PowerTape

I was introduced to Power Tape by Ron O'Neil, former Head Athletic Trainer for the New England Patriots. He now works for Andover Healthcare, makers of a variety of healthcare products. With his input the company came up with a totally new product. There are many adhesive tape products out there all fighting for a share of the market but PowerTape is different in many respects. It is a nonadhesive tape that sticks to itself or its sister product PowerFlex. It is an all manmade material that is fluid resistant. It also has less than 1% stretch during use. These features make it unique in the world of athletic tapes.

PowerTape is designed to be used in conjunction with PowerFlex. It is used in place of underwrap and provides a base on which PowerTape adheres. Without the PowerFlex, PowerTape would have nothing to hold onto since it is non adhesive. The advantages of this system are that you get a more support with the use of both tapes. PowerFlex itself provides a degree of support far beyond that of underwrap. PowerTape's combination of not stretching out and not absorbing sweat makes for tapings that do not break down as practices and competitions proceed. I have spoke with athletic trainers who use the system during two-a-days and do not remove the tape until the end of the day. It stays that tight. This is a both a time and budget saver.

Being the frugal person that I am and the use of PowerFlex being much more expensive than underwrap I have come up with what I call my hybrid ankle taping. I do my anchors and stirrups with regular white tape and then use PowerTape to finish with heel locks, horseshoes strips, figure eights, and circular fill in strips to the top of the ankle. In this way I get the extra support provided by the PowerTape but I save money by not using PowerFlex.

Some disadvantages are it may difficult to find the tape end on a previously used roll and it can be difficult to tear with moist hands. Besides that, I have used this product for the last two years and am very happy with it. I intend on using it in the future and would recommend it to all my colleagues.