{"id":31693,"date":"2025-01-12T12:33:38","date_gmt":"2025-01-12T17:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yurasko.net\/wfy\/?p=31693"},"modified":"2025-01-12T12:33:38","modified_gmt":"2025-01-12T17:33:38","slug":"a-deep-dive-on-custom-penn-state-ski-and-broomball-helmets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yurasko.net\/wfy\/2025\/01\/a-deep-dive-on-custom-penn-state-ski-and-broomball-helmets\/","title":{"rendered":"A deep dive on custom Penn State ski and broomball helmets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I’m a Penn State alumnus and a winter sportsman<\/em>1<\/a><\/sup> so when it came time to get helmets, I decided to rep the alma mater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or to paraphrase my friend Ouij2<\/a><\/sup>, if you are going to go “sliding across a wind-blasted frozen hellscape” protect your head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skiing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Oh, about 15 years ago, I wore a helmet on the slopes for the first time. I was quite pleased with the experience – added safety and yet…comfort. My head stayed warm, but not too warm and if I fell, I’d have a layer of polystyrene between my cranium and the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next Christmas, my father said he’d give me a ski helmet. I said, I’m getting a white one, I have an idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Going from Spaceball to Penn State in just a few steps.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I found a source for helmet tape and applied it to my new bucket. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Voila! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Do you know how hard it is to get these helmets to stand upright?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It went over well on the slopes of Blue Knob<\/strong><\/a>, about 50 miles from Happy Valley.3<\/a><\/sup> Sometimes I wear a Penn State hockey jersey4<\/a><\/sup> as my outer layer to complete the look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Painting the stripe<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Years later, I thought I lost the helmet (along with a box of jerseys, including that hockey sweater) in a move. I was crestfallen. While I didn’t document the process, I spray painted a blue stripe on my next white helmet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Mid-day refreshment at Camelback in 2018<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It looked okay, but up close I could see where the paint bled past the masking tape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully, my wife found a box with the helmet and the jerseys buried in the basement when we were getting ready to move again. I now had TWO Penn State ski helmets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mid-Atlantic skiing day trips from D.C.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A commuter skier’s guide to ski areas close enough to do in a day from the Washington, D.C. area. Over a decade’s worth of profiles and rankings<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Visit the guide<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Broomball<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For the uninitiated, broomball is very similar to ice hockey. It’s the same basic rules, however we:<\/p>\n\n\n\n