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Thread: All Sports All The Time

  1. Link to Post #281
    Administrator Mark (Star Mariner)'s Avatar
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Yep, a truly thrilling win. I wish I too could put it into words, but it's hard to explain, especially to those who don't follow or even understand cricket. 378 as a fourth innings chase is something that just doesn't happen. It's actually England's highest ever chase down in test history (which goes back to 1877), so that should put it in some context.

    England haven't been that bad however, ranking usually somewhere in the middle of the world's test-playing nations, but did manage to hold top spot for over a year in around 2012. But the last couple of years have been bad, making this a spectacular turnaround. And I think you're right Bill when you suggest confidence has played a huge role in that, because like almost any other sport success or failure is largely determined by attitude, by courage and grit. It is arguably more important than raw talent and skill. Cricket has its own word for this: "form" (as in the manner or behaviour of one's performance). In Cricket, form is paramount, and it just so happens that under new management (and new captaincy) England's form has sky-rocketed.

    Here are the highlights of yesterday's epic comeback against India. This set the stage for securing final victory this morning. Those outside the UK may need a VPN.


    And if you're struggling to understand what on earth Bill and I are talking about, this should help:


    "When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace."
    ~ Jimi Hendrix

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    The final match of the Battle At The Berrics tournament was uploaded to YouTube today. Previously (a few days ago), it was uploaded as part of a finals vid which included 4 matches (games). It was aired live on only some app — Caffeine — which brought many critical comments in the YT. This final insult was on top of a lengthy progression of the series and some hiccups due to management choices.

    Anyway, according to the tenor of the comments today, it’s all good now. The young demographic of the website (The Berrics) seems to have gone back to enthusing about their favourite thing, and that company dodged a bullet (or a bad slam, in sk8-speak).

    The game, called SKATE, is generally (and here) played on flat ground, and this series has rules about some oddball tricks not being allowed and about how some fails will be judged (there is a referee). It works like this: at the start of each game, or match, the 2 contestants establish a starting order by rock-paper-scissors. The leader then starts performing examples of skateboard tricks which the follower attempts to emulate. If the follower fails, he or she (this tournament was all males) “gets a letter” through the 5 of the namesake game title. Fifth fail gets one do-over. As for the lead, that switches if the leader fails to land an example.

    One funny-haha thing about this BATB 12, is that the field started from four classes, each contributing a contestant to the finals. They were, Pros, Joes, Icons, and Influencers. Pros are current professional skateboarders, Joes are amazing nobodies/newcomers, Icons are still-skating great pros, and Influencers are just what that means. Instagram heavyweights lol. And guess which class the winner came from. Yup. Jamie Griffin, a rosy-cheeked Irish Instagram personality! Kind of shook my sensibilities about merit-based achievement. ~8O

    I have never done any of these tricks, but I do roll almost daily on a cruiserboard setup. When I started 15 years ago, in my later 40’s, I was already beat up by 10 years of falling off in-line skates. Since then, I’ve enjoyed watching vids and clips of it. Got introduced to Punk music by that, which I count as a blessing. And more, the skating and the editing/production very often serve to make the songs seem magical/more-poignant.



    Edit to add, an example of a sk8 vid where the music shines (I have this on DVD, gotta get me another player because I recall the other skaters’ parts being cool too):

    Last edited by Johnnycomelately; 11th July 2022 at 03:03.

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Too trivial to post on the WW3/Ukraine thread, but it definitely needs to be shared somewhere.

    'She lives in Moscow, her parents live in Moscow…. she's Russian!': Fury as tennis fans mock Wimbledon's ban on Russian players competing in this year's event after Moscow-born Elena Rybakina won her first Grand Slam title on Centre Court
    • Fans online have mocked Wimbledon's ban on Russian and Belarusian players
    • Moscow-born Elena Rybakina won the Ladies' Singles Final on Saturday
    • She was allowed to compete after choosing to represent Kazakhstan in 2018
    • Men's no.1 Daniil Medvedev was banned due to rules set by All England Club
    • She beat Tunisia's world No 2 Ons Jabeur 3-6 6-2 6-2 at a hot Centre Court

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  7. Link to Post #284
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    . . .
    Last edited by Bluegreen; 15th May 2023 at 03:17.

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  9. Link to Post #285
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    8.19, - almost 20 here, .22. Time for a break from the nasty side of life, threads filled with fear, maybe some real pain or difficult situations.

    Not really a sport, but it acts like one. Here’s a young man experienced at skateboarding “transition” and bombing hills, tackling “street” obstacles. And shining like a learning monster... woo hoo!

