An estimated half of high school coaches and athletic directors say their budgets for purchasing protective sports equipment have been reduced during the past three years, according to a recent survey conducted by the National Sporting Goods Association. Approximately 400 participants responded to the survey, which covered baseball, football, boys' and girls' ice hockey, boys' and girls' lacrosse, and softball.
Here are some of the findings:
An estimated half of high school coaches and athletic directors say their budgets for purchasing protective sports equipment have been reduced during the past three years, according to a recent survey conducted by the National Sporting Goods Association. Approximately 400 participants responded to the survey, which covered baseball, football, boys' and girls' ice hockey, boys' and girls' lacrosse, and softball.
Here are some of the findings:
• Most protective equipment for baseball, softball and football is purchased by schools, while parents pay for the majority of ice hockey and lacrosse equipment. Nearly 4 in 10 schools reported an increase in parent involvement of purchases for ice hockey equipment.
• Protective equipment is often replaced within three years. Football is the exception, with nearly half of schools that responded replacing helmets and shoulder pads no sooner than every five years.
• When schools purchase protective equipment, they generally buy from the team dealer. About 70 percent of schools indicated that a team dealer representative had visited within the past six months.
• Most respondents check prices before making protective equipment purchases, but they are less likely to comparison shop online.
"The association felt that a report that talks about the purchasing habits of high schools for protective equipment would be of great benefit to team dealers who sell directly to the schools," says Bruce Hammond, director of marketing and communications for the Mount Prospect, Ill.-based NSGA, when asked about the impetus for the first-time survey. "We feel this report is especially timely and valuable due to the continued funding issues that affect schools across the country."
The survey report is available to NSGA members at no cost. Nonmembers may purchase a copy here.
