Sprung Hockey

[bombit 0]

I want one of those Sprung shirts!

[iceburg19 1]

keith setting up shop,im digging it.looks great.whats up JR.

[cds 0]

Nice, where's that pic from?

[JR Boucicaut 3797]

Hockey show in Vegas.

[Sprungster 5]

Got to be with JR a lot and still like him.:)

There were a bunch of good things to look at and people to talk to. And Freebies! Torspo is sending us a couple of dozen pairs of boots for our new test stable. These will be just about the most modern looking skates on the planet, and a perfect platform for Sprungs. We suspect that people are going to say sick and things like that. Torspo is also connected at the hip to K2. Me and K2 go way back, and Sprung wants to make Street Sprungs and Speed Sprungs and Aggro Sprungs, so we were pretty happy to talk to them.

On a more somber note, we were assured that there definitely won't be any factory Rbk/Sprungs. I'm most of the way through mounting some beautiful custom A8's on a brand new pair of 7K's, but wait, maybe their owner will want to put the old frames back on, now. B)

CCM and Rbk have restructured and now seem to be sort of competing brands with separate-but-equal product management groups. Half of The Hockey Company is still talking to us.

[Spreedizzle 1]

Got to be with JR a lot and still like him.:)

There were a bunch of good things to look at and people to talk to. And Freebies! Torspo is sending us a couple of dozen pairs of boots for our new test stable. These will be just about the most modern looking skates on the planet, and a perfect platform for Sprungs. We suspect that people are going to say sick and things like that. Torspo is also connected at the hip to K2. Me and K2 go way back, and Sprung wants to make Street Sprungs and Speed Sprungs and Aggro Sprungs, so we were pretty happy to talk to them.

On a more somber note, we were assured that there definitely won't be any factory Rbk/Sprungs. I'm most of the way through mounting some beautiful custom A8's on a brand new pair of 7K's, but wait, maybe their owner will want to put the old frames back on, now. B)

CCM and Rbk have restructured and now seem to be sort of competing brands with separate-but-equal product management groups. Half of The Hockey Company is still talking to us.

HAHAHA....glad to hear that you approve of them. Feel free to throw up some pics on here once you get them mounted as I am anxious to see them. ;)

[rollerhockeymavin 0]

Hey Keith,

I have read a fair amount of this thread. Just to be clear I would like to mount a sprung on a ccm tacks 962 boot with an a8. I am 6'4" and weigh approx. 235lbs. Would that be the right set up. Should I just ship the boots to you to mount. How much would you charge for mounting? thanks alot. Can not wait to try them out. My buddy has a pair on a pair of tacks and loves them....

[vitaminZ 0]

Aggro Sprungs eh?

Thats interesting got any hints on the design? You know that the current trend is for huge spaces in the middle of the skate and that 2 wheel freestyle set ups with springs/shocks on the outer wheels are fairly common already right? Oh and you probably know this already too but to have any success in the Aggro industry you've gotta conform to UFS dimensions

[sdcopp 1]

Aggro Sprungs eh?

Thats interesting got any hints on the design? You know that the current trend is for huge spaces in the middle of the skate and that 2 wheel freestyle set ups with springs/shocks on the outer wheels are fairly common already right? Oh and you probably know this already too but to have any success in the Aggro industry you've gotta conform to UFS dimensions

He already had an aggro frame for Fiziks, but the cost was prohibitive at retail. Keith just designed and licensed them, Fiziks had it on them to make or break with the tech. K2 has a much better chance of doing something with it across the board since they aren't a startup.

[Sprungster 5]

Aggro Sprungs eh?

Thats interesting got any hints on the design? You know that the current trend is for huge spaces in the middle of the skate and that 2 wheel freestyle set ups with springs/shocks on the outer wheels are fairly common already right? Oh and you probably know this already too but to have any success in the Aggro industry you've gotta conform to UFS dimensions

He already had an aggro frame for Fiziks, but the cost was prohibitive at retail. Keith just designed and licensed them, Fiziks had it on them to make or break with the tech. K2 has a much better chance of doing something with it across the board since they aren't a startup.

Well said. Fiziks were on 9 of the 10 XGame finalists the last couple of years inline was included. The new design is totally different from everything. The USD frames with shocks are second class levers and don't work as good as the geometry from my patents. Fiziks were OEM's on K2 and USD for a while.

Almost all modern hockey boots are based loosely on K2's old fitness boot tech. John Svenson, the forever head of tech at K2 also designed the Torspo boots. He skated on my first prototypes that were so bad that I tossed them, and that part of my patent application. And they still worked good enough to get me back in the door with way better stuff.

