Vince Anderson's Wicket & Tape Drills: Strategies for Maximizing Velocity & Acceleration

with Vince Anderson,
2025 USTFCCCA George Dales Award;
Texas A&M Sprints & Hurdles Coach - 2004 through 2019;
while there, Aggies won 9 NCAA Outdoor National Championship titles (5x for the Men's team, 4x for the Women's team) & one NCAA Indoor National Championship title (2017 Men's team);
trained Phyllis Francis (2017 400 meter World Champion & World 4x400 Gold Medalist in 2017 & 2019) and also trained Jessica Beard (4x400 double Gold Medalist at the 2019 World Championships - 4x400, mixed 4x400);
University of Tennessee Sprints & Hurdles Coach from 1988 through 2004 (Jumps Coach from 1996 to 2004);
while there, the Vols won the 2001 Men's NCAA Outdoor National Championship title and the 2002 Men's NCAA Indoor National Championship title;
started his coaching career as a volunteer for Tom Tellez at the University of Houston in 1986

Many sprint and hurdle coaches implement the wicket and tape drills to progress their sprinters in the development to enhance their maximum velocities and develop a better push at the start of the sprint races to eventually achieve their highest maximum velocity they can attain - but - are they doing it correctly?

In this video, Coach Vince Anderson discusses the proper set-up and implementation of the wicket drill for maximum velocity and the 'tape drill' for acceleration development that he has utilized for 20+ years to help develop sprinters across all age and ability levels. This video is a must-have for all sprint and hurdle coaches who utilize these two sprint-specific drills to enhance skill levels which ultimately will enhance performance capabilities!

Learn the Wicket Drill - for Top Speed Mechanics!

Coach Anderson begins this on-the-track demonstration with an explanation of the origins of the wicket drill, and how he developed the drill to correct the very common problem of over striding. Anderson then explains how to use his measurement chart (Bonus! a PDF of this chart is included with the video) to set up the spacing between the wickets or slats. Coach Anderson also shows examples of athletes running the drills during a training session. Valuable coaching points and queues are given during the presentation, including:

• Why the wicket drill was developed and why it's essential to teaching sprint mechanics
• How to set up the drill for a variety of skill sets relative to an athlete's ability
• How to spot common errors and how to queue the athletes to correct these errors

Learn the Tape Drill - for Acceleration!

Coach Anderson continues this presentation by giving a demonstration of the tape drill. The tape drill is an acceleration drill that focuses on the start and beginning phases of the race. This drill can be used with blocks or from a three-point start. Coach Anderson gives valuable coaching points to help teach your athletes to master the start and all important drive phases of the 100 meter dash. Set up of the drill is explained, and examples of his spacing chart (Bonus! a PDF of this chart is included with the video) used are given during the presentation.

• How to set up the tape drill to help athletes learn to accelerate correctly
• How to spot common errors and how to correct these errors
• How to use these drills to help your athletes monitor their own progress

The Wicket and Tape Drill are two commonly used drills for maximum velocity and acceleration across all levels of training. The essential question is 'are you as a coach setting up and implementing these critical drills correctly?' This detailed Wicket and Tape Drill video hosted by legendary coach Vince Anderson will ensure proper set-up and execution of both to allow you to best progress your athletes in the development of maximum velocity and acceleration for all sprint-based events. This is an excellent resource for any track coach that is responsible for coaching sprinters, hurdlers and coaches of horizontal jumpers!

'As a high school sprint and hurdle coach that has been implementing both the Wicket and Tape Drill for 10+ years, Coach Anderson's approach to set-up and implementation of both drills provided the necessary feedback for some corrections to better execute and enhance our maximum velocity and acceleration training sessions going forward.'

41 minutes. 2022.