1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to lacrosse sticks, and more particularly, to a lacrosse stick having stop member thong holes and a lace lock adapted to lock thongs in place under a desired tension and in a favorable alignment, and to a method for locking the thongs in place.
2. Background of the Invention
One of the most vital components of a lacrosse stick is the lace system that forms the pocket. This pocket contributes to the overall performance of a lacrosse stick, especially with regard to ball handling. A lacrosse player relies on the feel and accuracy of the lace system for such skills as catching the ball, carrying and protecting the ball, cradling the ball, and throwing the ball. Further, a lacrosse player needs a lace system to dependably retain its characteristics during play, so that the lacrosse stick delivers superior, consistent performance even when exposed to the typical abuses of competition, such as harsh impacts, flexing, and inclement weather.
FIG. 1 illustrates a front view of a conventional molded head lacrosse stick. As shown, lacrosse stick 100 comprises a handle 102 shown in dotted lines, and a synthetic head 104. As used herein, xe2x80x9cstickxe2x80x9d refers to a complete sports apparatus, of which the head and the handle are components. Head 104 comprises a generally V-shaped frame having a core area (also referred to as a throat area) 106, sidewalls 108 and 110, a scoop (or transverse wall) 112 joining the sidewalls at the end opposed to core area 106, and a stop member 114 joining sidewalls 108 and 110 at the end nearest core area 106. As shown, handle 102 fits into and through core area 106, and abuts stop member 114. Typically, a screw or other fastener placed through opening 107 secures handle 102 to head 104.
For traditionally-strung pockets, four or five thongs (not shown) made of leather or synthetic material extend from upper thong holes 116 in scoop 112 to stop member thong holes 118 in stop member 114. FIG. 1 shows four pairs of thong holes that accept four thongs. To complete the pocket web, the thongs have nylon strings threaded around the thongs and string laced through string holes 120 in sidewalls 108 and 110, forming eight to twelve diamonds (crosslacing). Finally, one or more throwing or shooting strings extend transversely between the upper portions of sidewalls 108 and 110, attaching to throwing string hole 124 and a string laced through string hole 122. The typical features of a lacrosse stick are all shown generally in Tucker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,507,495 and Tucker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,947, which are both incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.
Traditionally strung lacrosse heads use stop member thong holes 118 arranged substantially in a straight line through stop member 114, in generally the same horizontal plane as the bottom of head 104. The thongs extend from upper thong holes 116 of scoop 112, where they are typically looped and fed back through themselves, to stop member thong holes 118 in stop member 114. Because scoop 112 and stop member thong holes 118 are in the same plane, the thongs, when taut (e.g., for a women""s lacrosse stick), and the entire pocket are in one plane, remaining essentially flat. When such a pocket catches a ball and brings the ball to rest against the stop, the round shape of the ball against the flat configuration of the pocket results in minimal surface contact between the pocket and the ball. This minimal contact reduces the lacrosse head""s ability to hold and protect a ball as it lies against stop member 114. Further, the small contact area between the pocket and the ball compromises a player""s accuracy during a throwing motion, when the ball travels up the pocket to the throwing strings and out of the pocket. These deficiencies in conventional lace systems noticeably detract from a player""s performance and enjoyment of the game.
Although most conventional lacrosse heads align stop member thong holes in a straight line, some stop member designs feature stop member thong holes with center holes that are higher than the holes closer to the sidewalls.
In addition to the undesirable effects of conventional stop member thong hole configurations, a related problem that further frustrates player""s performance is the gradual loosening of the lace system of a pocket during play. Under United States Women""s Lacrosse Rules, the combined height of the lacrosse head sidewall and pocket must not exceed 2xc2xd inches, the diameter of a regulation lacrosse ball. Because a shallower pocket makes ball control more difficult, most players attempt to keep the combined height as close to 2xc2xd inches as possible, without exceeding the allowable height. However, because thongs are typically made of a deformable material, most often leather, the thongs and entire pocket stretch under stress from impacts with and cradling of the ball.
Aware of the desire to maximize pocket depth and the effects of stretching, lacrosse umpires routinely conduct equipment checks before and during play, on their own initiative or at the request of an opponent. According to the rules, if a pocket is found not to meet specification during play, the umpire removes the stick from the game and places it at the scorer""s table for the remainder of the half. The stick, once corrected, cannot return to play until the umpire re-inspects the stick prior to the start of the second half or overtime period. For a player with a special preference for a certain lacrosse stick, this penalty can be detrimental to the player""s performance. In addition, the penalty of removing sticks burdens individual players and teams with having to stock additional spare sticks. Additionally, in the event that a goal is scored with a stick subsequently determined to be illegal, that goal is nullified.
