Description

FIELD OF INVENTION

The invention relates to an improved storage, carrying and transporting bag for surfboards, snowboards, kite boards, skim boards, wake boards, wind surfboards, sail boards, skateboards and other types of boards participants can ride.

DESCRIPTION OF PRIOR ART

Prior inventions and ideas to improve a bag for carrying, storing and transporting surfboards and other competition boards are primarily focused on the entire surface of the competition board but do not provide adequate protection to the most vulnerable and sensitive areas of competition boards, such as the nose, tail, edges and rails. Recently, some have developed compressed air and inflation devices to protect these sensitive areas. However during travel, storage and transportation, these other bags have been known to tear, rip, develop pinhole leaks and deflate causing inadequate protection to the most vulnerable and sensitive areas of competition boards. Other applications have tried to develop more protection by implementing thicker padding to desired areas. However this also proves inadequate because of the added bulk, density and weight. Although participants desire protection, they also need their competition board to remain light in weight for transportation, manual carrying and to avoid higher airline travel costs. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A wide variety of competitive sports have developed around the use of boards ridden in water, and on snow and hard surfaces. They include surfboards, snowboards, skateboards, skim boards, wake boards, kite boards, sail boards, wind surfboards, among others. For the purposes of the description of the invention, all such boards will be referred to as "competition boards", and surfboards will be used for the illustrations and images of the specific embodiments. There is an outcry for proper protection for competition boards. Keeping to our illustrations, surfboards for hundreds of years have been made from solid, heavy wood carved from different types of trees. These wave riding planks were 10' to 20'+ feet in length and weighed over 100 pounds. Only recently, in the past few decades, have surfboards been made from delicate thin layers of fiberglass and soft flaking and easily damaged foam.

Even though these new, advanced competition boards are lighter, smaller and easier to transport, they are easily broken and damaged. Participants, manufacturers, shapers, wholesalers, retailers, distributors and other industry participants now spend hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars on competition boards only to inevitably watch them get destroyed by standard transportation methods. Industry Participants must protect their competition boards the best way possible to keep them in their original and best kept form. Dents, scratches, dings, holes and any other damage or disfiguration not only diminishes the competition board from its original luster and appeal, but also significantly compromises performance and causes potential safety consequences and unsafe circumstances to themselves and other participants around them. The slightest damage to competition boards alters the participant's ability to generate speed, height, power, maneuverability as well as safety. Even slightly damaged competition boards may cause drag and pull on the board whether on land, concrete, snow, water, hills/mountains, manmade ramps and parks. This not only affects the participant's ability to control the board, but it also increases safety risks. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Gear Protection has an outer skin/shell with an Inner Skeleton. The Inner Skeleton provides reinforced protection within the outer skin/shell. Please note that Gear Protection will be very strong, yet also very light in weight. Participants prefer not to add weight to equipment during transportation. The outer skin will help protect competition boards from certain types of damage while also keeping the Inner Skeleton reinforcement together when the competition board is not in the bag.

Gear Protection will protect competition boards from everyday wear and tear and from transportation damage. Gear Protection will protect all competition boards from common and daily damages that would occur without this new invention or by using other types of protective bags or carriers. Gear Protection will be form fitting to contour around the many different styles, shapes and sizes of competition boards.

Gear Protection is currently the only method that utilizes:

1 ) An Outer Skin/Shell (Claim 1 a-b & Claim 2)

2) An Inner Skeleton (Claim 3d-e & Claim 4)

3) An Inner Skeleton and an Outer Skin/Shell within a bag for ideal protection (Claim 3c) The Outer Skin/Shell:

The outer skin/shell may be thin, thick, elastic, expandable, stretchable, soft, coarse, tough, transparent, solid, hollow, padded or not padded. One preferred embodiment of the outer skin/shell is transparent where the (nose) top, tip portion and the (tail) back, rear portion of the bag utilizes Lycra material to join two halves or several pieces of material to enclose the competition board. This allows a participant to place several competition boards into the outer skin/shell because the bag expands and retracts as competition boards enter and exit the bag. The transparent embodiment allows the participant to see clearly into the bag while the Lycra material expands upon entry from competition boards. The expandable sections of the outer skin/shell will be pocketed and possess receptacle ends for the insertion of padding protection where needed. It may come in many different sizes, shapes and colors depending upon the board that it protects. The materials used for the outer skin/shell will be common material used by many material and fabric manufacturers including: Lycra, polyester, spandex, polyethylene, rubber, PVC foam, elastic webbing, stocking material and liner closed and/or open celled foam, amongst other common materials known in the trade. In addition, the outer skin/shell provides both extra protection for competition boards and may provide structure and may act as a holding base for the Inner Skeleton. Throughout the outer skin/shell, (Inner Skeleton) layers of padding and shock absorbing material are applied that may be thicker in desired areas where risky and common damages may be likely to occur or have a history of occurring. The Inner Skeleton:

