Posts Tagged ‘sports’
Sports Spectating
There was a big sports championship waged yesterday in the U.S., ending the National Football League season for another year. Congratulations to the fans of the Baltimore Ravens.
American football is a team sport, 11 vs. 11. Each play is a battle of eleven different 1-on-1 competitions. I think that is what provides much of the intrigue of our game.
When it comes to players on offense trying to execute a block, all they need to do is occupy the person to whom they are assigned, for the brief moment of play. Sometimes, it can be as simple as getting positioned between the defender and the ball carrier. The offensive team knows where the play is intended to go, so it would seem they have the advantage.
The defensive players are tasked with needing to quickly deduce what is happening, fight off or avoid the block, and then make a play for the ball.
Many of the individual match-ups on any given play, could probably be judged a draw. Then it comes down to a player who can be either a hero, or a goat, which may produce a gain, or loss, of particular significance.
For as slow as the actual 60-minutes of play-clock takes to run (games take around 3 hours), there is a lot of action that happens in each short burst. It is a pleasant distraction from the real world, while it lasts.
Now that we have arrived at the NFL off-season, I can return my discretionary attention to things that actually matter.
As if. I do still have the sport of hockey for frivolous entertainment, you realize. Yes, the truth is, I’m rather hopeless when it comes to the distractions of spectator sports.
Olympic Appreciation
After the first weekend of Olympic competition, and my extensive hours of viewing, I have these thoughts:
There are plenty of days when I wish we relied a bit less on technology, but as an avid sports spectator, I am forever grateful for the innovation of super slow motion.
At the same time, I find it can really distort our judgement of performance. It makes actions which are at the limits of physically possible, appear reasonable. It makes hundredths of a second seem like a large interval for victory.
The one thing that super slow motion does not need to be used for, is coverage of parents trying to watch (or not watch) their children’s performance. The tension the parents reveal is painful to witness.
I think the strongest trait that comes through in Olympic competition is not the athlete’s physical prowess, even though it is of the highest caliber, but their mental toughness. In every single event, there is a level of intensity that presents itself, that would crush most of us mortals. Every time the athletes succeed, it is a demonstration of the best combination of mind/body accomplishment. When it is a team success, I think it is even more impressive. It becomes a demonstration of mind/body prowess, and the best of human cooperation.
Seeing the best people, perform to their best abilities, is a gift to behold, and in no small way gives a glimpse of the untapped human potential available within all of us.
Talking leTour
My favorite pastime in July is watching the television coverage of the Tour de France bike race. My days at work right now are long and very busy. I have been arriving home exhausted. Then, I turn on the prime-time re-broadcast of the day’s stage of the race and I watch guys whose work makes my exhaustion seem insignificant. Yikes, they have endurance!
Thomas Voeckler impresses the heck out of me, and makes funny faces while he is working hard on the pedals. He is demonstrating some amazing climbing and accomplished a couple of stage wins. Bravo! Stole the polka dot jersey yesterday.
Frank Schleck sited for a banned substance?! I’m amazed riders still do anything to risk disqualification. He denies doping.
Cadel Evans didn’t have the legs this year. It’s tough to watch the big competitors not being able to muster what it takes to stay on pace, let alone the pity when they can’t offer up a true threat of attack. He drops to 7th place, eight-some minutes back.
Bradley Wiggins seems to have a firm control of his lead. He’s bringing out a big number of British fans and Union Jack flags everywhere! Could be the first British rider to capture the Tour.
George Hincapie is still riding like he’s a young kid, though he’s not.
I like Frenchman, Thibaut Pinot, and Slovak, Peter Sagan, of the young riders putting in impressive performances this year.
Sagan has stolen some of the thunder from my previous favorite sprinter, Mark Cavendish, as Cav has been putting the success of Wiggins and team Sky ahead of personal ambitions. There is still hope for some excitement in the final day’s sprint in Paris, where Cavendish has won the last three years. He would sure like to make it 4 in a row. I’m confident he will have the full support of the team to get into position for a shot at that goal.
After an evening devouring the coverage of each day’s stage, I feel a lot less fatigued by the demands of my Tour de Day-Job.
I wish the coverage didn’t have to end, but this year, I’ll have the London Olympics to fill in the void that follows. No rest for the weary, don’tcha know.
Delicate Attempt
The results are in, and in my opinion, my performance at yesterday morning’s soccer [futsal] game was a mixture of success and failure. But that is a good thing. It would have been a surprise if it turned out to be just a smashing success. What would that be like, anyway; that I could play just fine with no pain? No, that would fool me into thinking I could go back to my old routine, and all indications point to that being a counterproductive plan of action.
