Parkour: Safety Vault over a Bench and Low Plinth
The safety vault is parkour's most stable way over an obstacle: one hand and one foot on top while the other leg swings across. Students learn it on a bench and take it to a short plinth.
How to play
- Slow demo: hand and foot on the same side go on the obstacle, the other leg passes between or around them, two-foot landing (4 min).
- Phase 1 at a walk on the bench: place hand and foot, step across and land with no run-up (6 min).
- Phase 2 with a two-step approach on the bench, trying both sides (7 min).
- Phase 3 on a low plinth (two or three sections) with a mat on the landing (8 min).
- Pair challenge: three vaults in a row over different obstacles without stopping; the partner gives one correction (5 min).
Rules
- Plinth height no higher than the waist of the shortest student in the group.
- Stable obstacle and a mat on the landing; no one waits on the far side.
- Go when the person before you has landed and cleared.
- Grip the edge with the support hand, not the corner.
Variations
Easier
Cross the bench at a walk with hand and foot support.
Standard
Safety vault with a short run over the bench and low plinth.
Harder
Safety vault landing precisely on a line and running straight out.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility in one leg: cross the bench by sitting and swiveling the hips (a seated vault), which is legit parkour too.
- Nervous students: stay on the bench and choose when to move up to the plinth.
- Deaf or hard-of-hearing students: a partner on the far side gives a visual go signal.
Learning goals
- Get over low obstacles with a stable technique.
- Vault on both sides.
- Link obstacle crossings with control.
Equipment for a class of 25
- gym benches: 4
- plinths: 2
- mats: 8
Teacher tip
No plinth? Use two benches stacked and held firmly, or a low vaulting box. The common mistake is jumping instead of placing the foot: you should hear the foot hit the obstacle.
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