From Ski Crash to Breakthrough: The Story Behind HawkGrips

This Wasn’t Just Rehab. It Was the Start of HawkGrips.

The Moment That Set It All In Motion

In the winter of 1997, Frank “Oz” Osborne stood at the top of a double-black diamond ski slope in the Poconos, ambitious but unprepared. What started a run turned into a blur of ice, speed, and impact. He lost control, crashed into a tree, and blacked out. When he came to, a ski medic was crouched over him, asking if he could move. “When I looked at his hands, I noticed they were covered in blood,” Osborne said. “My blood. Then the medic asked if I could move my arms and legs, and that was probably the scariest moment of my life because I didn’t know the answer.” What he didn’t know either was that this crash would eventually set him on a path toward founding HawkGrips.

A Long Road to Recovery

The injuries from that crash were severe. For recovery, Osborne faced nearly 30 surgeries over more than a decade, tackling broken bones, nerve damage, and chronic pain that refused to let up. Each operation brought new challenges, and progress was slow, inconsistent, and often discouraging. 

He tried everything. Physical therapy, acupuncture, bee-sting therapy, ultrasound and electrical stimulation… If it promised relief, he was willing to try it. But no matter the method, nothing seemed to offer lasting change. “I was stuck in this cycle of treatment and disappointment,” he recalled. “It was exhausting, physically and mentally.”

A Turning Point: Discovering IASTM

In 2008, more than a decade into his recovery, Osborne watched a local news segment that would change everything. It featured a patient undergoing a technique called Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization (IASTM), a therapy he had never heard of. 

Curious and cautiously optimistic, Osborne found a clinician who offered the treatment and booked an appointment. After just one session, he felt a shift. “I looked over my shoulder for the first time in 11 years,” he said.

It wasn’t an overnight fix, but it was the first real relief he had felt in over a decade. For someone who had been through nearly every type of therapy available, IASTM was a revelation. 

From Patient to Entrepreneur: The Problem with Accessibility

IASTM was the breakthrough Osborne had been searching for, but actually getting the tools was another story. When he tried to purchase the tools himself, he hit roadblocks. They weren’t available to patients, only to clinicians who had been trained by that specific company. And the company? Nearly impossible to reach, with unhelpful customer service. “I couldn’t believe something that made such a difference in my recovery wasn’t more accessible,” he said.

That frustration lit a fire. If these tools could help him after years of chronic pain and surgeries, how many others were missing out simply because they couldn’t access them? 

So Osborne set out to build not just a better product, but a better company.

Building Something Better: The Birth of HawkGrips

Osborne wasn’t interested in recreating what already existed. He wanted to make it better. He teamed up with clinicians and engineers to prototype what would become HawkGrips IASTM Tools. 

Every detail mattered, from the edge geometry designed for precision and effectiveness to the patented cross-hatch grip for preventing slippage and reducing hand fatigue to the materials chosen for durability, comfort, and easy cleaning.

He brought prototypes to top clinicians, gathered feedback, and refined the tools through constant iteration. The goal was simple: create tools that help people heal, while making clinicians’ jobs easier.

By 2011, HawkGrips officially launched.

Growth, Impact, and Mission

Since launching in 2011, HawkGrips has grown from a personal project into a trusted brand used by clinicians around the world, from private practices to professional sports teams to military rehab centers.

Today, HawkGrips tools are trusted by top-tier medical institutions, including leading hospitals such as Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins. They're also in use by elite military units like the Navy SEALS and Army Delta Force and even the White House medical staff.

Through all the growth, the mission remains the same: build tools that help people heal, and support the clinicians who make that possible. That’s why HawkGrips continues to invest in high-quality tools, hands-on education, and clinician support.

Beyond Tools: Education & Clean Recovery Products

HawkGrips began with tools but quickly grew to meet clinicians’ broader needs. High-quality instruments were just the start…clinicians needed the knowledge to use them effectively. That’s why HawkGrips offers a robust education program with in-person and live virtual courses led by expert instructors, all providing CEUs.

The commitment to supporting recovery extends beyond education as well. HawkGrips also offers a line of clean, no-nonsense recovery products— free from harmful chemicals and junk ingredients. The HawkGrips Store also includes a Cupping Set and BStrong Blood Flow Restriction devices, all designed with the same care as their tools to support providers and patients alike.

From the treatment room to the classroom, HawkGrips is dedicated to helping everyone achieve better healing outcomes.

Full Circle: Turning Pain Into Purpose

What began as a personal journey through pain and recovery has grown into something much bigger. HawkGrips was born from one person’s search for relief, but it now supports thousands of clinicians and patients around the world.

“Overcoming my own pain and struggle inspired me to create HawkGrips,” Osborne said. “Hearing from others who have experienced similar relief and regained their quality of life through our products is incredibly rewarding.”

For Frank Osborne, that’s the full-circle moment: taking years of frustration, trial, and healing, and turning it into tools, education, and resources that help others move, recover, and live better.