Pimp My Stick
Since I broke my hockey stick in my playoff game the other day, I’ve been using my back up stick. The thing with my back up stick is that it’s too small. I used to use it for ball hockey and it was fine, but when I’m on skates, it’s just not long enough. And since I have at least three more hockey games with my other team this season, and then spring season, and then the 10-day long hockey game, I figured that I better get myself a proper stick.
A friend of mine informed me that he’d seen hockey sticks on sale at Costco for super cheap, but when he checked the website, they weren’t listed. I called Costco and they informed me “Hockey sticks are a seasonal item, so we don’t sell them in the spring.” Clearly, they’ve not heard of spring hockey leagues! Seeing as it is Costco, they’d probably only sell them in packs of 20 anyway.
So off I went to Cyclone Taylor Sports, where I got some advice on how to pick a hockey stick. I really didn’t know what to look for in a stick (other than “short” and “left-handed”) – and it probably didn’t help that I went there after work so I was wearing heels and skirt! But once I got chatting with the salesguy, he was able to see that I do, in fact, play hockey and helped me pick something good. I ended up buying a composite stick, which have come down *a lot* in price since the last time I bought a stick. I mean, the last time I was looking at sticks, composites cost a few hundred dollars, so I went with a wooden one. But this time it only cost me $60! So cheap they were practically giving them away!
Here are some pics of my shiny new stick:
Next up, I had to tape this new stick of mine. Taping the blade is easy, as I’ve done that countless times, but I needed to check out a few YouTube videos in order to adequately tape the grip.
Pre-taping of the blade:
Post-taping of the blade:
Yeah, I got skull and crossbones tape!
And finally, my freshly taped grip:
I didn’t notice this until I got home, but my stick is “made in China”. One Year, One Canadian will be disappointed in me!
Comments |3|
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Tags: composite stick, hockey, hockey stick, Longest Game For CF, rampant consumerism, sports
Hmm…now I’m going to have to investigate Canadian manufacturers of hockey sticks.
If you ever watched SportsNet Connected, the peculiar but awesome Don Taylor often jokes that a stick breaks because the NHL player “didn’t buy it at Cyclone Taylor’s”.
Also, Backstrom is a good pedigree.
I love the tape. Best tape ever!
@Darren – My hockey bag (by GRIT) and my skull & cross bones hockey tape (by Renfrew) are both made in Canada.
@Dan – I feel the tape is appropriate for my Pastafarian leanings.