Sportstechreview is an independent blog focussing on new sports equipment design developments and innovations world wide. It is run voluntarily, therefore, if you would like to submit an article or new sports product development for publication, please email: sportstechreview@gmail.com.
Like all technologies, sports equipment has rapidly evolved and improved over the past decade to the point where consumer’s preferences will often depend on little more than the aesthetics of a product or the way it has been marketed. This is due to the fact that as technology advances, the margins for improvement are narrowing and often there is very little to choose between products in terms of performance.
So this begs the question, when a cyclist is faced with forking out thousands of pounds on a new group-set is there any difference between the three major brands (Campagnolo, SRAM and Shimano) or is it all just marketing spin? Well the good news is that although there’s little to choose from between the top-end brands in terms of weight and shifting performance, each of the top end groupsets have their own distinct characteristics. Over my next few blogs I will be looking at the main characteristics of the premium offerings of the big three brands in an effort to give some insight to budding cyclists making that all important investment in their first top end racing bike.
During a recent trip down to London to play in the UK National Baseball League I saw one of my teammates wearing a unique pair of batting gloves. The gloves made by XPROTEX, have a novel padding centered construction that claims to reduce direct impacts by a pitched ball. The gloves have outer padding protecting the back of each hand as well as a longer profile that protects the wrist. The XPROTEX website reports that the gloves were developed over a 30 month period and can reduce the impact force of a 100mph fastball to that of a 40 mph pitch. The validation studies were performed in the materials department at Cal State University. I was able to try on a pair of the gloves but did not take any at bats with them in a game situation. I think they would be an interesting alternative to more bulky hand guards but for the average player the $69.95 price tag will be quite high. The company recently sponsored the UK National Team as they competed in the European Championships.
9th July 2010
A new article from our new editor - David Weir (Please read)
This has been one of the most varied first weeks of any Tour de France for many a year and as a result the bike tech junkees have been saturated with all sorts of equipment flashing across their screens. In the space of 5 days has seen the world’s best cyclists tackle a flat prologue, the rolling hills of the Ardennes, the cobbled roads of northern France and Belgium, with a few rough and tumble sprint stages thrown in for good measure.
Whilst we have all undoubtedly enjoyed a break from the monotony of a first week packed full of bunch sprints punctuated by the odd break-away success, the team mechanics will have been working over-time to make sure the riders bikes have been kitted out with the best gear to tackle the unique challenges each stage has presented (some mechanics, like Saxo Bank will even have been working time and a half to put their bikes back together after the crash strewn stages 2 and 3!).
More often than not the fundamental consideration during a time trial is aerodynamics and Saturday’s prologue was no different. With the majority of riders choosing a rear disc wheel the only difference between riders selection was the depth of their front wheel rim. Typically the GC contenders and time trial specialists were aiming to shave as many seconds as possible by taking the deepest section possible (around 60mm) whereas the sprinters adopted a slightly less aero, but more stable front wheel, with around about 30-40mm depth. The benefit of such wheels is that the air flows over them much easier, thus requiring less power from the rider. The flip side of this, however is that the wind moves through them with less ease, meaning you will very rarely see a disc wheel or overly deep rims being used on time trial or road stages where cross winds are a factor.
The first stage was the first chance for the sprinters to stretch their legs and, as a result, the majority of the peloton had their deep section road wheels on. Most were riding on rims around 50mm deep as the finish was set to be a fast one and they would have been looking to gain as much aerodynamic performance as possible without compromising handling. Although watching the final corner might have had you thinking that Cavandish still had his time trialling wheels on! As well as cutting through the air easier in those crucial closing kilometres, deep section wheels also provide greater stiffness, a crucial factor when the big men start throwing their bike around the finishing straight.
