Mothers and a Teenager Patent Inventions After Recognizing Youth Sports Needs In an era when adults make the news for accosting soccer referees and filing lawsuits against Little Leaguers, Laurie Cronenbold offers a welcome reminder that some parents are making life better for young athletes. Cronenbold lives in Newbury Park, Calif., with her husband and their three baseball-playing sons, ages 17 to 22. When her children were young, she attended dozens of their games each year, cheering their successes and listening sympathetically to the boys" complaints about their ill-fitting jockstraps. "It started when they were 6, maybe younger," Cronenbold said. "They'd run off the field and complain to all the moms, "The cup is so uncomfortable." They weren't going to their dads. For some reason, the moms heard all the complaints. Many parents would have nodded and gone back to their coffee. Cronenbold got a sewing machine. Over the next few years, she learned everything she could about athletic supporters. At her dining room table, she disassembled dozens of models to figure out how they were constructed and why they didn't fit. She built her own jocks from materials around the house and items she picked up cheaply in stores. At the height of the project, the Cronenbolds" home was cluttered with boys" briefs, upholstery thread, boating snaps and "itty bitty GoldToe socks" from her sons. Cronenbold's bold stroke was a snap-on protective cup that a player can remove easily the moment he leaves the field. In 2007, she received Patent No. Cronenbold's new undergarment, which she named Cup Check, is available at cupcheck.com. Cronenbold says she doesn't think of herself as an entrepreneur and has no illusions about striking it rich. "Moms solve problems," she said. I just took this solution a little further than most. But it should come as no surprise that mothers are productive inventors of gizmos and gadgets for children, said Tamara Monosoff, author of "The Mom Inventors Handbook." "Moms are dealing with these issues daily," said Monosoff, whose Web site, Mom Invented, and weekly e-mails reach as many as 20,000 mothers. As your child ages, you're constantly experiencing new things. It can seem like a never-ending opportunity to see what works and what could work better. Many are pitching the next must-have product for children, including SwimZip, a line of swimsuits with UV protection; Snap-n-Step, to keep shoes laced during sports; and Shirtwhiz, for displaying a prized jersey. A few really do change the game. Thirty years ago, Pam Ryan was coaching her daughter's softball team in Minnesota. Many of the 6-year-olds on the squad had ponytails that presented a problem. When they sprinted from home plate, their helmets toppled off. "They'd have to hold them on their heads as they ran down the base line," Ryan said. No matter what we did, they wouldn't stay on. Ryan tried to buy helmets with notches in the back for players with long hair. "It didn't dawn on me that they didn't exist," she said, and a sporting goods salesman tried to assure her that girls were fine with regular helmets. In 1997, Ryan received a patent for a softball helmet incorporating an enlarged panel for long hair or a ponytail. Several equipment manufacturers passed on licensing her invention. Finally, Ryan found interest from Schutt, a company with a female senior executive. "Most of the individuals making these decisions are men," Ryan said. They don't have ponytails. More than a million of the helmets have been sold since 1998, she said. Barb Chaisson is hoping that an invention by her daughter, Alye, 14, finds a market just as big. It's a cushioned bandage for girls (and some boys) who wear earrings. The soccer league Alye played in a few years ago prohibited earrings on players as a safety precaution. That was a problem for Alye and several teammates who had recently pierced their ears. They were concerned that if they removed their earrings, the holes might close and the procedure would have to be repeated. At a science fair in Pembroke, Mass., where the Chaissons live, Alye won first place for her Sportearz lobe protectors, made of bits of upholstery foam used in automobile interiors covered with decorative ribbon and polka dot fabric. Mother and daughter have since secured a patent and are searching for a company to license it. "We're not sure where we'll be in a year," Barb Chaisson said. But we're sure this is something girls can use. Cronenbold's athletic supporter has withstood one test. In 2004, Cronenbold's middle son, Hayden, and his Conejo Valley East teammates played in the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa. Hayden wore his mother's invention in every game. She was determined that word about the snap-off equipment not leak out when his uniform was laundered. After each game, she met Hayden at the fence as he left the field. "I'd get the old one," she said. And I'd hand him a new one. Cronenbold's stealth may finally be paying off. "A lot of sports equipment starts with the professionals and trickles down to kids," she said. With this, it's the other way around. Mark Hyman is the author of "The Most Expensive Game in Town: The Rising Cost of Youth Sports and the Toll on Today's Families."