Cauliflower Ear and performance / marketing discussion

[KnightofChampions 0]

If there was a cauliflower ear management product that would make headgear optional, would it be valuable to athletes, coaches athletic trainers and parents?

[MadMardigain 1,022]

It would seem valuable to anyone on Freestyle/Greco since headgear is optional in those styles.  

[wrestlingnerd 2,367]

Any grappling sport would be interested in such a thing, but how can you make it? Cauliflower ear is caused by impact. To prevent it, you have to cover the ear. Just like you can't prevent concussions in football without a helmet, you can't prevent cauliflower ear without some kind of headgear.

[gowrestle 588]

Headgear today is a vastly improved product. We need to get past the dogma that cauliflower ear is a sign of toughness. A recent viideo put out by USA wrestling glorifying "wrestling ears" was a disgrace. I really wonder about the leadership in that group.

 

Plastic surgery to correct cauliflower ear is expensive and not covered by medical insurance. I have spoken to national champs, All Americans, and regular guys who put time into the sport who have cauliflower ears. Almost all of them regretted not wearing headgear all the time.

Edited April 22, 2016 by gowrestle

[Zebra 545]

Headgear should be mandated in all age groups, all styles, and all countries; practice and events. 

 

It's not cool, it,s not tough, it's not OK, it's just plain stupid to let your ears look like large disgusting mushrooms when it is completely preventable. No parents should let their kids wrestle without it on. 

[Jasonmitchell32 241]

Ok - just playing devil's advocate here so don't jump all over me - but other than appearance, what's the big deal wth CE?

 

And again - don't jump all over me - but I coach youth wrestling and coach probably 200+ different kids. In their minds, CE is "cool" and shows how hard they've worked and how much they've wrestled. As coaches, we try to dispel this thought process, but they say - "but coach - you have it"......

 

 

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[wrestlingnerd 2,367]

The big deal is that it discourages participation.

[pamela 964]

Headgear today is a vastly improved product we need to get past the dogma that cauliflower ear is a sign of toughness. A recent viideo put out by USA wrestling glorifying "wrestling ears" was a disgrace. I really wonder about the leadership in that group.

 

Plastic surgery to correct cauliflower ear is expensive and not covered by medical insurance. I have spoken to national champs, All Americans, and regular guys who put time into the sport who have cauliflower ears. Almost all of them regretted not wearing headgear all the time.

 

Just curious, what advances have there been in headgear over the last, say, 25 years?  Specifically in terms of preventing cauliflower ear, I mean.

 

I was actually wondering about this recently and after seeing some wrestling headgear at a local sporting goods store, it seemed like headgear is pretty much the same as it has always been.  Some manufacturers have experimented with "soft" headgear and variants of the halo style, but the type of hg you see on most wrestlers today doesn't look very different from what wrestlers have been wearing for decades now.  

 

I totally agree with what you say about preventing cauliflower ear but it seems that headgear is ripe for innovation and improvement.

[Zebra 545]

Ok - just playing devil's advocate here so don't jump all over me - but other than appearance, what's the big deal wth CE?

 

And again - don't jump all over me - but I coach youth wrestling and coach probably 200+ different kids. In their minds, CE is "cool" and shows how hard they've worked and how much they've wrestled. As coaches, we try to dispel this thought process, but they say - "but coach - you have it"......

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

When kids ask about your ears just tell them it's not cool and you were stupid when you were young and now regret it. 

 

Earbuds don't fit properly.

 

There are actually some jobs (headset related) you cannot do with mushrooms on the sure of your head. 

 

Motorcycle helmets rub them and they can hurt like hell.

 

The sweat on your t-shirt and medals in your case show how hard you're working.  

 

 

I could probably come up with some more but I'm more into the text message with my friend in CA right now.

[Jasonmitchell32 241]

When kids ask about your ears just tell them it's not cool and you were stupid when you were young and now regret it.

 

Earbuds don't fit properly.

 

There are actually some jobs (headset related) you cannot do with mushrooms on the sure of your head.

 

Motorcycle helmets rub them and they can hurt like hell.

 

The sweat on your t-shirt and medals in your case show how hard you're working.

 

 

I could probably come up with some more but I'm more into the text message with my friend in CA right now.

Those are good. I like them!

[gowrestle 588]

[quote name="pamela" post="213385"

 

I was actually wondering about this recently and after seeing some wrestling headgear at a local sporting goods store, it seemed like headgear is pretty much the same as it has always been. Some manufacturers have experimented with "soft" headgear and variants of the halo style, but the type of hg you see on most wrestlers today doesn't look very different from what wrestlers have been wearing for decades now.

 

I totally agree with what you say about preventing cauliflower ear but it seems that headgear is ripe for innovation and improvement.

