Flat-bottom V said to improve speed, stability
Hockey players are abandoning a decades-old skate-sharpening method for a new technique: the flat-bottom V. Developed last November by Ontario’s BlackStone Sports, the flat-bottom V has already become the method of choice for two-thirds of NHL teams. According to the New York Times, unlike traditional skate-sharpening, which uses a grinding stone to create a concave arc in the bottom of the blade, the flat-bottom V uses “specially made spinners to carve out tiny fangs along the skate blade’s ridges that bite into the ice for turns.” By putting more of the blade’s surface on the ice, the technique is said to increase speed and stability. The best part: the flat-bottom V costs only a few dollars more, making it attainable for recreational players, too.