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The Great Helmet Hoax of 2014

Welcome to the great helmet hoax of 2014! Rumors have been swirling for over a year about a certain longtime lacrosse company getting into the helmet game, and when the alleged head protection device was supposedly shown off at Blue Chip this summer, the rumor mill officially switched to a higher gear.

Simply put, if a company is showing off a helmet to kids at a camp, they are getting pretty close to releasing the product to the general market. That’s just basic lacrosse goods research time-lining for you. With this first sighting confirmed, more and more people are starting to talk about a new lacrosse entering the game, and that means it’s time for a solid lacrosse hoax!

I don’t know WHO made the image below, but that helmet is a Cascade. Look at it, take in the details, and then tell me it’s not:

fake_stx_lacrosse_helmet hoax

First off, there is a fly wheel on the side of the helmet, and it can be seen on the packaging on the left. That is a Cascade trademark from their Pro7. You can also see the indent on the plastic of the visor where the floating clip sits. The vent holes are Pro7 vent holes. Then take a look at the chin piece, and try to tell me that isn’t the exact same connection system as a Pro7.

This helmet is a Pro7. Period. But, of course, there are a couple of differences.

The holes on the chin piece seem larger than usual on the side angle shot on the box. The face mask looks a little touched up, and the overall image seems to have been altered ever so slightly in aspect ratio. It’s not a hardcore photoshop job, but it does appear this image has been touched up… maybe not on the same level as a super model, but it’s been touched up a bit.

When Peter Tumbas sent me this photo via text, I texted him back, and said:

So… It’s a Cascade?

I was pretty sure that reaction would be universal, and because I thought the photo was funny on some level, being that it is literally a Cascade in STX packaging, I posted it up to Instagram, asking our followers if it was real, or if it was a hoax:

(Follow LAS on Instagram!)

As you can see in the comments, that vast majority of you agreed that this particular helmet photo was a fake, or a hoax, and definitely a Pro7. In fact, an overwhelming majority of the commenters picked up on its fakeness right away. Well done!

Some people did remark that they had seen the new helmet though, and many brought up seeing it at Blue Chip. People were also clearly excited, and interested, and the incredible 244 comments we received on the post speaks to that fact.

The above situation makes me ask “who created this image? And why?”

Could it have been STX in an attempt to get a buzz going? Could it have been a contractor’s mock up of a potential packaging design that was leaked? What about an unhappy retailer? Or maybe it was someone who has nothing to do with the situation directly, like a Cascade fan? Is there a marketing company behind it all? Was it a mistake? Or was the leaked on purpose?

Whatever the original genesis turns out to be, one thing is certain: people know that a new lacrosse helmet is coming out, and now everyone is talking about it. Well played whoever did this, well played.