Stage 2 posed a significantly more challenging proposition to the sprinters teams as they headed for the Ardennes and the first climbs of this year’s Tour. These were no ordinary climbs either, as the riders faced the prospect of three third category climbs in the last 50kms. This was the first time the riders would have to take into consideration their battle with gravity and as a result weight saving was very much the order of the day. The majority of riders abandoned their deep sections for lighter, shallower profile wheels, which would also offer them more of an advantage on the tight twisting roads which surround the fabled climbs which feature so prominently in the legendary Leige-Bastogne-Leige spring classic.
The day which demanded the most thought in terms of wheel selection was undoubtedly Stage 3 which took the peloton over the infamous cobbles of Paris-Roubaix. For this stage a lot of teams neglected Carbon rims, instead opting for more sturdy alloy rims. Whilst some riders, such as Lance Armstrong, kept faith with carbon rims, almost all of them deviated to a shallower 24-36mm rim. One thing the riders did have in common though was tyre choice. When it comes to racing over the cobbles the most important thing is avoiding crashes and punctures and whilst you can’t do much about the former, adopting a set of wider (24-27mm), tubular tyres will give you a much better chance of avoiding the latter.
New York Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera has been confounding hitters for well over a decade and while some pitchers rest their craft on a mix of 3 or 4 different pitches Rivera has excelled with just one - the cut fastball. This video clip from the New York Times shows how difficult it can be from the hitter's perspective when facing Rivera and how mastering a single pitch can be so effective.
Why do runners get plantar fasciitis so easily? Plantar fasciitis is especially prone to develop in runners as a result of extensive running or exercise. Plantar fasciitis occurs when the long flat ligament known as the Plantar Fascia on the bottom of the foot stretches irregularly. The strain can also lead to the development of small ruptures or tears and inflammation to the ligament and surrounding areas. All of which is uncomfortable to the runner at best and debilitating at worst.
Surrounding areas can also be put under strain from this and a resultant a chain reaction can form whereby muscles, tendons and other ligaments in the foot and lower leg can also become tight or severely irritated as well. Runners even make allowances for plantar fasciitis either due to the will to continue to run whilst injured or even in the subconscious; which again can lead to all manner of other muscular imbalances elsewhere over a period of time. Quite often the pain and discomfort is such that it is hard to distinguish plantar fasciitis as the root cause or symptom or the site of the original injury.
The pain that results from this irritation can occur at different times for different people but is usually noticeable first thing in the morning or when sudden weight or exerted pressure is put on the inflamed area. An aching lingering pain often follows and generally speaking symptoms do ease when the area is warmed up. However for others the sensations are even more severe with almost acute stabbing pains or nagging pulling that never seems to cease.
www.sportinjuryclinic.net free and comprehensive sports injury information website detailing every possible pain, strain or concern you might encounter
www.return2fitness.co.uk Sports medical website with an extensive range of supports, braces, rehabilitation and specialist sports equipment including running shoes and specialist running spikes. All in stock and dispatched for next day delivery. Telephone link to sports therapists for further help and advice to ensure you chose the right product.
www.teachpe.com free to use bank of sports training drills and techniques by experts in their respective fields.
www.wynsport.com Specialist sports retailer with items held in stock and ready for immediate dispatch.
10th June 2010
Bike fitting in East Midlands/ Nottingham/ Leicester
As part of my sports design and research job with Progressive Sports Technologies Ltd., I have recently completed a SICI approved bike fitting course with Cyclefit London. Having read a number of cycling blogs, magazines and other online resources, I noticed that there was a lack of bike fitters within this region of East Midlands, Nottingham, Leicester and Loughborough.
Our company is one of the World's leading sports design and research consultancies and is based in the £15million Sports Technology Institute at Loughborough University. Our company has been involved with many major brands and professional teams including Nike, Umbro, Reebok, British Cycling and Rowing.
As a new company in this sector we are offering our bike fitting service to the first 50 customers at a reduced price.
