How Gear Changed the Game

How a new material shook up pole vaulting at unprecedented pace, and changed the sport into what it is today. As of August 2024, the world record height is 20ft 6in. It took 40 years for that record to grow by a foot (19ft 5 3/4"in record set in 1984). But from 1960-1963 the world record also grew by a foot. Why did the record grow so high so fast during that time? You gotta hear why! We cover it all on this episode. Get ready to learn more about the science of pole vaulting and how an alteration of gear really changed the game.

What do golf and microchips fueling the AI revolution have in common? The Masters at Augusta National Golf Club….well ok their common ground is a place even more unique than Augusta.   This episode talks about sand that is more than just sand. That pure white sand is mostly quartz and comes from a mine that produces the purest quartz in the world. So pure that microchip makers can’t produce their products without what comes from this mine in Spruce Pine, NC. Hear about why Augusta National switched to this special sand. The hiccups in implementing it. The science of purity. And how this sand behaves differently and changes the way players play when hitting out of the bunkers at Augusta National. A ton of interesting facts and stories are revealed in this episode and is the perfect bit of new information to keep in mind while you watch The Masters.

The boot of Tom Dempsey changed football. In more than one way. Hear how a boot and a big boy named Tom changed the record books, the rulebooks, and the playbooks of the NFL in this episode of How Gear Changed the Game. You can find this boot in the pro football hall of fame and boy is it a sight to behold. Imagine if a golf driver was made of plastic and lace and then put into a microwave for a minute. Following in the footsteps of Ben Agajanian, another toeless kicker who championed the specialty kicker position, Dempsey entered the league in 1968. He was born without toes but was always encouraged to play sports, and loved football. Not just kicking! His large frame made tackling a thing of joy for Tom. But he could crush the football. That’s what gained him the nickname “Tom the Bomb”. His strange boot shape got him a little bit of attention, but he caught the spotlight of the entire NFL when his record-breaking field goal helped the New Orleans Saints beat the Detroit Lions. Then came the controversy….and a whole lot of changes. Download and subscribe now!

Kicking would be NOTHING like it is today without this special shoe made for a mutilated foot. Ben Agajanian made kicking a specialized role instead of it being an extra duty for players who had other things to do. Thus he completely reimagined how kicking was utilized in football. By the 1960s, thanks to Bootin’ Ben, kicking was no longer a hardly-used afterthought. Ben didn’t stop there. As a coach he mastered the introduction of soccer-style kickers, developed protocol for the line of scrimmage, the way the ball is snapped, the way it’s held, and the exact timing it all takes. He’s also the reason the quote “LACES OUT!” is synonymous with kickers. There’s a lot more to kicking than you realize. And today, kickers are just expected to be great! That’s because of all of the perfection applied to the position over the years. It all started with Ben Agajanian. BUT HERE’S THE BIG THING: he lost his toes in a work accident, and it should’ve ended his career! Luckily he had a special shoe made just for his mangled foot, and it powered him into a position to change football forever.

Placebo Effect or True Unfair Advantage? Belly putters met their official demise in 2016 with the rollout of USGA Rule 14.1b (now rule 10.1b). The putters themselves aren’t banned but the way they’re used, anchoring, is. And rule changes aren’t the only effect belly putters have had in the game of golf. From the PGA TOUR, to the Senior PGA, to the amateur ranks, it has left a ripple effect throughout the game. This is a very complicated story. As we explore the effect on belly putters on the game of golf as a whole, it brings up this big question: what kind of effect did the belly putter have on its users anyway. The stats are inconclusive. And if you ask those who’ve used it what it helped the most, the might tell you that it mostly helped the yips. So were the benefits physical or were they all in your mind. This story spans decades. Involves hall of famers, and genius scientists who was simultaneously innovating golf while making space travel a reality. Belly putters have a much more complex story than you realize, and we learn all about it on this episode.

They were saying "The Golden Bear" had entered hibernation, and maybe for good. Jack Nicklaus was at another crossroads of his playing career, and going into the 1986 Masters there were other PGA golfers who questioned whether Jack would be able to win any tournament again, let alone The Masters. What happens on that Sunday in Augusta is one of the most legendary moments in golf. But there's way more to the story! MacGregor, like Nicklaus, was at a make-or-break moment, and ended up with triumph at Augusta National. This wasn't the first time Nicklaus was at a low point in his playing career either. His struggles at the end of the 1970s, his surprise coaching from Phil Rodgers, some extra advice from his sons, and his purchase of the MacGregor company created the perfect storm. Hear the full context of what went in to that magical moment in 1986 how this new type of putter set records on and off the green, and how the game hasn't been the same since. All thanks to a coach who used belly putters, a son, a genius engineer, brutal sports writers, and the biggest darn putter club head you've ever seen. 

When the hockey stick changed its shape, it shaped change in the game of hockey. This episode explores all the effects that the curved hockey stick had once it became common in the 1960s. Who were the originators, who fought against them, and how did the hockey world react? You'll be surprised to learn it reaches beyond Stan Mikita or Bobby Hull of the Chicago Blackhawks. It was a ripple effect felt from the NHL, to the AHL, and all the way down to youth hockey. Some leagues wanted to ban it, goalies were rumored to be planning a strike because of it, and even players threatened to strike over it. Find out all the ways hockey has become what it is today, thanks to the curved hockey stick. 