    Last edited by Johnnycomelately; 20th August 2022 at 21:22. Reason: Fix typo

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  11. Link to Post #286
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    I'm not sure if this could be categorized as a sport but it definitely shows "extreme" athleticism:

    'Athlete Of The Week - Dominic Di Tommaso'

    https://fb.watch/fz6shGkkmk/

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    NFL
    The NFL 2022/23 season has started last week.
    Every week you can find highlights of all games, right here:

    https://www.youtube.com/c/NFL/videos

    New York Jets v Cleveland Browns | 2022, Week 2 (15:27)
    One of the best games this week and it has everything that makes American Football such an exiting sport, once you get the hang of it.
    You Can't Talk and Listen at the Same Time

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Bob Burnquist, from Brazil iirc (been a decade since I read all about him). Also iirc, he pioneered these type of huge ramps, called megaramps.

    I have a set of his (branded) wheels on one of my boards. Hard wheels like street, but notably larger for control at high speeds. I never use this now, and never did do ramps (even ‘mini-ramps’). Was just a failed experiment, as big SOFT wheels are way better for cruising streets.

    As usual, disclaimer that skateboarding is NOT a sport, even though the f**king Olympics thinks so.

    Attachment 49631


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  17. Link to Post #289
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Quote Posted by Johnnycomelately (here)

    As usual, disclaimer that skateboarding is NOT a sport, even though the f**king Olympics thinks so.
    I don't mean to derail this thread, but, do you have any preferences for bearings for a street riding board? I spent $50 for some Swiss Bones brand bearings and they are absolute crap. My $12 generic brand bearings were 10x better.
    I am enlightened, ............ Oh wait. That's just the police shining their spotlights on me.

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  19. Link to Post #290
    Canada Avalon Member Johnnycomelately's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Quote Posted by Orph (here)
    I don't mean to derail this thread, but, do you have any preferences for bearings for a street riding board? I spent $50 for some Swiss Bones brand bearings and they are absolute crap. My $12 generic brand bearings were 10x better.
    Hi Orph. Yes, I hope folks will indulge us a brief chat.

    I quit buying skate shop bearings a long time ago, even the few types of up-market/priced sealed ones they carry.

    I have always skated regardless of most wet, though I now try not to roll through puddles. The solution I found was NSK (brand, Japanese?) model 608VV, bought from an industrial bearing store (Commercial Bearings here in Edmonton). 608 is the size, apparently initially spec’d for sewing machines, and VV means 2 seals. Price is about mid-range of what the sk8 shops sell.

    When I was reading everything about skating, my first few years, the ‘ABEC’ rating was touted concerning ‘precision’. The highest and most expensive was 5. These NSKs have no such rating, so I think that that is a mere marketing gimmick. Especially since wheel-surface friction/drag is always more than what bearings give. The seals themselves do give some friction initially, but that goes away as they wear in.

    My current bearings (and the whole setup) are at least 5 years old, and they are getting sloppy from wear and are about due for replacement. I have oiled them 3 times, with full synthetic engine oil (no disassembly, not even removing the wheels).
    Last edited by Johnnycomelately; 22nd September 2022 at 20:48. Reason: Typo

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  21. Link to Post #291
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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    https://twitter.com/AthleticsWeekly/...67721670262784


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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    More skating on curve walls (called transition, or tranny).

    Rune Glifberg’s Epic ‘In Transition’ Part
    18,435 views Sep 27, 2022

    The Berrics
    1.38M subscribers

    Quote Rune Glifberg, aka the Great Dane, took on Faelledparken in Copenhagen for our In Transition series. This edit ranks right up there with The Greatest Of All Time.
    I am happy to have supported him by buying a deck of his. Didn’t know of him then, bought it because “Made with Epoxy”. 5 years ago I bought it’s (still incipient) replacement, so six or seven years of showing off his good dog.

    Attachment 49670

    Last edited by Johnnycomelately; 29th September 2022 at 04:40.

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    3rd part up, of this roundwall series posted by Steve Berra’s and Eric Koston’s biz, The Berrics. A dozen years or so ago, I read an interview of Gonzalez, where he was all metal and satanish. Magazine asked him if he was interested in going to Heaven. “No, I don’t think so. I don’t want to hang with my aunties.”

    David Gonzalez's Gnarly 'In Transition' Part
    12,627 views Oct 4, 2022

    The Berrics
    1.38M subscribers

    For his incredible In Transition entry, David Gonzalez chose Houghton Skatepark in Long Beach, California. This park is the perfect match for David's speed, and provides some unique opportunities for linking his bat-out-of-hell lines together. This is the Greatest Of All Time.

    Last edited by Johnnycomelately; 5th October 2022 at 06:59.

