GEL COMFORT IN PERSONAL ACTIVITY PURSUITS

Hey you guys under 40 learn something from your experienced elders and get yourself a New Year’s gift of a gel cushion to increase your outdoor performance and comfort.  We all know that the world population just hit the record high of 7 Billion souls but have you looked around and noticed what’s happening right here in the good “OLD” USA? That heretofore long shot age threshold of “nine o (yes 90) is the 2011 version of the 1990’s version of 72.  According to a recent AP article nearly 2 million of us are now 90 plus.  That’s three times as many super seniors as there were just 30 years ago. Now this is great news for the supers but it’s not without its downside.  Supers are more likely to live in poverty, and to have disabilities more than those who are merely elderly. Here at Skwoosh we recognize the “graying” of our population. Skwoosh is out to make pre-baby boomers, baby boomers and all those that follow more comfortable in their personal activity pursuits or “PAP”.  We tailor our gel products to all these PAP folks with the mission of advancing their years of participation in their chosen activities from paddling a kayak, traveling or watching a grandkid’s hockey game from the bleachers. Who cares if the longevity statistics are the result of better nutrition or advances in medicine?  We at SKWOOSH are looking to provide comfort to the almost 8 million over ninety folks who will be with us by mid-century.

RR U READY FOR SOME FOO-OOT BALL

Skwoosh Office Gel Cushion

We're not talking about sitting on a Skwoosh Gel Office Cushion in front of the TV, we're talking about Paul Cunningham's "Handsome Dan" handmade designer football.

Like most macho wan-a-bees, Paul had a hard time grasping "The Duke", as the classic NFL football is called.  As most of us know, the Duke is huge, rock like, intimidating and impossible for most non Tim Tebow folks to throw.  Cunningham designed and built Handsome Dan to fit his hand.  He uses soft boot leather so it's easy to grip and making it a ball that’s easy to throw. He builds his football in Glen Rock, NJ using a simple design, rawhide laces and very little print on the outside. Handsome Dan is a huge success, as the ball of choice, for rich guys who pay the cost of ten Skwoosh bleacher gel seats, $120.00 for it. 

Skwoosh Stadium Gel Seat

Cunningham has tried his hand at designer baseballs, rugby balls and peach colored basketballs but it’s footballs that put his company, Leather HeadSports, on the radar of style blogs and menswear magazines. For Paul Cunningham football is no longer a passing game.

NAVY SINKS ARMY FOR THE 10TH STRAIGHT YEAR – AMERICA WINS

NAVY SINKS ARMY FOR THE 10^TH STRAIGHT YEAR – AMERICA WINS

From a WSJ article by Lucas Y. Tomlinson

 
Last Saturday was the 112^th Army Navy football game.  This is the 11^th straight year that team members from both sides know they are preparing for military service in time of war. Some of these gridiron warriors turned down college scholarships and cushy, elevated campus status for the hell of being a “plebe”, enduring “beast barracks” and physically demanding, grueling basic training. Hell, football practice must feel like a vacation to these cadets. Skwoosh wasn’t around selling bleacher seats in 1890 when Navy won that first game on the parade field at West Pont.   This gridiron rivalry has had its ups and downs (no pun intended). It was even abolished under President Grove Cleveland in 1894, probably because the vendor selling Skwoosh motorcyclegel seats didn’t show up. The game resumed in 1899 and was played until America’s entry into the First World War. The war effort needed officers quickly, so both academies shortened their academic programs to three years by eliminating extra curricula activities and sports. The game resumed in 1930 and has continued ever since.  In the 113 contests, Navy has won 56 games, Army 49 and there have been 7 ties. As much as we celebrate the games and past heroes like, Joe Bellino, Doc Blanchard, Glenn Davis and Roger Staubach – we should recognize the courage and toughness of those in uniform in the stands.  All the participants, players and many of the spectators might be showing their toughness, focus and determination on fields with unusual names like Fallujah, Helmand and Ramadi.  The real winner of the 27 to 21 contest is America – our team is the best.

Curious about Curiosity – Exploring Mars

Curiosity is really the Christmas gift of the year for America’s scientists.