[nyrmetros 0]

Got to be with JR a lot and still like him.:)

There were a bunch of good things to look at and people to talk to. And Freebies! Torspo is sending us a couple of dozen pairs of boots for our new test stable. These will be just about the most modern looking skates on the planet, and a perfect platform for Sprungs. We suspect that people are going to say sick and things like that. Torspo is also connected at the hip to K2. Me and K2 go way back, and Sprung wants to make Street Sprungs and Speed Sprungs and Aggro Sprungs, so we were pretty happy to talk to them.

On a more somber note, we were assured that there definitely won't be any factory Rbk/Sprungs. I'm most of the way through mounting some beautiful custom A8's on a brand new pair of 7K's, but wait, maybe their owner will want to put the old frames back on, now. B)

CCM and Rbk have restructured and now seem to be sort of competing brands with separate-but-equal product management groups. Half of The Hockey Company is still talking to us.

man that's bad news. I was really looking foward to factory mounted rbk inlines with sprungs.

So what do you mean about CCM and RBK. Are they going to be separate but equal?

[Rick 0]

Keith,

I hate to hear that about Reebok. The Reebok/Sprung setups you have done are some great looking skates. The news about Torspo is good news though. I have never had my hands on the Torspo product but they appear to be of very high quality and your Sprung frames can only add to that. Please remember to post pics of the Torspo/Sprung setups. Also how does one get hold of one of those sweet looking Sprung jerseys?

Rick Henry

[JR Boucicaut 3797]

Got to be with JR a lot and still like him.:)

There were a bunch of good things to look at and people to talk to. And Freebies! Torspo is sending us a couple of dozen pairs of boots for our new test stable. These will be just about the most modern looking skates on the planet, and a perfect platform for Sprungs. We suspect that people are going to say sick and things like that. Torspo is also connected at the hip to K2. Me and K2 go way back, and Sprung wants to make Street Sprungs and Speed Sprungs and Aggro Sprungs, so we were pretty happy to talk to them.

On a more somber note, we were assured that there definitely won't be any factory Rbk/Sprungs. I'm most of the way through mounting some beautiful custom A8's on a brand new pair of 7K's, but wait, maybe their owner will want to put the old frames back on, now. B)

CCM and Rbk have restructured and now seem to be sort of competing brands with separate-but-equal product management groups. Half of The Hockey Company is still talking to us.

man that's bad news. I was really looking foward to factory mounted rbk inlines with sprungs.

So what do you mean about CCM and RBK. Are they going to be separate but equal?

RBK and CCM are run as two separate entities, from the top to bottom. There is a VP for RBK and another for CCM. Separate product managers for every category. Pretty much the only thing that are combined are the CSRs, sales reps, and the factory.

[nyrmetros 0]

Got to be with JR a lot and still like him.:)

There were a bunch of good things to look at and people to talk to. And Freebies! Torspo is sending us a couple of dozen pairs of boots for our new test stable. These will be just about the most modern looking skates on the planet, and a perfect platform for Sprungs. We suspect that people are going to say sick and things like that. Torspo is also connected at the hip to K2. Me and K2 go way back, and Sprung wants to make Street Sprungs and Speed Sprungs and Aggro Sprungs, so we were pretty happy to talk to them.

On a more somber note, we were assured that there definitely won't be any factory Rbk/Sprungs. I'm most of the way through mounting some beautiful custom A8's on a brand new pair of 7K's, but wait, maybe their owner will want to put the old frames back on, now. B)

CCM and Rbk have restructured and now seem to be sort of competing brands with separate-but-equal product management groups. Half of The Hockey Company is still talking to us.

man that's bad news. I was really looking foward to factory mounted rbk inlines with sprungs.

So what do you mean about CCM and RBK. Are they going to be separate but equal?

RBK and CCM are run as two separate entities, from the top to bottom. There is a VP for RBK and another for CCM. Separate product managers for every category. Pretty much the only thing that are combined are the CSRs, sales reps, and the factory.

But does this mean that CCM and the NHL logo can never be seen together?

[mattzilla 0]

is there not an nhl logo on the back of all of the vector skates?

[JR Boucicaut 3797]

Got to be with JR a lot and still like him.:)

There were a bunch of good things to look at and people to talk to. And Freebies! Torspo is sending us a couple of dozen pairs of boots for our new test stable. These will be just about the most modern looking skates on the planet, and a perfect platform for Sprungs. We suspect that people are going to say sick and things like that. Torspo is also connected at the hip to K2. Me and K2 go way back, and Sprung wants to make Street Sprungs and Speed Sprungs and Aggro Sprungs, so we were pretty happy to talk to them.

On a more somber note, we were assured that there definitely won't be any factory Rbk/Sprungs. I'm most of the way through mounting some beautiful custom A8's on a brand new pair of 7K's, but wait, maybe their owner will want to put the old frames back on, now. B)

CCM and Rbk have restructured and now seem to be sort of competing brands with separate-but-equal product management groups. Half of The Hockey Company is still talking to us.

man that's bad news. I was really looking foward to factory mounted rbk inlines with sprungs.

