MERRY CHRISTMAS

From Kohawk TENNIS

We hope your Christmas is especially wonderful, and that your time with friends and family is fantastic, fun and fulfilling!

Winter has arrived!(but not in Vernon, TX)

Wintertime descended upon Cedar Rapids yesterday......

 ...and Coe got a good dusting of snow!

But Coach Brad fled the State on Monday.....

 Vernon TX

Today

Sunny

High: 61 °F

....but left his Truck here

  ....one would have thought that a "Good" Texan would take better care of his Truck!!!

Empty Monday

Back in CR, back to RC....and back to Work

Where did all the Players go?
     (Oh, yeah. Home for the next month)

Hope they ALL took their racquets and running shoes home.
     (But didn't I see the racquets and shoes of the Men's Captain upstairs in the Tennis Lounge?)

Where was I?
     Annual Winter Walkabout-Gatlinburg TN

Hiked in rain, in a dusting of snow, up and down hills, and all around town. About 45 miles.

 

 

Semester's End

December is often a time to look back and celebrate many of our greatest accomplishments from the year. I know this to be true because I throw up a little in my mouth each time I see a “year end, top ten, best” list (you know what I’m talking about). December is also a time to celebrate the end of a long semester of school work. For those who are fall graduates it’s an especially exciting time where there is no school next semester and also no job.

Even Spiderman?

In all this celebrating we have left out one key person: Me. Last week I passed a milestone of my own sorts with the completion of my master’s thesis. In celebration I’m going to regale you with the tale of how my thesis came about and in the process make you never want to attend graduate school.

In my graduate program there are two tracks students can take for graduation. They can either do a thesis or an internship. I want to be clear about this, although there are two choices, EVERY STUDENT DOES AN INTERNSHIP. I knew this just as well as all my classmates who DID AN INTERNSHIP. I, however, decided to go against the wisdom of the masses and elected for the thesis route. My professors tricked me into doing a thesis by slyly asking if I wanted to do a thesis

They tricksyed us!

Looking back, this conversation was kind of like those bad horror movies where the dumb protagonists go inside the scary house even though we all know it’s a terrible idea. When asked if I wanted to do a thesis I should have said, “NO!” But I didn’t. I willingly went into the scary house to be decapitated.

That summer I did preliminary research which involved reading journal article after journal article for a few hours every day. Most people would probably think just a few hours a day doesn’t sound too bad but you try deciphering what “long axis rotation: the missing link in proximal-to-distal segmental sequencing” means. It’s not fun. After doing this all summer I planned on conducting my experiments in mid-October.

October came and went and I had done no experiments. I cannot stress how slow things move in academia. It’s slow, slow, very very slow. In order to conduct my experiments, I needed to get subjects which I couldn’t do without university approval which I couldn’t do without finalizing my design which I couldn’t do without my thesis committee’s approval and on and on and on. With the help of my professors I did come up with a title: The Effect of a Three Set Tennis Match on Knee Kinematics and Leg Muscle Activation During the Tennis Serve.

The excitement is palpable

I did eventually get my experiments set up. Unfortunately, they were during the last two weeks of the school year in December which led to no small levels of stress on me during this time. If I had been a coffee drinker at this time I would have died from a caffeine overdose. Now you might think that conducting the experiments would be the toughest part of a thesis; after that, everything is pretty much done. I thought the same thing but I was so, so wrong. Once the experiments are done everything else doesn’t just magically fall into place.

I filmed people playing tennis and then later digitized certain parts of the serve in order to analyze what was actually happening during the serve. Digitizing is BORING! And I had 300 videos to digitize. It took two weeks of me sitting at a computer with blood pouring from my eyes to finish digitizing all these videos. After I had completed this, I really felt I had turned a corner and was close to completion. I was wrong again. Next came more analysis, and more analysis, and just to change things up I did some more analysis. By this time I was done with this the spring semester was over.

Then came the writing. Now I had written my introduction the previous fall so by the time I came back around to writing the rest of the paper I had forgotten what I said in my introduction! On most days the writing went fairly well but there were some weeks that made me long for a truck to run me over. It’s not a great feeling when after 3 hours of revising and writing you have added a grand total of two lines to your thesis, or even worse, have negatively added to the length of your paper.

Then came formatting the paper which was the most frustrating part of the whole experience. I’m no computer genius, but I feel I have a decent grasp of how computers work and I’ve been using word processors since I was a little kid. Apparently Microsoft Word was programmed by the devil in an attempt to make everyone hate their lives. I spent a whole day trying to get the page numbers to work correctly. A whole day! The table of contents? I still don’t know how I ever got that to work. Most likely I promised fealty to someone and naming rights to my first born.

