If you’re a woman, and you’ve been playing tennis for a while, you’ve probably noticed that most of the so-called women’s rackets are just lighter versions of the men’s rackets. Oh, and they’re prettier colors. Today, racket makers are finally realizing that women aren’t built the same as men (duh) and they need different rackets to maximize their potential. They need equipment that utilizes their more-flexible joints and acknowledges their lesser upper body strength. The Head Airflow racket, which is endorsed by Steffi Graf, offers an even weight distribution, as opposed to normal rackets, which are usually weighted more heavily at the head–-though that can improve power, it makes them more difficult for smaller or less-experienced players to wield). Currently, three lightweight titanium Airflow rackets are available, and they will cost you between $159 and $199.
Here’s a gadget for all you golfers out there. If you’re tired of trying to track your balls through sand traps, ponds, and those darned trees they always line the course with, maybe you need trackable golf balls. The Radar Golf system comes with balls with tiny microchips embedded in them, which can be tracked by a hand-held device that tells you exactly where your ball came to rest. Expect to pay $250 for this gadget. A hefty price, but think of all the money you’ll save on lost balls? At the very least you can feel like a CIA agent tracking a rogue operative across the golf course…
How do you practice your snowboarding moves in the summer? Why, with the iJoy Snowboard Simulator of course. You can practice on it all year around actually. Simply step on the “snowboard” and work on your balance as the motorized machine rocks. You can set the difficulty level, so there’s something here for advanced boarders as well as beginners. The cost for this fitness gadget? $450.
Whenever I’m at the gym, I see two or three determined weight lifters with notebooks, keeping track of their weights and reps. It always looks a little unwiedly, so I was pleased to see this gadget from Polar. The Polar F55 is a combination watch, heart-rate monitor, and “muscle monitor.” It can track the details of your work out, monitoring pounds lifted, repetitions done, and the number of sets completed for 17 different exercises. Available in black or aluminum (a fancy way of saying gray), the watch monitor can be purchased from Amazon.com for under $200:
You’re not biking down those mountains without any protection on your hands are you? That may be okay if you’re 18, but if you want to keep that hobby when you’re older, you need to protect your body. Human beings don’t come with shock absorbers, you know. Muscles and joints can take a real beating when you’re riding down bumpy slopes. The Spenco MTB Heat Wave, a special glove for mountain bikers, is supposed to absorb impact and protect nerves and joints with its precisely placed gel pads. The cost? $28.