Go here. It's Ben's blog, Jenny's (my sister) boyfriend. He put up a post about some idiot "on strike" from his marriage because his wife let their kids sleep in thier bed. Somehow, the morons who needed help getting online with AOL decided Ben was the guy on the roof. Take your time, read the first three posts with the comments. I just don't know what else to say, other than stand amazed at the stupidity of the average American moron.
I don't care about co-sleeping one way or another. I think the husband on strike is a jackass who is seeking attention; there is even a link on his site for the press to schedule interviews with him.
What kind of *real man* needs to take his marital problems this kind of public? Jerry Springer is calling.
Categories: Blogging, Misc
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Su-prize, su-prize, su-prize!
The unexpected always seems to come in threes. This weekend was no different.
First, the phone call I got while in traffic on the turnpike was something no coach really ever wants: "Coach, we got in an accident. An 18-wheeler ran into us." Gulp. Nobody was hurt, only a window was broken to go with a shredded tire, but the lesson was driven home again. A bus would be far safer. No matter the accident was not the fault of the undergraduate driver, there was such a driver anyway. That never looks good. I know he was being careful and not taking any risks, but everyone knows that it's impossible to control the other idiots on the road. As a coach, knowing my team is strung out over the length of the turnpike in multiple vans really gives me the hives. Coaches like control, and that situation has very little control. My inability to respond to that problem in any helpful fashion highlighted how little control I have when the kids drive vans to races. A bus is far more expensive, and getting approval and money from the University isn't as easy as it sounds. Anyone who suggests otherwise doesn't know how long it took to get me hired.
Secondly, a pair of shoes was missing out of the trailer when we unloaded in Philly. Now, I had checked every boat as it was loaded, a coxswain and equipment manager had checked everything when loaded. Those shoes disappeared between loading the night before and me picking up the trailer the next day. The shoes taken were from a boat in the exact middle of the trailer, where it is very hard to check while in transit. Whoever took those shoes was thoughtfull enough to replace the nuts holding them in place. Obviously, whoever took those shoes is involved in rowing and rows out of TRRA. I WILL FIND OUT, and if anything is missing tomorrow when we unload, I'll have shortened the list.
Thirdly, the results from the days racing pleasantly surprised me. It's important to remember not one of Pitts boats had been on the water for the last two weeks. Making as many finals as they did, and doing as well as they did was a very pleasant surprise for me. I'm really positive about the direction of the team, because there is so much more work to do on the water, and I feel the potential is really there. There is room for growth. I had a silly grin on my face most of the day.
Categories: Pitt, Rowing, Regattas, Safety
First, the phone call I got while in traffic on the turnpike was something no coach really ever wants: "Coach, we got in an accident. An 18-wheeler ran into us." Gulp. Nobody was hurt, only a window was broken to go with a shredded tire, but the lesson was driven home again. A bus would be far safer. No matter the accident was not the fault of the undergraduate driver, there was such a driver anyway. That never looks good. I know he was being careful and not taking any risks, but everyone knows that it's impossible to control the other idiots on the road. As a coach, knowing my team is strung out over the length of the turnpike in multiple vans really gives me the hives. Coaches like control, and that situation has very little control. My inability to respond to that problem in any helpful fashion highlighted how little control I have when the kids drive vans to races. A bus is far more expensive, and getting approval and money from the University isn't as easy as it sounds. Anyone who suggests otherwise doesn't know how long it took to get me hired.
Secondly, a pair of shoes was missing out of the trailer when we unloaded in Philly. Now, I had checked every boat as it was loaded, a coxswain and equipment manager had checked everything when loaded. Those shoes disappeared between loading the night before and me picking up the trailer the next day. The shoes taken were from a boat in the exact middle of the trailer, where it is very hard to check while in transit. Whoever took those shoes was thoughtfull enough to replace the nuts holding them in place. Obviously, whoever took those shoes is involved in rowing and rows out of TRRA. I WILL FIND OUT, and if anything is missing tomorrow when we unload, I'll have shortened the list.
Thirdly, the results from the days racing pleasantly surprised me. It's important to remember not one of Pitts boats had been on the water for the last two weeks. Making as many finals as they did, and doing as well as they did was a very pleasant surprise for me. I'm really positive about the direction of the team, because there is so much more work to do on the water, and I feel the potential is really there. There is room for growth. I had a silly grin on my face most of the day.
Categories: Pitt, Rowing, Regattas, Safety
Thursday, March 23, 2006
I've fallen and I can't get up
Fallen right off the face of this blog, it seems. I think about it all the time, try and remember various lunatic things that go on and plan out a little post, but I never sit down and write anything. What a slug I am.