Word Processor Developer

After everything was written and my desire to jump in front of a truck had been abated, it was time for my thesis defense. This is when a student presents their thesis to their committee and defends what they have done. If the committee accepts the thesis the student gets to graduate, but if they don’t accept the thesis, then the student spends the next 12 months crying themselves to sleep at night. My defense lasted two and a half hours! While this is a long time it was actually fun and exciting. When you get five nerds in a room to talk about science, we can go for a long time. “So that’s really exciting. The graph shows Median Power Frequency of the biceps femoris was actually increasing along the vertical axis…

I did have to make a few corrections after my thesis defense. No biggie. These would only take me another four months to complete. From the time I started work on my thesis to its completion and final acceptance last week was a total of 18 months. And what has this experience taught me (other than my affinity for wanting to jump in front of moving vehicles)? Not much that I can see. Only an in depth knowledge of serving biomechanics, proper experimental design, proper documentation of experiments, motion capture technology, muscle function with regards to fatigue, ball flight mechanics, participant recruitment, statistical testing, Microsoft Word, academic processes, perseverance, determination, and the will to succeed. 

Yeah, it probably wasn't worth it.

Runner's World

During the summer of 2009 I re-started my reading career which had been dormant since Middle School, a time I fondly reminisce about by sticking a knife in a light socket (they were both about as much fun).

Since I started reading again, I have loaned several books to friends from the Brad Fenter Library. Outliers; A Walk in the Wood; Plain, Honest, Men; all of these books have been handed out along with several others. The Social Animal has my record for most times checked out and is currently in a different time zone. Last week I received a checkout request from Kris, but the choice of book was left up to me. Since Kris and I share a similar passion for exercise and fitness, it was a no-brainer to choose Born to Run. This book is one of my favorites as I have previouslydiscussed, and I felt she would enjoy it as much as I would. What I did not know was that within two days of starting the book Kris would begin barefoot running, get into an argument with the salesman from Dick’s over minimalist shoes, and order her own pair of Vibram Five-Fingers.

I've created a Monster

Since running has been on everyone’s mind lately I would like to present my top runs from this past year. This list is not in any order, it’s simply a chronicling of the places where a few of my favorite runs from this past year have taken place.

Vedauwoo, Wyoming

Elevation: 8,000 ft

Shoes Worn: Brooks Cascadia Trail Runners

Vedauwoo (pronounced Veda-voo) is a rocky outcropping of Sherman Granite east of Laramie, Wyoming. Besides camping, biking, and hiking, Vedauwoo has some of the best crack climbing routes in the country. I must confess I knew as much about this place as you probably did before reading this post: nothing.

A friend suggested Vedauwoo as a good place to stop for a run, otherwise I would have never heard of this place. There was virtually no one there which I immensely enjoyed. I attributed the lack of people  at Vedauwoo to the fact that I was there on a Tuesday afternoon and most people have to work…or it could have been the simple fact that I was in people-starved Wyoming and my presence there brought up the state population a whole percentage point

You may have noticed the posted elevation of 8,000 feet. If you think this is a little high for doing any running, let me just say you are correct. There was a marked difference in my ability to breath compared to my usual running experiences. I assumed it was because of the lack of oxygen. Looking back it could have been the 6 hours and 1,000 miles of traveling I had done that day. While the elevation did have a small effect on my run; I only encountered one real problem during my run. When I first started on the trail I was enjoying the scenery and soaking in my new surroundings, “Look at those rock formations. Man, this place is beautiful and that view is awesome! I wonder…” BOOM!

I face planted into the trail! I decided that I really wanted to be one with nature and the only way to facilitate that was by inserting my face in it. My running partner can attest to this incident and the fact that I was soaking in too much of my surroundings to stay upright.

I love nature!

You may be wondering why this makes my top list since I was tired, couldn’t breath, and got personally acquainted with the trail. Short answer: the place had some unique and beautiful vistas, and anytime you got tired of trail running, you could explore the granite rocks (apparently running without any safety measures high above the ground is great fun).

Sac & Fox Trail, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Elevation: 810 ft

Shoes Worn: New Balance Minimus 20

The Sac and Fox trail is a run I love to do right here in Cedar Rapids. Coach Rodgers directed me here so I could get away from asphalt trails, and I have been visiting the place ever since. The trail is crushed limestone which is much easier on the knees than concrete or asphalt – I’m not as young as I once was. Also, the trail has some nice views of the Cedar River which the trail follows for a few miles. I know looking at rivers may be mundane to people from Cedar Rapids who have seen a river every day of their lives, but I absolutely love them. In Texas, a river is that stretch of sand that meanders through the landscape where water once flowed at some point in history (probably the same time Coach Rodgers was young).

My favorite part about running at the Sac & Fox trail can be summed up from this picture.

Muddy parking lots?

The trail isn’t exactly crowded, especially during week days. You may notice a pattern emerging here; all my favorite runs are at places that are devoid of other human beings. I have run the Sac & Fox trail enough that now when I do see other people there I almost get angry. “What are they doing here? Don’t they know this is my trail?”

When I started running this trail is also when I started wearing my New Balance Minimus shoes. It took a few runs for my body to acclimate to the new footwear (2 months of intense calf pain), but now I can run as much as I want without any knee problems. This has invariably led to more smugness on my part as I see other people huffing along, heel striking, in their big running shoes.

