Posts Tagged ‘football videos’
July 21st, 2010 | 
Author: Rawlings, Sports Industry Leader in Head Protection, Introduces NRG Helmet to National Group of Sporting Goods Team Dealers
ST. LOUIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rawlings today announced that in August it will launch its highly anticipated Rawlings NRG football helmet, which was unveiled last Friday to more than 100 sporting goods team dealers from throughout the nation during a two-day gathering at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The introduction of the NRG helmet formally signals a new and significant “total solution” emphasis on football for Rawlings, which also last week introduced the latest version of the state-of-the-art Rawlings S100 batting helmet during Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game in Anaheim, Calif. Rawlings is the official batting helmet of Major League Baseball and Minor League Baseball.
The NRG football helmet, which will be seeded geographically in August and October ahead of a nationwide launch in 2011, joins the Rawlings S100 baseball batting helmet to further support Rawlings’ leadership in protecting the heads of athletes.
NRG – for Neuro Responsive Gear – will be the flagship brand name for the full Rawlings helmet line, which consists of the NRG Quantum for elite-level competition (adult and youth) and the NRG Momentum for youth players. Rawlings also unveiled its SRG line – for Skeletal Responsive Gear – of pads and undergarments that will offer the most complete head-to-ankle combination of protective and performance from one football brand or company. A video demonstrating Rawlings’ full line of protective equipment can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/rawlings1887#p/a/f/0/6ymfTuLITog.
(or view the video below)
The NRG football helmet will lead the brand’s comprehensive advance into the competitive and growing football protective gear and apparel category. The complete Rawlings family of football products, including Zoombang™ protective gear and AIMS™ shoulder pads, was introduced to team dealers by Rawlings president Robert Parish and other company executives.
“Best-in-class head protection is a signature attribute of the Rawlings brand, and that core value is at the heart our new Rawlings NRG football helmet line,” Parish said. “The introduction of the NRG football helmet is significant on numerous fronts. First, it provides Rawlings the opportunity to offer a total solution, or total protection from head to ankle. And it delivers an extremely important message to team dealers, athletic directors, coaches, equipment managers, parents and players, and that is Rawlings is fully, 100 percent, committed to football.”
Presenters from Rawlings recapped the brand’s history in the game and its vision for football with the help of Cowboys Stadium’s $40 million video board above the field. Team dealers in attendance represented locally based sporting goods companies that work and sell directly to high school and college athletic directors, coaches, equipment managers and consumers.
“I think the most important thing to come out of these meetings is that Rawlings has a story to tell,” said John Lassiter of Midwest Sporting Goods in Tulsa, Okla. “They’ve put a lot of effort in getting their football product to this point and it’s pretty impressive. It’s a good story, good technology.
“The most impressive thing they presented was their concept of providing a complete program from uniforms to protective apparel to helmets to shoulder pads. It’s a complete package and maybe the only company in the industry.”
“I think that in just the last couple of years we’ve seen some real technological changes in football equipment and helmets,”
said team dealer Bob Fawley of Capitol Varsity Sports in Oxford, Ohio.
“Rawlings has recognized that at this point they needed to come to the market with a story and technology in place and, based on what I’ve seen here, that’s exactly what they’ve done.
“The football parent and coaches that are out there in the marketplace today want to know how their helmets perform and why. Not that many years ago that question wasn’t being asked. Now with the heightened awareness of concussions and the discussions that are going on, families and coaches want to understand why the helmet performs the way it does.”
“The helmet meets a real spot for us dealers, for quality and price, which we think will be great,” said team dealer John Stote III of Anaconda Sports in Kingston, N.Y. “I liked the way that Rawlings talked about supporting dealers, which in this industry always hasn’t been a strong point. They’re talking to us, they showed their cards, and they brought us in to show us.”
About Rawlings:
Rawlings is a leading marketer and manufacturer of baseball equipment and other sporting goods in the United States. Rawlings is the Official Baseball and Helmet of Major League Baseball® and official ball of the NCAA® baseball championships. Rawlings is also the official basketball for the NAIA®, NJCAA®, AAU® and many other organizations as well as official football of the NAIA®. Rawlings is the official basketball, football, baseball, softball, volleyball and soccer ball of the National High School Federation®. For more information, please visit www.rawlings.com.