The traditional methods for complying with the pocket rules while maximizing pocket depth have been quite basic. On a typical stick, the thongs extend 10-12 inches beyond stop member 114 to enable players to pull them to adjust the pocket tension. Players fasten the thongs by threading them through stop member thong holes 118, tying them in knots around the back of stop member 114, and then possibly tying all of the thongs together. To keep the thongs from flapping about during play, most players tape the exposed ends of the thongs or tape the entire length of the thongs beyond the throat to the stick handle. Such jury-rigged arrangements make quick adjustment of the thongs virtually impossible. Therefore, sticks found not to meet specification cannot be readily fixed and must be removed from the game and attended to on the sidelines.
Although United States Men""s Lacrosse Rules place less emphasis on a straight pocket, management of the lace system during play is still a concern. Men""s rules permit a pocket depth of up to 2xc2xd inches, below a sidewall that is up to 2 inches high. According to the traditional test, when looking horizontally at the sidewall of the men""s lacrosse stick with a regulation ball inside the pocket, the sidewall must obstruct the view of at least a portion of the ball. (The total height of the sidewall and pocket must not exceed 4xc2xd inches.) Thus, although the tension of the thongs is less critical in the men""s game, players must ensure that the thongs and pockets do not sag excessively. In addition, players often desire that the excess lengths of the thongs extending from the lacrosse head stop be contained, to avoid their whipping around the head during play.
In addition to the traditional methods of tying and taping, U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,912 to Hexemer et al. is directed toward a device for locking the lacing material of a lacrosse head. This patent discloses a lace lock device that is formed integral to a lacrosse head and includes set screws, cams, and/or clamps for holding thongs in place under a desired tension. Although the clamp embodiment of the lace lock device is intended to enable a certain degree of thong adjustment while still maintaining thong tension, in actual use, the design tends to release and allow the slipping of the thongs, thereby defeating its primary purpose. The other embodiments that better secure the thongs, such as the set screws, provide considerably less adjustment capabilities. In addition to the thong tension and adjustment deficiencies, the disclosed device also cooperates with the conventional stop member thong holes that are arranged in a straight line, creating the unfavorable flat pocket. Further, the patent teaches a device that has at least one component integral to the lacrosse head, making the device incompatible with an existing lacrosse stick. Unfortunately, for the lacrosse player desiring an inexpensive retrofit, the integral design requires the costly purchase of a brand new stick.
The present invention is a lace system for a lacrosse stick that restrains thongs from sliding, maintains desired thong tension, enables convenient adjustment of thong length (in the pocket) and thong tension, provides a pocket that enhances ball control, and allows players to cut excess thong lengths to minimize their flapping around during play. According to a representative embodiment of the present invention, the lace system includes specially shaped, sized, and positioned thong holes in the stop member of a lacrosse head, and a lace lock attached to the lacrosse stick below the thong holes.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the thong holes in the stop member are not lined up in a straight line, are non-circular in shape, and are slightly smaller than the thongs. For placement, the thong holes are preferably in different horizontal planes. More preferably, the thong holes toward the center of the stop member are lower than the thong holes closer to the sidewalls. (With reference to the stop member thong holes, the term xe2x80x9clowerxe2x80x9d as used herein means closer to the bottom of the lacrosse stick head where the pocket is situated. Likewise, xe2x80x9chigherxe2x80x9d means closer to the face or top of the lacrosse stick head.) Thus, in the case of a four-thong pocket, the two inner thong holes are lower than the two outer thong holes. This unique configuration gives the pocket a more rounded shape and creates a center channel running between the two outer thong holes.
Thus, instead of the flat pockets of the prior art, the present invention provides a rounded pocket that more closely conforms to the shape of the lacrosse ball, increases the surface contact between the ball and pocket, and improves the overall ball control of the stick. The center channel between the thong holes brings the ball naturally to rest in the center of the deeper pocket for easier catching. In addition, for more accurate passing and shooting, the center channel provides a controlled path through which the ball travels from the stop member toward the scoop.
The thong holes in the stop member are also preferably non-circular to properly align and orient the thongs before they enter the lace lock. The non-circular shape is preferably a rectangle, or a rounded rectangle with long horizontal sides that are flat and shorter vertical sides that are rounded. This shape resists the twisting or rotating of the thongs and keeps the wide faces of the thongs roughly at a tangent to the ball""s surface and nearly parallel to the face of the lacrosse head. Alternatively, the shape of the thong holes may be an oval.
Also, preferably each thong hole is slightly smaller than the size of a cross-section of a thong so that the thong must be compressed to pass through the thong hole. In this manner, the thong hole does not allow the thong to easily slide and thereby contributes to the overall securing of the thongs.
