Gill FX Carbon Weave Released

[Chris]

Check it out here:
http://www.gillathletics.com/weave/

Some of you may know this as the "ultralite".  Looks like it is completely replacing the regular Carbon FX.  

I am sure Steve knows more about it and can attest to their performance.

[A.LeMay]

Are these the same poles that Steve would of had at the U this summer?

[Chris]

Nope, you would have been on the regular FX poles.  These are the new and improved version.

[Steve]

I have a set of the new Carbon FX Weaves
I put an athlete of mine on them last season--I also put him on the regular Carbon FX poles

He could not tell the difference, other than the new Carbon FX Weaves are a little lighter to carry.
I could not see a performance difference at all between the two materials.

I have seen (and felt) a HUGE difference between the Carbon FX and the traditional fiberglass pole.  My opinion, in the simplest terms is, Carbons exaggerate what a vaulter does; whether that be good or bad.  If a vaulter does things well, those good things are exaggerated into higher performances.  If a vaulter does things poorly, those errors are exaggerated into worse performances than if that same jump would have been completed on a fiberglass pole.

--You can go higher on Carbons if you jump well--
--You can run faster with lighter poles--the lightest are the new Carbon FX Weaves--
--All Carbons are less forgiving of errors--

I do not recommend Carbons until a female is ready for 13' poles or longer--then definitely make the switch
Likewise, I do not recommend carbons until a male is ready for 14'6 poles or longer--then definitely make the switch.

[Steve]

We had to fill in our Carbon FX line at the UofM with a new Weave

Here's what we have experienced:
--the replacement Weave is perfect.
--my athletes have had no problems going from the old FX to the Weave nor going back to the next stiffer old FX.

The flex number was slightly different; apparently there is a 0.2 to 0.3 conversion that is needed to match the old FX to the new Weaves (in the 16' poles at least).  Gill helped me through that conversion.  We are very happy with the new material.

[Chris]

Good to hear.  I'm looking forward to seeing them in action in a month or so.