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Product Review - Hit-N-Stik Self Trainer
by Dave
Thursday, April 27, 2006
One of my favorite softball training products is the Hit-N-Stik, a long, flexible wand with a plastic ball at the end of it which is very useful for teaching batters proper mechanics while providing more control and repetition than other kinds of devices. Hit-N-Stik is sold by Fort Collins, Colorado based, family-owned Donik Sports, Inc. The device is held by a coach who places the ball-end in front of a hitter who then swings away, making contact with the ball. It provides the coach with the opportunity to view the hitter's swing up close and personal while also permitting him or her to place the ball in various locations, inside and out, high and low. Hitting the stick provides a realistic training experience while cutting down the need to gather up a bunch of balls hit, for example, off the standard batting tee. Batters can get a lot of repetitions very quickly. Many travel teams use the Hit-N-Stik not only as a practice station but also as a quick, easy way to warm-up before games. Donik Sports offers what they call a "Self Trainer" which holds the Hit-N-Stik in place on a device which springs when hit. I decided to purchase one to see if it is worth the money.
Probably the most positive aspect to Donik's "self-trainer" is the ability to get many rapid repetitions when there are few coaches around. Whereas the Hit-N-Stik requires a coach to hold the stick (preferably an adult), the "self-trainer" can be used by the batter alone, although it is probably not advisable to allow young girls to use it completely unsupervised. The device is easily assembled in just a minute or two and can be broken down, thrown in the car trunk, and set up quickly at your practices.
The "self-trainer" appears to be well made. It is somewhat heavy and apparently quite sturdy. All the parts look to be manufactured well and I suspect the sticks will break long before the stand. Despite its weight, large ground stakes or heavy sand bags are necessary to hold it in place because the base moves a few inches when the ball is hit. Repeated drills will cause it to shift all over the place if left unanchored.
There is a spring-action which allows the stick to rotate as the ball is hit but that rotation is limited to about a half circle. Care should be taken to not allow girls waiting their turns to stand anywhere near the device or batter but that's true of all hitting training devices. If you watch TV commercials for similar devices, you get the impression of a device which mimics pitching as the hitting wand rotates away when hit and then springs back towards the batter. This aspect to the Hit-N-Stik self trainer is a false one. Because the device rotates only about a half circle, it recoils back to the hitter long before she can recoil her body back into proper hitting stance. I suppose a batter could recoil rapidly but this is not the sort of training you want to use when teaching hitting mechanics. The self-trainer is more like a batting tee where you don't have to retrieve balls.
One negative aspect of the self-trainer has more to do with the Hit-N-Stik than it does with the base per se. The Hit-N-Stik is a flexible wand which gives way when the ball is hit. When it is held by a coach, the flex action of the stick is mitigated when a coach allows the stick to fly away and then he brings it back in front of the hitter. When the stick is placed on the stand, it tends to wobble after being hit. A hitter takes up her position, then swings away, the wand rotates a half circle or less, then recoils. But the hitter must wait for the spring action to stop moving back and forwards, and, more importantly, must wait for the wand to stop bouncing up and down.
The height of the device can be adjusted to one of several positions making it "easy" to work on high or low pitches, as you desire. But at least when new, the adjustment mechanism is not easy to operate. A 12 year old would most likely not have the hand and finger strength to make adjustments. I think the fact that it is adjustable at all makes it useful and the fact that there are so many different heights is definitely a plus. But the inability for the hitter herself to make the adjustment limits my praise for this aspect of the product.
There are two keys on the device which apparently hold the spring in place. I say apparently because there is no explanation anywhere in accompanying literature as to what they are for. I tried removing one and then both only to discover that their removal allows the wand to rotate unimpeded without any spring action. There is apparently no reason to remove these though they are removed more easily than the height adjustment mechanism is operated.
Finally, I never noticed before making my purchase, but the self-trainer is listed as appropriate for ages 12 and under. I guess girls over this age swing too hard for the design but I really don't know.
I don't remember what I expected when I shelved out nearly three hundred bucks, including shipping, for this apparatus. I think I pictured a device which would mimic pitching when it recoiled, could be used without any supervision, and would provide a good training alternative to tee hitting. I never thought it would require significant anchoring and I never thought the wand would vibrate after being hit. But I should have foreseen this before I made my purchase. I suppose it does what one would reasonably expect it to do and it is well-made, not to mention easily assembled. I just don't think it is the best use of your or my money.
 
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