Cleat alignment only per bike - £30 (per bike, lasting 30 minutes)
Basic existing road bike fitting no cleat assessment - £65 (per bike, lasting 1.5 hour)
Full existing road bike fitting - £80 (per bike, lasting 2 hours)
Cleat alignment only includes:
Foot evaluation and measurement
Assessment of pronation, supination or neutral footfall
Alignment of cleats on bike to enhance balance and comfort
Basic bike fitting without cleat alignment includes:
Basic physical and flexibility assessment
Saddle height optimisation
Saddle set-up optimisation
Seat tilt assessment
Handlebar width assessment
Handlebar reach and drop assessment
Full bike fitting includes:
Foot evaluation and measurement
Assessment of pronation, supination or neutral footfall
Alignment of cleats on bike to enhance balance and comfort
Basic physical and flexibility assessment
Saddle height optimisation
Saddle set-up optimisation
Seat tilt assessment
Handlebar width assessment
Handlebar reach and drop assessment
You will need your bike, your cycling clothes and information sheet which will be sent before the bike fitting process.
If you are looking for a bike fit or some sort of bike fitting service then please get in touch.
The certification I received was from SICI - Serotta International Cycling Institute and is a world-wide recognised body in bike fitting. For more information please visit their website:
Powered by ESPNCricinfo, the world’s leading cricket portal, the app delivers live scores, ball-by-ball commentary, one-click access to schedules, breaking news and photos of every single International cricket game.
It also features Podcasts from Cricket experts such as Ian Chappell, Tony Greig and Geoffrey Boycott to boot. If you’re a cricket fan you’ll also really like mobile-optimised images from Getty Images of recent fixtures and players training.
This is the app for those who like to get fit, as well as muddy, wet and a little bruised and battered. Once you enable GPS, the app gets to work. If you are a cyclist, you choose that category and add in any other details you want like giving your race a name.
The app will track how fast you are going, what your distance is, how long you have been going for and other statistics. You can also view a map of where you are going.
This is one of the best apps we have used for sport information, due to the sheer amount of news and stuff inside. Click in ‘futbol’ and you can get news from all the main leagues from around the world. There’s even stuff on golf, NFL and tennis.
It may take a while to load but once you are in, you’ll be reading it for hours. The app even gives you the times that games are set to start – a real win for any of us who have been stung by the TV stations changing kick-off time to suit their programme needs.
With a combination of preloaded resort maps and GPS tracking, the promise of SatSki is the ability to relive your ski run over a couple of cheeky Apres Ski Vin Chauds.
It boasts an impressive 100 supported resorts, each with a 2D piste map and a built in list of lifts, runs and restaurants. It’ll let you look up any of these and provide the best route from one to the other. It offers a decent estimation of time and distance plus a visual route on the piste map.
Premierscores has been around for a good few years and it offers a veritable cornucopia of information on any given team in the top leagues around Europe.
Once you’ve entered you favourite team on the sign in screen, you get information on the latest scores, team sheets, transfer news and general goings on with your team. On top of that, there are live scores and notifications every time there’s a goal in another match. If it’s just score updates it’s probably not for you, but if you want all the info then check it out.
HEAD/Penn, a leading manufacturer of superior racquet sports equipment, is set to unveil its new line of tennis racquets - The Star Series on May 3, 2010. The three racquet series features revolutionary new technologies that help provide more power, more control and more comfort. Each racquet features a unique look and appeal which evokes the true spirit of a Champion racquet.
The racquets were developed by legendary tennis players Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf who worked with an elite team to produce racquets that will maximize your performance on the court, no matter what your skill level. Perfect for beginners and advanced players that want to play like the pros, the Star Series racquets range in price from $180 - $250.
The goal of most helmets is to blunt a blow to the head resulting from a crash. However just as damaging as that initial impact could be the force your brain feels as your head turns and spins after that first blow. If a damaging enough crash occurs the twisting of the brain inside the skull results in 'intracranial tearing' or the ripping of blood vessels and nerves in the brain. An English doctor named Ken Phillips has developed a helmet with a pliable membrane on the outside of the helmet that reduces the torque on the head during a crash. The Solano SuperSkin helmet is available in Europe and will be soon coming to the US. The doctor also has plans to transfer the technology to equestrian and football helmets.
