Hope everyone is having a great December and managing to stay warm.  We’re looking at the low thirties tonight in Orlando, which for us thin-skinned Floridians is like an arctic apocalypse!  We wish the best of luck to all of our local citrus farmers, who I know have their collective eyes on the thermometer.

Over the last several weeks, we have received many inquiries related to 2011 footwear product availability along with re-fills on certain existing styles.  This Friday, December 10^th, the following footwear styles will be available for sale on the 3N2 website:

New 2011 Products:

Reaction Mid Plate Umpire Shoes (EE Width)

Momentum Turf Trainer Mid – Black/White – Patent leather

Momentum Turf Trainer Low – Black/White – Patent leather

Momentum Turf Trainer Mid – Royal/White

Momentum Turf Trainer Low – Royal/White

Existing Product Refills:

Reaction Field Umpire Shoes (D Width)

Reaction Field Umpire Shoes (EE Width)

Reaction Plate Umpire Shoes (D Width)

Reaction Plate Umpire Shoes (EE Width)

Momentum Turf Trainer Low – Red/Black

Momentum Turf Trainer Mid – Red/Black

Be sure to take advantage by getting free shipping until the end of the month on any product including the new 2011 products.

Check back or subscribe to the blog to receive more info on 2011 product releases, including the new 3N2 Viper Baseball Cleats and 3N2 Rally Fastpitch Softball Cleats and Baseball Cleats.

Neftali Feliz competed in the Viper for the Texas Rangers this year so it has seen significant field time at the highest levels of the game, and proven itself more than up to the test.  It is a highly durable and super lightweight spike that provides the comfort, support and performance that 3N2 is known for.

There has been a good deal of buzz surrounding the shoe, and as such Eastbay snatched it up as an exclusive item.  This means that it will only be available for purchase via Eastbay.  I’ll keep you up to speed regarding the how’s, where’s and when’s, but expect to be able to purchase on Eastbay.com on January 1st, 2010.

If you haven’t seen the Viper, you can get a sneak peek on our Facebook page.

First things first.  I want to give a big thanks to the officiating community at large for rallying around the 2010 launch of our Reaction Pro Plate Umpire Shoe. We truly appreciate your support as well as the continued, and often pointed, feedback that has made the Reaction one of our most well received product lines ever.  I’ve just been told by our good friend Dennis Mader – the Supervisor of Officials for the NPF – that many of the NPF officials who worked NCAA post season play wore the Reaction Pro Plate and Reaction Base Shoe and that they “love them.”  Great to hear, guys.

Many of you have asked what separates the 3N2 Reaction line of officiating shoes from other brands?  It boils down to price, function, weight and comfort.
 
You will find the Reaction line is very competitively priced and uses the existing proprietary last and midsole technology that is found in our successful Turf Line.  These proven technologies reduce stress on the knees, joints and back and allow you to officiate multiple games over a day or weekend without feeling the aches and pains associated with other footwear brands.

The weight and function of our officiating shoes are two sides of the same coin.  Our Reaction footwear is by far the lightest on the market.  How do we do this?  It’s not by reducing function and protection. It really comes down to modern technology. For years, a steel-toe plate was the only option for industrial, military, police/fire services and behind-the-plate umpires. Steel toes result in a much heavier shoe that can provide a great deal of discomfort as – no surprise here – there is a piece of steel wrapped around your toe.

Modern advancements in protective technology have enabled 3N2 to provide a composite carbon fiber toe and plate that provides the needed protection for umpires without the extra weight, foot rub and pain associated with a steel toe.

Although we’ve had a lot of tremendously good input on the Reaction Pro Plate, I understand that there are those who question our use of carbon fiber.  I completely understand the concern.  Steel toes have been in use for many, many years and still serve a purpose in very specialized fields.  However, that purpose no longer involves the ball field.

The truth is that today steel is really only necessary for industrial jobs involving heavy moving objects or machinery.  Today’s advanced carbon fiber composite materials provide far more protection than you’ll ever need behind the plate, while being infinitely lighter and more comfortable than steel. The proprietary carbon toe and plate we’ve developed for the Reaction is fashioned from a material that is basically identical to that of our factory partner, which produces footwear for the FBI, Police, Fire and Military services. Their material rates at ASTMF 2413.05.  In addition to a superior strength to weight ratio, carbon fiber also provides added protection from electrical hazards.

If you love steel toe shoes and/or are OK with the added weight and discomfort, I say stick with them.  There is no questioning the toughness of steel.  However, unless a piece of airplane engine falls from the sky and onto your foot, a steel toe isn’t going to do anything more for you on the ball field than today’s modern carbon fiber composites.

Funny story.  I’m a serious stickler for testing.  For our products, I require that we meet all protection related standards and the Reaction goes through a battery of official and rigorous crush and impact tests, such as the vice test.  To take it one step further, we undertook and documented our own in-house test as well.  Let’s call it the “Jackass” test.  We asked for volunteers among the 3N2 staff to put on a pair of Reaction Pro Plates and let one of our 200 pound office brutes wearing Pro Metal Baseball Spikes jump from a ledge spike first on to the carbon toe of the Reaction.  The result?

Partial amputation and workers comp claims?

Not at all.  Volunteers reported what we knew would be the case.  There was virtually no pressure from the direct impact of the cleat on the toe. I hope to pop up a video showing our “Jackass” Reaction test soon. No interns were injured during the filming of the test and please, please do not try it at home!

