Evolution of Hockey: Protective Equipment

With the evolution of the hockey stick, the already dangerous sport of hockey quickly became even more dangerous. Originally hockey players wore little protective gear besides gloves and skates but with better sticks came harder shots and a more fast paced game which caused many injuries. Due to this many players began wearing padding to protect themselves from injury. In 1897 goalkeepers began wearing wicket-keeper's pads to protect their legs from the puck and in 1948 they began experimenting with a "trapper and blocker" which was basically a rectangular piece of leather and a baseball glove. Goalie pads have gone through a number of advancements since then but still maintain their original design and most are still made of leather as they were in 1948. Although by 1948 goalies were pretty well padded, it took goalie Jacques Plante getting a puck to the face in 1959 to allow goalies to wear protective face masks. In 1968 Bill Masterton of the Minnesota North Stars was hit and thrown to the ice causing massive brain trauma and eventually his death. Although Masterton's death did start a movement toward helmet wearing, players were not required to wear helmets until 1979 when the NHL decided to instate mandatory helmet wearing.

Evolution of Hockey: The Stick

Like the rest of the game, the hockey stick has also seen much change throughout the years. Until the 1930's sticks were made solely of wood. Since then, stick material has changed drastically throughout the years. From aluminum to graphite to composites such as carbon fiber and fiberglass many different materials have been used to make modern hockey sticks. Although it is primarily a players personal preference what kind of stick they use, a lighter stick is easier to carry and produces a quicker, harder shot. Composite sticks also incorporate more strength while being much lighter than wood. This is a huge improvement over wooden sticks because a broken stick means time lost and a possible scoring opportunity for the opposing team.
Along with the sticks material, the rules involving the stick also have changed. In 1927 Cy Denneny experimented with curving the blade of his stick using hot water to shape the wood. This blade curve would quickly catch on in professional hockey because it allowed a more accurate, harder shot from forwards. Although this new stick style did have its advantages, it was not picked up by all players because it had a negative effect on stick handling and backhanded shots. In the 1950's players began curving there sticks to decrease the predictablility of their slapshots. This unpredictablilty was good for the shooter because the goalie then had to guess where the puck was going, which often resulted in a goal. This unpredictability also gave rise to injuries because not only did the goalie not know where the shot was going, but neither did the shooter. Because of these injuries the NHL limited the amount of curve on a blade to 1 inch in 1967 and then to 1/2 inch in 1970. The length of hockey sticks was also limited to 63 inches by the NHL in order to prevent injury.

Hawkeye and Cyclops

Up until recently, tennis has relied on the keen eye of just their officials to make the calls on the court. Now there are a few systems being used to ensure the correct call is made every time.

The first is Cyclops, it is used to determine if serves are in or out. The machine projects five or six infra-red horizontal beams of light along the court 10 mm above the ground to determine this. The ball will break the plane of the infra red beams if it is out of bounds.

The Hawkeye technology is used to judge weather a ball is in our out. In 2005 it was tested by the ITF and certified for professional use. The system uses a computer linked to a network of cameras to recreate the balls path and judge to the millimeter if the ball was in or not. The implementation of the Hawkeye technology has led to players receiving a number of challenges to use when they believe a shot may have been called incorrectly. In March of 2008, the ITF set the standard for Hawkeye challenges at 3 per set for players. This technology now has given players the ability to challenge critical decisions and ensure they are rewarded for their efforts.

Evolution of Hockey: The Rink

As long as there has been hockey there has been a rink for it to be played on. When ice hockey was first created it was played on frozen ponds and lakes during the winter months. With the evolution of the sport, the rink also adapted to the sports needs. Modern ice hockey is played on indoor rinks with a perfectly level, refrigerated ice surface. The First of these refrigerated ice rinks was called the Glacierium and was built in England in the late 19th century. These rinks use an insulated floor, such as sand or concrete, through which pipes carrying chilled antifreeze run. Water is then added to this surface which slowly freezes and creates an ice rink.

Along with the surface itself evolving, so did the rules involving the hockey rink. Modern rinks have developed two different sizes. One size is used by the NHL in the United States and Canada and the other size is used throughout the rest of the world. Along with the evolution of the ice surface itself, the rink has also advanced with respect to the boards. The boards keep the puck, and players, in play during the game. Although boards were not used often on ponds or lakes, they were implemented along with the modern ice surfaces. These boards originally consisted of plywood, 2 by 4's or logs a few inches high surrounding the rink but modern boards are much higher reaching about the waist of most players. These boards, although still made primarily of wood, are coated in plastic to avoid damage from sticks, skates and the puck. Most boards, especially in the United States and Canada, have glass that extends the boards in order to keep the puck in play and protect the spectators. The glass is either made of tempered glass or Plexiglas to avoid shattering.

