Conference Programme FULL (1)

Designing Sports Compression Garments with Controlled Pressure
Kristina Brubacher
Since the first Modern Olympic Games in 1896, athletic performance has grown faster than natural human evolution due
to a combination of global and technological developments as well as training interventions. In more recent years,
performance growth has plateaued in many sports with only diminutive discrepancies between elite athletes leading to
an increased use of ergogenic aids, such as sports compression garments (SCGs).
SCGs are believed to improve exercise performance, shorten recovery and prevent injuries through pressure application.
The applied pressure level is affected by a number of factors, including the wearer’s body shape and movement as well as
garment and fabric characteristics. These aspects have been neglected by existing research, which is dominated by studies
in the sports science field. As a consequence, the SCG-body-relationship is not well understood and pressure levels vary
across different individuals and sizes.
This study addresses this problem by developing a process model that facilitates the design development of women’s
SCGs with controlled pressure. A multi-method quantitative research strategy using an inductive approach has been
applied with data drawn from an online survey, wearer trials and garment and textile analyses to inform the process
model.
For SCGs to have a life changing effect on athletes, they need to provide a significant physiological advantage. A
prerequisite for physiological effects is the application of controlled pressure by SCGs, which the outcome of this study
will enable. This study, thus, has the potential to improve functionality of SCGs and through this athletes’ performance.
The North West’s Early Motor Clubs
Josh Butt
Today motor vehicles are ubiquitous. Yet at the end of the 19 th century motoring was a new pastime, and there were only
a few hundred motorised vehicles on the road. Many believed motoring to be a fad and motorists faced opposition on
many fronts, from local corporations, the police and rural residents. However over the next few decades motoring would
grow exponentially, changing how people thought about transport.
Regional clubs were often described as promoting motoring in the “provinces”. However, the activities of the North West’s
motor clubs were much more complex than this, with several diverse interest groups. For example, the Liverpool Self-
Propelled Traffic Association (LSPTA) was formed by Liverpool businessmen who saw motoring as an opportunity to break
the railway companies’ and the Manchester Ship Canal’s monopoly of Lancashire’s haulage economy. The LSPTA evolved
to champion the cause of the commercial vehicle, organising internationally renowned heavy traffic trials. Yet at their
formation they faced both ridicule and opposition. At the same time the North-West’s cycling clubs were grappling with
the arrival of the automobile; some, like the Manchester Wheelers, formed motor sections to cater for members changing
interests. While clubs such has the Manchester Motor Club had a large trade presence amongst its members.
This paper will draw on source including motoring periodicals, local newspapers and images to examine those
organisations that formed in the North West to support motoring. It presents an original angle to inform our
understanding of early motoring and late Victorian society.