Disaster and Disappointment

You may recall in a prior post I advised that the Welterweight Boxer that I manage was slated for a 6 round bout on 2/26/2010. Everything was set. The trainer stated that Rick was in top shape, the opponent was a good match, we had studied film on him and his style,the tickets were sold, we attended a pre-fight press comference on Monday 2/22/10, the Promoter was happy and team Hitman was psyched.
Unfortunately, some miscreant dung-heap of a motorist decided to run a stop sign Tuesday evening in South West Philly. Generally, I am ambivalent to some driving infraction in a part of the City I rarely frequent. On this occasion however,said negligent asshole motorist hit my fighter. Rick was out doing his roadwork...and as he jogged he was the victim of a hit and run. Suffice it to say that the injuries he suffered required that we scrtach him from Friday's fight. Rick spent most of Wednesday morning at Univ.of Penn Emergency room. He suffered a shoulder injury, a low back strain and various bruises and scrapes. The offending driver fled the scene.
Rick is despondent . I am worried and furious and the Trainer is appoplectic. The Promoter was understanding yet very disappointed. The Police could care less about another young Black kid getting hit by a car.
The local boxing beat writer for the Daily News caught the story and will do an article about Rick, his career and this incident. Perhaps with some public exposure the offending jack ass may be apprehended.
Hopefully, the injuries will mend and we have Rick set up for an exam with a top orthopedist here in Philadelphia tomorrow. His next scheduled fight is 4/2 and then 4/28 and God willing he is recovered and ready to go.
Can you believe this crap...just awful for all involved.

Lacrosse Season

Despite the tons of snow still on the ground...Lacrosse Season is upon me. That means I had to spend nearly 7 hours this weekend doing player evaluations for our local youth league: Ashbee Lacrosse. Ashbee is a very well run organization that provides teams and league play for boys from 4th to 8th grade. I have been Coaching a team the last several years and this year will take the helm of a 7th/8th grade team. This means 2 practices per week and games on weekends as well as travel to a few tournaments. It also means dealing with logistics, the random whiny kid and the officious meddling Parent. The latter are the worst...villifying the coach for not giving their kid enough time on the field...regardless of whether the kid shows up for practice or has a bad attitude . I have had a few bad experiences with parents but these are outweighed and overshadowed by the sheer fun of being involved with the great game of Lacrosse and some really wonderful kids. Having played the game for many years myself I find it rewarding to help teach these kids and see them have fun and compete. Further, my son plays attack and nothing beats the explosion of pride I experience when he scores a goal or makes a great pass to another kid who scores. So, I am prepared for another great season and will hopefully have some good pictures and reports of thrilling victories as we get underway.

NBC= Noticeably Bogus Coverage

I am still seething with anger. NBC did an appallingly bad job of covering the Olympic Men's Downhill last nite. First, the event was run at Whistler at about 2:45 p.m. PST. There is no reason why it could not have been shown live in near entirety on various NBC affiliates here on the East Coast at 5:45 EST. But no, the greedy swine at NBC had to hold out for an abbreviated prime time presentation of this exciting Winter Olympic spectacle of althletic ability and sheer balls.
So, at around 8 p.m. EST we see Bob Costas with his bad dye job and silly gas fireplace tell us the Downhill coverage is coming. However, all we get is a few of the runs by the medal winners and a few others..... about 6 or 7 runs total. Granted, it was exciting to see Bode Miller win the Bronze (only if one was hyper-vigilant in NOT discovering who won before the broadcast either on Net or other medium.)Yet it is inexplicable why NBC would show so few of the more than 55 competitors in the premiere event. Certainly they need not have shown all the runs...but they absolutley should have televised more. To further this fan's outrage, NBC cut to a piece about Polar Bears after the skiing coverage was complete. Now, I like Polar Bears as much as the next guy...but if I want to see Polar Bears on T.V. I can bloody well tune in Animal Planet. The damn Polar Bear piece has no business cutting off coverage of The Downhill and the witless NBC wanker who greenlighted such an astoundingly poor scheduling move deserves to be sacked.

