TEXTILES.ORG
Swiftwick, Brentwood, Tenn., a producer of athletic compression socks, is expanding its reach on the ice. More than a dozen National Hockey League teams, including the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings, are wearing Swiftwick’s Cut-Resistant Hockey Sock this season, as well as several American Hockey League, Canadian Hockey League and collegiate teams.
“As a team we have made these socks mandatory,” says Adam Sheehan, head equipment manager for Penn State University’s hockey team. “It’s an issue of keeping our players as safe as possible while they’re on the ice.”
The sock delivers cut and impact resistance against potentially devastating Achilles tendon injuries. Many players think cut-resistant socks inhibit play, but the Swiftwick Cut-Resistant Hockey Sock boasts the ability to protect without impeding performance. Because of this, it has grown in popularity with players and equipment managers.
According to Mark Cleveland, Swiftwick’s co-founder and CEO, the sock is the first to combine cut resistance, moisture wicking, compression and comfort. “It’s the technology behind the sock that makes it one that players really want to wear,” says Cleveland.
Swiftwick uses an ultra-high modulus composite yarn based on state-of-the-art cut and ballistic-resistant fiber technologies. The end result is a sock comparable in strength to the materials used in bullet-proof vests.
The socks can also claim a more sustainable process for fabrication. Other sock producers dye their products after they’re made, which produces a toxic waste run-off that is a pollutant for the environment. At Swiftwick, all of the high quality performance socks are made with fibers that are already colored, avoiding the potentially harmful dyeing process.