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An Indoor Javelin Slide
An Indoor Javelin Slide

Field Events: Use a Javelin Slide for Indoor Practice

Lawrence Plue

When track and field season begins, the weather can play a significant role in how practices proceed. With my javelin throwers, there are a variety of activities that can be performed indoors. One of these is an exercise to reinforce a smooth release of the implement. It's performed on a home-made javelin slide.

Constructing a Javelin Slide
From the top of the media perch high above our gym floor, I run a 3/8” rope down to a weight (a portable net standard) on the gym floor.

The rope is run through a two-foot section of plastic vacuum tubing, which becomes the ‘javelin' ( a length of pvc tubing could also work). The rope is then stretched tightly to represent the release angle of the javelin—about 30-35° is optimal.

How to Use
Throwers can now practice ‘throwing' and releasing the tubing along this angle of release. On release, if the rope wobbles, the javelin was released too soon, or too late. No wobble on the rope indicates the javelin was released at just the right time.

The javelin can be thrown easily, or very hard — and it always returns to the thrower!

Contributor: Lawrence Plue was a teacher and coach at Monsignor Doyle Catholic Secondary School in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.


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