HydroWorx specializes in designing, manufacturing, and marketing the world’s finest water therapy and conditioning equipment for the home, sports, healthcare, eldercare, and fitness markets. The company leads the industry in scientific research and data supporting the therapeutic and rehabilitative properties of hydrotherapy. HydroWorx has sold residential pools and professional aquatic therapy pools in all 50 states and twelve countries. HydroWorx’s extensive and elite client list includes Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Richard J. Hawkins, the renowned orthopedic surgeons, NASA, the University of Texas, USC, LSU, Ohio State, as well as Nike, the San Antonio Spurs, and Notre Dame. European Cup champs Manchester United Football Club and the Navy SEALs are also among hundreds of other distinguished customers.
Here are some scientific studies done with HydroWorx pools:
Texas A&M
Led by Dr. Stephen Crouse, a team of Texas A&M scientists completed two important experiments comparing land-based treadmill exercise to HydroWorx pool exercise. The studies were completed with 32 overweight adults over a three month period. Each participant in the study was over 40 years of age.
HydroWorx underwater treadmill exercise burns more calories per minute than land treadmill exercise when walking or jogging at 4 mph or above (jets at 50% or above).
Those subjects using the HydroWorx pool gained more lean muscle mass than those using the land treadmill (jets at 50% or above).
Subjects lost a higher body fat percentage using the HydroWorx pool than they did using the land treadmill (jets at 50% or above).
4 out of 5 subjects preferred exercising in the HydroWorx pool rather than on the land treadmill.
To conclude, the team of Texas A&M scientists felt the study results were significant. The study participants improved their overall health and fitness in the HydroWorx pool without the joint trauma and "wear and tear" that one normally experiences working out on land.
University of Idaho
Doctors W. Matthew Silvers and Dennis Dolny conducted several conclusive hydrotherapy research experiments at the University of Idaho.
In the first study it was found that the HydroWorx pool can create a metabolic and cardiovascular environment as stressful as traditional land-based treadmills but with reduced joint stress - a hallmark feature of aquatic therapy.
In follow-up studies, positive results were also verified with factors such as maximal oxygen consumption, heart rate, ventilation, blood lactate, leg stride rate and length, and perception of effort. Each study confirmed the effectiveness and equivalent responses with aquatic therapy versus land-based treadmills.
Full study of Hydroworx underwater treadmill training in obese adults can be found by searching:
Comparative Efficacy of Water and Land Treadmill Training for Overweight or Obese Adults
Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: September 2009 - Volume 41 - Issue 9 - pp 1808-1815
Possible benefits include:
Promotes early range of motion
Early initiation of gait training in low impact environment
Helps maintain
Replicates the proper biomechanics of land-based movements
Improved cardiovascular stamina
Increased flexibility
Muscle toning
Increased healing and strengthening of injured tissue
For the last four years Cheetah Ultra Sports have been developing a new snowboard called 'The Whip.' The board is made primarily from carbon fiber and has a couple unique features. First the binding platform is raised a couple inches off the board and second there is an hollow channel cut into the center of the board. The company claims that these design changes will improve the experience for those boarders willing to shell out $1899 for the new decks.
For over 15 years the Madden NFL football video game has been a staple of any young sports fan's game collection. Now as those some of those kids develop into the future stars of the NFL they are giving credit to the game one of the tools that have made them better athletes. In fact this might not be too hard to imagine. The game's realistic feel allows athletes to 'play' more football than any previous generations and gives gamers the ability to craft strategy on a real-time basis.
So having signed and sealed my week in the alps this year, more specifically Tignes, it is time to purchase the essentials! Well the essentials I don’ already have!! This came down to two things, firstly a nice board bag to put my shiny Burton Custom in and secondly something that until this season I have gone without, a helmet. With a good friend out there doing a season I am hopeful of some off piste adventure, which means I am probably even more likely to take some comedy tumbles.
