not be mistaken as a variant of either street hockey or floor hockey due to the fact that this game was designed in the latter half of 20th century Canada as an off-ice variant of the ice skating team sport of ringette. New alternatives Lacrosse boxes A fairly new and popular alternative to playing hockey on the street in Canada is to play in outdoor lacrosse boxes. The lacrosse boxes contain the same asphalt surface as the streets, but offers a more realistic feeling of hockey since the playing area is larger than the average street, in addition to having boards that surround the lacrosse box. Players also do not need to worry about traffic and pedestrians. However, one downside to this is the smaller size of in-place lacrosse nets. Similarly to lacrosse boxes, outdoor rinks are becoming quite popular in public areas around the United States. These rinks allow for a place to play off of what can often become dangerous streets. Outdoor rinks are usually covered in a sport interlocking plastic tile surface so equipment does not wear down as quickly as on asphalt. Some are concrete which is painted with a special paint designed to provide traction for feet and roller blades. Many rinks are also covered to allow play during wet weather, and lighted for nighttime hockey. There are also a large number of indoor rinks sprinkled throughout the United States and Canada. No official tally has been made as to the number of indoor rinks but the unofficial count is over 500 combining Canada and the United States. Equipment North America In North America equipment for street hockey is based of off designs which originated in ice hockey. This equipment has been designed to be lighter and more flexible due to the exclusion of body checks in street hockey. All of the ice hockey-style equipment is necessary except for certified helmets. In pickup style games, most "player tend to play with some combination of the following: hockey gloves shin guards eye protection athletic support mouth guards Shin guards are often of the soccer type when the game is played on foot, though several companies now manufacturer and sell shin pads that are lightweight, durable, and have been specifically designed and marketed for street hockey and roller hockey (either inline hockey or quad hockey). Goaltenders Goalies still typically wear equipment similar in appearance to their ice