The year of the EIGHT keeps going. We took Dylan to K1 racing for her 20th birthday party and had a blast. I took home the crown but it wasn’t without sacrifice and hard work!! HAHA! I captured this on my new FLIP cam, next time I have to figure out how to mount it on my helmet;) One last big happy birthday to my youngest sister DYLAN! All the best in the upcoming year!
Definitely not a “NEW” concept but one I can affirm. In his interview Stephen A., Kobe touches on the reason he believes the Lakers didn’t get past Celtics in the 2008 NBA Championship…DEFENSE. The Celtics, according to Kobe, were a better defensive team and hence stopped the Lakers and became World Champs.
Being a competitive athlete I am constantly observing how people compete, what makes teams win, how others approach their profession, all with the intent to better myself and my game. I remember watching the Celtics team last year and their tenaciousness was evident. I have always admired Kevin Garnett because of his passion and intensity. He wears his heart on a sleeve and makes no apologies for it. The Celtics, by direction of coach Doc Rivers adopted a team motto that established a culture and set of values within that highlighted the group over the individual. “Ubuntu” was the word which roughly translates to “I am, because we are.” It was highly publicized and the Celtics themselves reiterated its importance at the 2008 ESPYs winning the Team Award.
Tonight we faced Montenegro who we lost to last week 3-0. For us to avoid elimination in the CEV European Cup, we had to win 3-0 and then, if we could accomplish that, we had to win a “Golden Set” to 15! AND WE DID IT!!! The match was off the hook! Our team played the most intense game all season and it was a great change from our recent struggles. So we will advance to the next round and play against Almeria, Spain in January.
Tonight’s scores: 4:0 (25:17, 25:17, 25:17, 15:12)
Remodel and additions…Check out the HOME PAGE and ACCESS VOLLEYWOOD for new videos, pictures and information.
With the growing popularity of our sport and America’s recent success at the Beijing Games, a professional league in the states is back on the radar. Sure, many before us have tried and failed at it only adding to the negative sentiment and pessimism that lingers around volleyball reaching a more mainstream position in the US. Admittedly, its hard to use many European clubs as working business models seeing as how they operate in large part as vehicles of money laundering for other corporations (allegedly). The Italian league is probably most like a professional league that we would see in the states. From all that I know, the Italian Clubs are “for-Profit” and money making entities. It helps that they have 8 out of 10 homes in their country tuning in to volleyball regularly on TV.
However, Russia is an entirely different story. This being my second year in this league, I have always wondered what makes this league tick. How is it possible that there are 12 teams, each with annual budgets over $10 million, all without selling a single ticket of admission. SI featured an article this week on Russia, sports and the billionaires that are in the middle of it all. It hits the nail on the head and rings true from my vantage point here in Novosibirsk. To view the article, click the above thumbnail photo of the mag. Oh, and if anyone has an “in” with Mark Cuban, see if you can set up a meeting…I still believe professional Volleyball can make it on American soil!
What is worse than losing? Losing without gaining…losing without taking something away. It is no secret that Lokomotiv has had a tumultuous first half of the season. That on the heels of the greatest summer of my competitive career. Three and a half months following our Gold Medal run, I wish I was still BBQing with friends and family in fits of glee and celebration. Meanwhile, another match, another goal, another team. I find myself physically and mentally fatigued, at a crossroad between embracing what’s here to learn or just lean on past accomplishments. Mental fatigue is a sneaky foe. Its messes with the ability to concentrate on the little things, and it interrupts focus. At the highest levels of sport, many would say that the mental game is where the match is won or lost. So here I am…soul searching and ready to embrace all there might be around the next corner hoping to become a more well rounded player.
We are on a 10 day road trip to destinations with little or no internet connection. Today we are heading to Serbia for a CEV match and then back to Russia to play Yarolslav on the weekend. I hope to be connected this week but uncertain. In the meantime, there are exciting new changes on the website. Be on the lookout for them throughout the site. We have created a “Table of Contents” on the homepage for easy navigation throughout the site. Check it out and there is more media coming in the next week to 2!! All the best, Reid.
The Final Four of the Cup didn’t go as we had hoped. We continue to struggle scoring “Real Points” and stay on the same page as a group for the duration of the match. We have some clear weakness that are no secret to our opponents and they seems to be exploiting them relentlessly. With that said, it was a bit embarrassing to be awarded the weekend MVP after losing both matches. But I am thankful and stoked on the bonus!
