attempt to lift the horse; he must trust to the instincts of the animal necessary to clear the obstacle and for the disposition of its bearers to secure safety in landing. ”

“ The knack of jumping is nothing more than balancing the body upon alighting, and the steeper the landing place the easier it is to keep the balance. To make the jump in good form, the skier assumes the easy position required for coasting downhill, as shown in Fig. ”

“ If for a moment you are inclined to regard these taluses as mere draggled, chaotic dumps, climb to the top of one of them, and run down without any haggling, puttering hesitation, boldly jumping from boulder to boulder with even speed. You will then find your feet playing a tune, and quickly discover the music and poetry of these magnificent rock piles—a fine lesson; ”

“ Stand in the position taken in jumping, just as you are ready to go off. Have the legs bent, the arms back, the body leaning forward, and when the word is given don’t straighten up and then spring, nor swing your arms forward and then back and off, nor look at your competitors, nor pick your course, but spring, and spring with power and quickness far out, get the arms in front quick, dive shallow, and get a stroke in under water, and be sure to have your stroke ready upon reaching the surface. ”

“ But if a man who had been making his best efforts in jumping, cleared only a height of four feet, and presently being told to jump over an eight-feet wall, cleared that height with apparent ease, we should be disposed to regard the feat as savouring of the miraculous. ”

“ Many gymnastic movements will suggest themselves, such as jumping on both feet, jumping forward down the aisle frog fashion, jumping high in place, running in place, stretching the arms out sideways and bending sideways like a walking beam, whirling both arms around like a windmill, taking a dance step, etc. ”

“ The feet should be kept well together on landing in the jumping-box, and a good broad-jumper will never allow himself to fall forward on his hands, but will always resume his erect position, and walk out of the soft earth, instead of rolling out. ”

“ The run for the long jump with such weights would be very similar, the chief difference being that while in the high jump the weights are thrown away at the moment of jumping, in the long jump they are retained. ”

“ Boys should exercise themselves in jumping, by jumping in length, and jumping from a height, with attention to the above cautions. They may make progressive exercises in length by varying the distance from time to time, and in height by jumping from a flight of stairs or steps, increasing a step at a time: they will soon be able to jump in length three yards, and from a height six feet, without injury. ”

“ Where the first jumper stopped a fresh line was drawn with a pick-axe, such as we often see on vase pictures in the hand of a youth or superintendent, and they were also used to loosen the earth in order to lessen the shock in jumping down. ”

“ They, in fact, perform for the love of the amusement, and, it may be said, nothing else except, possibly, renown. Ever since the peasants, in 1879, startled the country by their leaping powers, jumping has steadily improved, 13 i.e., in length, and in the courage or daring of the leapers. ”

“ May it not, for example, be best to jump with level feet when the track is smooth and easy, but with one foot forward when it is irregular 98 and difficult? On the Continent rough jumping on tour has hardly yet “caught on,” everything being regarded, so to speak, through competition spectacles. ”

“ While all jumping may be done in one pit, where the space is available it is better to have one pit for the high jumps, one for the running broad, one for hop, step and jump, another for the pole vault. ”

“ Practise this movement at any odd moment; it will soon become mechanical, and if, before you start jumping, you have learnt to make this movement quickly and accurately, you will have made things enormously easier for yourself. ”

“ Phayllus of Croton is accredited with jumping the incredible distance of 55 feet, and we have the authority of Eustache and Tzetzes that this jump is genuine. In the writings of many Greek and Roman historians are chronicled jumps of about 50 feet by the athletes; if they are true, the modern jumpers have greatly degenerated. ”

“ The spring is made from the toes this time, but instead of the legs being drawn up as in ordinary jumping, they should be quite straight and in line with the body as they leave the ground, and the feet should be pointed downwards, exactly parallel and close together. ”

“ Also, the manner of the Corporeal motions; as, a Diving-motion may get the better of a Swimming-motion; and, in some cases, the Swimming, the better of the Diving. Jumping may have the advantage over Running; and, in other cases, Running, over Jumping. Also, Creeping may have the advantage over Flying; and, in other cases, Flying, over Creeping. A Cross Motion may have the advantage over a Straight ”

“ Apart from the ordinary, and probably later way of playing, by one child holding a rope in both hands, turning it over the head, and either stepping over it while running, or standing still and jumping until the feet catch the rope and a trip is made, skipping appears to be performed in two ways, jumping or stepping across with (1) more or less complicated movements of the rope and feet, and (2) the ordinary jumping over a turned rope while chanting rhymes, for the purpose of deciding whether the players are to be married or single, occupation of future husband, &c. ”

“ The endless variations of leap-frog should not be forgotten in devising outdoor games: and tournaments of long or broad jumping and high jumping are good. Stilts and the games to be arranged with them are also another great resource. ”

“ Swinging forward when rowing, either in a boat or at the toe-straps, after first swinging far back, takes these upper muscles in a way quite the reverse of their ordinary use, they now aiding to pull the whole trunk forward, and so acting like two long hooks.
All lifting of heavy objects from the ground, standing in almost any position, tells heavily on these muscles, being about the severest momentary [p.213] test they can have, greater even than in jumping. ”

“ The best and most successful jumpers have been those who have depended entirely on the spring from the hips. It is thence that all the power is obtained. Byrd Page, Pg 6 the famous American jumper, who often cleared 6 ft., and once reached 6 ft. 41⁄4 ins., was a thorough believer in the straightforward method. To show what persistent practice will do, I may mention that when he was very young, his legs were so weak that he was compelled to wear irons to support them. One day the doctor told him to attend a gymnasium and practise jumping in order to strengthen his limbs. ”

“ In the standing long jump, well spiked shoes should be worn, for it is in reality nothing but a push against the ground, and a perfect purchase is of the greatest importance. Weights held in the hands of course greatly aid the jumper. ”

“ Some jumpers run straight at the bar and clear it with body facing forward, the knees being drawn up almost to the chin as the body clears the bar; others run and spring sideways, the feet being thrown upwards and over the bar first, to act as a kind of lever in getting the body over. ”

“ The standing two, three, five and ten jumps are merely repetitions of the single jump, care being taken to land with the proper balance to begin the next leap. The record for two jumps without weights is 22 ft. ”

“ No fear need be entertained of falling back on alighting if the run is sufficiently fast and the landing place level and soft; the impetus derived from the run gives the heaviest part of the jumper, the trunk, sufficient momentum to carry itself forward when the progress of the feet and legs is arrested. ”

“ Begin with a few jumps about twelve feet or so, taking your run for them slowly, starting about twenty yards off and quickening in the last few strides. The great object to be guarded against is taking off to far from the mark, or getting out of step in the run; this can only be obviated by practicing at a certain distance until the necessary swing of the last few strides is acquired. The run to the jump cannot be too fast; in the air the legs should be raised as in going over a high jump, and thrown as far forward on landing as can be done with both heels close together. ”