Wheeler Canyon, Utah

Trailhead Elevation: 4,840 ft

Shoes Worn: Brooks Cascadia Trail Runners

It was probably a small miracle that I ever found my way to this trail. Before this run I was in Ogden, Utah which sits just west of Wheeler Canyon. My friend and I wanted to go for a run but had no idea where anything was since this was our first time there. Me being the way I am, I refused to ask anyone about local trails because that would require social interaction with others and that was not happening. “This is my vacation! You mean I still have to talk to people?” Luckily my friend did not share in my scorn for other living, breathing human beings and engaged in the job of finding local running trails (She was so excited to have a friend like me). The winning bid came from a cashier at an outdoor clothing store who said, “take the highway east up the mountain, I think about 15 miles. Before you get to the reservoir there’ll be a turn off. Don't worry it's marked. No wait, maybe it's not...I’m not sure if it’s marked. Anyway, you’ll walk a short distance through the trees and you’ll find the trailhead. If you get to the reservoir you’ve gone too far.”

Oh thanks, Google Maps couldn’t have given better directions. After a few failed attempts, we finally found the trailhead and started our run. This being a mountainous region, the whole first half of the run was uphill. I know that sounds awful (it was a little bit) but the scenery was amazing. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the temperature was in the high 70s as we followed the snaking trail up the canyon through dense tree cover.  Eventually, we turned back when the trial began a series of switchbacks as it climbed higher up the mountain – okay, you win this one nature. The nice thing about the second half of the run was that it was all downhill. It only takes a Disney level knowledge of gravity to figure out going down was much easier than going up. We even managed to find a small clearing and did the day’s ab workout right there next to the trail.

Rocks: nature's yoga mat

Working out, running, great weather; these all contributed to this trail making the list, but the best part about this run was the solitude it offered – I know, you’re shocked. During our entire time on the trial I did not see one other human being besides the friend with me. Obviously, this would be bad if, say, I longed for nature’s embrace again but this time took a dive face first into the rocks protruding from the canyon stream. But to you I say, “Stop being such a Debbie Downer, I was fine. I’ll bet those views from your couch were breathtaking.” Plus, my mother worried plenty enough for everyone, trust me. 

Fill in the Blanks....

Nonsense & drivel from the HC......

SLOW times around here. Last week of classes, finals next week. Still tennis players on a daily basis tho!

Coach Kris on Vacation to Peachtree City, GA

I'm headed out Saturday to Indiana. Then, depending on weather, to Great Smoky Mountain National Park for a much needed hiking fix.

Coach Brad to Texas for Winter Break on 12/17. Look out Lone Star State!

An Old Friend from Tennis Days Gone By checked in this week via email. Good to hear from Glen. Mr Barnes had one of the all time great quotes: "if the ball didn't go in the court, you didn't hit it hard enough!" Glen was of course known all across Southern Indiana and Kentucky for his on court consistency and touch. NOT!

Have also heard from another Old Friend from Tennis Days Gone By.....BP checked in frequently in November and he and I may have an exciting announcement coming up in January. Stay tuned!

Coach Kris and I continue to work on the upcoming 2013 Central Region NCAA D3 Tennis Rankings. Men's Teams are now set in an order 1-100 based on their 2012 results. Same for Women's teams #1-50.
Kenyon and Chicago are obvious #1's.....can you guess the #100 team?

Flyover State of Mind

It’s Thursday, once again, which usually means it's time for me to hand out my weekly dose of judgment. I didn’t post last week due to the annual November festival dedicated to uncomfortable gatherings of people and gluttonous living. That’s right, I’m talking about Black Friday. Now, I’m sure most of you are probably expecting me to double down this week in my righteous, judgmental wrath against Andy Murray (I was expecting that too), but experiences last week have necessitated we take a different path today.

Next week Murray! You'll get our vengeance and furious anger!

Last week I, and several Coe players, were delayed at the airport in our attempts to go home over the holiday break. This is my story of that time.

Before we can talk about what did happen, I need to explain what should have happened. What my plans were.  I was supposed to fly to Texas Tuesday evening. Wednesday, I planned to meet some friends in Dallas and go on a super-extravaganza winter shopping spree that culminated in visiting Coach Rodgers’ favorite store, REI which happens to be where one of my friends works (it helps to have friends in the right places). Thursday would be Thanksgiving with the family, and Friday would be spent at a high school football game and then more time with friends. It was going to be a great holiday break.

That is what was supposed to happen. It’s time, now, for the story of what actually happened. You all know how this story ends: failure. It’s how we get to that failure that I will tell you about. We are going on a journey, you and I, into the depths of our selves and what we learn here will go with us forever (or at least for the next few moments). Welcome to therapy; coping with travel anguish. Get ready to lay down on the couch and tap into your emotions because it's time to deal with a little grief through the psyche of Brad Fenter.

Our story begins, as so many of these often do, with a gathering that has great promise. I arrived at the airport at the appointed time and ran into several tennis players making their way home (Mark Kroll, Alex Leovic, and Diannah Watson). We were all getting ready for our journeys home. For Mark and Diannah this was their first college Thanksgiving, and it was marked with all the travel and excitement of seeing family that many students encounter every year. For others like Leo and me, this was standard fare that we have become accustomed to every year.

Right now, there is only the promise of a journey for each of us that will lead to family and friends over a holiday celebrated across the nation. Obviously, our trip now begins to takes downward turn.