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Is chess an Olympic sport yet? I hope so, or soon anyway. Would probably help, by osmosis (my lawyer told me I was learning LAW that way when he was on the phone during my dime lol), the regular athletes with their ‘mental games’, the crux of most heroic ‘sport’ achievements.

    <O/T> TIL that there are women’s chess leagues and championships. Wow. What is up with that? Learned that from ~1:30+ of the vid below. Haven’t got to the title click bait yet, been following this cheating allegation drama so it might be good.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_chess


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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    A very local, but still very remarkable, fairy-tale story.

    https://bbc.com/sport/football/63278500

    Tomi Morgan: Ex-Aberystwyth manager scores hat-trick (three goals in 11 minutes) on soccer comeback aged 65

    Former Wales semi-professional striker Tomi Morgan rolled back the years with an 11-minute hat-trick - at the age of 65.

    He was a prolific goalscorer in his playing days for Aberystwyth Town and was the club's manager in the first season of the League of Wales in 1992.

    Morgan has been involved with Central Wales Southern Division side Penparcau's coaching team since 2020.

    Penparcau were short of numbers for a cup game away to Welshpool reserves, meaning Morgan had to be named as substitute.

    He had been running the line during the first half before he was called upon to make his competitive comeback, having been retired for what he described as "decades".

    "It was a bit of a surprise for myself to be honest," Morgan told BBC Sport Wales.

    "I was the only substitute and our goalkeeper got injured so I had to go and play in the second half.

    "My first thoughts were not to get injured and to keep out of trouble because we were coasting to victory at half-time anyway.

    https://twitter.com/FcPenparcau/stat...05204779020288


    "It was harder work than what it used to be back in the day but I went on just to enjoy it."

    Penparcau were already leading 6-0 in the J Emrys Morgan Cup third-round tie when Morgan came on for the second half.

    Within 10 minutes of the break Morgan had scored his opening goal and went on to complete his hat-trick in 11 minutes.

    "We were on top and creating chances and fortunately a few dropped for me in the six-yard box and I managed to put them away," added Morgan, who managed Welshpool in the Cymru Premier.

    "It was a bit of a surprise for the lads and they enjoyed it because I've been telling them for years what a prolific goalscorer I was but half of them weren't born when I was in my prime."

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    I am surprised and a little disappointed that no one has mentioned the retirement of Roger Federer, the ultimate ‘class act’ (John McEnroe):
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQU95o03yo0
    https://www.atptour.com/en/news/roge...ement--tribute
    https://lavercup.com/news/2022/09/24...down-the-house


    Regarding the current situation in chess, the Niemann saga highlights, once again, a major issue facing the alternative media, namely that anything too far ahead of current science will be seen as magic, or in contemporary langage, cheating. Either the guy has the benefit of AI, or he is a genius in his field, implying unpredictable talent that no amount of computer analysis can adequately explain. At this level, cheating is always a possibility, debunking becomes a profession, and the jury is permanently out.


    Alternatively, a ‘class act’ in tennis is probably the closest you will get to ruling out any kind of cheating. How did he win that point/match/tournament? He couldn’t possibly have cheated : no drug can explain what he did to that ball. Natural talent? There is some kind of hard-wiring for everything up to and including tennis? Hard work and practice, to be sure, but these alone are not enough, because the Stakhanovites of this world do not make the cut. It has to be connected to the man, who/what he is with others, family, friends, fans… Roger Federer is an outstanding human being, a team player in an individual sport: his best friend is his ‘arch-enemy’ Rafa Nadal; go figure.
    There are class acts in every walk of life. Only a few have such a high profile. Nadal is another.


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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    My fav climber just did an epic traverse in the Red Rock area near Vegas. Alex Honnold. “32 hours, 35 miles, 23 summits, 14 classic rock routes, and 24,000 feet of vertical gain”. No ropes (“free soloing”), and with a handful of friends for support.

    I love his boldness, and also his character. And I love the love and support of his friends (including his woman, who volunteered him to carry their new daughter the final walk to the vehicles).

    Print article, no paywall:

    https://www.climbing.com/news/alex-h...the-real-deal/

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Some wildly entertaining clips from the inimitable Brian Clough, no-nonsense manger of Derby County and Nottingham Forest and self-proclaimed "Old Big 'Ed".

    Quote I couldn't compromise to save my life


    Interview with Clive Anderson circa 1994



    Classic 1974 debate with Leeds United boss Don Revie (these guys detested each other, yet remain gentlemen throughout)



    Clough having a pop at newspaper proprietors Robert Maxwell and Rupert Murdoch



    Clough on the Saint & Greavsie show, 1988



    Brian Clough vs Muhammad Ali

    Last edited by happyuk; 1st November 2022 at 21:14.

