"Research shows that training needs to be as close to the actual movement as possible," says Dr. Jonathan Fowles, a co-developer and a professor at Acadia's School of Recreation Management and Kinesiology. "The uniqueness of our ice skating simulator lies in its likeness to the actual hockey skating stride and, therefore, produces the specific training results sought after by players." The concept of an off-ice skating simulator originated with Dr. Gary Ness, Acting Dean of Professional Studies at Acadia University. He envisaged the need for more specific training but, unfortunately, there was a lack of both effective and practical methods to meet the demand. The answer came in the form of off-ice training, so Ness encouraged one of his honors students, Amy Simson, to research the ice skating simulator. A few years later, further development of the simulator was taken on by Fowles and honors student, Matt Price, who made improvements and changes to the point where it has become marketable to training facilities across Canada.

"This is just 1 example of the type of innovative and exciting research and development taking place at Acadia," says Leigh Huestis, Director of the Office of Technology Transfer and Innovation. "Currently, we have a number of projects with great commercial potential nearing completion." One of the primary functions of OTTI includes acting as a facilitator and point of contact for collaborations between industry and Acadia researchers. 

The Acadia ice skating simulator is being utilized by elite athletes at the Elite Sports Performance facility in Barrie, ON. This facility offers equipment and programs that help athletes, such as NHL, QMHL, minor and junior hockey league players, reach their optimum performance levels.

Skiing Helmets More and more skiers and snowboarders realize the need to protect themselves by wearing a helmet. It was once quite rare to see people wearing protective helmets on the slopes. A Vermont survey found that approximately 1/3 of skiers and snowboarders wore helmets on the slopes in the 2004-2005 season.

Overtraining syndrome most often occurs in athletes who are training for competition or a specific event and train beyond the body's ability to recover.

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