As a young athlete, Stamford teen Kirsten Nergaard would often kick a soccer ball around with her brother, Erik. For the siblings, she says, the back-and-forth was a playful way to pass the time while improving their game. But to train independently, explains Nergaard, meant chasing after balls, a frustration that led to their creation, the KICK-IT TRAINER, a patent-pending, time-saving sporting tool that allows athletes of all skills to perfect their kicking. Much like a lacrosse rebounder, the Kick-It Trainer allows athletes to practice in rapid fire succession while eliminating worry about where the ball may land.
It all began with a prototype their father helped them fashion out of plumbing pipes. Soon the two were testing it with their friends. Before long, the young entrepreneurs pooled their savings, hired an engineer to finalize a design, and began spreading the word. “We go to tournaments and talk to coaches,” Nergaard says, “and bombard my friends on Twitter.” During school breaks, the two have met with soccer shop owners in the area to develop partnerships. The trainer is also available on Amazon and kickittrainer.com. “We want to do the best we can with this product,” says Nergaard, who’s off to Yale in the fall (her brother is a junior at NYU). “We want to [create another sling fit] for Kick-It for football place kickers as well.”
Any other future ventures? “For me, being a female athlete, I find it difficult to find clothing. I would love to work with female athletes to create a sports line for us, to find something that fits right.”