Hello All,

Well all I can say is everyone has a different perspective of what needs to
be in a puck. There are obviously a few different variations out there
(Dutch / Aussie / Canadian, etc) versions and all with their own specific
characteristics. The only thing I can say is that I do not believe that you
will ever achieve consistancy for any tournament be it at Worlds or any
other level because it all starts with the pool bottom. Due to the fact that
each pool bottom varies this will have a drastic result on how the game is
played even with a "consistant" puck. Take the Aussie Orange puck for
instance. This is a great puck that works well on large tile bottom surfaces
and flies well through the water. Unfortunately it really does not work well
on small tile surfaces and slows the game down as well. Softer and harder
plastics again for different bottoms will also be the same results.

The puck we have designed going forward is a puck that will work well on ALL
surfaces for the main reasons:

1) The top / bottom is a hard plastic coating. This allows for it to slide
well on small tile surfaces and even better on large tile surfaces. Works
well on sport court as well.

2) The rubber ring around the outside of the puck gives it the same grip all
the time for consistancy and a better flick from the bottom to get those
loft shots in. When it lands it's still able to travel some distance as
well.
 

Although I agree that this puck could be a little more heavy to stabalize it
at high speeds (although it's not that bad now), we may take away from some
of the other aspects (distance shot / height of loft shot). While this might
be preferable to some it may not be to others. I would much prefer a game
where I could launch a higher / longer shot and more passing of the puck
versus a game of constant speed / breakaways. This causes a team to focus
more on passing / teamplay versus the athlete who can bolt the length of the
pool everytime at full speed. The lighter puck is also more beneficial to
all ages of players and levels who do not have the strength that other
athletes may have. This is especially helpful for training purposes when
first teaching a player. Some new players get frustrated when they see the
"pros" throwing the puck 10 ft and they can't even shoot it 3 or 4 ft.

Kendall Banks would probably be able to give everyone a good idea of how the
new puck performs as he has tried it out on the sport court in the US and
will be virtually the same surface for the 2002 Worlds. The puck for this
Worlds has been set and will be the current one of 1150 grams. However,
based on the comments of teams who use this between now and then we may
consider modifying it to be slightly heavier in the future if required. We
want to see the results over the next 6 months and will make a decision on
the future of the "Oreo" puck after that. Feedback is always welcome because
if we can come up with a common puck for everyone it would be a huge benefit
and a step forward for all levels of players going forward.

Thanks Again,

Darryl Brambilla
2002 Worlds Treasurer / Co-Webmaster