My flight was running a few minutes behind, but  there wasn’t any cause for worry. The gate agent said the plane would be landing in six minutes and then we would be boarded quickly. As we walked onto the aircraft I could see that not only had the sun set, but there was a darkness seemingly sprawling out across the plains. Darkness is a natural occurrence with the onset of night, but that always comes from the east. This crawling void was coming from the wrong direction. Others too must have felt something was wrong, and I could hear them asking the pilots about the weather. The pilots seemed nonplussed, “visibility is still good and we have a good window to get you to Dallas.” If the guy flying the plane thought everything was fine, then that was good enough for me.  

Unfortunately, other forces were conspiring against us as well. When everyone was buckled in and we were ready to push back it must have occurred to the crew that our plane hadn’t been refueled! So we waited as the fuel truck pulled up and the process of fueling the plane began (when I say “process” I really mean it).  It was almost comical how slow the guy fueling the plane was. If this was a movie, audiences would complain that the ineptitude of the fuel person was overplayed in order to perpetuate the plot. I spent most of this time hoping it was this guys first day because he was lacking in the energy department. It took 5 MINUTES for him to get the gas cap off - which incidentally is located on top of the wing of this plane. Then pump, and pump, and pump some more. When taking on 7,000 lbs of fuel it takes a little longer to fil-er-up than your average Civic. And no, I'm not exaggerating that number at all, 7,000 lbs is the amount the pilot specified to me when I asked how long it was going to take Humpty Dumpty to finish the job.

He's just as fast as he looks

At every moment of our lives our mind is taking in and storing more information than we could ever be consciously aware of. I've flown enough to know, subconsciously at least, when things aren't going right. I like to watch the workers on the tarmac go about readying the plane for takeoff. When something is wrong, in flying and everything else, people have a different feel to them. What is this feeling? I can't tell you, but my brain (and yours) is hardwired to pick up on these things. Whatever the cues were, everyone on that plane probably felt the same sense of foreboding I talked about when boarding earlier. The delay, the clouds, the subtle change in the cadence of the workers; it all served to heighten our senses and inform us that something was awry.

Like many times before, our senses were dead on. Those extra 10 minutes molasses man cost us with his less than sublime handling of the fuel happened to be the last 10 minutes of good visibility as dense fog rolled in. Right after we were fueled and ready to roll we heard this, "this is the captain, it looks like visibility is too limited for takeoff. We're going to taxi out anyway and see if we can get out of here.” Spoiler alert: we didn't. We taxied out the end of the runway and waited.

During our time on the runway every passenger on the plane had to deal with the circumstances that had surrounded us.  I went through my own five stages of grief. My therapist? God.

And how does that make you feel? Angry?

5:15 pm Denial

Surely we're going to take off. They wouldn't taxi all the way out here if they didn't plan on taking off. The tower guys must see a break of some sort in the fog. Yeah, we're definitely going to get out of here at some point. That’s the only thing that makes sense.

I was playing down my knowledge that fog doesn’t usually lift until the sun comes up in the morning. In this stage I wasn’t ready to acknowledge this fact yet.

5:40 Anger

STUPID FOG! What the hell is fog anyway and how can we not take off in fog!? If you're flying at night, what's a little fog mean? It's still dark! It’s not like you’re going to have landmarks to go by during night flying anyway.

God, if we're going to get delayed is it too much to ask for a tornadic event to justify this? If not tornadoes, would a thunderstorm kill you!?

6:10 Bargaining

Okay God, at this point I'm willing to settle for a little precipitation to justify our continued not-flight status.

Either way, we'll get out of here at some point. You know, now that I think about it I don't even have to leave immediately. A few hour delay won't hurt as long as we get out of here tonight.

At this point I had actually made arrangements for a friend to pick me up in Dallas due to the delay. I my mind, things could actually work out much better than I had originally planned.

6:45 Depression

Captain, "we going back to the gate, you need to go to the ticketing counter and re-schedule."

As I made my way to the ticketing counter I assumed I would be placed on an early flight in the morning. This way I would still be able to do see all my friends and be with my family over Thanksgiving. I still couldn’t bring to the forefront of my mind the thought that there are a limited number of flights out of Cedar Rapids each day and with holiday travel many of these would be full.

While waiting in line I could hear other people in front of me settling for tickets on the earliest flights they could find which were still late tomorrow afternoon. My mind shut those thoughts out as well. I finally got my chance to see the ticket agent.

Ticket Agent: Let's see. The earliest flight I can get you on is tomorrow at 4:50pm.

Me: that's the earliest?

Panic was now rising in my mind. The two sides of my brain were at war. The rational side of me said there was nothing else to be done, and I knew all along this was a possibility. It was time to move on. The other side of me, the emotional side, still held on hope of getting back earlier. Still held onto the plan I had crafted over the last few weeks.

Ticket Agent: Yes that’s the first open flight we have tomorrow.

Me: Is there anything else? Any other airport close by?

I knew there was nothing else and so did the ticket agent.

Ticket Agent: I can extend your stay for another day if you want me to?

