Get some wood! The return of the wooden lacrosse stick?

Somewhere between your electric bill and your auto insurance payment. That's what you can expect to pay for a top-of-the-line titanium lacrosse shaft these days (and that's for a short stick). It's really hard to believe. I know that metal is a commodity and therefore the pricing can fluctuate depending on whatever economic wave we happen to be riding but since there aren't any land wars taking place in the Middle East over enriched aluminum fields I cant really explain why these sticks are so pricey. Its probably because they have to fork out big bucks to some marketing genius to come up with ominous sounding names for their shafts like the "Krypto Element", the "Swizzbeat" and wait for it....the "Wonder Boy". My apologies to Roy Hobbs for that one. Well, having the lives of several helpless little humans to take care of keeps me from coughing up that kinda dough for anything that doesn't have blinking lights or can't keep my drinks cold.

Enter Phil Czarnecki and Mike Ruka, creators and owners of Blue Magic Lacrosse. These two Winona State University students have reached back in time from a rented house on their Minnesota campus to bring us a new and improved version of the wooden shafts that so many of us used back in high school. No, that's not a typo - I said wooden shafts! If I remember correctly 7 of the 10 starters on my high school team used wooden shafts screwed to plastic heads. Johns Hopkins All-American and personal hero of mine, Brian Wood had a wooden shaft attached his STX-SAM and I have the posters to prove it. Cue the violins and fetch me my pudding and geriatric medication now please.

Blue Magic Lacrosse started in August of 2010 when these high school friends began to discuss what all college juniors begin to discuss - how to make money! Phil, who plays for the Winona U. club team has been playing lacrosse since his freshmen year. Mike is the craftsman, forging the shafts out of sheer will (Red Oak and Pine actually) and the carpentry skills he was taught since childhood. Plus, I believe his dad has the ultimate set of tools. Together they offer wooden shafts at a fraction of the cost for what you might pay for even a used titanium shaft these days.

The shafts are made right in their garage and can usually be completed in about 30 minutes. According to co-founder Mike Rika, making a wooden lacrosse shaft is much easier to make then most players would expect.  I made nun-chucks out of a broom handle when I was twelve and they turned out pretty well but don't expect me to open an on-line Martial Arts store anytime soon. I'll leave the carpentry work to the skilled professionals.

Where's Blarney Green?

In just a few months of operation, Blue Magic Lacrosse is already approaching its 100th custom shaft and they've shipped  to customers as far away as Poland. The stick can be dyed in various colors and are extremely affordable, with an attack stick costing $20 and a defensive pole running around $45. Other reviews online have confirmed that the Blue Magic shafts are much lighter then the wooden shafts of old (such as the Crooked Arrow, remember that tree trunk?) but still offer that heavy check feel and a slight natural flex when you really let er' rip. Players with hard shots will have to confirm that as I am not physically capable.

So, can wooden shafts make a comeback in the highly competitive lacrosse equipment market of 2011? Two fired up college students from Minnesota think so. Check out their site, email them or hit 'em up on Facebook. They're excited to tell you about their product. For me, I have a few broom handles down in my basement and hack saw to attend to.

Email Blue Magic Lacrosse or find them on Facebook.