I may not personally be a hockey mom, but I was one of my mom's two children playing hockey.  She also had the only girl on the team..me.  We practiced outdoors every other night after school, and most of our games were outdoors as well.  It is safe to say that the hockey mom's greatest concern was how to best keep their child warm.  Living in Northern Wisconsin, we have some of the worst winters known to man.  The primary concerns were our hands and feet because they weren't engulfed in pads, jerseys, and hockey shorts.  To keep our hands and feet warm our mom's put hand warmers in our gloves and skates which in turn made it difficult most times to hold my hockey stick.  It was also more uncomfortable than anything because they moved around a lot.  Or my skates were tied so tight that the hand warmer was hurting me.  As a hockey mom or dad you are expected to know what your children are going to need.  They didn't really cover warmth very well, so most mom's and dad's used their imagination.  Also, I was the only girl playing on the team and most didn't really know what to say when it came to the subject of the cup.  They ended up just telling me to wear one like all the boys.  Thankfully WSI has some alternatives to the usual discomforts I encountered when playing.

First the issue of warmth.  WSI made things a lot easier than putting hand warmers everywhere.  The Heatr  glove liners are a great alternative to hand warmers.  They are liners so they don't have any bulk to them which will make it easier for the gloves to just go right over them.  They also won't get in the way of holding a hockey stick.  As for the feet, well the Heatr socks will definitely fit better under tightly tied skates.  If you don't know about Heatr yet it's pretty simple.  I utilizes your body heat to keep you warm.  As far as the rest of the body there is enough on the rest of the body to keep your child warm. Under the pads, jersey, and hockey shorts they will probably be sweating a lot.  Wikmax is a great technology.  It is a wicking material.  Wikmax will pull the moisture to the outside of the garment so your child will feel dry fabric against the skin and they will be more comfortable.

Obviously the puck gets hit around, it's part of the game.  Sometimes it goes flying as well.  A cup is a necessity for protection.  WSI makes what is called a hockey joc.  A hockey joc is a short with an adjustable cup pocket and it keeps the cup from sliding around.  Evan better, some of you hockey parents are going to have daughters that are going to want to play.  The women's hockey joc is a lot more comfortable than making her wear the usual cup like all the boys.  Both hockey jocs come in youth sizes and also come in a pant as well.  Also if some of your children are going to want to be the goalie.  Extra protection is needed everywhere.   The Goalie Hockey Joc is a great product to keep your child protected.  Also available in a pant.

Shin Pads often moved around when I was playing and my socks usually fell down as well.  WSI makes a compression shin sleeve that will hold the shin pad in place.  Also to keep the socks up, all hockey jocs have Velcro tabs.  The Quick Clips connect to the tabs on the hockey jocs and clip to the socks to keep them up.

So there you have it.  A starter kit for hockey parents.  The rest of the equipment; shoulder pads, shin pads, hockey socks, skates, hockey shorts, and a hockey jersey.  Have fun with your own little hockey stars and encourage them to keep it up.  They need you unofficial team members, coaches, cheerleaders.

With a couple 100 degree plus days, and a couple sub 60 degree days already under our belt, this summer has already defined Minnesota baseball to the "T."  Here in Minnesota, not only do baseball players have to compete against the other team, but often times they also have to compete against the weather.  As demonstrated already this summer, it is not uncommon for the Minnesota ball player to have to deal with scolding heat, draining humidity, drenching rains and at times chilly nights.  These ever-changing weather conditions are often to blame for poor performance amongst Minnesota's baseball players.  At WSI we make it our goal to make sure athletes can reach their full potential, even when the weather tries to hold them back.  From oppressive heat and humidity, to frigid cold, WSI does it all.  From our Heatr line to our Wikmax fabric, we are able to help athletes perform at their optimum level for the longest possible period of time, regardless of weather conditions.  Coping with extreme weather conditions is a constant battle for baseball players in Minnesota, and thanks to WSI that battle is becoming a lot less daunting then ever before.

 

As the football season quickly approaches, football players of all levels are training to become the best athlete they can be for the 2011 season. Since football is a game all about explosion and quickness, it is important to hone those skills and improve in the offseason. Here are 5 awesome drills for increasing quickness and explosiveness:

 

1)    Medicine ball squat jump and pass

·          Partners will get about 20 to 40 feet away depending on ability.

·          Each athlete must perform a vertical jump with the medicine ball in hand, and immediately upon landing perform a step forward and long bounce pass.

·          The transition from the landing to the pass should be quick.

