Parkour - Monkey, Kong, Dash and Kash Vaults

[stealththief]

The monkey, kong, dash and kash vaults are some of the scariest to learn. They require both of your hands to be on the obstacle and you feet are placed in positions that initially are uncomfortable. I'm going to go over them in order of difficulty. These vaults are easy to mess up so take it slow with them.

The monkey vault is a vault often used to get used to the feeling of "passing your legs through your hands". The idea is simple, the technique isn't s hard as it is scary. To do a monkey vault approach a rail or similar obstacle. Place both hands on it about shoulder width apart or a bit wider with your fingers facing forward. Jump upwards and forwards while folding the legs to the chest. Push backwards on the obstacle to move your body forward. Pass over the obstacle with your legs folded close to your body. Unfold your legs and prepare to land while pushing off of the obstacle with your hands. Do this until you are comfortable with your legs going over obstacles in between your arms.

The kong vault is the monkey vault's bigger scarier older brother. It's very useful for clearing obstacles as well as vaulting and then executing another technique such as a cat grab or a precision landing. The kong vault is essentially a monkey vault where the traceur jumps before placing their hands on the obstacle. Once the hands are on the obstacle everything is the same, but a kong vault is more powerful in the sense that the traceur goes further after executing the move. One thing to keep in mind while learning the kong is to jump straight from a run instead of hopping then jumping, which as I've already explained will make jumps less high, and less powerful and efficient in general. This will prevent bad konging habits and allow for longer, stronger kongs in the long run.

The dash vault is probably the most difficult vault to learn psychologically. The idea of jumping over an obstacle feet first then placing the hands is very scary before you get used to doing it. Approach an obstacle such as a waist high wall and jump at it feet first (your body should be shaped like an L). As you continue through the air place your hands on the obstacle and push yourself forward. You can either push hard and continue forward and land with some forward momentum or push softly and pull the body towards the ground by lowering the legs, this makes for a more stable landing with less forward momentum.

The Kash vault is a fusion of the kong and the dash vault, hence the name. the move begins like a kong where the traceur jumps at an obstacle and places both hands on it while folding up the legs. However after that point it heads into dash territory, the traceur unfolds their legs as they push off and complete the vault as they would a dash vault.

[Dethkreep]

I've always been a little afraid of the monkey vault. I haven't gotten to the point where you jump before you get to the obstacle yet. I always have to have my hands planted it on it first. Thanks for the guide though.

[Xanatos]

I can do kongs and stuff, but when I come across a railing or low wall (about 1.5m high) I usually just leap on and over it like in Assassin's Creed. It seems more efficient to me. On benches and tables however I do a kong vault.