Vaughn Velocity 7000 V1 Goal Pads

[Netminder32 32]

Reviewer Specs:

Height: 5' 8"

Weight: 200lbs

Ankle to Knee: 17"

Experience: 17 years rec and beer league

vs Shooters: rec to semi pro

37†x 12†width ~ Velocity 7000 V1 Goal Pad:

Fit:

Coming off a stock 33" Velocity pad I found that I needed some (a lot of) extra height in the factory thigh rise to close off the 5 hole when down in the butterfly. Having a very narrow butterfly the height allows me to completely close the gap between my knees. I use two of the three knee lifts provided with the pads, my knee sits perfectly within the cradle and my leg is maintained well within the channel. My two top straps are positioned below the knee (there are 4 position adjustments on the top straps), the 3 leg straps are done up "two fingers" loose (ie when they are done up I can slide two fingers easily between the strap and my leg) and the boot strap is done up loosely through the centre cowling opening. I wear a 3" toe knot to allow the skate toe to move down to the inside while in the butterfly. Overall, a very comfortable and mobile pad with a lot of flex in the foams and roll breaks. Most notably the shred foam stuffing allows for more axial flex when going into a butterfly than comparable sheet foam stuffed pads.

Protection

The protection is outstanding, no stingers ever and the pads still retains a sense of “puck feel†that is often lost in more rigid butterfly style pads. Thigh boards are adequate and well placed. The only thing I would have changed would be to have the thigh boards laced fully across instead of just laced in the centre to maintain a constant 90 degree break. (this has been corrected on the V2 pad)

Weight

The weight of these pads is easily on par with other companies products within the same size/class. They are approximately 5lbs. Lighter than most I've used, however slightly heavier than some of today's "ultra thin" flat faced pads.

Durability

Durability has been outstanding on these pads. They are well over a year old now and see 3 to 6 hours of use per week year round. (more in the winter, less in the summer) They are now just starting to show wear in the suspect areas. (the lower binding strip and one small spot on the inner leg area) To date the only problem encountered has been a broken plastic retaining ring on the left pad boot strap which was fixed at an expense of $1.40 from fabric land.

Intangibles

These pads rotate perfectly and effortlessly every time which is why even after trying others, this is "the" pad I came back to time after time. As the people at Mazda say, "It Just Feels Right" and quite simply these pads just feel right.

Conclusion

Pete Smith (designer) and Vaughn (producer) got these right and all the other companies have been trying to duplicate 'em since! The only changes that I feel could improve these pads, performance wise, are the fully laced thigh boards and possibly the calf stabilizer wedges, both of which were introduced on the V2 version and extra height on the thigh rises as standard. The Velocity's are very user friendly pads at any level or style of play although they are somewhat pricey. These pads are a definite winner on all accounts.

9/10

12/11/06 added pics...