Little League World Series
WOW. I watched the Hawaii team from Waipio beat the team from Louisiana earlier today.
What an accomplishment!! My wife and I were so excited in the sixth inning, when the boys from Waipio scored five runs to take a 7-5 lead. Chicken skin moments. After the game, the boys were interviewed on national TV. They said that their coach urged them to keep trying no matter how bad the situation was. I think we can all learn from this team. They never gave up hope. And now they’re headed to the championship game.
Best of luck to the team tomorrow. I hope that they can match the success of the 2005 Ewa Beach team. Even if they don’t win, I think it shows that Hawaii has one of the best Little League programs not only in the nation, but in the world!
Olympic Dreams
I’ve been hooked on the Olympics this year.
Watching Michael Phelps slowly make his way to Olympic history has been a joy to watch. When the week started, I read a sports column that presented a very realistic outcome — Phelps not winning eight gold medals. The columnist went on to point out that even if Phelps didn’t win eight gold medals, we shouldn’t think any less of him. Most athletes don’t even win one gold medal in their lifetime. Even if Phelps won just one gold medal, he should be praised, not admonished for his efforts.
But here we are on the brink of history. Last night’s victory was by 1/100 of a second. What a race!!! It looked surely like Phelps would get the silver in the race, but he somehow prevailed. 1/100 of a second. Think about that. The result could easily have been the other way around. One thing about sports — sometimes it’s that lucky bounce or something that helps you to victory. It seems like it’s Phelps’ time and nothing can stop him.
It was interesting watching Mark Spitz humbly passing the torch to Phelps. I am lucky to say that I was able to watch both swimmers win seven gold medals in my lifetime. Who know when someone like Phelps will appear again. It’s been over 30 years since Spitz won his seven gold medals.
Tonight, we’ll see if Phelps can break Spitz’s record. He’s already won more gold medals than anyone in history. Eight gold medals in one Olympics will be another record he can hold. But even if he doesn’t, he will still be one of the greatest Olympians in history and we can proudly say that we saw it in person.
Go Michael!!!
Surfing White Plains Beach
Went surfing at White Plains Beach this morning. Small and windy, but rideable. I was one of the first guys out around 6:00 AM, so I had my fair share of waves.
If you’ve never been to White Plains to surf, let me tell you about the break. The beach is located in Kalaeloa (formerly Barber’s Point Naval Air Station). It’s a nice sandy beach. The surfing area is pretty spread out. On the right side (facing the ocean), the wave breaks further out with mostly rights to surf. Towards the left is a break known as fenceline. You can catch both lefts and rights in this area.
The surfers are predominantly longboarders. The waves are not the best. Any wind causes a pretty good chop. Best on calm days. I used to surf Cliffs at Diamond Head for many years. I can’t compare the waves (DH is better). But the conditions are similar. It’s usually pretty windy and choppy on most days. But every once in a while, you’ll catch a day when the surf is up and the wind is down.
Today wasn’t one of those days…