So what did I buy? Well I have just purchased and sent back the first helmet. I managed to pick up Bern Watts helmet, for under £60. Black shell, plaid liner, looked perfect. On arrival I had a few problems.
Firstly, and possibly a little vain, I found it far too big. Not the fit, which was incredibly snug, but the outer shell made my head look huge. With a couple of cm depth of polystyrene and a further 2cm of foam, plus the liner under the shell it stood a long way from where my head finished. Maybe that is more relevant for those of you with slightly petite heads/faces.
Secondly I found the liner restrictive, beautiful, but restrictive. Once I put on my jacket I found it and the hood were competing for space which made it difficult to turn my head with the freedom I really want cruising down the slopes.
Overall I would say Bern make some sweet looking gear and I have friends who are more than happy with their wares, but for me it just didn’t work. I guess the moral is try before you buy.
If you haven’t heard of Finisterre here’s a brief overview. Based in St Agnes, Cornwall, Finisterre are a small company of surfers with passion for the environment and product performance. Made from organic cotton and Merino wool they are claiming increased durability, better performance, a softer feel and added warmth. Prices start at around £65.
Latest Relentless DVD release ‘Lives of the Artists’
Slight tangent from the normal product based review but having watched this DVD I thought it rude not to pass judgment. Let’s face it, sometimes even the most extreme of you need some down time to relax and fantasize about the next surf/snow/biking/(delete as appropriate) adventure.
Being a massive fan of the previous surf editions with Tom Lowe, Fergal Smith and Mickey Smith (Revolution and Powers of Three), I had high hopes for this DVD. And I was rewarded, at least for two thirds of film time. The film was divided into three documentary style sections following surfers Tom Lowe and Fergal Smith, snowboarder Xavier De La Rue and punk rock band, The Gallows.
Surf and snowboard footage provided awe inspiring, jaw-dropping scenes of the boys shredding down the faces of powder or ocean. Unfortunately I found The Gallows less than charming. Check it out for yourself to make up your own mind.
Trailers available at (buy the right snowboard mag and you’ll get it for free):
O and Powers of Three is available to watch in full on the above website too, mind blowing representation of big wave surfing in Ireland; pure, raw commitment in some of the sickest pits you’re likely to see.
According to HEAD, "YOUTEK™ combines superior technologies to give you the individual benefits you need to match your playing style. Not only does YOUTEK™ meet your individual needs but it enhances your performance on the court and brings out the best in you”.
“The new YOUTEK Extreme Racquets are able to adapt to each shot you hit,” said Roger Petersman, Senior Category Manager Tennis Racquets. “The Extreme racquets have an increased head width allowing for much greater spin generation on the ball, which is perfect for the aggressive, modern tennis player.”
The YOUTEK™ Extreme line offers two new models:
YOUTEK™ Extreme Pro – All of the benefits of the Extreme MP in a heavier, stiffer version, the Extreme Pro provides YOU with all of the extra touch, power and spin you need for an aggressive game.
YOUTEK™ Extreme MP – The Extreme MP is designed for the modern tennis player with the perfect combination of weight and balance to be quick through the air. Now with YOUTEK™ to perfectly match YOUR individual needs.
Sportstechreview has been priveleged to welcome a new football boot technology by a newly formed company Brightstar Sports Tec Ltd. their technology aims to replicate compliance orf the skin, ultimately improving the ability for a footballer to spin (swerve) the ball upon comand.
. The technology has shown to create a greater mean spin than competitor boots by up to 26%.
. The mean spin results do demonstrate the prototype’s consistency in providing an enhanced level of spin when compared to the competitor’s boots in both dry & wet conditions.
. The prototype samples demonstrate higher COF than all competitor boot samples in both wet & dry conditions.
. The initial prototype shows remarkable potential with clear development channels available to reach class-leading performance in the future.
We got in touch with Iain Davis and this is what he said:
"I played football up till a knee problem forced me to retire at 17, I was still able to have a gentle kick about after an operation but was told that any contact sport was a bad idea!