Finally my emotional side with it dreams and hopes capitulated. The battle was lost. Those who cannot adapt their plans to the changes around them do not survive.

Me: No, just give me the ticket. That's fine. I'm going to go sit in the corner and cry.

I now knew beyond any doubt I would not be flying home that night. I would not get to see my family. I would not get to see my friends in Dallas. And I would not get 30% off winter clothes on my shopping extravaganza!

In case you can't tell, EVERYTHING is cancelled

8:00 Acceptance

This stage took the longest find. The process began immediately but the final result came about of its own fruition no matter how much I wished it to occur sooner.  Like I said, it's as if we have two selves and our emotional controlling subconscious self does things for its own reasons and in its own time.

So, as I sat in my room after I had called my parents and my sister and my friends, whom I would not get to see, a realization came over me. A realization that I had known the entire time, but which my emotional side – as always – withheld until now: everything was going to be fine. I wished this feeling had been present from the beginning, as all of us do, but our inner self will not release this innate knowledge until we have earned it.

I should have been more accessible to changing my plans. One of the biggest problems in this situation was my determination to keep to the arbitrary schedule I had made. Even though there were events out of my control that could drastically change what was possible, I still held on to the thought that I was totally in control of my situation. I had recently read the book Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales in which he talks about adapting to our situations in order to survive. Making a plan is a good step, but you must be willing to change that plan based on changes in the environment around you. It was with a sense of irony that I realized I had just read extensively about adapting plans based on outside factors and then failed to do just that in my own situation.

The next day I did make it to Texas. I did see my friends. I did have Thanksgiving with my family. I did nearly everything that I had originally wanted to do; these events simply unfolded differently than I had originally planned. I even had an encounter with my old friend/nemesis coffee and was educated on the differences between a latte and cappuccino. I have no recollection of what these differences are, but the knowledge was good while it lasted.

This is apparently a cappuccino

I was scheduled to fly back to Iowa this past Monday and arrived at the airport at the scheduled time. The time to start boarding came…and went. And we were still sitting in the terminal. It’s okay, we’re probably going to start boarding any minute. A few more minutes passed and we still hadn’t boarded. This is no problem Brad, you are fully equipped to handle this situation. We’ll board soon, you’ll make it back to Iowa, and it’s not weird that you keep talking to yourself. Ten more minutes passed and there I sat. In the terminal. Unmoved. Okay we can do it that way too.

7:00am Denial

My First Two Miles....

Upon Brad's return from Thanksgiving in Texas, and with some down time on the horizon, I asked him  for 3 books from his collection; his choice.  He must have little faith in me because he showed up the next day with only 2:
1.  Born to Run (highlighted in a previous post of Brad's) and
2.  The Wave

I perused the first 4 chapters of the former whilst Brad worked out Noah, Curtis and Ryan.  They sauntered back into the office with revels of how Kohawk Tennis would benefit from their soon expected lottery winnings.  Didn't catch the news; did that pan out?

Quickly diverted Brad's attention back on topic.....the Tarahumara tribe, barefoot/minimalist shoes, etc. I was intrigued to say the least.  In part because of my first, and recent, injury/limitation attributed to the aging process.  Tendonitis in one of my knees.  Although a different injury, I related to the author's sought after, no limitations, ability to attain "SuperAthlete" status....or to at least, close the gap.

Detoured to Dick's Sporting Goods on my way home.  Asked the shoe sales manager to point me in the right direction.  He literally balked at what I first assumed was my novice approach (felt about as uncomfortable as Brad in a coffee shop, and questioned whether a true runner can spot one of it's own kind, and those who are not).

Not the case.....instead, he proceeded to rattle off facts/figures from his 20+ (informed me of that too) years of experience in the field......pointed to his Asics shoes as being the best in the industry....the need for support....blah, blah.  I literally stared at him like a deer caught in headlights and debated whether to turn and run like a true Tarahumaran would, or at the least, depart in embarrassment for having asked, and then been defeated.

Upon completing his rant, he said they carried a Merrell Glove, but would never carry Five Finger Shoes.  Dumbfounded for a few seconds, and in debate of the above stated options, I shyly asked him if he'd ever read Born to Run.  Only 4 chapters into the book, and with little knowledge as to my next statement/path, I braced for his answer.  "No."  (a sigh of relief)

I then asked to try on the Merrells that he had.  After bringing me the proper size, he returned to stocking a new display, with little concern for the outcome of my inquisitiveness.  Walked/jogged around their track trying to gauge the # of laps to complete a mile (a wide range but thinking between 42 and 66).  With only one pair of minimalist shoes on site, and no five finger shoes, decided it best to shop elsewhere.  Returned the shoes to said manager, thanked him and briefly talked hiking (his passion according to his nametag) in an attempt to regain some semblance of integrity, and confidence in being able to return to the store at some point.

And, I will have Brad accompany me the next time I set foot (pun intended) in Dick's shoe department.  Sick Brad, his 32 chapters of Born to Run knowledge, and kinesiology degree, on the angry (and hates life) salesman!  Anyone else want to witness that confrontation with me?