Bob Romanski and John Miranda of the Las Vegas Raiders Equipment Staff join the show to talk about gear, change, and all of the work that goes into preparing their team for practices and games. Mr. Romanski is a 2nd generation equipment manager in the NFL. He's been doing this since he was a kid and has officially held his title since 1980. This episode is a full interview that reveals a lot of things you may not know about the gear and the game. It's a great perspective of what goes on behind the scenes and all of the work these folks do throughout a season (and off-season!).    Our previous episodes have been covering the football helmet. Please check those out and subscribe to the show if you have a chance. How Gear Changed the Game is a sports documentary series exploring how innovations in sports gear have created ripple effects of change throughout the history of the sports. We're covering all kinds of gear and all kinds of sports. 

OJ Simpson walks into a courtroom....no, not THAT courtroom. A different trial. One in 1970. His strange appearance as a surprise witness in a civil suit about a football helmet creates a huge change in the sporting goods industry and the game of football. This episode covers the arms race that happens in the football sporting goods industry in the 50s, 60s, and 70s. A time when sports participation boomed, equipment sales more than doubled, and teams were trying to out-match each other with the gear they wore. New gear gave way to new styles of play, a shift in blocking and tackling. But even though gear gets bigger and harder, how do we know for sure it can hold up against the toughest parts of playing the game? Standards and testing comes into play and an organization called NOCSAE is formed. Also, the NFL comes into a new era of tough play in the 1970s. Teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Oakland Raiders find success with tough play and they use their tough gear to dish out the pain. Because of players like Mel Blount and George Atkinson and the way they use their gear, rule changes get made that would in-turn change the way the game is played. 

The story of the facemask is one of change brought about by change. Plastic helmets change blocking and tackling, which brings about a need for facial protection. We explore an extreme case of change at Baylor where a small football player is using his team's new helmets to make big hits. This change and shift to facemasks happens in the NFL, the AFL, the NCAA and in high school football. A coach of the Cleveland Browns enters facemask lore and also gets his name on a patent. Facemasks weren’t standard with plastic helmets but once made mandatory, well, facemasking penalties weren’t existent right away either. Facemasks exists in sporting goods and sports equipment catalogs for years but became common in the 1950s. And when they become commonplace, blocking and tackling change and a new tactic called “bite the ball” becomes the new normal. 

Just when sales of Riddell's innovative plastic football helmet were about to skyrocket in 1941, America entered the war. Variations of Riddell's helmet would be heading into combat as well. This episode explores the role of the football helmet in the victory of the US and their allies in World War 2. After the war, a handful of teams would start using this new, hard, plastic helmet. The advantage it gave would be felt almost immediately. This innovative helmet would give rise to new dynasties and would enable a new exercise that takes the football world by storm: the Oklahoma Drill.    First we learn how paratrooper officers and even General George Patton saw potential in the football helmet. The patents of the Riddell company would be utilized for the war effort by outfitting various types of helmets.    The rationing of WWII meant that the materials used to make plastic football helmets would not be available to the public. Meaning only one football team had access to plastic football helmets, West Point's Army Cadets football team.    After the war, the football helmet ends up being acquired by football teams like Notre Dame, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Kentucky Wildcats, Army, Navy, and only a couple others. This enabled coaches like Frank Leahy, Jim Tatum, Bud Wilkinson, and Bear Bryant to employ strategies that push the physical limits of their players. 

The end of the leatherhead era. A new type of plastic leads to a new type of helmet and a new brand of football. This episode explores the beginnings of the plastic helmet, and how this harder helmet enables the emergence of a newer, harder brand of playing football. At the end of the 1930s, Chicago is a city of innovation. The Riddell company explores using a plastic called tenite to create helmets with superior protection. The football coach of the University of Chicago, Clark Shaughnessy, starts working with Chicago Bears owner/coach George Halas. Together they create all sorts of new things for the game of football still being used to this day and that got a little help from the plastic helmet. Their biggest key to success was their modernization of the T-Formation. Plus, we talk about the first official team to all wear plastic helmets and how it helped them have an unprecedentedly successful season in spite of their own coach saying it would be a bad year. Plastic helmets and the T-formation changed football forever, and this episode explores how it all began, and how it all got connected in the first place. 

Exploring how the role of the football helmet in the evolution of football. Starting with the context of needing helmets in the first place. The humble beginnings of football and how rule changes, a flying wedge, and the threat of "instant insanity" brought about the first models football head protection.    It's sports history, stats, and sporting equipment knowledge all wrapped into one!

Introducing a sports docuseries exploring the role equipment plays in the change, evolution, and outcomes of the sports we love. This episode details what the series will be covering and expands on the concept of "How Gear Changed the Game". It's sports history, stats, science, technology, and fun all wrapped into one. Also in this episode, a primer that serves as the thesis for what the entire series is based upon. How every aspect of a sport plays off one another as the game evolves from one generation to the next, and the significant role gear innovation plays in that evolution.