Through out my life and as far back as Ii can remember Ii have watched football and the world cup has always amazed me,due to the difference in technique speed and effort that different teams from around the world have or dont have.
The team that had always stood out was brazil .They seemed to play effortlessly,deft touches,bending balls around the corner making the ball work for them!
Knowing that alot of the south American players came from playing bare footed as youngsters due to alack of money and yet had in their adult game afar better first,second and final touch than most of the rest of the worlds players got me thing,how,why??
I came to the conclusion that playing bare footed ,allowing the skin of the foot to have better grip on the ball as it would GRIP,STRETCH and MORPH to the balls surface,allowing greater contact time,enhanced grip and a general better control!! I was going to try to replicate skin on the outside of a football boot!
So now having this as my starting point i then started to source materials that would have these properties,grip,elasticty and morph to the surface of a ball.I was able with the help of a friend who was a cobbler to mock up a prototype that had these working properties.. All the time that i was doing this was just to prove a point to myself and for no other reason,
I played football for half an hour in my normal boots to get my natural touch and then changed into my prototype boot and absolutly straight away i was able to induce greater spin on the ball,thus proving my point,to me!!!
After afew days i realised that it may have a wider audience .I was on a train that stopped short of the station(Horley) and there beside the train line was a sign on a building for "EUROPEAN PATENT ATTORNEY",,i phoned for an appointment ,went along and from there begun the process of gaining first the British Patent then going on to get 11 European granted Patents.
I then with the help of Sussex university went about applying for Goverment grants to do the R&D to prove the concept as it was still scientifically unproved and would be very hard to get proper interest from Brands and such,3 years later and failed applications I decided to try to get private investment which was achieved and i was then able to get Progressive Sports based at Loughborough university(one of the worlds leading sports rnd facalties) to undertake the R&D.
The RnD came back positive when tested against the worlds biggest brands boots which have enhanced grip,strike locations with results of upto 26% more grip,20% more spin generation and my material had protective properties that would protect the metatarsal bones of the feet!!
Result...
I am now at the point where the technology needs to be incorperated into a football boot and as such i am looking to raise more investment so that i can have arun of boots made up .With help from Howard wilkinson who has invested in this technology we will be able to make direct contact with top flight professionals and take their game to a greater level, exagerate their natural ability and allow greater team,game play".
Good luck Brightstar and we hope it makes it big!!! We will keep our readers up to date.
According to HEAD, "YOUTEK™ combines superior technologies to give you the individual benefits you need to match your playing style. Not only does YOUTEK™ meet your individual needs but it enhances your performance on the court and brings out the best in you”.
“HEAD has taken technology to a whole new level with YOUTEK™,” said Roger Petersman, senior business manager of tennis racquets for HEAD Penn Racquet Sports. “YOUTEK™ can actually sense the needs of the tennis player during different shots to perfectly match your game.”
In the YOUTEK™ Prestige Series, YOUTEK™ incorporates d3o™, a “smart material” which dramatically changes its behavior under dynamic loading or impact. Located in the shaft of the racquet, d3o™ reacts to the needs of a player within nano seconds, providing a softer touch and better feel on slow speed impacts, like slices and drop shots, and increases stiffness necessary to create power on high speed impacts, such as a serves and passing shots.
The Prestige series includes the following:
Prestige Pro: Features a more open string pattern providing extra pop for a more aggressive tour player and also includes a leather grip for ultimate tour performance.
Prestige Mid: A great tour racquet that offers maximum touch and control with the extra stability that is ideal for serious heavy hitters.
Prestige Mid Plus: Provides outstanding touch and control for great playability and is the racquet choice of HEAD stars Gilles Simon, Stanislas Wawrinka and Tommy Haas.
Its great to finally get a female on board after months of searching and here she is....
Sian is currently a PhD student at Loughborough University in England. She is studying in the Sports Technology Institute on a project with British Swimming, developing new technologies for improved performance analysis of elite swimmers.
