Category: Equipment

Panasonic Lumix Cameras Ideal for Winter That Won’t End

Earlier this month that silly groundhog failed to see its shadow, and we were promised an early spring. Well, of course that isn’t happening. Parts of the country continue to be buried in snow, and since it doesn’t look like it will end for a while, we might as well enjoy it.

To that end capture these winter memories with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-Z210 hybrid digital compact camera. It features advanced GPS functionality, along with a 24mm ultra wide-angle, 16x optical zoom Leica DC lens. No mere point and shoot camera, this one features a 14.1megapixel MOS sensor and advanced image processor Venus Engine for 1,920×1,080 full-HD movie recording and high speed burst shooting.

And whether you hit the local slopes or want to head out on a global trek, this camera is ready to go. It features the built-in GPS system, where it can provide details on where the photo was taken with latitude and longitude automatically provided in the Exif data. Geo-tagged images can even be pinpointed on maps of social media Internet maps. Continue reading Panasonic Lumix Cameras Ideal for Winter That Won’t End

Powerbeats, Recommended by a Doctor

Truth be told, when we heard that the Powerbeats headphones were endorsed by rapper Dr. Dre, we didn’t actually think these would be athletes exactly. The good doctor may be many things but the model of fitness isn’t something that immediately comes to mind. And when we found out that the headphones were part of the Monster line we knew they’d sound good, but we weren’t convinced that these were for the fitness crowd.

But Lebron James and other athletes do swear by these. The headphones promise a full range of sound with “clarity and power,” which is what we’d expect from Monster. But then a look at these convinced us these headphones are ready for the game. These feature a flexible earhook to keep the headphones in place, while they’re also sweat resistance as well as UV protected. This means they can get down and dirty and keep performing.

The phones can also be used with a phone, as a Monster ControlTalk cable is also provided. Thus you can play hard, and trash talk on the way home.

Powerbeats by Dr. Dre Website

Product Recall: Pull-up Bars Far From Perfect

About the only thing that might be perfect about some of the Perfect Pullup adjustable height pull-up bars, which were imported by Perfect Fitness of Mill Valley, California, is that these are perfect for causing an injury. The company has issued a recall of these products because the plastic handles can crack, posing an injury hazard for the user.

So far the company has received about 2,200 reports of handles cracking, with nearly 40 users complaining of injuries that included bruises, strains and sprains. The products were sold online at the company’s website, as well as from Amazon.com, and from sporting goods stores nationwide since January 2008. Continue reading Product Recall: Pull-up Bars Far From Perfect

U.S. Paralympic Track Gets Lightweight Front Wheels

The U.S. Paralympic track riders have a new weapon in their arsenal – an extremely lightweight front wheel from Phil Wood & Co. that weighs less than 1-1/2 pounds. This wheel uses all of the latest innovations from both Phil Wood and ENVE Composites to deliver a wheel that will hopefully help sprint our team to the top of the podium.

There are two main components that make up this wheel – the hub from Phil Wood and one of the lightest weight rims on the market from ENVE (formerly Edge). This hub may look like an normal Phil Wood track hub, but that is where the similarities end. This LF Track Hub features an alloy axle, titanium end caps, titanium washers, titanium bolts and Phil Wood Carbonyte bearings. These Carbonyte bearings are designed for speed and offer a very low rolling resistance, but the downside is that they are not built for longevity or endurance. Continue reading U.S. Paralympic Track Gets Lightweight Front Wheels

Zigtech Completely Cricket

When you mention Cricket to most Americans, we think of the noisy insect – the one that was friends with the wooden kid that came to life – or we think of the British game where everyone wears the white pants and sweaters. What could possibly be high-tech about that, right?

 Well, think again. Reebok has done many things for running, football and basketball, so why wouldn’t the company do something for the game of cricket. In fact, Reebok is actually one of the leading sportswear brands that, along with the International Cricket Council, has helped energize the game with some technical innovations for the team from India. This includes the futuristic Reebok ZigTech Bats, footwear and trainers. Just in time for the Cricket World Cup 2011 this year, Reebok has outfitted the Indian cricket team with “Zig-Sonic” equipped gear that helps reduce wear and tear in the leg muscles during training. Reebok’s ZigTech shoes have been called “engery drinks for your feet,” and now it seems like the drink is available in a curry flavor.  This same zig is being incorporated into the “on field” shoes, which have also been designed to meet the needs of the individual player’s patterns and foot movements. The game has clearly come a long way from simple white sweaters and wooden bats.

Convert Your Old Road Frame Into a Single Speed With Wood (Phil Wood)

Do you have a spare bicycle frame that you would love to turn into a single speed or fixie, but the frame does not have horizontal dropouts? Do you want to avoid running a singulator chain tensioner especially in a fixed gear setup? The innovators from San Jose, California, Phil Wood & Co., have come to the rescue. Phil Wood recently announced the upcoming release of their Square Taper Phil Centric bottom bracket to solve this problem.

