Rawlings' New NRG Tachyon™ Football Helmet Earns 5-Star Rating

ST. LOUIS, May 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Rawlings NRG Tachyon™ football helmet, the newest adult-size football helmet from Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc., a subsidiary of Jarden Corporation (NYSE: JAH), was rated as 5 Stars, the "Best Available" rating in the 2014 Virginia Tech Helmet Ratings™.  This news was announced Wednesday by Dr. Stefan Duma, professor of biomedical engineering and head of the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences.

The NRG Tachyon football helmet's 5-Star rating follows its Bronze Edison Award™ win this April in the applied technology-protective systems category.  The NRG Tachyon is the only 5 Star-rated football helmet to have won the prestigious honor symbolizing innovative excellence and creative ingenuity in new product development.

The NRG Tachyon joins its predecessor the Rawlings NRG Quantum Plus™ as Rawlings' premier 5 Star-rated football helmets.  In addition, Rawlings' NRG Quantum™ and NRG Impulse™ football helmets maintained their 4-Star ratings, classified as "Very Good" in this year's study.  The complete ratings are publicly available online at http://www.sbes.vt.edu/helmet.

"With the new NRG Tachyon helmet 5-Star rating, we see this as a validation of our product performance strategy to manufacture the protective products football helmet consumers demand," said David Hill, senior vice president and general manager of Rawlings' field and court division.  "The football helmet consumer is telling us that the Virginia Tech Helmet Ratings is an important component in their product-buying decisions.  Combined with its player-preferred lightweight design and its innovative padding and ventilation system, the NRG Tachyon helmet delivers enhanced protection and performance for athletes striving to reach their next level."

Only adult-size football helmets available at retail were assessed using the STAR (Summation of Tests for the Analysis of Risk) evaluation system, which was developed by Dr. Duma and Dr. Steven Rowson, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Virginia Tech.  To date, a total of 23 adult football helmet models have been evaluated, using more than 2,700 laboratory tests.

According to the Virginia Tech release, "the process used for evaluating the head protector involves performing 120 impacts on each helmet model at multiple locations and impact energies."  Each helmet's assessment is then compared to data collected from more than 2 million head impact experiences by football players in an 8-year span.

The newest ratings coincide with Rawlings' aggressive push and adoption by professional players, with All-Pro linebacker Patrick Willis leading an elite group of hundreds of players who chose to wear Rawlings football helmets during the 2013 season.  Orders for the NRG Tachyon from pro and collegiate equipment managers and administrators have exceeded expectations to date.

For more information about Rawlings' line of highly-rated football helmets and the protective and high-performance technologies built into its design, please visit www.RawlingsFootball.com.

About Rawlings
Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc. is an innovative manufacturer and marketer of sporting goods worldwide.  Founded in 1887, Rawlings is an authentic global sports brand, trusted by generations of athletes of all skill levels.  Rawlings' unparalleled quality, innovative engineering and expert craftsmanship are the fundamental reasons why more professional athletes, national governing bodies and sports leagues choose Rawlings.  Rawlings is the Official Ball Supplier and Batting Helmet of Major League Baseball®, the official baseball of Minor League Baseball™ and the NCAA®, and the approved baseball, basketball, football and softball of the National High School Federation®.  For more information, please visit Rawlings.com or by phone at (314) 819-2800.

About Jarden Corporation
Jarden Corporation is a leading provider of a diverse range of consumer products with a portfolio of over 120 trusted, quality brands sold globally. Jarden operates in three primary business segments through a number of well recognized brands, including: Outdoor Solutions: Abu Garcia®, AeroBed®, Berkley®, Campingaz® and Coleman®, ExOfficio®, Fenwick®, Gulp!®, Invicta®, K2®, Marker®, Marmot®, Mitchell®, PENN®, Rawlings®, Shakespeare®, Stearns®, Stren®, Trilene®, Volkl® and Zoot®; Consumer Solutions: Bionaire®, Breville®, Crock-Pot®, FoodSaver®, Health o meter®, Holmes®, Mr. Coffee®, Oster®, Patton®, Rival®, Seal-a-Meal®, Sunbeam®, VillaWare® and White Mountain®; and Branded Consumables: Ball®, Bee®, Bernardin®, Bicycle®, Billy Boy®, Crawford®, Diamond®, Dicon®, Fiona®, First Alert®, First Essentials®, Hoyle®, Kerr®, Lehigh®, Lifoam®, Lillo®, Loew Cornell®, Mapa®, NUK®, Pine Mountain®, Quickie®, Spontex®, Tigex® and Yankee Candle®.  Headquartered in Florida, Jarden ranks #383 on the Fortune 500 and has over 30,000 employees worldwide.  For further information about Jarden, please visit www.jarden.com.

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SOURCE Rawlings