·          3 Sets of 10 reps

2)    Lung Jumps

·          Begin in the regular lunge position then explode up and go as high as possible white switching feet in the air

·          2 Sets of 10 reps

3)    Lateral Quick Hops

·          Grab an object that is about 12 inches off the ground (such as a bench) and jump over it side to side as quickly as possible

·          2 sets of 30 reps

4)    1 Leg Front/Back Quick Hops

·          Find a line and jump off one foot front to back as quickly as possible

·          Alternate legs and repeat

·          2 sets of 30 seconds

5)    Box Jumps

·          Stack boxes on top of each to a height that you can jump on top of (around 3 feet off the ground)

·          Jump up lifting knees up and landing on the top box

·          Quickly jump back down and as soon as your feet hit the ground jump up again

·          3 sets of 8 reps

 

 

WSI Sports was a proud supporter of Bike for MS this Friday and Saturday (June 10, 11). Thank you to all who participated in Bike MS Ride, nearly 3,500 riders raised $2.7 million for Bike MS: C.H. Robinson Worldwide MS 150 Ride. We enjoyed meeting those who participated in the ride and volunteered at the event.  

Join in next year 2012 MS 150 will takes place June 8 to 10.

Loyal WSI Customers - Join us on Facebook and receive special discounts. We will be posting a coupon code for a big discount on WSI apparel on Thursday, February 24th.  Stay tuned for exclusive opportunities to try out new products for free before anyone else. But you can only get access to all this by liking us on Facebook!

ATTENTION ALL SNOW SPORT ATHLETES!

WSI is excited to be a part of this years Minneapolis, Denver,Boston, San Diego & Las Vegas SKI & SNOWBOARD Expo's and to be presenting the Expo's newest feature presentation- a high energy and fully choreographed Ski & Snowboard apparel fashion show. This presentation will feature WSI performance apparel products in an entertaining way so expo attendees can learn about our unique, innovative technologies.
To make this exciting fashion show rock, we need outgoing high energy athletes to perform on the runway.
By participating you will get to keep the latest self Heated underwear and  never before seen WSI ski & snowboard apparel designed by the U of M design students. You will also receive Free lift Tickets to one of the Local resorts in your expo's location.

The dates for each expo are:

Minneapolis - October 22 - 24, 2010 @ the Mall of America Rotunda

Denver - November 5 - 7, 2010 @ the Colorado Convention Center

Boston - November 11 - 14, 2010 @ the Seaport World Trade Center

San Diego - November 12 - 14, 2010 @ the Del Mar Fairgrounds O’Brien Hall

Las Vegas - November 19-21, 2010 @ the Cashman Field Center


We are casting 4 females and 2 males per expo location:
20min. fashion show segments will be held every 2-2.5 hours. 3times a day.
Must be an active snow sports athlete and available for the show dates you are inquiring about.

***To be considered please email  pmagana@wsisports.com
your facebook link or 3 images of yourself ( 1head shot, 1full body shot & 1 picture in your snow gear)
As well as a brief explanation of the snow sport you love and why we should pick you?

Please make your email subject:

For Minnesota your email subject line should be :  MN-ATHLETE

For Denver your email subject line should be: CO-ATHLETE

For Boston your email subject line should be: MA-ATHLETE

For San Diego your email subject line should be: CA-ATHLETE

For Las Vegas your email subject line should be: NV-ATHLETE


***Also Hiring Brand Ambassadors to work in booth sales during the expos.
For this position email your resume to pmagan@wsisports.com
Email subject should be: BA


Thank you for your interest,

WSI TEAM

Game fair in Anoka Mn. is the location for the relaease of WSI's new outdoor hunting and fishing apparel.  WSI introduces new Pheasant forever clothing made with high performance fabric all made in Minnesota.

Stop by and see the best performance hunting clothing for hot and cold conditions.

"Up Your Game with Performance Sports Apparel"

Comfort is crucial for players who want to reach their fullest potential on the ice. It's difficult to concentrate solely on scoring (or stopping) goals when you're soaked in sweat and your muscles continue to cool down each time you hit the bench between shifts. WSI, a Minnesota company, develops and manufactures sports performance apparel to appease a hockey player's every need.

We have launched WikMax HEATR®, the first ever heated fabric made entirely in the United States. This fabric absorbs, stores and releases body heat, which allows for a faster warm-up and improved muscle recovery. It is also an antibacterial fabric that cuts down odors - so you don't smell as badly as your equipment.

WSI makes WikMax HEATR® pants, shirts, socks, gloves and hats to keep athletes dry, warm and comfortable in any weather. WikMax HEATR® is perfect for storing heat in the coldest winter weather, whether you or your child is skating on outdoor ice or in a freezing indoor rink.

Several college teams around the nation have been thrilled with the comfort and quality of their HEATR® gear. The University of Boston’s hockey team tested HEATR® to the max during their Frozen Fenway game outside with 60,000 plus fans cheering them on. The University of Michigan’s hockey team passed on their free gear and purchased HEATR® for the entire team after trying it out.