The Inner Skeleton may consist of tailored, circumferential, open or closed-cell foam that may contour, mold, adhere and expand around competition boards. The Inner Skeleton may be suspended internally within the outer skin/shell bag. The Inner Skeleton may also be free standing and used alone without the outer skin/shell bag. Moreover, a suspended Inner Skeleton may be attached to the outer skin/shell by straps, stitching, Velcro or by using elastic webbing material and many different kinds of adhesive agents. The Inner Skeleton may be thin or thick, course or smooth, elastic and stretchable, non-stretchable, firm or padded. The Inner Skeleton will provide shock absorption, along with protection from being kicked, dropped, hit, and layered with other heavy luggage, baggage or other items. The Inner Skeleton material may be foam based or based from other types of material that may be light weight. Certain parts of the Inner Skeleton may be attached to the Outer Skin/Shell. This will allow the competition board to be placed inside the protection and for easy removal by the participant. The Inner Skeleton may also be free floating or suspended within the outer skin/shell or used without the bag at all.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The preferred embodiment of the Inner Skeleton has tailored grooves and/or indentations in the padded foam material that run longitudinal to the side rails of a competition board. These tailored circumferential indentations allow the competition boards to enter and slide into position for ideal protection. Grooves and tailored indentations in the protective padded foam material will allow the participant to easily slide the competition board in and out of the bag. The preferred embodiment of the Inner Skeleton may be laced and strung together with an elastic webbing material that may also run longitudinal to the side rails of a competition board. It also may be coated with an elastic nylon, Lycra or spandex material to keep the Inner Skeleton form fitted and contoured with the competition board. The elastic webbing material allows the foam padding to expand and flex around the different sizes and shapes of competition boards. Velcro, straps and/or adhesive agents may also help keep the Inner Skeleton in ideal position for ultimate protection and return to its biased original position.

The (Inner Skeleton) tailored pieces of padding material will be laced or woven with extensible webbing material to provide a snug and contoured fit for the competition board. The extensible webbing material may be in the form of straps that are laced and strung through the padded foam material. The preferred embodiment of the extensible webbing material may be of any material used in ordinary skill and trade including but not limited to; rope, nylon, string, strap, wire, latex, rubber or plastic compounds and/or elastic materials.

The Inner Skeleton, either free standing or harnessed within the interior of the bag may be custom fitted for desired competition boards sizes, lengths and shapes or have the ability to tighten towards the bottom, top, front, sides or anywhere else the participant may desire to pull the straps for tightening by means of a strapping mechanism.

For example, several types of preferred embodiments use 1 ) An Inner Skeleton that will protect surfboards with dimensions from, 6'5" to 7'5" in length, and with widths from 16" to 26". Or 2) an Inner Skeleton that will protect surfboards with dimensions from 6' to 12' in length and widths from 16" to 50". Or 3) a custom made Inner Skeleton that will protect a surfboard with exact dimensions of the participant's competition board. Most participants will enjoy the novelty that the Inner Skeleton molds and contours around many sizes and different shaped surfboards as in examples 1 and 2.

The preferred embodiment will use a polyethylene tarp, solid, transparent or non-transparent canvas tarp or Lycra with lined padding material for the outer skin/shell protection (Claim 1 a,b) and polyethylene foam for the Inner Skeleton protection (Claim 3a,b,c,d). Velcro or elastic webbing material may also be used to lace and connect the Inner Skeleton together and to attach the Inner Skeleton to the outer skin/shell (Claims 2 & 4).

The (Inner Skeleton) tailored shock absorbing material may have separated pieces of connected padding material or not separated as in the image of preferred embodiment # 1 . In addition, the (Inner Skeleton) may have several different designs depending upon the size and shape of the participants' competition board. For example, the shock absorbing material may zigzag, crisscross, run side to side, run parallel or perpendicular to the competition board.