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Hah I though the exact same thing with mine! (opted for +2, in retrospect I should've just stuck with +1 or even +1.5). Now that I've worked on my hip flexibiilty the "benefit" of having a longer thigh-rise is negligible if not negative, as it definitely affects my skating. I've found myself leaning on my thigh-rises in-game to bend them more into an S-shape so they don't interfere so much. That said, I don't even think about them when playing as they don't bother me then. The above statements were more of a "post-mortem" of my pads after the fact, and what would make them more "perfect". I'm sure if I ever get around to getting a 3rd pair of pads, I'll still find something to be unhappy about lol

Congratulations on the season :)Where I am, the development (rookie) league is C grade, and play in Summer as the A, B and national league need the ice in the Winter (Southern Hemisphere, so opposite to most of you). Last year, it had grown so much (without the clubs at higher level expanding) that it split to C1 for more experienced players, and C2 for the less experienced. Here in My part of Australia, that means 4 teams in C1 and 9 teams in C2. We start next week, and I've been told I'm playing in one team in each division :)

It's all personal preference. I'm on my second pair (CCM EFlex Pros from Vaughn V2s). I knew I didn't want a very stiff pad (Reebok/CCM Premier, Warrior G2). Trying on the pads I did in store, I found the CCMs to be the most comfortable when in butterfly, and were lighter than the Vaughns, Brians and Bauers I tried (at least they felt lighter). On top of that, the CCMs sealed the ground better than any pad I had tried. After reading a few in-depth reviews and thinking about my perceived "style", I settled on what I have today. They're not perfect (I wish I opted for a smaller thigh rise and single external break), but unless I can get a one-to-one swap with no money out of my pocket, I'll be using my pads for the foreseeable future. I think if you have complaints about your pads, you see if you can remedy it by going to another brand, or another size. Other than that, there's no real way to "know" if the pad you're wearing is right for you.

Why not ask to have what VH uses on the toe caps to be applied to the areas you are concerned about as well? I have the factory coated toe caps and they have held up very well over the last year.

New car....after 9 years driving my last new car. Car payment is like a 4th of my mortgage payment though ha!

Ok gents. The official word from VH... The enhanced metatarsal guard CAN be embroidered. Up to 3 digits (numbers or letters) - just like the tongue without metatarsal guard. I posted a pic of the embroidered metatarsal guard a page or so back. The skates with the "GB" and "MB" embroidery - with a black metatarsal guard. The enhanced metatarsal guard covers up the VH logo on the tongue, as does the embroidery option. Hope that helps clear stuff up.

Got this stuff from the OSU Team sale. Pretty excited about it. Will add some pics in a second. Gloves were $50 new, pants were $20, and 2 pairs of small skate fenders for $5. For the life of me I can't figure out the pants model, if anyone has some insight that'd be great.

Getting my son's gear ready for the upcoming Mite season I added his number to his gloves and some decals to his holders. He wanted the First Navy Jack on there as his uncle is deploying to Northern Africa with the Navy next week.

Found out that this rotten bully of a teacher that I had in 5th grade was fired this year. Finally. (no, this isn't just petty, he was actually very not a good guy, and I am glad he will not be teaching anymore.)

The Mrs got the first family hole in one on a completely legit shot.

What is this coating? I'm considering to take almost carbon look, less leather wrapping for my new pair though, also I'm worried about this area's friction with the ice. Is this the same material as dip toe cap?

Just received my new VH skates. Rob was a miracle worker once again and accommodated me immensely with regards to the qualms I had with my previous pair. I didn't think VH Skates could fit better, but here they are: Specs: - Junior Size Priced Skate, new toecap - Enhanced Tendon Guard - New Enhanced Tongue - LS Edge Holder, LS3 Runners (Profiled to 11' +1 Forward Pitch) - 1/8" Heel Lift built into skate Modifications: - Built off of a smaller last than my actual skate size. The wrap of my first pair of VH Skates were incredible, but completely hampered my forward flex no matter how much I heated and bent the top 3 eyelets outward. Rob suggested building the skate off a smaller foot last, thereby reducing the volume at the ankle and giving me more forward flex (I likened it to how Bauer built their boot ankles in that the wrap came from laces more than material), while maintaining that gorgeous wrap around the rest of my feet. - The smaller last also slimmed up the areas around my midfoot and arch and felt much snugger and more wrapped, a lot like my old Mako skates. - The enhanced tongue was chosen to compensate for the lacebite that could arise from my preferred ankle wrap, as well as giving me a "diving board" tongue that snaps back into place after I've flexed into it. - I asked for no logo nor embroidery to give the skate a more minimalistic look. These feel even better than my old pair. Rob was even kind enough to source light blue laces for me when I asked. It's the little things in life. ;)