Sidetracked, sorry.  That all happened yesterday.  Am now 184 pages into the book.  Still enthralled.  Relate to both the tribe, and many other characters highlighted within.  Although I don't claim to be Born to Run (like the author asserts all of us are), I was certainly born to play.  I have always found peace in being on any type of athletic field/court....quite simplistic really.....like a Dick & Jane book, see ball, chase ball.....nothing is more symbolical of "how the world should be" than children at play.  This spirit is often sidelined and/or gets lost in the many details of life.  Nonetheless, "it" exists in me.

The "it" factor itself is discussed at length as Dr. Joe Vigil sits in observance of a Leadville Trail 100 race outlined in the book.  I became even more enthralled at this point since Coach Rodgers and I have discussed the "it" factor as it pertains to Kohawk Tennis on numerous occasions.  Is "it" inherent?  Can "it" be taught?  At one point, we even conjectured that one must have grown up with siblings to have some semblance of the notion.  (and I take measures to ensure Emmie has "siblings" in her life)

I will let you read the book to acquire insight into Dr. Vigil's own assessment of the "it" factor.  Intriguing to say the least!

Ok.  8:30 PM and as stated, 184 pages into the book.  Could no longer resist the urge/itch.  Intent on running barefoot myself.  With a sleeping child, darkness around me and the cold, decided my best option would be the treadmill.  A treadmill/fitness equipment (even a circular track for that matter) rebuts the "child at play" concept, but my options were limited.  In fact, if any indication of how little I use the treadmill that I have, the weight was still set at 220 (those who know me well, understand the implication).

Started at a walking pace, and with book in hand.  Form was abysmal.....in part because was trying to read at the same time.....and in part because was doing what have been trained to do....heel to toe.  As the book alludes to, your heel exists only to support you when upright and idle.  Still not sure whether walking falls into the category of upright & idle, or in motion?  Would be difficult to walk in a non heel to toe fashion?  Nonetheless, cranked up the conveyor belt and ran my first two barefoot miles!

Those experienced barefoot runners have "marvelous elasticity" in their feet.  I quickly felt my toes spreading to grip.  Lacking on the elasticity front myself, a burning sensation set in at the mid-point.  Surged forward despite, fully expecting there to be cracks in the skin upon completion.....after all, embracing pain, rather than fearing it, allows for growth!  See visions of myself playing barefoot tennis in the future.  At the least, Coach needn't worry about my marking his courts (except with maybe blood).

In sum, rather enjoyed the endeavor.  Upward and onward.  After I finish Born to Run.  ;)

Lastly, just as many of the concepts within Fit for Life fall back on common sense (why would humans drink cow's milk?), the minimalist shoe craze does the same.  In conjunction with simple engineering, I will leave you with the following thought/question: Why would you support an arch?

Thanksgiving!

Laura's family welcomed Shade (New Mexico) and Tamara (California) to their home for Thanksgiving! I will let the fact that they are drinking Dr. Pepper slide since it was a Holiday.....and I had my own fair share.

Kroll with his nephew.....

I cooked a turkey for the first time; most difficult part proved to be finding the giblet bag.  Had my parents, brother and Aunt Verla over for Thanksgiving dinner.  

5 Coe alums joined me Saturday evening to hang out, including tennis players Megan Fiala ('10) and Tom Jennings ('08).  Watched football.  Re-created the Egg Challenge observed on Master Chef.....Tom was hungry.

Monday HC Nonsense

A brief compilation of random brain activity during the world-wide Tennis Off-Season

.....Hope each and all of you enjoyed a tremendous Thanksgiving Holiday!

.....Welcome back to a Monday full of work, classes and reality!

.....Final couple of weeks of class activity for the semester here at Coe.

.....Over 60 High School Seniors have committed to play Tennis at NCAA D3 schools.

.....Weather (fog)  delayed departures for many of the Coe Tennis players traveling for Thanksgiving. Still making airport runs today.

.....Weather was strange: I went hiking on Thanksgiving Day in 65 degrees weather and shorts. Friday, I hiked in sub-30 degrees, 25mph winds, snow flurries, and 4 layers, gloves and hat. Such is the nature of November in the Midwest.

  Cox Hollow Lake in Governor Dodge SP, near Dodgeville, WI. Site of the 2012 Turkey Hike

.....Rankings Preview:  Once again, weekly Central Region rankings will be posted during the 2013 Tennis Season beginning on February 25th. This year, ALL 98 Central Region Men's teams will be ranked and 50 of the 106 Women's teams.

.....Baseball's Winter Meetings will take place in Nashville, TN December 3rd-6th. What will your favorite team do this off season?

.....On the Pro Tennis scene: only the ATP Challenger Tour Finals are left. Play begins in Sao Paulo, Brazil today. No Americans in singles.

 

Madeline Grace Louis!

Congratulations to the Louis family on the birth of their daughter, Madeline Grace.  Mitch ('97) sent a picture to Coach Rodgers with the following:

Hope you're ready to coach a second generation of Louis's!

Madeline Grace can't wait to make her first trip to CR and learn all about proper tennis because her daddy clearly can't teach her that!

Recycle!