Evolution of Hockey: Introduction

Since the beginning modern hockey has been a fast paced, high energy sport that continues to captivate its crowd with every passionate game. Although it may seem that ice hockey is a relatively young sport, it actually has roots dating back about 4000 years. Drawings found in ancient Egyptian tombs depict a game similar to field hockey that the Egyptians may have played. Although much has changed since the era of modern ice hockey, the game still resembles the way the ancients may have played.

Modern hockey's beginning is marked by the first recorded organized game in 1875. This game led the way to the first hockey club with the first official seven hockey rules. This club, The McGill University Hockey Club, also was the first to win the "Carnival Cup", which was the predecessor to today's Stanley Cup. The teams that competed in the "Carnival Cup" games would soon form the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada. Although ice hockey has spread to all parts of the modern world, Its roots still stand in Canada as well as the northern United States.

Since the beginning of hockey, the sport has changed a great amount. From rules to equipment, hockey has advanced a great deal to reach what hockey is defined as today. Although the basic concepts of the game remain the same, three major advancements in the game of ice hockey can be noted; Advancements in hockey sticks, advancements in protective equipment, and advancements in the hockey rink.

Golf Balls: Past to Present

Believe it or not, the very first golf ball was made mostly of goose or chicken feathers. Back in the 1600's, the "feathery cube" consisted of these feathers tightly packed into a cowhide sphere and then wet, which when dried created a nicely hardened ball. Paint was added as a finishing touch, but unfortunately for a handcrafted ball of this type it would sometime cost more then the club used to hit it.

Nearly 200 years later the "feathery cube" was replaced by the Gutta-Percha. Getting its name from the milky juice that is produced from the Gutta tree prominently found in Malaysia, the Gutta-Percha golf ball had a large contribution in the expansion of golf. This hand-crafted ball was much cheaper to produce and could be repaired simply by reheating and shaping the ball. At first the Gutta had a smooth surface, causing them to travel even less then the feathery. Golfers found that after repairing a Gutta ball that had many "nicks" in it, the ball actually worked better. Crafters began making all Gutta's with patterns on them, which led to the development of the next golf ball.

The Bramble succeeded the Gutta, and was designed from some aspect of the Gutta. The textures and patterns that designers had experimented with on the Gutta ball had been very popular. The Bramble took these symmetrical patterns and altered them, making raised spherical bumps all across the surface of the ball. This created the most successful ball the sport of golf had seen yet, and provided concepts useful to the future balls of golf.

The use of a rubber core became the innovator of the golf game. Invented two years before the 20th century, the ball consisted of rubber thread wrapped tightly around the core. Covered by a Balata finish (developed using the Gutta-Percha), the rubber ball used the same symmetrical patterns of raised bumps to cover the entire surface of the ball. Eventually the rubber ball adopted the dimple style for its exterior, which is still scene in all of today's golf balls.

In 1932, the United Stats Golf Association set a standard weight and size for golf balls, following the British whom had set similar standards nearly two years prior. These standards still apply today, and golf balls still contain a solid rubber core (although advances in silicon have been experimented with). However the variety of manufacturers is at an all-time high as these companies aim to help enhance certain aspects of a golfers game just by using their golf ball.


Source: GolfEurope.com
Source: TheDesignShop.com

Evolution of the Golf Club

Back during the developmental days of golf, people actually carved their own clubs. The very first golf clubs were made of a variety of wood types, from beech to holly to even wood from apple trees. Over the years, people turned to skilled craftsmen to carve their clubs, and hickory quickly became the wood of choice for creating a solid club head. The shafts of the golf clubs were often made of ash or hazel, which was connected to the head by using a splint and tightly bound leather straps. A set of golf clubs back then consisted of a longnose (for driving), grassed drivers (for fairways), spoons (short range clubs), niblicks (similar to wedges), and a cleek (for putting).

As golf continued to evolve over the years, the golf club saw quite a few changes. When the evolution of the golf ball made the ball harder and more durable, a change in club head design was necessary; the guttie ball was putting far too much stress on these wooden clubs. The bulging head design on the wooden clubs held up for a few years, but by the turn of the 20th century aluminum had become the material of choice for club heads. The shape of the grassed drivers also changed from the bulged design of the drivers to what is now known as an iron; these were made out of hand-forged aluminum complete with a grooved face for increased backspin.

In the 1890's club designers produced a steel shaft to replace wooden shafts. However, the concept was used very little up until the early 1900's. Graphite shafts were introduced in the 1970's, serving as a lighter yet stronger alternative to steel shafts. Some shafts now come with a graphite-based mixture of materials that are said to enhance performance. For example, some clubs come with shafts that contain boran, which is said to help prevent twisting during a swing.