Article From: http://www.businesswire.com
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Here goes a cool video from ESPN Video.
As usual, I have included the text.
In their early days of football, athletes didn’t even bother wearing shoulder pads, however, when the pads finally did make their first appearance, initial versions were merely made up of sewn together pieces of leather. By the time the 60′s rolled around, foam and hard plastic replaced the leather.
The good news was these pads finally began addressing shoulder and rib injuries. The bad news; the foam was the same material used to pad furniture. It was discovered it actually sped up the process of overheating the athlete. Decades later, a study by the National Trainers Association addressed the rise of heat related illnesses, finding that four highschool students died due to the heat while thirteen other highschool students were reported as injured due to heat issues.
This, in turn, led to the first innovations in shoulder pad design in thirty years, incorporating everything from air conditioners to astronauts.
In 2002, impact pads actually started using synthetic fibers designed for NASA to make new shoulder pads breathable and lighter.
The old furniture foam was replaced with a gel like material and covered with mesh fabric to allow moisture to be taken away from the body and therefore keeping the athletes cooler.
A second major innovation was introduced by Douglas, who in conjunction with scientists from the University of Florida, created the Temperature Management System which actually added an air conditioner to the shoulder pads.
While on the bench, players can be hooked up to an air pump that sends cold, dry air into the pads where air channels are built in.
Any number of players can be hooked up to the system, which uses a hose to force cool air throughout the pads, keeping body temperature down by stopping the radiating heat before it starts.
It may have taken thirty years but shoulder pads are starting to catch up to the ever changing world of gear designed to protect the players.
While the issue of heat injuries isn’t going away, protection will always be the key factor behind the next generation of shoulder pads.
Let’s just hope it doesn’t take another thirty years.”
Kinda funny video by the museum of the obvious. Experiment #5 The obvious invention of the football helmet.
Kind of funny I guess.
But seriously, as I outlined in a previous posting about the origins of the football helmet, the first “football helmet” was designed by a shoemaker for Admiral Joseph Mason Reeves. Turns out the Admiral was knock, knock, knocking on heavens door if he sustained one more serious head injury.
In his battle to dodge death and some tacklers, Reeves commissioned said shoemaker to fashion him up a total piece of crap made out of moleskin.
However, the real breakthrough in helmet history wasn’t until 1917 when a man named Bob Zuppke, a coach from Illinois, came up with the idea of ‘suspension’. He put together a helmet that cradled the skull away from its leather shell, and in effect, away from the detriment of football’s battery. Here, he used straps of fabric to form a pattern inside the helmet while absorbing and distributing impact. Even better, ventilation was created, allowing the head to breathe while amplifying its protection. It was at this point that Rawlings and Spalding, football entrepreneurs of the millennium entered the picture.
After much thought and design, Vern McMillan introduced a face mask, the final stage of the leather helmet’s production. Fastened in the 1930s, it was a simple rubber-covered wire mask attached to the face of the leather helmet. Meant to put an end to the horrendous amount of broken noses and teeth resulting from the game, it produced another problem. Men soon grabbed at each others masks, forcing penalties because of their intimidation attempts.
Hey everyone. I just wanted to expound a little more on my review of the Riddell Revolution Helmet.
Found a great video over on youtube and I think you all should watch it. Once again, I have included the transcript as well.
The helmet design was based on extensive research funded by NFL charities. Since the launch of the Revolution, over 3/4 of a million football players have made the switch.
Now the best just got better.
Introducing the Riddell Revolution IQ helmet which combines advanced fitting and a quick-release face guard attachment.
The ideal fit liner system provides unsurpassed comfort and stability by a specially engineered inflation system that when inflated, pivots the true curve back-pad and cradling the rear of the head.
Combined with true curve front padding technology, ideal fit delivers the comfort and security that players demand.
In addition, the Revolution IQ offers a patented quick-release face-guard attachment system. This allows for rapid and easy player access by simply releasing 2 pins.
