Vibration absorbing material for handles of sporting equipment

Claim 1

In a hand held article of athletic equipment having an elongated handle with a gripping area having a gripping surface to be gripped by the user in a squeezing action, the improvement being in that said handle includes an inner core, a flexible vibration absorbing material around said inner core, said vibration absorbing material having an outer surface which comprises said gripping surface, said outer surface of said vibration absorbing material being non-porous and tacky, said vibration absorbing material having a hardness of less than 40 durometer reading, said vibration absorbing material having a coefficient of friction of at least 0.6, said vibration absorbing material having a dampening of vibration greater than 55%, an inner support structure around said inner core, said inner support structure having a plurality of spaced rigid projections extending longitudinally the length of said gripping area to provide lateral and longitudinal rigidity during the use of said article, said inner support structure being located inwardly of said outer surface of said vibration absorbing material, said vibration absorbing material and said inner support structure being secured together by said projections extending into said vibration absorbing material, said vibration absorbing material being distinct and separable from said inner support structure, and said vibration absorbing material completely covering said projections to render said outer surface of said vibration absorbing material as the sole user contacting and gripping surface in said gripping area during use of said article.