A Traceur using a gate vault to traverse to the sidewalk below from an elevated walkway.
The Gate Vault is a vault used in Parkour to lower oneself over a fence, gate or wall, allowing a traceur or traceuse to quickly move over the obstacle and retain most of their forward momentum.
Technique[]
- Run up to object
- Place one hand (in this case the left, with the palm up) on the wall, rail or gate.
- Lean over object
- Grab rail (or place hand on wall flat) with right hand (palm down)
- Pop over the rail and arch the back, bringing the feet over the head (somewhat similar to a front handspring)
- Release left hand and push right hand and release (when feet are above head)
- Land and run out of vault
Variations[]
Often people will not go over their heads when using this vault, and instead will throw their body around the side and over the object, which ends up looking like a side vault, sometimes called a side-gate. These variations, however, normally place a practitioner facing the direction from whence they came, making them practical for combos but less so for Parkour.
Warnings[]
- It is very easy to get one's clothes stuck on the points of a chain link fence.
- This vault is almost a flip, and as such requires commitment. Under rotation can result in injury.