The combination of these 2 new technologies is the latest offering in state of the art football head protection pioneered by Riddell.
In 2005, Riddell introduced the head impact telemetry system, or H.I.T.S. as part of the revolutionary sideline response system.
The HITS equipped helmet uses on-board sensors and computing power to capture, record, and measure head impact acceleration.
Using wireless technology and special software, data is then transmitted real-time to a sideline computer, giving certified athletic trainers and team doctors extra eyes on the field.
Leading universities, including Oklahoma, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Dartmouth, and many more are using the side line response system for the 2007 college football season.
Now Riddell is offering the same technology previously available as part of the integrated side line response system in an individual helmet.
Introducing, the Revolution IQ HITS. The first individual helmet that has all of the benefits of the Riddell Revolution IQ, plus it monitors and records every significant incident of head impact sustained during a football game or practice.
The system measures the location, magnitude, duration, and direction of head acceleration.
The Revolution IQ HITS brings the field to the training room or home.
Impact data, stored by the helmet, is easy to upload to your P.C.
A simple, interactive web-based application analyzes the data, identifies suspect impacts and then provides a clear call-to action.
Since 1929, Riddells proud history has been built on our passionate quest to improve athlete protection and out drive to advance state of the art technologies in athletic equipment.
This tradition continues with the new Revolution IQ.”
What do you guys think? Sounds like it’s still a winner even today. Many comments over at youtube by people who say they love the Revolution.
I did a little comparison between the Riddell Revolution and the Schutt ION 4D. Tell me what you think.
How are football helmets made?
This morning after class, I found a pretty cool video on YouTube. The original is from the Discovery Channel’s “How It’s Made” series.
Here is the direct link to the video over at the Discovery Channel.
How Football Helmets Are Made
Or just watch it below. Enjoy 
I’ve also included the full transcript for the video for you to read along:
To make one, plastic pellets are suctioned into a machine that melts and molds them into a dome shape.
This fist-like device shapes the inside of the shell which hardens in just a matter of seconds.
A robot then collects it and tranfers it to a conveyor.
It’s quite a line-up.
The shells move into position for a trimming and the extra plastic from the molding is clipped off.
Next, a robot drills up to nine holes in the shell.
The holes will be used to attach a liner, face-guard, and various pieces of hardware.
This robot works far more quickly than a human can…performing all the drilling in just 30 seconds!
This is the ultimate in computerized precision.
A worker collects the drilled shell and moves a new one into position for the robot.
The outside of the helmet shell is roughed up with an orbital sander.
This preps it for priming and painting.
This factory uses a high grade brand of automotive paint and it takes three coats to make sure this paint job is rugged enough to survive a go on the gridiron.
The helmets cure in the open-air for up to eighteen hours.
During this time, a chemical reaction hardens the paint to a glossy finish.
Not every helmet is painted. Some teams prefer tinted plastic.
It all depends on the look the team is going for.
Labels are attached, including safety information, trademark logos, and the date of production.
This padding is made of vinyl and foam. Workers snap it in place in the crown of the helmet.
The padding for the side and back is made from the same material.
The back is reinforced with a plastic bumper.
A helmet from each production run undergoes an impact test.
It’s fitted on a head shaped form equipped with sensors which are carefully calibrated.
The technician presses a button and the helmeted head falls.
This mimics the effects of a players head hitting the ground during a tackle.
The computer then measures the force of the impact on the head.
Once the production run gets the okay, the face-guard is attached.
It’s made of plastic coated steel and has been custom produced at a different factory.
There are dozens of face-guard styles for the player to choose from.
This helmet is now looking pretty fierce, but it’s not ready for action yet.
It needs a chin strap and cup.
This machine uses heat to transfer a foil logo onto the polyester chin straps.
It also cuts them to the correct length.
Once a chin cup has been sewn to the strap; the assembly is loosely fastened to the helmet.
Later, it will be precisely fitted to the players head.
This helmet is now almost ready for kick-off.
Theirs a final inspection and then they wrap it up, complete with a manual and fitting instructions.
It’s taken less than a day to manufacture a football helmet that can withstand thousands of blows because in the game of football, protection against
head injury is a victory in itself.