...is a sign of a too-busy life. I bought a new bauer two weeks ago today and it's not only unused so far, it's still sitting inside the front door at home, a rather rare place for my better half to allow me to leave any piece of hockey equipment, smell or no smell. One …
Category: Gear
Tying Skates in the Morning
As kids, we often had games and practices early in the morning. As parents, we often took our kids to games and practices early in the morning. For some reason, I always found tying up skates early in the morning was really hard on the hands. It feels harder on the skin for some reason. …
When Time Isn’t Your Friend
The lace you've been meaning to change is bound to break when you are in the biggest rush. It's the truest of Murphy's Laws applied to hockey. Tonight, I was in a grand rush to get to my 9:00 game in Elmira because, as luck would have it, my brief after-dinner, pre-game nap turned into a …
Damn Dog
I left a couple of rolls of clear tape on my table saw in the garage after Christmas. I was in the backyard with the dog today and found him chewing on one. Seriously, clear hockey tape? How did some animal species exist prior to be domesticated?
The Lie Of Your Stick
Do they even publish this anymore? When I was a kid, the lie used to be written on the shaft of the stick. It was just one more cool measure to try and personalize to your style. "I just cannot get used to a 5 lie. I keep losing it out the heel." I'm sure …
Gloves
The last two pairs of gloves I've owned must have been made of some magic materials that my gloves prior to that never were. I bought my current pair about two years ago and they are wonderful. Not sure the brand. The ones prior, a set of Missions were equally good gloves and the leather …
Sharp Skates and Less Dinner
The last couple of games in the W have been grim. I needed a skate sharpen badly and have had too much dinner too close to game time. Accordingly, I got the skates sharpened up this weekend and am going to be real careful to eat lightly at dinner in the hopes of not …
Alternate Uses For A Hockey Stick
This could be a long post but I'll keep it short. As I cruised through the garage the other day to grab some wood for the fire we were having, I chuckled when I saw that several years ago I had stacked the wood at the end of the garage using an old beater of …
Pucks in Snowbanks
There aren't many sports where the central piece of sporting equipment goes missing mid-game, especially in pickup / amateur versions of a game. Footballs, volleyballs, soccer balls and basketballs rarely disappear during a game. Horses don't usually run away during equestrian events and shotputs and javelins don't get tossed that far. However in some sports, the …
The Blowtorch and It’s Place in the Game
George Orwell opined that serious sport "is war minus the shooting". Given that, you have to love and respect any sport that requires the use of a blowtorch in a non-weapon sense. Now those of you who aren't schooled in the game may need to loose the hounds of your imagination to conjure up …