Anyway, if anyone ever has a need of a good Emergency Room here in Pittsburgh, go to UPMC Southside. I sliced a chunk off my left thumb on Sunday, and it was bad. I didn't really want to wait in an ER all night, but the bleeding wasn't going to stop anytime soon, so out the door I went. Rather than going to Presbyterian, where I knew I would sit forever, I went to Southside and was out in less than two hours. Hard to believe, but true. I thought it was a law that one couldn't enter an ER without killing off at least 4 to 5 hours. Now, I wouldn't want to head to Southside on a Saturday night, when all the drunk college students are being hauled in from Carson street, but on the whole, a great experience considering why I was there.
The FC kids have been on the water most of the week, and the Pitt kids indoors. The afternoons are marginal to ok for rowing, but the mornings have been simply far too cold. Add in rowing in the dark, and one would question my motives for taking them out. I do think that next week will see Pitt on the water despite any weather, as I'm seeing other high school teams out after dark. If little high school punks can hack the cold, then my lunatic college students can too.
Pitt is selling the two oldest boats in the fleet, 92 and 93 Vespoli 8s. Both are very flexible, and both need to go to clear out some space in the racks for Halve Maen the Empacher. The board is a little apprehensive about losing 16 seats that are good for training novices, but I think this is the right thing to do. If another boat is warranted, there are other options here in Pittsburgh that are better than the antiques we're losing. The size of the novice class next year will determine that decision.
So, off to Philadelphia and the Murphy Cup regatta with Pitt. I'm excited and worried at the same time. While I know they did well here last year and are better prepared this year, two weeks since the last water time really weighs on my mind. Illnesses have really done a job on the team as well. Finally, it's always a mental blow to spend time on the water after a long, hard winter then return to the dreaded ergs. Attendance hasn't been great, for that reason.
Finally, I want to mention something that really stressed me out last weekend. Coxswain selection took up a lot of time and thought for Pitt. There are only a few boats going to Dad Vails and we've got more coxswains than boats. Thus a situation that every coach dreads looms large: selection based upon your "gut" and little else. Objective measurements of coxswains isn't really possible. You have to interview the crews, with them knowing that you're trying to decided on a coxswain. Unlike everything else in the sport, this feels more like a popularity contest or play tryout than a competition for a seat in a boat. With the numbers, people who didn't deserve it got screwed. Good people. And that sucks, and it eats at me as well. For those who feel wronged, please know that I didn't go out of my way to hose you down. I made the best choices I feel were possible, and would again if given that chance. It didn't make the decision and the impact on everyone any easier.
Categories: Personal, Rowing, Regattas, Coxswains, Coaching, FC, Pitt
Anyway, if anyone ever has a need of a good Emergency Room here in Pittsburgh, go to UPMC Southside. I sliced a chunk off my left thumb on Sunday, and it was bad. I didn't really want to wait in an ER all night, but the bleeding wasn't going to stop anytime soon, so out the door I went. Rather than going to Presbyterian, where I knew I would sit forever, I went to Southside and was out in less than two hours. Hard to believe, but true. I thought it was a law that one couldn't enter an ER without killing off at least 4 to 5 hours. Now, I wouldn't want to head to Southside on a Saturday night, when all the drunk college students are being hauled in from Carson street, but on the whole, a great experience considering why I was there.
The FC kids have been on the water most of the week, and the Pitt kids indoors. The afternoons are marginal to ok for rowing, but the mornings have been simply far too cold. Add in rowing in the dark, and one would question my motives for taking them out. I do think that next week will see Pitt on the water despite any weather, as I'm seeing other high school teams out after dark. If little high school punks can hack the cold, then my lunatic college students can too.
Pitt is selling the two oldest boats in the fleet, 92 and 93 Vespoli 8s. Both are very flexible, and both need to go to clear out some space in the racks for Halve Maen the Empacher. The board is a little apprehensive about losing 16 seats that are good for training novices, but I think this is the right thing to do. If another boat is warranted, there are other options here in Pittsburgh that are better than the antiques we're losing. The size of the novice class next year will determine that decision.
So, off to Philadelphia and the Murphy Cup regatta with Pitt. I'm excited and worried at the same time. While I know they did well here last year and are better prepared this year, two weeks since the last water time really weighs on my mind. Illnesses have really done a job on the team as well. Finally, it's always a mental blow to spend time on the water after a long, hard winter then return to the dreaded ergs. Attendance hasn't been great, for that reason.