 

I go back a long way. You are correct about innovative headgear. The best improved headgear is the Cliff Keen Tornado. From my perspective, the wrestler can get it to fit well and it stays on. The standard Cliff Keen is what I used and fortunately I was able to get it to fit great. My college coach required that we wore headgear in practice.

[Zebra 545]

I think it would be possible to make the fit better and easier to adjust. 

 

It's a serious pain to move a strap 1/4 of an inch in the old style Cliff Keen. And if you have to move all 4 it can get really frustrating to get the straps out from under the vinyl and make it flat again.  

Edited April 22, 2016 by Zebra

[nom 636]

My kid has recently shown some minor, again minor, bruising and swelling on the main ridge in the ear. Using this as the kick he needs to wear headgear all the time. It isn't the thing to do amongst some friends but mom and I intend to make sure he uses headgear from now on.

 

Hoping it isn't too late. I think I've read that once there is a sign, it can get worse fast. Any perspectives?

[nom 636]

And to answer main post, yes, I think there would be a market.

[CoachWrestling 257]

To better market wrestling, we should blur the cauliflower ear.

[gowrestle 588]

My kid has recently shown some minor, again minor, bruising and swelling on the main ridge in the ear. Using this as the kick he needs to wear headgear all the time. It isn't the thing to do amongst some friends but mom and I intend to make sure he uses headgear from now on.

 

Hoping it isn't too late. I think I've read that once there is a sign, it can get worse fast. Any perspectives?

You are the parent!

[denger 205]

My HS coach required wearing it in practice, where both of my ears got their minor damage while wearing headgear.

"Proud" isn't how I'd describe the way my ears look, but it is part of my identity. I also have an automatic level of respect for people I see in non-wrestling related scenes wearing their funny ears around. 

Most people who participate in the sport do not get terribly damaged ears, and headgear is probably the best prevention for those of us who aren't career athletes. I have to imagine, though, that if I had continued wrestling (while wearing headgear) for another 10 years and enduring the tougher and tougher competition and training regimen, I would have developed much more damaged ears. 

I think some level of damage is to be expected for all top level combat athletes. If the professional athletes would prefer not to wear it, let 'em. They're already damaged, and I don't think that effects the practice of mainstream participants as much as the very real pain of having a mushed-up piece of flesh attached to your head while trying to apply tactics and succeed in your sport. 

[denger 205]

 

If there was a cauliflower ear management product that would make headgear optional, would it be valuable to athletes, coaches athletic trainers and parents?

 

Would you care to offer a clue to what this product would be? If not preventative equipment, then what do yo mean by "ear management product"?

[Glane18 65]

I know this sounds weird, but I always protected my ears throughout my career and now I only have a very small cauliflower ear.  I kind of wish I had a big, nasty ear just so people know I'm a wrestler.  I competed for 14 straight years and coach now, and don't even have bad ears.  

[gowrestle 588]

I know this sounds weird, but I always protected my ears throughout my career and now I only have a very small cauliflower ear. I kind of wish I had a big, nasty ear just so people know I'm a wrestler. I competed for 14 straight years and coach now, and don't even have bad ears.

People who care about you and that includes your wrestlers will respect you based upon how you treat them not on how your ears look.

[NJWC 305]

I have it on one ear, not the other. Still bothers me. Many kids I coach actually want it, and I demand headgear all practice.

My son has wrestled forever, and not once without headgear.

[Billyhoyle 1,699]

If you market a product that you say will prevent cauliflower ear without wearing headgear, I would worry about whether it actually works.  If not, I would expect legal problems from angry parents.  

[Buckxell 141]

If there was a cauliflower ear management product that would make headgear optional, would it be valuable to athletes, coaches athletic trainers and parents?

I'm waiting for your sales pitch. Are you gonna make one, or what?

[rpbobcat 32]

My first practice as a freshman in high school the coach scared the s _ _ t out us with stories about cauliflower ear.

We didn't have an option in high school.

Headgear was mandatory for practice and matches.

 

In college the coaches didn't require it for practice, but no one went out on a mat without it.

 

As far as correcting it,the plastic surgeons Ii know have said they can make it "better" but not eliminate it.

 

Its funny,when I hear the arguments about mandatory/optional headgear,they sound very similar to what was said when the NHL made helmets mandatory.

[Crotalus 232]

The best improved headgear is the Cliff Keen Tornado.

 

I'm sure they are great for the ears, but I always felt they should be required to have some kind of padding on the outside of that hard plastic. Those things will bust up your opponent/training partner's ears (obviously preventable by them wearing headgear) but also their eyes, and/or mouth. I hated it when my practice partner's wore that style of headgear.