NASA will launch a new 7-foot-tall, 2000 pound rover to look for habitable environments on Mars.  The rover will land in Gale Crater, where it's believed water existed more than 3 billion years ago.  Now how in the world is SKWOOSH going to weave its products into this amazing scientific undertaking and adventure? There’s no pilot aboard so no need for a gel Pilot’s seat.  They’re looking for signs of water so no need for a gel fishing seat and all the spectators are on earth so who needs a gel bleacher seat or travel cushion.  With ten remote controlled instruments on board, Curiosity will survey its surroundings, take detailed pictures and analyze samples of rocks, soil and atmosphere.  Curiosity will land on Mars in August, spend a full Martian year there (98 weeks) and transmit tons of data back to earth.  What an achievement. Here are a few facts about Curiosity:

It has six 20 inch cleated wheels, each independently steers so the rover can turn 360 degrees in place. It will roll over 25 inch high objects.

It's nuclear battery powers it's instruments, allows it to travel about 660 feet per day and keeps Curiosity warm during the cold Martian nights.

The laser cameras vaporize rocks to identify chemical elements they contain.

Two camera systems study the landscape, track weather conditions and aid in driving operations.

At the end of the rovers robotic arm is a turret that can dust off rock surfaces and collect and sort samples.  There is a camera for close-up photos and a spectrometer to determine the different elements in the samples.

Now I ask you, how can water sports enthusiasts complain about complicated rigging systems for fishing kayaks?

THE GIFT OF THANKSGIVING

30 Rules for Thanksgiving Touch Football from Jason Gay in the WSJ.
 

1. It’s touch if you have a healthy, speaking relationship with your family. Its tackle (without Skwoosh gel pads) if you see each other once a year.
2. Keep the field size small, less than 100 yards long. If half the people in your family ran 100 yards they’d end up in the hospital.
3. Play before dinner. There will be no players available after dinner. Nobody can run in unbuttoned pants.
4. Everyone plays, parents, grandparents, uncles, cousins even Spot, the one eyed terrier. Spot’s the best wide receiver on the field (when he’s not cuddled up and napping on a gel office cushion).
5. The following are prohibited: spikes, sticky gloves, Smith jerseys, lit cigars and running with a martini. No Therapy gel cushions for protection allowed.
6. A Nerf ball is okay but a real leather football is classic. We’re waiting for a leather covered gel motorcycle seat.
7. No Frisbees, winged footballs or soft, lightweight gel travel cushions allowed.
8. Two hand touch is required.  One hand touch is for lazy folks who celebrate Thanksgiving at KFC.
9. Gay says two completions is a first down. He knows.
10. Save the taunting, cursing and back-handed compliments for the dinner table.
11. Playing in most of the country comes with “skwooshy” cold mud  inviting a family member to fall and ruin his or her Thanksgiving outfit. No penalty just one of the highlights of the game (Skwoosh washes easily).
12. Don’t baby the kids even your 7-year-old niece. It’s OK to intercept her pass and run it back for a touchdown. She has to learn when not to throw into triple coverage.
13. The count is five “Mississippi” a FULL four syllables not a quick “MISS-IPPY” and knocking gramps to the ground.
14. If you’re old enough to have grandchildren and you sack the quarter back and you do a sack dance you will be worshipped forever.
15. No, you don’t get to be “permanent QB” if you want anyone to like you.
16. No show-off football lingo like “trips left” or “zone blitz”. Uncle Earl wants to get the game over with, have a vodka and watch the game on TV sitting on his All Purpose Gel cushion from Skwoosh.
17. With the control freak uncle just listen to the elaborate plays and forget them ASAP.
18. There are only two plays in the game, “Everybody Go Out” and Everybody Go Deep”.
19. No, that running play never works. Ever.
20. QB’s be sure not to throw the ball too hard when you think you see an opening. Guaranteed you’ll peg Aunt Francis in the neck.
21.  Don’t be a wimp. A little pass interference never hurt anyone.
22. After you throw six interceptions let someone else play QB or sign with the Redskins.
23. Three-minute half time. Remember: if Daddy sits, Daddy is done.
24. If playing on the street, don’t dent the powder blue Cadillac. It belongs to Uncle Guido’s new wife and he’ll find you.
25. If you’re a Thanksgiving guest it’s your job to be good at touch football. Lie and say you played a little at OSU.
26. Punts are the hippopotamuses of touch football. Botched punts break more windows and dent more cars than any other play in the game.
27. If it snows while sitting in the bleacher seats the game’s a classic.
28. Be careful. You don’t want any injuries that can’t be treated with a bag of frozen peas and a SKWOOSH Gel Acupressure Pad.
29. If your team wins and stands undefeated please let LSU know that you’re available to play in the BCS championship.
30. In the end there is really only one rule for Thanksgiving touch football. Take your shoes off before you go in the house or Mom is going to kill you.