Finally, I want to mention something that really stressed me out last weekend. Coxswain selection took up a lot of time and thought for Pitt. There are only a few boats going to Dad Vails and we've got more coxswains than boats. Thus a situation that every coach dreads looms large: selection based upon your "gut" and little else. Objective measurements of coxswains isn't really possible. You have to interview the crews, with them knowing that you're trying to decided on a coxswain. Unlike everything else in the sport, this feels more like a popularity contest or play tryout than a competition for a seat in a boat. With the numbers, people who didn't deserve it got screwed. Good people. And that sucks, and it eats at me as well. For those who feel wronged, please know that I didn't go out of my way to hose you down. I made the best choices I feel were possible, and would again if given that chance. It didn't make the decision and the impact on everyone any easier.
Categories: Personal, Rowing, Regattas, Coxswains, Coaching, FC, Pitt
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Seething at safety stupidity
At my Level III training last December, the "Risk Management" section was presented by the Athletic director of a college in Maryland. The section that I least looked forward to became the most enjoyable, because he was able to present rowing and the risks involved from a perspective of an outsider.
"Let me get this straight," he said. "You guys go out on major commercial waterways in narrow plastic boats with inches of freeboard, wearing no lifejackets? Oh, there are some in the launch. So the launch is right there? No? Sometimes it's a couple thousand meters away? And you go around the bend, so the launch can't see you? And you're facing backwards?" He paused while we all laughed at the lunacy. "Oh, and you want to do this in the dark. Well, I guess that's ok if you're doing it in the summer when the water is warm. What? Early March?" We were rolling in the aisles now. "Why can't you do this in a pond or something? Maybe the pool?"
It is crazy, when you think about what we do. Sailing isn't this dangerous. Neither is baseball, basketball, cross-country or lacrosse. Heck, rifle squads have fewer accidents. People don't have to buy survival equipment for any of those sports, yet we still love the idea of hitting the water as soon as the ice melts.
In high-end liquor stores, there is usually a small barrel near the front with water in it. The water is refrigerated, so customers can chill down wine bottles quickly. Instead of the hour needed in a fridge at home, the water can get the temp down in a few minutes. That is the problem we face on the water for the next few months. The temperature is so cold, hypothermia sets in under 15 minutes, and people do go in from time to time in this sport. Crabs, flipped boats, slipping off the dock, broken equipment bailout and collisions. I've seen oarsmen hit the water in all those situations in my 13 years on the water. Most of those situations find the athlete go in slightly to significantly incapacitated, either in mid-workout or hit by a boat as it goes by. All make great stories, because nobody was ever really badly hurt. The potential was there every time.
Three Rivers Rowing Association sets the rules for our stretch of river because everybody rows from their docks. They pay the insurance, so they get that right. They set safety rules for everyone, because they have to take into account one glaring problem here: there aren't enough coaches, and therefore some crews aren't well trained or supervised when they go out to play tag with barges.
Coaches aren't paid enough here for anyone to take it seriously. Therefore, most clubs have a very high turnover and are coached by college students with a few years' experience at most. I can count on two hands the number of coaches as experienced as I am here in Pittsburgh, and five of us are working for either FC or Pitt or another university. That leaves a lot of high school rowers out there supervised by people with as much experience as their athletes. TRRA knows this and sets their rules accordingly, and there isn't a fair way to legislate and adjudicate competence. Therefore, clubs with lots of experience and safety equipment in the launch must abide by rules that assume total stupidity in that launch.
The usual early March debates have been raging around the boathouse. Go out or stay on the ergs? As coaches, the water practice calls seductively, perhaps more so than the athletes. Erg practices are boring. Watching a boat move through the water in a lineup schemed over for months is compelling. We want to go out, and some have been willing to ignore the TRRA rules to do that.
What's funny is that I don't worry those crews will gain an unfair advantage by going out when I'm keeping my kids on land. I don't really worry that much about those crews at all, because they have good, experienced coaches and skilled teams in good condition. What gives me hives is the thought of some idiot who hasn't trained his/her crew well over the winter, hasn't maintained her/his equipment well, has too many people in a small launch and doesn't understand that the barges can't see you in the dark or snow and can't stop. All it would take to shut rowing down in this city would be one dumbkopf to steer an 8+ headlong into a barge, or swamp a 4+ full of out of shape novices (it's happened).
When I first began coaching, I was gung-ho despite the river flow. Like a new driver, I had absolute confidence in my abilities and wanted to drive the car every day. I still believe that my teams are better prepared when we hit the water than most. But like a more experienced driver, I now really worry about the other morons out there.
You should have heard what the instructor said about boat transport. But that's another post.