What’s the bottom line?  The carbon composite protective toe technology in our Reaction Plate Umpire Shoe provides above-and-beyond protection for officials, without the weight and discomfort of an outdated steel toe.

So, if you’re a baseball or softball official struggling with steel toe shoes, you should really give the Reaction Pro Plate a look.  The carbon fiber Reaction Pro Plate is likely less expensive, more comfortable and just as protective as those steel toe dinosaurs.

You can learn more about the Reaction Pro Plate Umpire Shoe on our website which will also be available in a Mid Cut and EE width in 2011.

Today was a much anticipated day for us at 3N2, as well as for our very, very patient dealers who have been waiting on the first shipment of the new 3N2 Reaction Pro-Plate Umpire Shoe.

Despite unforeseen production delays and an unexpected and unusually long customs examination delay in Miami, the Pro Plates have finally arrived! All I can say is that they are well worth the wait.

I would like to give a nod to our warehouse crew for doing a bang-up job of unloading, checking in and packaging pre-book orders to go out the same day. No better motivation than some NY-style pizza on the bosses’ tab. It was a complete team effort in which I even got to spend some quality time on the loading dock and staging area.

As the cartons were being unloaded, I was spot-checking the plate shoes and I have to say I am a truly, truly excited about this product. Every last detail discussed on my last visit to Asia was perfectly executed. I tried on a pair of plate shoes and I am still amazed by the lightness of the shoe. Umpires will not even feel the weight of the plate due to the material and construction of the shoe. We employed several proprietary technologies to develop not only a light shoe but a lighter toe and plate that provide ultimate protection for an umpire.

Fortunately, but unfortunately, we have sold through most of this first shipment. We are protecting our dealers who pre-booked so if you did not pre-book you may have to wait a few weeks.  The second shipment will be arriving in 2 weeks so more are on the way!

If you need a Reaction Pro-Plate yesterday – like our dealers – please contact one of our valued dealers today who pre-booked this product and should have inventory:

1 ) GeorgeTown Sporting Goods: Georgetown, TX (512) 863-9379
2 ) Purchase Officials Supplies Northeast: Sewickly, PA (412)-749-9949
3 ) Ump-attire.com: Crestwood, KY (502) 243-1421
4 ) Mordecai Sporting Goods: Gardendale, Al (205) 631-4172
5 ) Keller Sporting Goods: Atlanta, Ga (404) 755-8212
6 ) Impact Team Sports: Naples, FL (239) 513-1212
7 ) Hopkins Sporting Goods: Des Moines, IA (515) 270-0132
8 ) Play it Again Sports Columbia: Columbia, Mo (573) 442-9291

If you would like more information on 3N2 umpire shoes please visit the 3N2 Website.

Happy New Year! Things are still fast and furious at 3N2 Headquarters in Orlando. One of our flagship products for 2010 – the Accelerate PT – has arrived! We’re very excited about this product. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Accelerate, it is 3N2’s premiere line of women’s fastpitch footwear. The PT in Accelerate PT stands for Pitching Toe and we’ve managed to create one helluva pitching toe on the Accelerate PT. We worked with our professional fastpitch athletes to test prototypes for over a year and feel we’ve created the absolutely best pair of fastpitch pitching toe cleats on the market. I’ve posted a video here of Michele Smith who had a chance to break down the Accelerate PT at the NFCA show in Nashville. I’ll shut up and let her walk you through what makes the PT special.

P.S. The Accelerate PT is currently for sale on the 3N2 website.

In my last post, I mentioned how great our factory partners are. Some of these factory partners reside in China, which has really become the Athletic Shoe Capital of the World. Despite the global economic downturn, our factories continue to provide for a high quality of life for their employees. Factory workers still come in at 8:30AM have a 1.5 hour lunch and finish work at 5PM. All meals are paid for by the company and housing is provided. Not to mention free health care and education on site at the factory. It is extremely comforting for me to know that our factory workers are happy, appreciated and well taken care of. Like any business, this leads to higher job satisfaction which, in turn, leads to a higher quality 3N2 shoe.

So what am I doing here in China? I am overseeing our quality assurance (QA) team to ensure that quality and delivery expectations for our 2010 product line are met. I’m also cultivating relationships with factory owners and working on new development projects with our team. We have a truly talented 3N2 team in China that handles our day-to-day development and production oversight but there is always a need for HQ to personally visit to make sure that all objectives are aligned and we’re moving towards better products for our loyal baseball and softball customers.

This afternoon I was elated to watch our new Accelerate PT [pitching toe] product on the production line. This is a great new shoe that promises to become the standard bearer for our line of fastpitch softball cleats. Every detail we had discussed over the last year and a half is being executed. I even saw some new equipment and processes being employed that our team developed in the last several months to ensure solid bonding of the pitching toe on the shoe.

I am very excited about this product and I cannot wait to have it out on the ball fields. Our fit test results last year were phenomenal. We had several collegiate girls wear the product in practice and in over forty plus games and the toe showed only minimal wear. We’ve had rave reviews as well from our NPF and Japanese Professional league pitchers.

I know I promised a video review of our Momentum trainer in my last post, but it looks like I’ll have to get that to you when I return to the States. Stay tuned.