Monday, January 07, 2008

My latest chemical saviour

I'm a sweater. I don't know why, but I'm sure it has something to do with genetics. Fortunately, sweating is rarely a problem for me on the field except when it comes to my hands. I wear armbands which stop the sweat on my arms from dripping onto my hands, but at certain temperatures and humidity levels my hands get too wet (almost like bathtub hands). When this happens, it usually results in one flick turnover in a game where my grip can't hold for the throw I'm making, and the disc slips out resulting in a horrible wobbling throw thats off target.

Gloves are not the answer for me, but maybe this product is: dryhands. Dryhands can be purchased from an Ultimate distributor, here.

Pictured Above: A catch I made in the Jam vs. Goat game (my best game by far). Photo courtesy of Lisa Di Diodato before the batteries died.

How does dryhands work? Will it help my sweat problem? Are the chemicals safe? These are all questions that I can't answer yet, and I would be interested in hearing opinions from chemists and people who have used the product, but I, likely, will get some product and review it in the future.

Maybe those of you going to Trouble in Vegas can try it out. I'll be at UCPC that weekend.

PJ

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Pete, just go to MEC and buy a bottle of liquid chalk.

http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302690857&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442619855&bmUID=1199724066171

Peter Andrew Jamieson said...

I've tried chalk plus a towel and keeping my hands upright and blowing on them. This doesn't seem to work for me.

PJ

Mike said...

For someone who sweats quite a bit as well, I'd say this stuff works quite well - I'd say one application lasts about one game during the hot summer tournaments. It really depends on how much you are sweating and how often you get the disc. Just make sure to get it on top of your hands as well as the palms, because if you don't, the sweat from the top of the hand will wind up rolling down onto your palms.
Also make sure to dry your hands completely when you decide to re-apply. This stuff forms a powdery layer when it sticks/dries to your skin that does not rub off quickly, but it will not stick if you apply onto already-sweaty hands.

Jim Biancolo said...

I have similar issues, and have tried both Dry Hands and Tite-Grip. I prefer Tite-Grip, but both are quite a bit better than nothing. It's worth Googling around for a good price. I think I paid $7.95/tube plus shipping last time I ordered.

Unknown said...

Do you wear wristbands? If sweat is running down your arms and onto your hands I can't imagine an effective chemical solution.

I use a couple drops of chalk after warm-up and at half time, it makes a huge difference on hot days. Not that we get many of them in Vancouver. Nothing works in the rain.