I definitely felt some impairment due to the discomfort of my degenerative disc disease. However, that made it easier to remain very conscious of my situation and helped me to purposefully control my stride. I think I did a pretty good job of running with a very smooth gate, light on my feet, as opposed to the usual pounding I am prone to do. If that made me slower, I was compensating for it a bit by making early decisions about where I was going to go. I headed back into a defensive position much quicker than I would have previously.
That is actually a very smart mindset for me to get into, because now that I think of it, the clomping back to help on defense that I used to do, most often involved me chasing an opponent from behind, too late to do any good.
Although I believe it was entirely serendipitous, one of the successes I enjoyed was scoring goals! I’m generally not a very prolific goal scorer, but I had 4 really good goals that came from being fed beautiful passes when I was positioned on the far side of the net. It provided a nice reward and a feeling that I contributed something positive for having shown up. I think it would be a stretch to say that the attempt to soften my effort for this indoor game was responsible for the uncharacteristic increase in scoring prowess, but the goals sure served to sweeten the morning’s effort for me.
One of the failures of my attempt to play at a slower pace, with less physical impact, was turning the ball over when I had plenty of time to make a decision and execute a play. I just didn’t have my usual touch. Several times, the ball just got lost in my feet. One time, I actually swung to kick, and missed the ball. I was trying to shift my weight and keep my eyes up, and by the time I kicked, the ball had moved. Two times in particular, my turnover led to an immediate goal by the other team.
Another time, I misplayed an attempt to block a shot and it deflected off me, directly into our net. I wondered aloud if that was “a Hays,” because it led to the 5th and winning goal for the opponents, but players assured me it fell outside of the ‘own goal’ act associated with that label. I offered an opinion that it might deserve to be a sub-category.
It was a morning of mixed results, which I am taking as a promising outcome, overall.
Decisions, Decisions
Here we are again, with the clocks adjusted ahead, moving dusk beyond the dinner hour. That means darkness is delayed long enough that chores can be prolonged later into the evening. Oh, joy.
I spent the weekend removing wallpaper from 2 bathrooms. I am really glad that is done. Now I am struggling to figure out how to choreograph the next phases of drywall repair and painting. Ideally, the furniture should be moved to a neutral location, but we haven’t got a room that doesn’t need work.
I have no idea where I am going to end up sleeping.
I will likely have to ask the crews doing the work to break the job up and just do portions at a time. That would allow me to empty some rooms by putting everything into a different room that will be done later.
On the surface, that may not seem like too big a deal, but I am here all by myself, and moving furniture alone is an onerous task, especially with degenerating discs in my spine.
It is less than a year now since I suffered the first symptoms of pain from degenerative disc disease, for which “the first line of treatment is usually to avoid aggravating the condition. Modifying activities to preclude lifting of heavy objects and playing sports that require rotating the back (e.g. golf, basketball or football) can be a good first step.” (from Lumbar Degenerative Disc Disease Treatments by Peter F Ullrich, Jr., MD)
On the subject of not playing sports that involve rotating the back (or pounding up and down the hardwood gym floor), I was considering canceling my membership to the sports club where we play our three-times-a-week morning futsal games, and just quitting cold turkey. I had already reduced my attendance to Mondays and Fridays, but since my most recent flare-up, haven’t played for 3-weeks, and I will have plenty of work to do on preparing the house for showings, and will ultimately be moving to a more rural area that will likely pull me away from the games anyway. It seems to me, quitting now would be a logical thing to do.
But… maybe I have played too many years with these guys to just disappear. Something is keeping me from taking that step that would guarantee the conclusion of my participation. Part of me is wondering about the possibility that I might experiment with altering my level of play to become more conscious of how I move during action. I could practice being light on my feet, and deliberate in my attempts. I will be a bit slower, and probably less effective. I’ll finally start acting my age out there. If I learn to play more prudently, I may be able to prolong my opportunities to mingle with a great collection of friends who share my love of soccer.
That is, until we move out to live with horses.
Soul Memory
I watched the NFL Vikings last night in their final preseason game, and this thought occurred to me: I would really like to have 5 huge guys blocking out the hazards that threaten to tackle my progress at work every day.
My father's hat
The National Football League games have changed so much since the days of my youth that I now find them almost unwatchable. But over and over I am drawn to try. American football reminds me of my father. The Minnesota Vikings remind me of my father. There is an amazing bond there. I watch the games.
