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