In Chicago, tennis giant Wilson has manufactured 422 rackets incorporating algae-based plastic and solvent-free coatings. Called the Naked series, each racket is priced at $499. Available models include the Blade 98 (16×19), Clash 100, Pro Staff 97 and Ultra 100.
Wilson will also donate $20,000 to sustainable apparel brand tentree—so named because it plants ten trees for every item it sells—plus another $400 for each biobased racquet it sells. Each racquet sold will result in 2,500 trees being planted.
Wilson also maintains your ferocious backhand will be preserved, since the biobased racket materials have same performance as conventional counterparts.
“The introduction of The Naked Series is one small step toward Wilson’s goal to preserve the planet for future athletes,” says Hans-Martin Reh, Global General Manager, Wilson Racquet Sports says in a statement. “We acknowledge how far we still have to go, but as a leader in Racquet Sports, we are proud to step up and take responsibility to design more sustainable products that don’t compromise performance for the sports community.”
The Naked Series is available online at Wilson.com.