Sports

There are 76 posts filed in Sports (this is page 7 of 8).

Alberto Contador

Stage 17 is done for the Tour de France. On the climb, race leader Alberto Contador dropped his Astana teammate Andreas Kloden, leaving himself isolated and dropping Andreas to fifth in the rankings. Seven-time champion Lance Armstrong is fourth in the standings, behind Contador and the Schleck brothers.

Contador tells interviewers that it takes a team for a cyclist to win the Tour, yet he seems to disregard this when he’s riding. He’s certainly a talented rider but his attitude is beginning to wear on me. Dropping your teammates is a good way to not have a team the next time around.

Tour de France

I’ve been enjoying the Internet coverage of the Tour de France, though the local media never covers it enough, in my opinion.

Yesterday’s stage 10 was an agonizingly slow ride, as riders apparently protested a decision by tour organizers to ban radio contact with the riders’ team managers. It was dull-city for the most part except for a few diversions, such as when a bored cameraman showed a group of snails crawling towards the path of the peloton.

A viewer texted to the BBC live text coverage, asking “any snails spotted yet?”

The BBC commentator didn’t miss a beat:

No sign of any snails yet, but I’m sure it won’t be long before they make their move. With a little more luck one of them could have won yesterday’s stage…

How true!

Kay Yow

I used to daydream that maybe one day Hallie might be coached by Kay Yow. News comes this morning that the legendary N.C. State women’s basketball basketball coach passed away after another bout with cancer. She was 66.

The thing I’ll remember about Coach Yow is how she could always be seen in the stands of an N.C. State athletic event. N.C. State wasn’t just a 9 to 5 job for Coach Yow, it was a passion.

Hit the street, dog!

Just because I can’t scold my dog for leading me on a neighborhood chase Tuesday doesn’t mean I couldn’t exact some revenge! So, yesterday afternoon I hopped on my mountain bike, leashed Rocket up, took my life in my own hands, and took off through the neighborhood as fast as he could run.

My original plan was to take him on the Middle Crabtree Creek greenway, where I could ride and he could run for 11 miles without turning around. Instead I turned him around before we got within a quarter-mile of the greenway. He was winded and not used to this kind of exercise. On the trot back home he was putty in my hands: something I haven’t seen much of since we got him.
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Raleigh’s rad new skatepark: Marsh Creek

I attended the groundbreaking ceremony at the Marsh Creek Skate Park this morning. It was my first ceremony as a Parks Board member. Board chair Eugene Weeks was the only other member present.

The park itself will be a jewel for the skateboarding kids of Raleigh. We’re not talking a few plywood half-pipes nailed together but an X-Games-worthy arena. What I didn’t see in the amazing renderings of the park is where the bleachers will be. I may be too old (and, uh, clumsy) to be catching air on a skateboard but I’d love to sit and watch!

To serve most of the kids who will use it, the park will need the CAT 15C bus route adjusted. Its just too far of the bus route as it stands. I attempted to ride the bus to the park this morning until GoTriangle.Org told me it would take an hour to get there. No thanks: I can walk faster. In fact, a half-mile walk was part of the route GoTriangle provided. Total buzz kill, dude.

Anyway, if gravity’s really holding you back then Marsh Creek will soon be your place.

Gold medal-worthy coverups

I was visiting my dentist yesterday when he and his assistant began discussing the allegedly-underage Chinese gymnasts. The assistant had noticed a new tooth in one of the gymnast’s mouths.

“If they’re sixteen, they’ve got all of em,” my dentist remarked as he went on with his work.

“Aha!” I thought as I remembered the crucial role dental records play in police investigations. Teeth don’t lie. They’re often used in investigations to determine the age of a victim.

Earlier this week a “hacker” fluent in Chinese discovered official spreadsheets showing that gymnasts He Kexin and Jiang Yuyuan are actually 14. The New York Times has also found similar evidence. Yet, the IOC today says “no proof exists” and stands by the Chinese. Unbelievable.

I’d like to believe in the pureness of Olympic sport but there’s far too much money involved for it to be pure. I wouldn’t put it past China to pull a fast one, nor for the IOC to look the other way. Both aren’t exactly known to be trustworthy.

Bike trip measurements

I cleared out the settings on my bike computer for the first time in a year or more. Started the counters at Hallie’s school as I left for work.

I ride almost exactly two miles to work and do so in under 12 minutes (and this was sloppy timekeeping, too). Thus I average roughly 10 MPH, though I do tend to ride at 14-17 MPH between stop signs and traffic lights, and of those there are many.

It will be interesting to see what speeds I reach on the way home, which is mostly downhill.

Wine and cheese redux

I know the Carolina fan who reads the blog won’t be happy, but its gotta be said. While once I thought they were getting better, Carolina fans are still very much the “wine and cheese” crowd that Sam Cassell labeled them. Witness the response when the men’s basketball team returns to Chapel Hill Sunday afternoon following their Final Four loss to Kansas. News reports said “dozens” of UNC fans were there to greet the team as it returned home.

Dozens? UNC is the second-largest university in the state and was one game away from playing for the national championship and mere “dozens” of UNC fans were there to thank their team?

Only on the bandwagon when the team is winning. Pathetic. The river of Carolina fandom is miles wide and an inch deep.

Fifteen minutes

With amazingly warm weather Saturday, and after Kelly came back from her run going on about how awesome it was, I opted to get out myself. It was already 4:15 PM and close to sunset. The air was beginning to chill, but I didn’t care. I put on some shorts and hopped on my bike for a quick circuit down the greenway path and back. It took a mere fifteen minutes, but that ride did wonders for my health. I left feeling achy but returned absolutely energized!

I’ve got to make regular exercise a daily thing, especially since I’m working from home now. Plus, I’ve got to take advantage of these 70-degree December days.