Sian graduated from Loughborough University’s Sports Technology BSc before joining the research team in 2006. Alongside her research studies she has also gained additional expertise working as a consultant for Progressive Sports Technologies on projects involved with sports bras development and novel training devices.
On completion of her PhD, early 2010 (fingers crossed!), she will return to surf trips to the coast, snowboarding trips to the Alps and plenty of mountain biking down the road in the Peaks.
READ HER FIRST BLOG POST BELOW...
Sian’s previous sports research papers include:
Accelerometer profile recognition of swimming strokes Vol.1, pp 81-88, Proceedings of the International Sports Engineering Association (ISEA) 7th International Conference June 3 - 6, 2008, Biarritz, France
Business Process Modelling and its use within an Elite Training Environment Vol.1, pp 73-80, Proceedings of the International Sports Engineering Association (ISEA) 7th International Conference June 3 - 6, 2008, Biarritz, France
Enabling technologies for robust swimming performance monitoring Vol.1, pp 45-54, Proceedings of the International Sports Engineering Association (ISEA) 7th International Conference June 3 - 6, 2008, Biarritz, France.
d3o, a concept so simple yet so effective. Think back to that experiment we all did as kids, cornflour + water = complete amazement. When stirred gently it flowed around our fingers like water, yet when hit it became as solid as a rock. Richard Palmer, creator of d3o, has applied this same concept to a material that is now incorporated into all kinds of apparel and protective equipment.
The ski industry is littered with products with the d3o touch this season. Let’s start with the big guns, the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Spyder will be supplying the U.S. and Canadian ski teams with race suits, where regular padding has been replaced by d3o on the forearms, triceps and thighs. Working with Spyder, the d3o team were able to reduce the padding by 40% compared to previous d3o protection and consequentially improved the overall aerodynamics of the suit.
For those of you who prefer skiwear that leaves a little more to the imagination there are jackets and pants by Head and Schöffel, beanies by Ignite, impact shorts by Burton R.E.D. and gloves by Hestra.
Fancy contributing to sports garment design and science. Progressive Sports are developing a new high visibility garment for a major sports brand and would like your views on the design! If you complete the questionnaire, which should only take a few minutes, then you could win a new high visibility running top!!!
Please click the link above or below for your chance to win the running jacket below:
So, I attended a fantastic bike fitting course in London over the Xmas period, hosted by CycleFit and SICI (Serotta Cycling Institute). It is a scientifically focussed course which prescribes methods to create a comfortable/ safe bike fit whilst maintaining a great performance posture profile. As part of my job at Progressive Sports we hope to offer Bike fitting (the university way!), with rigorous science attached, to the general public. We will hopefully be using technologies such as a Lode ergometer, Vicon biomechanical analysis and seat pressure systems in the end. At this stage, however, we are just at the beginning and I am going to blog about becoming a professional bike fitter from scratch!
12th November 2009
RECHARGE recovery suit compression garment by UnderArmour
Athletes at every level across the globe know Under Armour as the brand that provides the advantages they need to maximize performance. The originator of performance apparel introduces post-game/post-workout compression. You broke your body down…now build it back up with Under Armour compression that recharges you between games or workouts. RECHARGE™ compression is designed to re-energize your body, promote muscle repair and reduce swelling.
HOW RECHARGE™ MAKES YOU A BETTER ATHLETE
• STRATEGIC COMPRESSION- Designed to target muscles to reduce swelling & decrease soreness time.
• DYNAMIC CASTING EFFECT- Aligns & stabilizes muscles so they can repair themselves better.
• UA INNOVATION- Re-energizes your body for the next game or workout.
For best results:
• Put on RECHARGE™ Compression within two hours post-game or post-workout.
• Wear RECHARGE™ top & bottom together for 24 hours.
ESPNCricinfo Mobicast 
SportsTracker Pro 
SportsTapp 
SatSki 
Premierscores 
