Hazardous Growth

It has finally happened; the NCAA has expanded the tournament field to 68 teams. I know that more basketball is always a good thing, but I'm not really huge on the added games simply because I feel like the only reason they were created was because the NCAA wanted to allow more at-large bids so that the power schools have better chances of getting in. Schools like UVM are going to be relegated to the play-in game, and some of them will never get to see the teams like Syracuse that beat the Catamounts this year. I realize that this is a business move because having more games will generate more revenue through advertising, ticket sales, etc. However, I feel like this usurps the power of each conference receiving a bid because some of these schools from non-basketball conferences won't even be able to make the field of 64 and not have that "one shining moment." I know that the little team never has much of a chance versus the powerhouses, but it's definitely fun to have that one try. Sometimes, upsets happen, and people like me get very excited. Now, all of these teams who have the opportunity to pull off the biggest upset will have to play one game before the one seed and already be tired. I love March Madness, but I think that we need to preserve the tournament as a showcase of the best from each conference and not allow all of these at-large bids to come in and more ACC or Big East teams.

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YouTube Studying

Some things aren't meant to be. One of them is snow at the end of April. Okay, there is my daily complaint just like yesterday. Now, on with the real discussion. There is a certain value that can be gained by being "a student of the game." What I mean is, if you put in a similar effort to study a sport, you can learn all about it just like you would learn calculus. That's why I have become a YouTube fanatic. There aren't very many outlets for power soccer, but YouTube is fortunately one of them. With so many videos online of national and international competition, it is obvious that I'm learning from the best. I think that by learning what other people are doing well, you can improve and learn more than you would have before. Just this morning, I was watching a video about passing. That seems pretty basic I know, but I was having trouble figuring out how to get more power on my passes. The guys in the video use the same guard I do, and it looked like I spin just as fast, but I'm not sure how they hit harder. However, when they hit the ball, the guard did not shake; as you might expect, mine does. So, I need to make sure that I follow through on my spins to regain the momentum that I've lost when the guard shifts. Without putting in the study time, I would not have learned this, and my game would have most likely suffered as a result.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bofh/ / CC BY 2.0

Riches Abound

First of all, I just want to say that this snow is ridiculous. Okay, now that I've ranted to you, on with more important issues. I assume that many of you may have noticed the five-year, $125,000,000 contract that Ryan Howard signed a few days ago to remain with the best team in baseball. I was thinking about the amplitude of this amount of money. What would you do with $25,000,000 a year? Personally, I have no idea they anything of that amount, and I would have to decide what to do with it for five consecutive years. I think I would definitely keep enough to pay off the house, car, or any other debt I would have outstanding. Then I think I would put some of that in the bank for future retirement purposes. I think I would end up donating a lot of it to various charities simply because it is a nice thing to do and there comes a point where more money does not change your life. If it doesn't change your lifestyle, there is really no reason to keep the money. Money in the bank that isn't doing anything except for generating more interest for me would seem to be kind of useless. I always used to say that I would want to buy a Hummer if I ever became rich, but that will probably be impossible by the time I am able to afford one since the brand has folded. So, I'm not sure what type of car I will buy now, but I'm not Ryan Howard so this problem isn't mine yet.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/memestate/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

History of My Chair

I was asked an interesting question today. When was the power wheelchair invented? So, that is what we're going to be addressing today. The simple answer is to be found on Wikipedia; the electric wheelchair was invented in the 1940s. Why was it invented? George Klein was working for the National Research Council of Canada and needed to develop a device for wounded veterans from World War II with limited mobility. The obvious benefits to the power wheelchair allowed people such as me who have limited upper body strength to move around independently. However, it's not much fun to just drive around with nothing to do, so what else is there to do but create games? Yeah, you probably knew I was going to go there. In the 1970s, French gym teachers developed a way for students who used power wheelchairs to participate in competitive soccer matches with each other. Meanwhile, an alternate version was created in Canada in the 1980s. This was the version that eventually permeated America through the traditionally progressive Cal-Berkeley. Another version of power soccer was also being developed in Japan and that version was adopted by England as well. However, in 2004, an American coach traveled to Belgium and through collaboration in Belgium as well as France decided to create an international body to govern power soccer. That, my friends, is a history of the power wheelchair and how to have fun with it. Check out the links to see where I got my info from, and keep reading!

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Waiting!

It seems like during the summer when you have a picnic or some other outdoor festivities that the weather refuses to cooperate. You really want to get outside and have fun, but annoying weather holds you back. This is kind of how I feel about power soccer. I don't happen to have a gymnasium in my house unfortunately, and our driveway is situated at a pretty steep downhill angle. Therefore, I have to go practice while waiting for my sister to finish pole vaulting high school. At the time we pick her up, there are very few vehicles left in the large flat lot, so my mom and I get some practice time in. However, as I sit here this morning looking out the window, I'm a bit nervous about the prospect of playing tonight. I have played in the rain before, but I have to be a little bit more careful to make sure that I don't go sliding off on the slippery pavement. Practicing outside has other inherent issues such as much more friction between the ball and pavement than would be present on the nice wooden gym floor we normally practice on as a team. Therefore, I need to hit the ball harder to make it go the same distance as it would indoors. I don't know, I hope I can get outside and play tonight, but I will have to wait for the weather. Don't you hate it when things are beyond your control?
Photo by Katie@!

AAU Weekend

I think that it is very interesting to go out of state to watch basketball. Having spent the weekend in southern New Hampshire watching teams from all over New England, I think that it is safe to say that just because a team is from farther away does not mean they are exponentially better. That said, there are many teams from out-of-state that are exponentially better. Another important thing I noticed over this weekend was the difference between guys and girls basketball. I'm not going to get into the debate of which is better simply because I know that someone would read that and call me sexist, so I am just going to say that there is a vast difference between the speed of the games. I watched U-17 girls directly followed by U-17 boys, and I noticed that the guys' game ran at a much higher tempo. This could have been as simple as the differentiation of playing styles between the different teams. However, both teams ran a similar press, and the boys' simply ran much faster, and the subsequent break was executed quicker. I'm not really sure why because some girls are just as fast as guys, but these particular games had a major difference in regards to the speed. Whatever the reason was, the whole weekend was enjoyable at the Rockingham Athletic Club. I think you all should check out from the competition from as far north as Vermont and as far south as Long Island.
Photo from Flikr

Intelligence and Athleticism

The Tennessee Titans have effectively raised the team GPA this draft day. In the sixth round, the Titans selected Myron Rolle from Florida State University. At least, he was from Florida State a year ago. Rolle had the potential to be drafted last year but instead decided to travel to England as one of the few and chosen Rhodes Scholars. Not only is this guy one of the finest minds in America, but we also found out today that he is one of the top football players at his age. Talk about multi-talented! He completed his Exercise Science degree at Florida State in 2 1/2 years instead of the typical four years. He then proceeded to earn his master's in Medical Anthropology at Oxford which is generally regarded to be one of the most challenging as well as prestigious in the entire world. Many skills do overlap the between rigorous academic work and athletic excellence. There still needs to be a commitment, a solid work ethic, and a certain degree of tenacity are needed to reach the full potential. I'm not sure how well the Rolle will do in the NFL, but from what I've read about him, he seems to be a dedicated guy who will become the success as a doctor even if the NFL does not work out.
Photo by Dimitry B