This month it was announced that Easton-Bell Sports will sell its Easton baseball and softball business to Bauer Sports for $330 million. In addition Easton will sell its hockey business to a “third party,” which appears not to be Bauer – an odd decision given that Bauer has been mostly known for its hockey equipment.
Easton-Bell Sports will retain its Bell, Riddell, Giro, Blackburn and Easton Cycling, and will rename itself BRG Sports. Bauer will be acquiring the Easton brand name and will license it back to BRG Sports for use on its cycling and hockey products.
[Via Bicycle Retailer: Easton-Bell Sports sells baseball/softball business to Bauer]
We’ve seen inflatable shoes for basketball and other sports, but now Reebok has taken the technology to the rink with its pump 20K Ice Hockey Skates, which can be pumped up to provide the perfect fit. In addition these feature dual lacing zones, internal, heat-moldable memory foams and a carbon composite outsole. This better fit translates to better power transmission, which can enhance the stride.
Much has been made about concussions and football helmets, but now the Virginia Tech – Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences is looking to expand its ground-breaking research to include hockey, baseball, softball and lacrosse. The five year plan will look to rate helmets worn in those sports and determine the ability the helmets have to lessen the likelihood of a concussion resulting from head impact.
Head injuries are getting a lot of attention, all the way from little league teams to the pros. While the focus is primarily on football, other sports including baseball come into play on the issue. A new device, the gForce Tracker (GFT) will help athletes (and parents of younger athletes) track cumulative trauma to help tell players when they need a time out. 
The times are changing in hockey, and as we’ve noted previously so are the materials used in making sticks. This week TheStar.com noted that even peewee players are taking to the ice with high-tech hockey sticks:
A good hockey stick – especially one made of composite materials – isn’t cheap, and unfortunately it isn’t the sort of the thing that is treated with the utmost care and respect. It is in fact a tool that can be beat around pretty hard, and this in turn can get expensive when it breaks. One-piece composite sticks, made of layers of carbon fiber, can cost $300 or more, so not exactly cheap to replace.
We’ve been hearing about ClimaCool technology a lot, and probably own a few garments with the fabric. Since it plays a big role in Olympic uniforms, adidas provided some information on how its constructed, tested, and the benefits of the wicking fabric. 
Bauer just released a new helmet for hockey players that offers more protection. The helmet was unveiled by Bauer Hockey during the 2012 NHL All-Star Game, where it was worn by several players.