Rarely find myself watching television.....let alone commercials on the television.  This ad caught my attention though (since Mount Rainier was featured!).

Trying to figure out how the concept possibly passed muster amongst high level marketing execs when the much simpler solution to saving the planet would be............ding, ding, ding.......to not dispose of recyclable pizza boxes!

I do award the marketing team partial credit for jumping on the green bandwagon, but sincerely doubt whether it is an ingrained philosophy of the company.  Better luck next time.

Davis Cup Musings for a Monday

.....Davis Cup is a Big Deal. Except in the US of A.

.....for those of us who are hardcore tennis fans, the Davis Cup Final is an opportunity to view the top players in an unusual setting. Playing for their Country. As veterans of high school and college teams know only too well, playing for a Team is so very unlike playing for one's self. Others, teammates and entire countries, are counting on your performance. Unnerving!

.....and as such, a great opportunity to watch the best players in the world do what we have all done....CHOKE!

.....but NOT David Ferrer. An inspiring match yesterday against the accomplished(World #6) Tomas Berdych. Recap here:  http://www.tennis.com/news/2012/11/davis-cup-final-ferrer-d-berdych/40160/#.UKo7B64lPAk

.....Ferrer evens the Tie at 2-2, setting up the dramatic 5th rubber of Nicolas Almagro(#11) of Spain against Radek Stepanek (#31). Yes, the fate of nation's rested on the racquet skills of the second singles players from both Espana and the Czech Republic. Recap:  http://www.tennis.com/news/2012/11/davis-cup-final-stepanek-d-almagro/40162/#.UKo8Mq4lPAk

....What else is great about Davis Cup?
         a) Doubles is huge!!!! The middle day consists of one match. Doubles. In the Final we were presented with the newly-minted ATP Tour 2012 Champions, Marc Lopez and Marcel Granollers against Radek Stepanek, world #4 ranked doubles player, and Tomas Berdych, who sported an 11-1 Davis Cup doubles record. Good match! Recap here:  http://www.changeovertennis.com/how-the-match-was-won-czech-republic-d-spain-davis-cup-doubles/

        b) Best Three of Five Sets. Best format. Ever. Truest test of mental and physical stamina. And skill!

         c) Home Court.....the Home squad gets to select the surface....Which, when you play Spain, you Don't select red clay.....unless you have a death wish! The O2 arena in Prague was outfitted with a nice indoor surface which gave off so much glare on TV, I wondered why the spectators were not wearing sunglasses. Fast!

.....now the sad news....no more meaningful tennis in 2012. Here's to 2013 and the new year on the pro circuits!

.....55 days until Men's practice begins. Good.

......been very nice here in Cedar Rapids. Will finish today with a snapshot of the Cedar River and Mays Island from downtown.

And, as always, get outside more!

 
 

Picture of the Week

Captured while walking part of the Cedar Valley Nature Trail:

Year End Championships and Other Thoughts

The professional tennis season came to a close this past week the top 8 players in the world meeting for the Year End Championships at London’s O2 Arena. Since this is my last chance to talk about professional tennis until next year, I decided to dedicate this post to my thoughts on the Year End Event rather than go with my first idea, Why Alexander Hamilton is better than Thomas Jefferson. 

Suck it Jefferson! Who's on the $10?

Player of the year:

At the end of every athletic season everyone wants to know who had the best year. Tennis is no different. Virtually the whole season we hear talk of who is having the best year. I’m going to try something a little different and look at some facts before making a decision. Bear with me. For the first time since ­2003 four different men won grandslams this year. Australia went to Djokovic, The French Open went to Nadal, Wimbledon went to Federer, and the Open went to Murray. Obviously, Nadal is not in contention because of his injury status, which leaves Federer, Djokovic, and Murray. I’ll try to set aside my dislike of Murray and give an objective opinion here.

It’s still not Murray. He did win the Olympics and the US Open but ZERO Masters tournaments. Fed won Wimbledon and ­­three Masters tournaments and reached Year End Finals, beating Murray along the way. And finally, Djokovic made 3 slam finals (better than anyone else), won ­­3 Masters tournaments and finished the year by winning in London.  His record is also 75-12 compared to 56-16 for Murray and 71-12 for Federer. Given these numbers, it seems the player of the year was Djokovic. If you’re a Murray supporter and think he should take home the honors because of his Olympic and US Open performance, remember this is Player of the Year, not Player of a Good Summer Stretch Culminating in the US Open. Also, if you’re a Murray supporter, you’re dead to me.

Scheduling:

Before talking about the actual tournament let’s go over the concern that is always voiced after the US Open wraps up: the tennis season is too long. I go back and forth on this one, and I think it really depends on where you are ranked. Look at Fed’s playing schedule. He plays in January then takes a month off and comes back for Rotterdam and Dubai, takes a week off then plays Indian Wells and Miami in March. He then has another month off before he begins a significant stretch starting with Madrid in May and ending with Wimbledon in July. His usual six week break until Cincinnati in August was interrupted by the Olympics this year but that’s once every four years. Federer then plays Cincinnati and the US Open before taking another chunk of time off before playing Shanghai in October and the Year End Championships in November.