At a very impressionable age, I became captivated by my home-town team and the Viking athletes that played the games. That fascination rooted deep in my entire being. It brings me little pleasure to see what the sport has become today, but I can’t shake the memories of the fascination. It feels like a part of my soul.
Well, Well…
Full disclosure: I fretted. Regardless what I posted yesterday, the intensity was a bit too much for me. Yes, indeed, I fretted. The red card, the penalty shot. The second penalty shot. Pretty much the entire 2 overtime periods. But my admonition to stay engaged and never give up because you never know what might happen, was more prophetic than I could ever have imagined. How long could anyone expect to hold out? After the full 30-minutes of extra time has passed? Into the last seconds of the added time to the overtime period? It is the stuff of fantasy. The latest goal in the history of the Women’s World Cup. Granted, it took the penalty kick shootout to seal the deal, but it was the tying goal that deserves all the attention possible. Absolutely picture perfect. Everything about it. Watch it. Please. Even if you have seen it, it deserves to be seen again and again. Congratulations Megan, Abby, and the rest of your team.
Meanwhile, the following is a case of not being able to avert my eyes from a train wreck. As absolutely awful as this is, I have stared at this multiple times and I still cannot believe it. I suppose, to those who are not familiar with bike racing, this must seem a totally expected situation; seeing cars, racing bikes, and motorcycles all squeezed onto roads together. Honestly, it is probably more remarkable that this doesn’t happen more often than it does. But, really, this was just so outrageous on so many levels. Avert your eyes, if you can.
So, hang in there today, you just don’t know what might happen next. Oh, and try not to fret.
Mental Divot
With little in the way of fanfare, yesterday marked my return to the game of soccer. I have not been cleared to play on the wood floor at the health club yet, but my physical therapist told me to give it a test outdoors on the grass. Wasn’t it just yesterday that I was whining about my exercise choice being reduced to walking? What a difference a day can make.
The game went pretty well. I enjoyed more success than I expected. The back felt fine throughout. More importantly, the release of endorphins and the moral support of teammates does wonders for my psyche. Ian has it so right, with his comments here Saturday, regarding negative framing. I have spent more years cultivating a depressed mental foundation than years seeking optimal health. It can be a challenge for me.
If you know about bearings and raceways, there is a flaw when the raceway gets ‘scored’. The raceway is supposed to be completely smooth, but with wear, or as a result of being over-tightened and maybe suffering a dramatic impact, an indent can form. Instead of the bearing freely rolling in the raceway, there will be a divot that the ball bearing will naturally settle into.
I have a well-honed divot in my mental state where my whole being –mind, body, and soul– comfortably settles if left unchecked. All the knowledge I have gained about myself in the years since identifying my depression has yet to completely remove that ‘divot’. I practice methods of keeping myself moving and am able to recognize the signs and symptoms when I am falling back into that low spot. My thoughts and words are powerful tools to direct my outcome. Having a regular dose of exercise-induced endorphins and the added bonus of positive interactions with other people, doesn’t hurt my cause, either.
It is all part of the ongoing maintenance package that is my reality. In all honesty, even writing here serves as one of the exercises I employ. When I am finding it difficult to write and create, it offers a clue for me to assess my status. When I write about my experience with depression, it helps me to process it. If, perchance, it happens to help inform and inspire others, that is a wonderful added bonus.
Thanks for reading.
Frozen Four
What a treat it is to be able to enjoy great sport competition, even when my team isn’t involved. The NCAA hockey tournament is being played locally and broadcast nationally. I’m feelin’ it. Maybe the energy from the recent basketball tournament is carrying over for me. I didn’t have a team to root for in that event, yet enjoyed watching that competition.
Saturday will be the championship game between Michigan and University of Minnesota Duluth. My natural inclination is to cheer on the Minnesota representative, but I’ve just watched that Michigan team upset North Dakota, and their effort made quite an impression on me. I guess I can be happy with either team’s success. That is an added benefit to not having a team involved for which I feel a strong allegiance. I’ve got nothing to lose.
May the better team win. And may the game be dramatically interesting right to the end. That’s all that us neutral fans really want. Especially since the basketball final game was mostly an ugly one, in terms of level of play. I’m hoping for a full game of great hockey Saturday, befitting a championship final.
It’ll be my last hurrah to winter sports. Then it will be time to finally get myself out on my bicycle. Apparently it is springtime out there.
Relative Something 