Last week, I experienced Nike’s new SPARQ Sensory Performance innovations in action. I have no doubt in my mind that this new approach to vision training in conjunction with all other aspects of physical training will give an edge to the athletes who utilize these advancements. What’s most interesting is that vision training can be used by athletes of all levels to increase focus, reaction times & anticipation in any sport. I could rattle off a list of athletes off the top of my head that could use vision training immediately: Ahem… Josh Hamilton… Ahem…

SPARQ Sensory Performance is a system of technologies, products and programs designed to assess, analyze and improve an athlete’s visual and sensory performance. It’s another step in Nike’s nearly 40-year legacy of delivering game-changing innovations to help athletes perform at their peak.

“Sensory training is at the cornerstone of how we can build better athletes,” said Paul Winsper, SPARQ Performance Director. “With SSP we’re able to integrate both sensory and physical training together. This performance philosophy has resonated with some of the top athletes, teams and clubs throughout the world.”

Nike SPARQ Sensory Stations

As the first step in improving an athlete’s performance, the SSP “assess” phase uses the Nike SPARQ Sensory Station, an interactive touch screen device, to evaluate athletes on 10 sport-relevant visual and sensory performance skills. The personalized station then translates that raw data into next steps for the athlete, which can guide a training program. The resulting SPARQ Sensory Performance profile compares an athlete’s results to others in their sport, position and skill level to provide a roadmap for improvement.

I underwent these tests and compared my results to all other professional soccer defenders in Nike’s database and I’ll post my results as soon as I get over my embarrassment at my scores. Welp, it seems that countless hours spent pushing pixels isn’t great for my vision or health.

Once the assessment and analysis are complete, Nike SSP provides two key tools designed to help an athlete improve: The Nike SPARQ Sensory Training Station and Nike SPARQ Vapor Strobe Eyewear. Athletes at any skill level can integrate both into their training programs to hone their sensory skills.

Nike SPARQ Vapor Strobe Eyewear

Following visual testing to evaluate different aspects of the athlete’s visual skills, a crucial tool to improve key areas is the Nike SPARQ Vapor Strobe Eyewear. By blocking or disrupting vision using a strobe or flicker effect that can be varied in speed, an athlete can develop quicker reaction times and motor skills. The strobe effect improves reaction time by switching between clear and blocked vision, which trains the brain to anticipate what‘s coming when the eyes are blocked. Features include an adjustable head strap for a secure fit and liquid-crystal lens technology with variable speeds for different levels of training.

“After years of tireless testing, we’ve discovered an innovative way to help increase athletic performance,” said Dr. Alan Reichow, Global Research Director of Nike SPARQ Sensory Performance and Vision. “The SSP ecosystem of testing and products allows our team to serve the athlete with a clear and actionable plan that helps them see sport better.”

The system is already proving effective. Two recent studies* showed that training with the Nike SPARQ Vapor Strobes improved:
1) The ability to pick up subtle motion cues
2) Visual information processing
3) Timing of motion

When looking at the list of athletes that participate in SPARQ Sensory Performance training, I’m not surprised that they’re at the top of their game. Kevin Durant, Larry Fitzgerald, Greg Jennings, Misty May-Treanor, A.J. Pierzynski all get an edge.

“I catch balls for a living. What I do is eye-hand coordination, so any way that I can improve my eye-hand coordination is going to be pivotal throughout my career. The Nike SPARQ Vapor Strobes are a total game changer, a training game changer. You take vision for granted, you take catching the ball for granted but the Vapor Strobes force you to focus on the fundamentals.” -Greg Jennings

Nike SPARQ Sensory Training Stations use software-based training modules to improve multiple sensory performance skills. The stations can be used regularly as an integrated part of training programs for athletes at all levels. Top collegiate and professional programs have purchased the Nike strobe eyewear and stations, with a full global rollout now in action.

The Nike SPARQ Vapor Strobe Eyewear is $300 USD and available Internationally at NikeStore.com. Both the Nike SPARQ Sensory Station and Nike SPARQ Sensory Training Station are available through the Nike SPARQ Sensory Training Help Desk (1-855-870-6778 or NSSTsupport@nike.com).

* Duke University Study: Appelbaum LG, Schroeder JE, Cain MS and Mitroff SR (2011) Improved visual cognition through stroboscopic training. Front. Psychology 2:276. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00276

* Southern Utah University Study: Smith, T.Q. (2011) Sensory Training: Nike Strobe (Master’s thesis). Southern Utah University, Cedar City, UT.

Calling all sports fans! Please take a moment to check out this new website, The Sportsfan Journal; written by 2 of my good friends, Ed Maisonet III & Kenny Masenda. I’ve know these 2 cats for a few years now, and I believe their form of journalism is a refreshing take on sports. I find myself reading their articles more than I do from the mainstream sports media on the bigger websites. Take a look for yourself here.

Welp, it looks like we’re going to lose our hockey team. This is shameful. For a city the size of Atlanta, it’s sad that we won’t have hockey. My only thought is that the on-ice product has been so bad over the years. When the team actually made the playoffs that 1 time, attendance was through the roof. More ATLiens attended hockey games than in any other NHL city.

The Atlanta Spirit Group consistently put crappy teams together and Atlanta fans stayed away. On any given day, there is always something amazing to do in Atlanta, so “watching the Thrashers get spanked” isn’t near the top of many to-do lists. Oh well… This will be the end of hockey in Atlanta for quite some time. Perhaps we can get an MLS team instead. Mark my words: I will purchase season tickets if we get a pro soccer team.

This is amazing! Given their history in winning, I’m going to go out on a limb and assume that the Toronto Maple Leafs have a larger production budget than our local teams… Wow!

Last night I attended the Thrashers vs. Predators preseason game on a whim, and it reaffirmed my sentiment that hockey is always better in person. I’ve been to my share of Thrashers games over the past 11 years of this expansion franchise and I have a blast every time. Is Atlanta a Hockeytown? Most would chime-in with a resounding “No way!”. Why isn’t Philips Arena packed? Is it alright if I call it the “Highlight Factory” even when it’s set up for hockey? “Blueland” just doesn’t do it for me. Lots of questions and very few answers.

With the NHL season approaching in less than 2 weeks, here are a few reasons to get excited about Atlanta Thrashers hockey:

1) They aren’t the Hawks. The Hawks have made some questionable decisions this off season that have the potential of blowing up in our faces and dooming the franchise for years to come. There is also a glimmer of hope that they will gel and be successful against the NBA’s Eastern Conference giants. Regardless of your opinions on the court, you might want consider spending your NBA dollars on hockey this season. It’s certainly a breath of ice-cold fresh air (bring a jacket. It gets cold in Philips). Yes, Atlanta Spirit Group owns both teams and they make dumb decisions like letting Ilya Kovalchuk convince himself that ATL isn’t the jam, but maybe the hard-hitting game and below 0° temperature will numb the pain.

2) Evander Kane is the face of the franchise. Why wouldn’t you want to back a dude who’s mother named him after ATL resident heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield.

3) There are new names in town, and these guys are winners. Chris Mason, Dustin Byfuglien, & Andrew Ladd join the roster. The latter two just finished playing a championship season, winning the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks.

4) This is a young franchise, and there’s plenty of room on the bandwagon. All aboard ATL!