So what do you mean about CCM and RBK. Are they going to be separate but equal?

RBK and CCM are run as two separate entities, from the top to bottom. There is a VP for RBK and another for CCM. Separate product managers for every category. Pretty much the only thing that are combined are the CSRs, sales reps, and the factory.

But does this mean that CCM and the NHL logo can never be seen together?

They are the same company.

Yes, NHL logo is still on CCM product.

You guys are overreacting - it has been this way for the past year. It's quite funny, because they have separate meetings and don't collaborate on each other's product. I'm sure there's a healthy rivalry going on there.

[Sprungster 5]

is there not an nhl logo on the back of all of the vector skates?

Oddly enough, I don't remember seeing one. Such a weird thought that I'm not sure now.

JR knows more about all this than me. At the show, there was a wide common hallway between CCM and Rbk.

Our OEM possibilities depend on the new department head getting an OK from the sales force, who, in turn, needs the big OK from the giant onlines and chains.

If Hockey Giant, Hockey Monkey, Inline Hockey Warehouse, Perani's, Behind the Mask, Hockey West, etc., etc. think that the new CCM boots with a Sprung frame will sell as good or better than the same levels with some other frame, then we're finally in. Also, all of sales force will have to agree to this and pass on the acceptance to the new CCM management.

Said like that it seems impossible, and leaves no actual say-so to the new department head. He has a lot of homework to do quickly to stay on schedule and it's his decision.

They aren't sure whether to make us a premium product or second tier down, or bottom three or what. Our sales indicate that many players are spending as much or more for the conversion package than they would have spent on the top two tiers of new boots. Plus the uphill time and energy of getting them mounted. I don't think that the demographics of price points change. Those who have the bucks at the time buy at the level they are already comfortable with, regardless of the product. Sprungs might pull price point sales up a notch from a larger pool below, across the board.

It seems like that's a lot of unsurmountable odds we're surpassing every day in our business. It's probably 500 times easier to buy a brand new super-light CCM boot with the frame already attached. We obviously think that if CCM and Rbk are competing, CCM will have a product advantage over Rbk if their brand new inline hockey boots come with Sprungs.

Here's some skates that we think Rbk could have sold a lot of.

Maybe better than these.

[sdcopp 1]

as I've said before, I think the sweet spot is going to be the $200-$350 range. That's where a majority of sales occur as it is, particularly the $200 models (see Mission Soldier, Wicked 7, HE5500, Tour Code Red, Redmax, CCM PF6, etc etc etc) That price range gives the most exposure across the retail spectrum, offering people who don't like the Tri-Di for example an option on a CCM boot that fits them, pull in experimanter sales much easier, get more Sprungs out the door and so on.

[Rick 0]

Just added some new bearings to my Sprung setup. I had thought that the bearings I had been using were Abec 7's but when I took off my wheels to clean up my frames I discovered that they were 5's instead. I bought a set of the new Mission Abec 9's from my local sports shop for $27.00. I haven't tried them yet but hopefully I see an improvement over the 5's.

Rick Henry

[jpeaslee 30]

So i'm really leaning towards getting some sprungs for my he9500s. I'm in the process of going and reading through this humongous thread so sorry if these are questions that have already been answered.

I'm 230+ pounds and i play on outdoor sport court. What kind of wheel setup would you recommend? In general do you go with all the same durometer or do you use different durometers across the chassis?

Are there any other 'big' guys out there skating on these? If so what do you think about them?

[Downz 0]

I'm 6'5, 235 and I've used the sprungs twice so far on indoor sport court surface. I was waiting to post a full response to them tomorrow after skating for them on a 3rd time because I also put new wheels on when I had them mounted, and it always takes me a few skates to break in new wheels and feel comfortable. So far I really love them, and playing defense they feel great skating backwards.

[Grinder 2]

Are there any problems that would arise from putting all 72's on my A8's? I play in a small area with a lot of stop and go, and I'd like to know if dropping to the smaller size for better acceleration would interfere with the proper function of the chassis (and I'm not concerned about warranty issues).

[Spreedizzle 1]

Are there any problems that would arise from putting all 72's on my A8's? I play in a small area with a lot of stop and go, and I'd like to know if dropping to the smaller size for better acceleration would interfere with the proper function of the chassis (and I'm not concerned about warranty issues).

It would work just fine with the smaller wheels. The only thing that you cannot do with Sprungs is try to do a Hi-Lo setup with their rockered suspension design.

[sdcopp 1]

I'd try 76's first, unless all you have is 72's and 80's. The A6 I have with 76's is great around a smaller rink

[Spreedizzle 1]

Finally got mine mounted and back to me. :)

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff228/s.../Picture340.jpg

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff228/s.../Picture339.jpg

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff228/s.../Picture338.jpg