The Phil Cetric’s center point of the spindle on this bottom bracket pivots closer or further away for the rear dropout where the rear wheel mounts allowing the chain to be properly tensioned. There is currently not much information released about this bottom bracket yet, but from the photos it looks as if there is about 3/8″ – 5/8″ of adjustment in the chain tension. This should be enough adjustment to allow proper tensioning of a chain in almost every frame. Continue reading Convert Your Old Road Frame Into a Single Speed With Wood (Phil Wood)

NCAA Issues New Rules on Baseball Bats

With baseball season about to swing out, there will be a significant change in the swinging. The NCAA has changed its rules on what constitutes a “legal” bat. Some alloy metals have been at least temporarily banned, as these reportedly give an unfair advantage to players.

What does this mean exactly? For one, college hasn’t struck out aluminum bats in general. While still banned in the Major League, the aluminum bats remain legal – but the so-called “sweet spots” has shrunk, leaving approximately an area of about three-inches where the bat can make solid contact. Bats that have too much of a spring effect are reportedly “not legal.”

While this is affecting college baseball the most, some high school baseball teams are feeling the hit too. Last August the California Interscholastic Federation had announced high schools baseball teams’ bats would have to carry the Bat-Ball Coefficient of Restitution to be considered legal for this season. But as of this week it was reported that some stores still don’t have the bats – and training is already underway. Let’s hope this is resolved by opening day.

Bat-Ball Coefficient of Restitution

Pedal Power to Purify Water

Over the years we’ve heard of how bicycles can generate power for lights (on the bike and off), but how about purifying the liquid needed to cool down the rider? That’s the idea of a new bicycle that could soon be mass produced for the developing world. Nippon Basic Company announced a new bike system called Cycloclean that needs only manpower to help run a motor to pump water through a series of filters, purifying five liters (1.3 gallons) of water in about a minute.

So far the company has sold about 300 bikes since launching the system in 2005, and soon the bikes could be mass-produced in Bangladesh, where demand for the cycles has increased. The only drawback could be the cost – currently the bikes sell for about $6,600 – making this a rather expensive glass of water. But if costs can come down, this could be a way to have clean, safe drinking water for those long rides.

[Via Bangkok Post: Japan touts pedal-powered water purifier]

Hands on First Look: Louis Garneau T-Flex 300 Cycling Shoes

Truth be told a lot of cycling shoes look about as stylish as bowling shoes – sorry bowling fans but in the fashion department you’re left at the discount bins. Fortunately, Louis Garneau has stepped forward with its line of cycling attire that includes footwear.

We just received the new T-Flex 300 shoes and nothing could make us more upset to see the snow and mud still covering the ground. These shoes are so pretty that we can’t imagine taking them out in these conditions – and that could be about the only bad thing we have to say about these shoes right now. In a few weeks when the conditions permit we’ll be sure to put these to a true test, but for now we’re impressed with the look and more importantly the feel of these shoes. Continue reading Hands on First Look: Louis Garneau T-Flex 300 Cycling Shoes

Propane to Fire Paintballs!

Old school technology that may give way to the next big thing

The very idea sounds downright dangerous, but The Fort Wayne Gazette ran a news item that paintball guns could get a new propellant, possibly something such as propane or butane, mixed with air.

Tippmann Sports LLC, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, is one of the leaders in the paintball industry – making some of the most popular “markers” (as the guns are often called). The guns are typically powered using carbon dioxide or compressed air – and it is almost strange that the eco-movement hasn’t targeted this game for the use of the former. But CO2 has another problem, namely that it runs out during play and as the liquid gets cold the guns don’t fire as well.

The solution, which is U.S. Patent No. 7.770,504 – invented by Dennis J. Tippmann Sr. and Dennis J. Tippmann Jr. – is to use a combustible propellant. The key here is that less propellant would be used. Of course this is potentially good for business too, since it means paintball guns that would include a new combustion chamber, new valve and igniter. The system would actually ignite the gas and propel the paintball. It also means that all those old “classic” paintball guns would be incompatible with the new ones.

[Via The Fort Wayne Gazette: Paintball guns may get new propellant]

Tippmann Official Website

Airbag for Ski Slopes

We’ve been hearing about a variety of new technologies that are meant to help athlete better survive crashes, and the latest is a wearable airbag from Dainese that has the approval of the International Ski Federation (FIS). This project is now in the early stages of testing, and it is based on similar technology that has been designed for motorcycle racing.

The system essentially combines an inflatable bag with multiple accelerometers, gyroscopes and GPS technology with 2GB of internal memory. It is deployed automatically in just 45 milliseconds when crash conditions are detected – and that according to reports is the key to the system. It needs to be able to tell the difference between a normal ski run and a potentially injury-inducing fall. Any sort of spill on the slopes could result in a land that is as soft as powdery snow.

Dainese Official Website

Kinetic(Mis)Shift: The Kangoo Jump Movement

Do a YouTube search for Kangoo Jump and you will find no shortage of videos of people using the strange bouncing footwear. The question is whether it actually does any good? While the same could be said for video games and other gimmicky devices, these could actually do some harm. According to the makers these absorb about 80 percent of the shock from jumping up and down, but that is still 20 percent of repetitive stress on angles and knees.

Worse, many of the claims say it gives a “total workout,” but how does jumping up and down like a kangaroo give a total workout? There is nothing for upper body strengthening, and little for the abs. For $299, which is what these things run – and speaking of running, for the money you could get a good pair of running shoes and some weights instead; and still have money left over to download songs such as “Jump Around.”

Kinetic(Mis)Shift are products that we think deserve to be called out for their utter lack of fitness benefits.