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Edmonton hockey dads tackle stinky gear with new invention

The pungent stench of hockey gear is unmistakable — an eye-watering and, at times, breathtaking odour that can seem impossible to tackle.

It was a problem as old as the game itself, one that would hit Peter Konidas in the nose every time he stepped into a locker room.

Now he's teamed up with another Edmonton dad, Demetrius Bazos, to create a remedy for that distinctive smell.

"It started about a year and a half ago. My partner is an amateur hockey coach and he had that issue around the kids, the stink was horrendous," Bazos said. "And the parents were like, 'We can't take this anymore.'

"I had similar issues on construction sites, with smelly boots and that kind of stuff in the camps, and we thought, we have to come up with a better way."

After a year of testing and tinkering, the friends-turned-business-partners have created a novel product called GearHalo ActivPODs.

'Kill the stink once and for all'

The tiny pouches are filled with silver threads and natural oils which kill bacteria and remove the moisture that creates odours even when all other perfumed sprays have failed, Bazos said.

"The issue is the bacteria which is what causes the smell in the first place. So we try and target the bacteria, kill it and leave you with a fresh scent," Bazos said in an interview with CBC Radio's Edmonton AM.

He`s hoping the product will be a game changer for all athletic gear.

"You throw one in each bag, hockey bag, gloves or work boots, wherever you have a smell problem," Bazos said.

"Other products are simply deodorizers or wet sprays, so you're just wetting your wet gear. We wanted a dry solution, something that was going to target the bacteria and kill the stink once and for all."

Bazos and Konidas launched the product on Indiegogo and the campaign has raised more than $20,000 so far, surpassing their fundraising goals.

They plan to use the financial backing to start a manufacturing operation in Edmonton.

The production line could be up and running within six weeks, admittedly a little late to fumigate hockey bags this season.

"The good news is this product is good for summer sports as well," said Bazos. "Our original goal was to have this ready for August, for next hockey season, but we had such a tremendous response, we accelerated things."