"Once you've conquered the bounce, you've conquered the Pogo Stick"
By Luke Fox
It began as all great inventions do. That moment of divine inspiration, where midnight-oil-burning study and a creative knack culminate in a staggering eureka.
"We were sitting around watching cartoons and saw Wile E. Coyote jumping around on a pogo stick and got the idea," says Gene Khasminsky, the chief industrial designer of Spin Master Toys' Thunderstick, "the first pogo stick specifically designed for extreme sports athleticism." Khasminsky, 26, and Conor Forkan, 28, creator of the Thunderstick and brand manager for Flick Trix sports toys, respectively, found the plaything of their grandparents' day (the not-so-extreme version of the pogostick was invented over 80 years ago) too limiting.
"Once you've conquered the bounce, you've conquered the pogo stick," says Khasminsky.
| Top 5 other things that squeak but aren't nearly as fun |
| Rabid mice |
| Rusty wagon wheels |
| Bedsprings (OK, so there may be one exception) |
| Sleeping senior citizens |
| The soundtrack to a wacko knifing someone in the shower |
As youngsters, the duo rode BMX and skateboards; as adults, they're borrowing tricks from those respected sports and transferring them to a springy stilt with pegs. The Thunderstick's high-grade steel and aluminum is outfitted with thicker pegs to facilitate stalls and grinds; a second set of fold-up pegs two feet up the shaft for Walk-ups and Cherry Pickers; and unlockable handlebars that rotate for Helicopter spins and Kickflips. Plus, it collapses for easy transportation and is height adjustable.
"I've seen one guy who, all in one move, can do a 360 Kickflip with a bar spin, and spin his body 360 degrees into a stall," says Forkan, who explains that how high you jump is dependent on weight and God-given hops. "Michael Jordan is going to jump higher on a pogo stick than, say, Vlade Divac...but definitely you can get in excess of three or four feet."
Editor's Note: Fuel was contacted by a representative of Spinmaster Toys (the maker of the Pro-go) the day before printing and informed that the Pro-go would no longer be manufactured due to liability concerns. The company believes it could face numerous potential lawsuits from the parents of kids who use their Pro-gos in an overly extreme fashion. This includes the use of the Pro-go on trampolines, going down hills, in indoor spaces with low ceilings, and off bridges or buildings. Injuries from such uses could include: cuts, bruises, broken ankles, broken legs, broken necks, and the impaling of one's self on his or her Pro-go. Fuel disagrees with this decision, and believes there is no such thing as too extreme.
