Word: helmets
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...better equipment the answer? Yes and no. Responding to the growing concern over concussions on the field, helmet manufacturers have added aid bladders to cushion the head as well as support to the cheek, jaw and facemask areas. But nothing has yet been developed that can protect the spine, especially during a spear tackle. "The newer helmets are not going to significantly change the stress the neck sees as a result of a top-of-the-head blow," Andrew Tucker, team doctor for the Baltimore Ravens, says. "Right now, the prevention of these types of injuries lies in proper tackling...
Coming soon to a worried parent near you: a sales pitch for a $1,000 football helmet that can monitor the precise location and severity of impacts to little Johnny's head. Leading helmetmaker Riddell plans to begin flooding high schools with take-home brochures this month and to start shipping this concussion-sensing gear to families in November. Says Riddell marketing chief Jim Heidenreich: "If people buy $1,000 drivers and $500 baseball bats, we hope they'll spend that kind of money on head protection...
...hard to predict which of the many hits will result in brain-rattling concussions, which are relatively few in number and--contrary to popular belief--often occur without loss of consciousness. Eight colleges, including three Big Ten schools, are using the team version of Riddell's high-tech helmets, which wirelessly relay real-time data--gleaned from the same sensors found in car air bags--to a sideline computer that can send a pager alert if a player receives a hit or a series of hits that exceed a certain magnitude. The new system for individual consumers works in much...
...these helmets may seem like a no-brainer. But there's one big problem besides cost: every concussion is different. One player may emerge unscathed from a massive hit, while his teammate starts seeing stars after getting clocked with half as much force. So it's unclear what coaches and parents can do with the impact data, at least until more is known about what causes concussions. "We don't pull people out of a game or a practice simply because they registered some high-value hit," says Kevin Guskiewicz, director of the University of North Carolina's Sports Medicine...
...logic of the marketplace: it can't leave subcultures alone; it has to turn them into cultures. It may be time for the Master Chief to come in from the cold and join the party, with the popular kids. Just don't expect him to take off his helmet...