Sports
Skateboards are definitely a part of the urban landscape, but you know what else is? Stairs. Generally, the two don’t go together – when skateboarders reach a set of stairs, they typically have to pick up their board and carry it. London-based product designer Po-Chih Lai would like to see boarders be able to roll right on down those stairs, however, so he created a one-off skateboard that lets them do just that. It’s called the STAIR ROVER. Read More
Researchers from RMIT in Melbourne, Australia have developed a flying running companion called Joggobot. The system uses the built-in camera on a commercially-available Parrot AR Drone quadrocopter to track the position of a jogger, and fly a few feet out in front. While the current version has some serious limitations, there is huge potential for the development of a fully interactive training partner or coach in the very near future. Read More
GPS watches already come in all shapes and sizes (at least if you consider "heavy, square brick" and "massive discus" all shapes and sizes). Now they have a gender. The new Bia sports watch claims to be the first GPS sports watch designed for women, by women. In addition to bringing a little estrogen to a testosterone-dominated market, the watch adds a slim form factor, a separate GPS-GSM unit and a smart set of features. Read More
Kenmark Sports has a new way for runners, walkers and other fitness enthusiasts to stay hydrated. It takes the bottle out of your hand, off your waist and out of your backpack and puts it on your arm. It calls its (not so creatively named) Armband Water Bottle the "first multifunctional armband on the market." Read More
Some people argue that technology makes us lazy couch-potatoes who spend all day sitting in front of various screens. But tech can also make us better athletes by providing us with information about our sporting performance - whether it's shoes which log a basketball player's jumps, or outfits which give dancers feedback about their moves. Tennis players could soon be getting in on the tech-helping-hand action with the introduction of an interactive racquet. Read More
The international football friendly (the association kind) between England and Belgium scheduled for June 2 may not be burning a hole in your diary, but it will be notable in at least one respect. The match, to be held at London's Wembley Stadium, will be the highest profile match to date to make use of so-called goal-line technology, designed to detect whether or not the ball has crossed the line (and therefore whether a goal should be given). The goals at Wembley have been fitted with a Hawk-Eye system similar to those now officially used to assist umpires in tennis and cricket. However, though the system will be up and running for the entire match, it will not be used to help adjudicate in the event of a difficult goal-line decision. Read More
The Nike Pro TurboSpeed is, as the name vividly suggests, a track uniform that offers professional athletes an advantage over their rivals. Through the clever use of aerodynamic techniques more commonly found on golf balls, the company has found a way to shave milliseconds off a sprinter's time. Or at least that's the bold claim Nike is making. Read More
Details have now surfaced for the golf-specific, and fourth, Hanebrink electric bike we briefly mentioned a few days ago. The Links BRINK features many of the same specs as the bikes that have come before it, including those wonderful chunky 20-inch (50cm) diameter, 8-inch (20cm) wide tubeless tires, but has an easy mount and dismount frame and comes supplied with its own custom two-wheeled golf trolley. Read More
It seems that more and more often, we’re hearing about people adding computer functionality to existing products – turning so-called “dumb” devices into “smart” ones. While that’s understandable with electronic appliances such as fridges and washing machines, a lot of people might scoff at the idea of a smart ski pole ... wouldn’t that be sort of like a smart pencil sharpener or doorstop? It turns out, however, that software engineer Anthony Griesel’s Neva microprocessor-equipped ski poles could actually be kind of useful. Read More
Electric bikes based loosely on mountain bikes (such as the Terminus and eSpire) might be well-suited to forest trails, but for increased stability through sand dunes and snow and ice, as well as steep rocky climbs, you're better off riding a fat-tire bike like the Hanebrink electric bike we featured back in 2010. The company has now pulled back the curtains to reveal two new models for 2012 – one with added rear suspension for improved performance on steep or rocky trails, and the other designed specifically for golfers. Read More