Book Review

So my readers do not think it is all guns and booze over here, today's post is on a book I recently finished. Yes, Sportsmen do read things other than the Racing Form and Grey's Sporting Journal.
The book is "One Second After." It is a detailed account of what happens to a small town in North Carolina after an Electro-Magnetic-Pulse( EMP) completely fries the entire power grid on the Eastern Seaboard. It is a well written first person account of the hardship and horrors caused by a shut down of all electrical systems: phones, computers,cars,radios,generators,refrigeration,water purification etc. EMP is the by- product of a nuclear explosion and is a very real threat to our sophisticated systems and our electricity reliant society. The book is both entertaining,disturbing and thought provoking...and be forwarned...you may feel the need to stockpile canned goods, bottled water and medicine after you finish the book.

Memorable Night

One of the solemn responsibilties of being a Father is spending time with your Children. Your kids do not really want stuff...they want your time. This weekend was a great expenditure of same with my Son. His 13th Birthday was last week. He wanted to take some of his buddies to the Boxing Matches. I secured a limousine and tickets and we went to The Legendary Blue Horizon for a night of pugilistic spectation. We made a stop at Jim's Steaks on South Street for cheesesteaks and then to the "Blue."
We had seats 1 row off ringside( when you sit too close you get splattered with spit and sweat.)
We watched some excellent fights and saw some stunning knockouts. My son and his buddies loved the night. However, the pinnacle of the evening came when I had a chance to get the kids photographed with "Fast Eddie" Chambers. Chambers is the next World Champion Heavyweight challenger..he is slated to fight Vladimir Klitschko in March. The picture is featured above.
Being a manager I know most of the Players in the local fight game so I was able to arrange this photo-op when Chambers arrived. The kids were in awe...of Chambers..and I think somewhat of me as well since I knew him and his trainer and manager and was able to get the shot. So, I could have simply bought my kid some expensive present..instead I spent the time with him and hopefully created a lasting memory. One can only hope that when he is a father himself,and perhaps long after I am gone, he will have a great memory of a night with his old man when he met "The Champ"...now if fast Eddie can only win the Title...that is subject for another post.
By the way...my son is the handsome young man front and center in the photo.

2010 Olympic Winter Games

In just over one week the Winter Olympic games will commence in British Columbia. My wife and I took the kids to Salt Lake for the Winter Games in 2002 and had planned on going this year as well. Things did not work out and we will be watching them on TV like the rest of you.
This writer believes that the Winter Olympics are the more exciting of the two Seasonal games ...why? Well name me an event in the Summer Games in which you could easily be killed...in the Winter games there are several. It is this risk and speed that makes for such great Sport and spectating. For our US team, Lindsey Vonn will certainly be the media darling and has real chances for medals in more than 1 event. Bode Miller, the iconoclastic son of New England Hippies and an serious skier...will try again for Alpine Gold after a bad showing in Italy in 2006 and only a Silver in Down Hill Combined in Utah in 2002 (Which we witnessed in front row seats!)
We can all watch the break neck speeds of 2 and 4 man Bobsleds as well as K-90 Ski Jumps, the grace and artistry of skating, the excellent hockey on international size rinks. It really is inspiring to see these athletes from all over the World competing on an International stage for personal and National glory. So,for two weeks this Winter we can watch something really special each evening in the realm of Winter Sports! Go USA!!!

End of the Season

Saturday was the final day of waterfowl season in Delaware. As is our Club tradition, we held a Continental/Release Shoot and lunch for members and guests.
In the morning, several members, including myself, ventured out in frigid weather to the Duck Blinds to hunt ducks.Nothing like going out in a boat in 15 degree weather, in the dark, to set out the decoys.
At 11:00 a.m. 19 guns headed to the field for the Continental Shoot. Just as we marshalled for the shoot it began to snow. The snow got heavier throughout the shoot and made for some adverse conditions for both dog and shooter. Nevertheless, we all had good fun and good shooting.
After the Shoot, we retired to the Clubhouse for a splendid buffet of steaming hot pulled pork sandwiches, Texas style brisket, smoked kielbasa, corn bread and greens...all washed down with good beer and whiskey. The crew included members,friends, guests, daughters and sons, and everyone enjoyed the sport and the camraderie.
It is depressing when the season ends...although Snow Goose is still open and we plan to get in at least one hunt for those "sky-carp." Now we look forward to the opening of Dove Season in September with fishing and other outdoor pursuits keeping us occupied for the next several months. As for me, that includes the start of Lacrosse season and my Coaching duties as well as the Spring Steeplechase Season.