The lever is one of the six simple machines, tools from which all more complex machines are ultimately built. A fishing rod, for example, combines the lever, wheel and axle, and pulley to create a complex piece of sporting equipment. The field hockey stick, like sticks and rackets from other sports, consists entirely of one simple machine: the lever.
Field Hockey Stick Basics
A field hockey stick consists of two parts: the shaft and the blade. The shaft is the long stick by which a player grips the stick, usually in two hands. The blade is the flat area on the other side of an approximately 135-degree curve. The blade is the part of the stick that's allowed to strike the ball during play.
Lever Basics
A lever is a tool that allows somebody to exert extra force on a load by by pivoting exertion around a set point. Levers have three parts: the force, the fulcrum and the load. The force is where you exert effort to move the lever. The load is the object you are using the lever to move. The fulcrum is the pivot point.
Classes of Lever
There are three classes of lever. A first-class lever places the fulcrum between the force and the load, as with a seesaw. A second-class lever places the load between the force and the fulcrum, as with a wheelbarrow. A third-class lever places the effort between the load and the fulcrum, as with tongs.
What Kind of Lever?
When using a hockey stick, you hold the grip in place with your lower hand as you push it with your body and the upper hand. Force gets exerted on the ball at the blade of the stick. The stick pivots around your lower hand, which acts as the fulcrum. This puts the fulcrum between the force and the load, making it a first-class lever. However, this is for normal use of a field hockey stick during play. If swung like a battle ax, you move the force to between the pivot and the load, turning it into a third-class lever. Ultimately, what kind of lever it is depends on how you choose to use the field hockey stick.
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