Gear to date is by far the most confusing part of the hockey world for a newbie. Between the different type of laces (waxed or unwaxed) with 20 different lengths, colors or patterns to stick tape; Target-sized array of options. And let’s not forget sock tape. This wonderous invention for some reason is different than stick tape, but comes with the same amount of options.
The Socks
But then there is the single most confusing aspect of hockey gear when you start, at least in my humble opinion – the socks! Not the socks you wear to go into the skate, the ridiculously large, funnel shaped monstrosities that are meant to go over the shin pads. Those suckers are a pain.
When we first started out with my son, we got the basic set of gear through a kids hockey program. Everything you are meant to need to get on the ice for the first time safely. The only thing that you had to get was a cup. Okay, thats reasonable. Hitting the sporting goods store, and mind you the couple by me are more general sporting goods stores and lack 99% of any hockey related items. To start, I didn’t know about the hockey specific stores (which are a solid 20 miles away), so I got a standard cup – I think from the baseball section and went merrily on my way.
So the first session comes and I get him all set into the gear, the cup tucked safely in place and then I noticed the problem – the dang socks wouldn’t stay up. Now I knew I had them on the right way, small part at the ankle and getting larger up the leg to the thigh, cause lets face facts–they can’t actually go on in the wrong direction. But how do they stay up? The elastic isn’t tight enough against the thigh and there were no straps that I could see and tucking them into the top of knee/shin pads didn’t work. Yes, I tried that. Don’t judge, it wasn’t my finest moment.
So I did what any reasonable and clueless hockey mom would do – run straight into the pro shop. The teenagers were nice enough to sell me a roll or sock tape and send me on my way. I secured the socks with two lines of tape and let my mite skate off. Problem solved – so I thought.
The Eureka Moment
A few weeks of this and my daughter gets started and on the gear list is a pelvic protector. I googled as I do with most things that boggle me on face value and there it was “hockey pelvic protector”. Looked like a strange set of shorts, but I ordered it and the first time she put it on, she asked the logical question, “hey mom, what are these velcro things for?”
It took me a few seconds, okay minutes, to examine the 4 weird tabs and have my DUH and Eureka moment all in one. So that’s how the dang socks stayed up like magic on the other kids. Sure, we still use the sock tape to extra secure the shin/knee pads into place, but I am no longer running through rolls and rolls of sock tape for no reason.
Yes, I also ran out later that day and got my son the magic pants of the hockey world.