In a preferred embodiment, the lace lock includes two sets of channeling holes that align and compress the thongs, ridges that grip the thongs, a compression strap that locks the thongs tightly against the ridges, and a means for attaching the lace lock to the lacrosse stick. The two sets of channeling holes, on the incoming and exiting sides of the lace lock, position the thongs over the ridges which are located on a curved plane to increase contact between the thongs and the ridges. Optionally, instead of the incoming set of channeling holes, the lace lock can include wedge-shaped thong channels that control the orientation of the thongs as they exit the stop member and enter the lace lock.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the lace lock removably attaches to an existing lacrosse stick handle just below the stop. Therefore, although a player may not be able to retrofit an existing lacrosse stick with the stop member thong holes of the present invention, the player could attach the lace lock to an existing stick to derive the benefits of secured and easily adjustable thong tension. The means for attaching the lace lock can be any suitable fastener, e.g., a screw through the lace lock and into the handle, a hook and loop fastener attached to the sides of the lace lock and fastened around the stick handle, or an interference fit provided by matching configurations of the lace lock and handle or lacrosse head.
For the two-set channeling hole configuration, the lace lock receives the thongs from the thong holes of the stop member through its incoming channeling holes. The incoming channeling holes are adapted to keep the thongs horizontal and spaced apart from each other, so that each thong can contact the ridges evenly across its entire face. This evenly-spaced contact enables the ridges to better grip the thongs, reduce sliding of the thongs, and better maintain the desired tension of the pocket. Likewise, the exiting channeling holes are also adapted to keep the thongs horizontal and spaced apart from each other as they pass out of the lace lock.
For the wedge-shaped thong channel configuration, the lace lock includes only exiting channeling holes. In place of incoming channeling holes, the wedge-shaped thong channel is adapted to change the orientation of a thong from horizontal as it exits the thong hole to vertical as it passes through the wedge-shaped thong channel, and (working in combination with the exiting holes) back to horizontal as it exits the wedge-shaped thong channel and enters the lace lock. By changing the orientation of the thongs, the wedge-shaped thong channels further secure the thongs. The exiting channeling holes are adapted to keep the thongs spaced apart and to return the thongs to a horizontal orientation across the lace lock ridges.
With either the two-set channeling hole configuration or the wedge-shaped channel configuration, once the thongs are laced through the lace lock, a compression strap of a width substantially equal to the width of the ridged area is wrapped over the series of ridges of the lace lock and around the lacrosse stick. The ridges are preferably a textured or resilient surface that grips the thongs, e.g., sharp triangles, ridges, nubs, or spikes. The compression strap is preferably a hook and loop fastener with a fastener for looping the compression strap back over itself, drawing it tight around the stick, and joining the hooks and loops together. The compression strap forces the thongs against the ridges and locks the thongs in place. Optionally, the compression strap can be threaded through a compression plate and drawn tightly around the stick and over the ridged surface so that ridges on the compression plate line up between the ridges on the lace lock, thereby locking the thongs between the opposing ridges. In addition to securing the thongs, the compression strap can also be used to fasten the lace lock to a lacrosse stick, or alternatively, a separate hook and loop fastener could be used to fasten the lace lock to the lacrosse stick.
Together, the above components enable quick tension adjustment of the thongs, which can avoid the removal of a lacrosse stick having an illegal pocket by allowing a player to quickly shorten and tighten her pocket during a break in play if the player suspects that the pocket may have become illegal. The present invention enables a player to quickly release the compression strap, pull the thongs to the desired tension to create a legal pocket, and tighten the compression strap to keep the thongs securely locked against the ridges of the lace lock and held under the desired tension. Further, the specially sized and shaped thong holes, the wedge-shaped thong channels, and the lace lock channel holes all cooperate to further resist the movement of the thongs and to orient the thongs for optimal locking and ball roll. In addition, the specially located thong holes enhance ball control by providing a pocket that cups the ball, naturally centers the ball, and directs the ball over and out of the pocket along a straight path for more accurate throws.
In addition to quick tension adjustment, the present invention restrains the thongs from sliding loose once the desired thong tension is established between the scoop and the lace lock. And, as a further benefit, the present invention allows a player to cut the excess lengths of the thongs to prevent their flapping around during play, thereby minimizing the need for tape or other makeshift means for managing the excess thong lengths.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide an apparatus that secures lacrosse head thongs and resists loosening of the thongs in the lacrosse head pocket.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus that accurately and conveniently adjusts and secures the length and tension of lacrosse head thongs.
Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus that secures lacrosse head thongs in a position that increases the throwing accuracy of a lacrosse stick.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus that secures lacrosse head thongs on an existing lacrosse stick without requiring modification of the stick.
Another object of the present invention is to maintain thongs under a desired tension and to enable a player to manage excess thong lengths.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention are described in greater detail in the detailed description of the invention, and the appended drawings. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practicing the invention.