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    South Africa vs Netherlands - Full Highlights - ICC T20 World Cup 2022 - Nov. 6 (9:30)
    Unbelievable!. What a win that is for Netherlands. Not only them and their fans but the whole of Pakistan and Bangladesh will be celebrating along with them. The two now have a chance to make it through to the semis out of nowhere. The South African fans are in disbelief. They were overwhelming favorites heading into this encounter but have come out second best. The Dutch overcame the odds & have knocked South Africa out of the tournament. They have actually played as party spoilers.

    I watched the match live and the Netherlands were really brilliant. Super concentrated. South Africa should have been warned because we already had beaten Zimbabwe a couple of days ago, but it's always difficult to take a team like the Netherlands as serious as for example India, so they started the match with the wrong attitude and you can almost never adjust that mindset during a game.

    For the Netherlands their victory also means they are already qualified for 2024 T20 World cup, being 4th in the group.
    Last edited by Richter; 6th December 2022 at 05:47.
    You Can't Talk and Listen at the Same Time

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    Default Re: All Sports All The Time

    Quote Posted by Bill Ryan (here)
    A challenge here (for me ). I'm going to try to explain to our North American and European friends what the heck has just happened to the England cricket team.

    Books will be written and films made about the overnight transformation from several years of being cricket's laughing stock, the subject of derision and insults from despairing fans, to suddenly the most feared team in the world. And this is all about the Human Condition.

    Like baseball, cricket can easily all be about endless statistics. But I'll skip all that. The only one that matters here was that England had won just one match in 17 before this summer. There had been endless calls for the captain to resign and for there to be a wholesale change in the entire management structure.

    Eventually, that had to happen. To everyone's surprise, the new coach of the team was appointed as Brendon McCullum, a former New Zealand cricketer who had never coached an international team before but who was famous for being a super-positive, super-aggressive, super-confident sportsman, and also a universally liked and respected super-nice guy.

    It was an inspired appointment. The entire demeanor of the team was transformed, and dramatically too. All the players, desperately lacking confidence themselves, became instantly infected with McCullum's charisma. While McCullum was familiar to every cricket fan everywhere, no-one thought such a thing could be possible.

    The change was near-magical, the stuff of Boy's Own comics 100 years ago. In three recent matches against New Zealand, England won every one of them, with a super-confident, super-aggressive approach that had records tumbling and commentators increasingly lost for words.

    And right now, as I write this, they're playing India, who I've written about before on this thread as themselves an inspired, never-say-die team brimming with confidence and talent.

    They've not quite beaten India yet, but they 100% definitely will, literally just a couple of minutes from now. Their achievement will have broken even more records, some of them major, longstanding ones, and challenged even more cricket writers to find adequate superlatives.

    The English fans, now drunken with ecstatic delirium, have renamed the team's game as Bazball, a joke playing on Brendon McCullum's name.

    I welcome anyone else who's been following all this to explain it all a little better. But it deserves the mention here because it's arguably one of the most extraordinary transformations seen in international sport, and their record-breaking victory today, even after all the dramatic fireworks against New Zealand last month is very, very hard to believe.
    More about Bazball.

    But the following, too, may be hard to explain to anyone who's not familiar with cricket.

    England's new captain, Ben Stokes — supported all the way by heroic game-changer Brendon McCullum — about an hour ago scripted another victory that would best belong in a Boy's Own comic of the 1930s.

    The English batters, in two innings, scored a massive 921 runs, but that not in itself another record. But the rate at which they scored it was: 6.71 runs for every 6 balls bowled at them, from start to finish.

    That's way way faster than in the entire 145-year history of international 5-day cricket, featuring 2,478 matches.

    For baseball fans, a sport in which fractional differences in averages are significant, this is a little like a team doubling the number of home runs hit, and maintaining that for days. It's completely unheard of.

    Then, Ben Stokes stopped their second innings before it was finished, setting the Pakistani side an entirely gettable target to win. But that very bold move also allowed the English bowlers enough time — maybe — to bowl out all the Pakistani batsmen.

    "We're not afraid to lose", said Stokes.

    The entire cricketing world started to pay close attention, holding its breath. And in the dying minutes of the 5-day game, England won. The sports writers could barely find words to describe what had happened.

    In summary — as I tried to explain in my quoted post above — this is all about leadership, courage, and believing the impossible can be achieved. It's a metaphor that extends way beyond cricket. And the laughed-at underdogs of the cricketing world are now the most feared team that there is.
    Last edited by Bill Ryan; 5th December 2022 at 13:16.

  40. The Following 5 Users Say Thank You to Bill Ryan For This Post:

    jasontorque (5th December 2022), kudzy (5th December 2022), Mark (Star Mariner) (6th December 2022), Richter (6th December 2022), Tintin (9th December 2022)

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