A Gift for Fishermen

Fishing from a kayak and enjoying the comfort and convenience of a Skwoosh gel kayak fishing seat isn’t anything like the adventures depicted on the TV show “Deadliest Catch”.  But it does validate ones deep interest in fishing, fishing safety and the place in man’s existence for both commercial and sport fishing.

Kayak fishing is a sport while commercial fishing, especially crabbing, is at the top of the US list of deadliest jobs, with a fatality rate 33 times above the average for US workers.  Contributing to these grim statistics was the old regulation which forced fishermen to race the clock to catch enough to pay expenses and make a profit before they had to stop once the entire fleet's limit was reached.  In the effort to control overfishing, an arbitrary fleet limit was set for each catch.  When the limit was reached all fishermen working that catch had to stop or face heavy fines.  This caused the great fishing race, often with disregard to safety by the contestants.  Thankfully today fishing is done under the catch shares system which divides up how many fish the fleet can catch among individual fishermen and not collectively.  The catch shares system is safer for the fishermen because it allows them to fish comfortably at their own pace during longer seasons. 

Next time you are lounging in your kayak fishing gel seat, or enjoying your own catch or purchase from your local seafood store, give a little thought to the tough men who work their heavy equipment in 20 foot seas in icy conditions.  So this holiday season give a gift of comfort and performance – give Skwoosh - the perfect gift for all sport fishermen.

TO CLIMB A TREE OR NOT TO CLIMB A TREE

In a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, William L. Hamilton talks about the latest fad in outdoor activity, tree climbing. According to Mr Hamilton "recreational tree climbing" is now "technical tree climbing" or climbing with ropes just like professional arborists do. What you did as a kid or "free climbing" is not encouraged as a sport. You've got to be kidding.

Can you imagine living in New York City, throwing a good rope, several carabiners, a saddle harness, a helmet, goggles and your trusty throw weight into a Macy's Big Brown Bag shopping bag, riding down the elevator in your building and heading straight for the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx to climb a tree?

Classic Paddling Cushion

I prefer a strenuous workout out on the water in a kayak, canoe, sculler rowing or just some lazy fishing from my boat. I don't know about you but I'm a comfort hound when it comes to my recreation. I like to load my kayak on top of my car, drive a short way to a river, a lake or the ocean and put her in.
For paddling comfort I always have a Classic PADDLING GEL kayak cushion by SKWOOSH in my boat.

Pro Angler Kayak Gel Seat

When I decide to fish from my kayak I make sure that my SKWOOSH Tournament or Pro Angler kayak gel fishing seat is set up. Skwoosh lets me fish in comfort all day long.

Master Row Pad with AGP

When I'm in the mood for a vigorous workout I get into my one man scull, drop in my SKWOOSH Master gel row pad and get a 30 minute comfortable work out.


Suffice it to say I can pass up the 120 year old red oak for a comfortable paddle in my kayak with a SKWOOSH Gel Cushion any day.

The Field of Goals

The Field of Goals

Would anyone have predicted that number 1 LSU would play No 2 Alabama in the battle of the field goals? Whether you were sitting in the stadium in Tuscaloosa AL enjoying the comfort of your SKWOOSH bleacher gel seat or watching the game at your computer sitting comfortably on your SKWOOSH AirFlo Gel Office cushion you have to admit this game was a real stunner. After an unbelievable defensive struggle the game to get a step closer to the BCS title owes its outcome to Drew Alleman’s 25 yard field goal in overtime. This game will be remembered not because of Cade Foster’s 52 yard missed field goal (he missed three others) but it will go down in history as a 9 to 6 LSU win over the Crimson Tide where neither team ever reached the end zone.

I’ll bet a pair of SKWOOSH Bleacher Buddy gel seats or a comfortable kayak gel Paddling cushion that few out there can name another college football team that won a big game 9 to 6 while never getting the pigskin into the end zone.

Stay calm, relax, get in some kayak fishing and stay comfortable but always watch the NCAA game of the week sitting on your Gel Stadium seat. You might get to see a 30 to 27 game where no one scores a touchdown.

Skwoosh: Water Sports

Skwoosh: Water Sports