“After testing and using HOPlite Skate Guards for a couple of weeks, my team and I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality and design of your product. Having seen the majority of all skate protectors currently available in hockey, it was difficult for us to imagine how much of a functional improvement could be made. I’m extremely excited to say that you’ve not only managed to create a better fitting protector but most importantly a more protective one.”
We’re fortunate enough to have a home made puck canon in our office which is able to fire pucks at 100MPH. We used this to test the performance of your skate protectors to see if they did indeed provide better and more complete protection when compared to the competition. We found that your protectors were able to displace a much more significant amount of energy away form the skate and foot when compared to Skate Fenders and CF9. Aside from your protectors offering complete coverage of the skate, they are able to displace the energy much more effectively away from the skate and foot keeping the player safer.
Our thoughts on appearance thus far are good, simple and functional. After discussing the details with you, I’m now aware that you intend on offering custom prints on the protectors to represent players teams, skate like graphics to mimic the appearance of a hockey skate and much more. Any aspect of customization that can be added to a hockey product goes an extremely long way. Players like to add personal touches or feel unique. Your idea of creating protectors that can be customized will automatically put your product ahead of everything else. Fantastic idea Tom. Nothing makes us happier than the idea of having the most protective skate protector with the Hockey Tutorial logo on the side.
The fit of your skate protectors is a massive improvement on anything we have seen. The fact that your design covers the whole skate (toe box, entire forefoot area, heel) makes this device better than anything currently available. Your brand new unique two piece design is what makes this possible. Your skate protector fits securely to the skate providing the correct size as been selected. It protects all of the critical areas which are exposed on other skate protectors such as Skate Fender and CF9. Both of these devices leave the toe box and heel very exposed. In addition to this, because your device protects the entire skate, general wear and tear will be prevented allowing the skate to last longer. Overtime, this will help players to save money and stay protected. Another benefit of your device is keeping skates dry while playing outside on natural ice during the winter time. No ice or snow build up on the surface of the skate.
Skating with your skate protectors feels very natural. There is a slight increase in the weight of each skate but after skating for 5–10 mins, you forget they are there. Tight turns, crossovers, stops and starts feel completely natural. Receiving passes and shots to the skates while using your protectors feels completely different from other products. You feel less of an impact and vibration which is a clear indication that the energy is being directed away from the foot inside the skate. You feel safer because the entire skate is protected unlike Skate Fenders and CF9. It’s clear that your protector is a superior product and we can't wait to share it with our audience.
The customer base for a product of this nature is massive. Aside from the obvious pro players, we believe recreational players will play a valuable role. Rec. players make up a much larger portion of hockey players in North America and Europe when compared to pro players. Rec. players are also at greater risk of injury and would benefit more from being better protected. What I mean by this is, a pro player has an entire health team ready to act if they are hurt. They also do not suffer a loss of income if injured. Recreational players do not have this luxury and must be better informed and protected while playing hockey.
