One of the important aspects of playing any sport is taking care of your equipment before during and after the game and this is never more important than with ice hockey equipment. There are many factors involved with the upkeep of your equipment from the need to wax your stick to keeping your blades well honed. By getting yourself into a routine you will ensure that every piece of equipment will be present and accounted for and in good working order.
There are a lot of different factors involved in the upkeep of the hockey gear from the fact that you are playing on ice to the sheer amount of equipment that you’ve got to keep together. Starting with the skates, it is important that they are dried off and the blades inspected after each use to ensure they are in good shape.
Your hockey stick should also be checked to ensure that there are no cracks or weaknesses from any of the heavy impacts that occurred on the ice. If it needs to be re-taped then this should be taken care of on a regular basis and the wax should be reapplied to ensure smooth sliding over the ice for the next game. Before putting the stick into the hockey stick bag it should be thoroughly dried off to ensure there is no chance of water damage.
Next is the padding and clothes. The tendency for most hockey players is to strip off the clothes and the pads and simply shove them into the bag. After so much time on the ice the clothes and the padding is going to be damp and smelly and will have retained a lot of heat from your body. Sticking them into a bag is a recipe for mildew to begin to develop at a rapid rate. Make sure you get into the habit of removing everything from your bag the moment you walk in the front door of the house or there are going to be some terrible surprises in store the next time you play.
The basic maintenance practices involved with keeping your hockey equipment in good working order are purely common sense practices. The aim is to ensure that everything is in good working order every time you hit the ice. Your padding is an essential part of your safety in the game and should be cared for at all times.
The last thing you need is for some silly equipment failure before or during a big game just because you couldn’t be bothered taking the extra couple of minutes to clean it or make necessary running repairs.
Author: Garry X Cooper
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Digital TV, HDTV, Satellite TV