Wooden (or more specifically persimmon) drivers and fairway woods were not seen as obsolete until nearly the turn of the century. The first metal "woods" were made by Taylor-Made in the 1980's, and eventually became the replacement for wooden drivers due to its strength and versatility. The most recent trend with drivers is a combination of a graphite shaft with a titanium head, which allows the club head to be much larger then any drivers seen before. Taylor-Made also designed their r7 drivers with three adjustable weights integrated into the club head, which can help a person adjust both the trajectory and accuracy of his or her shot. Unfortunately this combination also allows for the most expensive clubs the sport of golf has ever seen.

Source: EDirectory.com
Source: GolfEurope.com
Source: Wikipedia

Tennis Rackets

Back in the early days of tennis the racket's were made of wood and had head sizes that are tiny in comparison to any racket you can buy today. The laminated wood rackets were used until the late 1960's when Wilson introduced the first steel racket, which became the popular thing due to use by the tennis legend Jimmy Connors.

In 1976 Prince released the first over sized head racket. Two of the Prince rackets, the Classic and Pro both had aluminum frames and string areas nearly 50% larger than the old wooden rackets.

The power of advanced players was nearly too much for the aluminum rackets to handle. By 1980 graphite rackets had been

developed. A mixture of carbon fiber and plastic resin created a stiffer racket that could handle the power of professionals.

The rackets of today have not changed much since the first graphite rackets. The only improvements have been slight reductions in the weight as well as oversizing of the racket head. The new rackets allow the great players of today to hit the ball harder and more accurately than ever before.

The Football Field

In the early days of primitive football, players had to truck their way through a groomed field to reach the end zone. Over the years, the playing surface for the game has taken a drastic new look. One of these innovations is called synthetic grass. Synthetic grass is a synthetic material that is created to appear like natural grass. Advantages of installing synthetic grass include: no cutting, no watering, no fertilizing, no seeding, a well drained field, and faster acceleration for players. You can even die the grass a certain color for added effect. Out of 31 football stadiums in the NFL, 12 have a playing field made of synthetic grass.

Also, instead of playing in the elements of whatever climate the sport is being played in, the dome was invented. The dome is a shell that is placed over the field to eliminate the elements of Mother Nature. This invention gives players a huge advantage over players playing the game in the weather. To date, there are 6 teams that call a dome their home. These teams include: St. Louis, New Orleans, Minnesota, Detroit, Indianapolis, and Atlanta. The other 28 teams have to endure the weather during their home games. Below is a picture of the Boise State football field. The field is made of artificial grass and is colored blue.

http://www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com/synthetic-turf.html

http://www.bbnflstats.com/2007/11/nfl-home-field-advantage-by-climate.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_current_National_Football_League_stadiums\

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The "Skycam"

In the early years of the game, football was strictly a spectator sport that involved your attendance. As time passed, and camera technology advanced, so did the coverage and broadcast of football games. Today the newest technology in the broadcast of football is the Skycam. The Skycam is a camera that hovers over the field of play on cables. The cables are secured to the four corners of the field that allow the camera to catch angles of play that were never before achievable. This new invention provides an advantage in the “instant replay” rule in the NFL. Now, referees can get a clear view of the play under question, and make a decision based on the evidence. Below is a picture of a typical Skycam used in the NFL.

http://ask.yahoo.com/20041221.html

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://images.usatoday.com/sports/football/_photos/2006-12-21-skycam.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/mccarthy/2006-12-21-mccarthy-skycam_x.htm&h=273&w=245&sz=25&hl=en&start=7&um=1&tbnid=Tf1dAisRzjL03M:&tbnh=113&tbnw=101&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dskycam%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1B3GGGL_en___US243%26sa%3DN

Football Helmets

The first helmets ever produced for the use in football were made of soft leather and provided minimal protection to the skull and ears. The strap of the helmet was set to attach to the players neck. Over time, the leather consisting of a helmet got harder and harder providing more protection each version. In this same time frame, helmet producers started using fabric to line the inside of the helmet to take some of the load of a head collision, with this came even greater protection. Also the shape of the helmet was experimented with. The helmet went from a flat top to an oval shape to help deflect any impacts. The biggest advancement in helmets came in 1939, with the Riddell Company’s introduction of the plastic helmet. The Riddell Company also redesigned the strap to fit to the players chin. It wasn’t until the 1940’s that the first face mask came onto the scene. In the 1970’s, Dr. Richard Schneider of the University of Michigan Hospital created a bladder for air. The padding previously provided by fabric material was not an air cushion. Through this course of technological advances, the football helmet of today has come to be. Below is a side by side picture of the first leather helmets and today’s helmet.

http://www.madehow.com/Volume-3/Football-Helmet.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Football_helmet