i find ice level in richmond does it best for me. that tim hortons commercial guys younger brother does it for me. he's great. he even told me THS did my contour sharpening wrong, especially for my size and the way i play. i tried THS, both cyclones and 8rinks. but ice level suits my skating the best. i would say 8rinks is 2nd, but i haven't played at 8rinks for awhile.

i played tier 1 in ice604 for 2 winters. it doesn't even break single digits divs in ashl. as for coast..i dunno, its my first time in coast this year.

**sumaznguy* i agree with you about being fed up playing in lower tiers. they just don't seem to know how to play ice hockey. sure they can skate and pass and shit, but when it comes to postional play they're all over the ice. theres 10 guys on the ice and yet they seem to think they can weave and deke out 5-6 guys and score but lose the puck halfway. i'm in no means a good player. meybe intermediate on a good day, but at least i know how to play roller and ice differently.

Are those underarmor, dri-fit stuff worth it?

I happen to have an old underarmor shirt I bought a few years ago. But it was loose fit style. But I'm thinking of buying a skin-tight one. Does these shirts have to be really skin tight in order for them to be effective in taking the sweat away?

Or should I just use my loose fit underarmor?

i find the tight ones work pretty well for me

they dont absorb the moisture and they dry quickly

Loose and tight are just personal preference. Myself, I wouldn't spend like $50 on an UA shirt but if I see a Dri-Fit on sale for cheap I'll pick it up.

I've played with regular cotton tees, no shirt at all and Dri-Fits. I don't notice the difference when I'm playing but I am alot drier when I take off all my gear while wearing a Dri-Fit.

any lycra shirt will do. doesnt have to have 'Under Armour" printed on the shirt to work. all of my lycra shirts are all nike dry-fit that i bought on sale. the most i paid was like $15. i bought a couple at the nike store down at premium outlets for like $5 each. although, i think putting them in the dryer decreases the effectiveness over time. i don't think your supposed to stick them in the dryer, but im too lazy to read the tag and/or hang dry them. lol

It doesn't have to be Under Armor specifically but I own Nike Dri-Fits and no name ones I bought from Winners. The Winners one was $12-$13 and the Dri-Fit I bought on sale locally for $22-$23 and the differences I find are in the cut of the shirt. The cheap ones don't fit as well but they still get the job done. And a cosmetic thing, the graphics (inside and out) of the cheap shirts come off really easily. My Nike ones still look like they're new. Again, that's a cosmetic thing and it won't bother everybody who buys a shirt.

Currently, I bought a Shock Doctor underwear/jock that has the dry-fit material.

Besides the one UA loose fit shirt I got, which was too pricey, I've only stuck with dry-fits or climalites. Maybe I'll check out some shirts at Winners.

I guess my real question is if the loose fit or skin tight make a difference, since the loose fit might trap sweat between the skin and clothes but if it's skin tight, the sweat seeps through the clothing better?

Does anybody wear the full leggings? It claims to help blood flow in the legs but does it actually do this?

I prefer skin tight under apparels underneath my hockey gear. The idea is that the your base layer is so skin tight that its supposed to feel as if you weren't wearing any extra layer at all. Loose fitting base layers can get a bit uncomfortable as they can bunch up in areas where you tighten your hockey gear straps as well as they may tend to bunch up in your joints as you continue playing. (This may, or may not happen)

However, no matter which route you go, in the end, you'll get used to whatever you chose anyways. In my experience, I'd say get a full upper and lower base layer for the primary reason of sweat management. You want that sweat to be absorbed by your base layer and not your hockey gear, unless you want to be that "certain" guy in the locker room with his own brand of funk smell.

That being said, UA or Nike Dri-fits work well but are not neccessary. Like 6th Gear says, any lycra undergarments found at winners, walmart or superstore will work just as fine.

I wear full leggings. I've played without them at times I forgot to pack them in my hockey bag. I swear I wouldn't notice the difference.

Well I guess it's too late for me now. I just bought the boxer underwear jock combo.
So I won't have long leggings. I'll look for a long sleeve though at The Winners before Saturday's newbie drop in game.

Hey Noir, did you say you go to the newbie pick up games on Saturday? (from the other thread)
I'm gonna be there this Saturday. My very first ice hockey game and 2nd time skating with a hockey stick and puck. It's gonna be great!! lol

oh its ok. those work well too. i use the under armour shorts one. at the time they were the only one's that had that type of shorts.and plus i only got it cause my ex worked at sport chek

i wear them. pp imo ive forgotten them as well and was uncomfortable. mustve been my sensitive skin ;)

ive heard that claim as well but i dont think its true. they would have to be like wetsuit tight to make sure that blood doesnt pool in the legs or to keep the muscles tight.

I'm gonna go sharpen my skates at Cyclone Taylors on Oak Street.
Anyone know which day and time does Tobi work?

which ones Tobi?

i just tried mainland on sunday and they do a great job. im going there from now on. nice people, stores a little small but they had decent gear there

tobi works tuesday to sat
but often our schedule fluctuates

oh and advice, the dudes that sharpen in the back get hammered. tons of skates, tons of customers. be nice to the sharpener, and the sharpener will be nice to you.

i got my skates done at mainland athletics and i plan to take my skates there again in the future.

Where is Mainland Athletics? Need to try too.

I'm currently sharpening @ Larry's Sports and boy is it disappointing, and I prepaid for 7 more sharpenings :(.

Don't get me wrong, the work is top notch, I can vouch for it. But the turn around rate is slow. They rarely every do a drop in & wait job. They usually require you drop your skates off and pick it up at another date. Which sucks if you don't live around the neighborhood or if you play on a regular basis.

Just a word of advice. If you do go to Mainland and the dude isn't there, don't let his wife do the sharpening, lol. She does a half decent job, but no where near how well he can do it.

QFT

I go to Cyclone on Oak and 49th.

Is the Cyclone Taylor in Richmond any good?
I was gonna go to the one on Oak but tomorrow I'm gonna be by the richmond area instead. How's that place?

No complaints at Richmond...Dan and the other guy that runs the shop do great.

Cyclone on Oak & 49th

Anybody have comments on Time Out Source For Sports in North Van? I didn't know this place existed until I drove by. I didn't go in but by the looks of their website they carry equipment other than hockey as well.