 I can’t say that’s really too much playing. Federer’s pattern of calendar play goes something like this: play a few tournaments, take a month off, repeat. Now, it is much different for guys who aren’t at the top of the rankings. They play every week because they really have to. No tournament, no paycheck. Federer makes money sitting at home playing with the kids because he has so many endorsement deals. You can bet most tennis players don’t have that luxury, so even if you could legitimately shorten the tennis season, I’m not sure how many of the players would actually support that proposition when it came down to it.

He just made $1 million for eating that candy

Year End Tournament.

If they did make the year shorter maybe it would result in better tennis at the Year End Masters. Federer and Djokovic looked ready to go, but nearly everyone else looked happy to just be there. Tsonga was checked out before it started, Tipsarevic was overmatched, Ferrer was… well he was just fine but that’s Ferrer.  It almost felt like the All-Star Game or the Pro-Bowl where the goal is to be selected to go there, not to play great once there.  Federer’s match with Murray was interesting: Fed got down quickly but steadied himself and was able to win the set. Once the first set was over, Murray was done. He looked checked out mentally and physically. I know the first set was close throughout, but you can look to the point where Federer clawed back for a hold when he was already down one break as the moment when the mule threw Tony as my high school math teacher always told us (usually when he said that, it was referring to our utter lack of competence in anything using numbers). Murray was blown out in the second set so bad that Federer brought back the ol’ chip and charge and Murray couldn’t stop it.

Stadium Entrances:

One of my favorite parts about the Year End Championships is the players get to have a big entrance through smoke with music blaring in the background. While most players act like this is a big nuisance and want to just play tennis, I think they should embrace the moment and really live it up during their entrances. Play to the crowd, do a dance, rip some shirts Hulk Hogan style; that way the crowd knows you’re ready to bring it! 

Hulkamania! WOOO BROTHA!

I’ve spent and inordinate amount of time thinking about proper entrance music. From baseball, to basketball, to pro wrestling – that’s right, pro wrestling - ; the proper entrance sets the mood for what’s to come. I’ve thought about this much too in depth for way too much of my life. I used to dream about what my pro wrestling entrance music would be (Ray mysterio you’re still the greatest), but since I’m no longer in the third grade I’ve tailored my entrance music dream for tennis.

It's still real to me!

A good entrance can set the mood for a great match, or a poor entrance can send the audience to the bathroom in droves. Don’t just take my word for it; let us not forget what Shakespeare said in one of his most inspiring passages from King Henry V, “we few, we happy few, we band of brothers. For he today that sheds his blood with me, Shall be my brother. And Thou needest a great entrance, set to rocking music!”

At this point you’re probably dying to know what music would be pouring forth into your virgin ears as I triumphantly enter the O2 Arena. And no, I’m not speaking hypothetically – Coach Rodgers, we have precious little time to make me a world class tennis player so I can realize my dream of entering raucous arenas to some sick music. My guess is it will be tough but we should have everything figured out by next week. I feel my biggest obstacle will be deciding on only one song. One option is All I Do Is Win by DJ Khaled. I would go with this song because it describes what I will most likely be doing: winning (am I right!). Another option is Can’t be touched by Roy Jones Jr. This was my anthem during my college playing days. Before winning the ITA, me and my doubles partner probably gave ourselves minor hearing damage while getting pumped to this song. My top option right now is Darth Vader’s theme music from Star Wars. If you don’t immediately year this music playing in your head, you’ve been living in a world devoid of sound for 30 years. Picture this: the O2 Arena is quiet, the crowd is electric with anticipation, smoke begins filling the entrance area. Then, the music starts. That unmistakable score starts playing as I enter wearing all black; my opponent, the announcers, the crowd: we all know what’s coming.

When I said wearing all black, I really meant it

That would be an entrance we could all get behind. I would watch that even if Oregon was playing…okay I would flip back and forth but only because they’re both awesome.

Championship Match:

During the final match, Federer got out to a quick lead aganist Djokovic, but then realized he was winning easily and promptly put an end to that foolishness. He gave up the lead and the first set went to a tiebreaker where Federer found himself down 5-6. The next point Federer was in control and had a shot to approach on but inexplicably hit it right to Djokovic’s forehand. I believe Federer did this for a reason and that was to illustrate a point I made about him a few weeks ago. I said the whole reason we watch Federer play is in the hope that he will pull out one of his impossible shots that make us all question the laws of physics. After hitting an awful approach, Djokovic pounced on the pass which Federer barely touch, Djokovic then raced to the net for the put-away. The ball went past Federer who was in poor position with the wrong grip. At this point I knew the point and the set were over. You simply cannot hit that ball back. Sure enough, Federer wasn’t able to do anything with the ball and lost the point

Wait, no he didn’t! Federer ran to the ball and with his back to the net, using a continental grip, hit one of the sickest angles you’ll ever see! SFkhagsdlkhsdglsd…sorry, I still freak out a little bit just thinking about that shot. I don’t know what happened next. There were other points and sets I’m sure, and Federer must have achieved sweet, sweet victory. I never got around to checking the final score.

What’s that? Federer lost? Oh God.