Categories: Safety, Rowing, Coaching
"Let me get this straight," he said. "You guys go out on major commercial waterways in narrow plastic boats with inches of freeboard, wearing no lifejackets? Oh, there are some in the launch. So the launch is right there? No? Sometimes it's a couple thousand meters away? And you go around the bend, so the launch can't see you? And you're facing backwards?" He paused while we all laughed at the lunacy. "Oh, and you want to do this in the dark. Well, I guess that's ok if you're doing it in the summer when the water is warm. What? Early March?" We were rolling in the aisles now. "Why can't you do this in a pond or something? Maybe the pool?"
It is crazy, when you think about what we do. Sailing isn't this dangerous. Neither is baseball, basketball, cross-country or lacrosse. Heck, rifle squads have fewer accidents. People don't have to buy survival equipment for any of those sports, yet we still love the idea of hitting the water as soon as the ice melts.
In high-end liquor stores, there is usually a small barrel near the front with water in it. The water is refrigerated, so customers can chill down wine bottles quickly. Instead of the hour needed in a fridge at home, the water can get the temp down in a few minutes. That is the problem we face on the water for the next few months. The temperature is so cold, hypothermia sets in under 15 minutes, and people do go in from time to time in this sport. Crabs, flipped boats, slipping off the dock, broken equipment bailout and collisions. I've seen oarsmen hit the water in all those situations in my 13 years on the water. Most of those situations find the athlete go in slightly to significantly incapacitated, either in mid-workout or hit by a boat as it goes by. All make great stories, because nobody was ever really badly hurt. The potential was there every time.
Three Rivers Rowing Association sets the rules for our stretch of river because everybody rows from their docks. They pay the insurance, so they get that right. They set safety rules for everyone, because they have to take into account one glaring problem here: there aren't enough coaches, and therefore some crews aren't well trained or supervised when they go out to play tag with barges.
Coaches aren't paid enough here for anyone to take it seriously. Therefore, most clubs have a very high turnover and are coached by college students with a few years' experience at most. I can count on two hands the number of coaches as experienced as I am here in Pittsburgh, and five of us are working for either FC or Pitt or another university. That leaves a lot of high school rowers out there supervised by people with as much experience as their athletes. TRRA knows this and sets their rules accordingly, and there isn't a fair way to legislate and adjudicate competence. Therefore, clubs with lots of experience and safety equipment in the launch must abide by rules that assume total stupidity in that launch.
The usual early March debates have been raging around the boathouse. Go out or stay on the ergs? As coaches, the water practice calls seductively, perhaps more so than the athletes. Erg practices are boring. Watching a boat move through the water in a lineup schemed over for months is compelling. We want to go out, and some have been willing to ignore the TRRA rules to do that.
What's funny is that I don't worry those crews will gain an unfair advantage by going out when I'm keeping my kids on land. I don't really worry that much about those crews at all, because they have good, experienced coaches and skilled teams in good condition. What gives me hives is the thought of some idiot who hasn't trained his/her crew well over the winter, hasn't maintained her/his equipment well, has too many people in a small launch and doesn't understand that the barges can't see you in the dark or snow and can't stop. All it would take to shut rowing down in this city would be one dumbkopf to steer an 8+ headlong into a barge, or swamp a 4+ full of out of shape novices (it's happened).
When I first began coaching, I was gung-ho despite the river flow. Like a new driver, I had absolute confidence in my abilities and wanted to drive the car every day. I still believe that my teams are better prepared when we hit the water than most. But like a more experienced driver, I now really worry about the other morons out there.
You should have heard what the instructor said about boat transport. But that's another post.
Categories: Safety, Rowing, Coaching
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Incomprehensible raving
Pittsburgh weather forecasters suck. Their fault for a wasted practice yesterday when I cancelled and had the FC kids unload the Pitt trailer. The SUN CAME OUT after the unload was done in the rain. BLAST BLAST BLAST.
Wind blowing like stink this morning, turning the river to froth. Back inside on the ergs. Evil. EVIL!!!!
Cat. The cat is going down the next time I've got my pistol in the house. After the box was kept clean all week, we get home and the house smells like cat poop. He transformed into a large dog and left a steamer on top of the box before we came home. After I cleaned that out, he PEED ON MY BED AGAIN YESTERDAY AFTER I LEFT IN THE MORNING!!! AAAARRRRRGG!!!
That's after he hucked up a hairball on the bed on Sunday.
DEATH TO THE CAT!!!!
Categories: Misc, Personal
Wind blowing like stink this morning, turning the river to froth. Back inside on the ergs. Evil. EVIL!!!!
Cat. The cat is going down the next time I've got my pistol in the house. After the box was kept clean all week, we get home and the house smells like cat poop. He transformed into a large dog and left a steamer on top of the box before we came home. After I cleaned that out, he PEED ON MY BED AGAIN YESTERDAY AFTER I LEFT IN THE MORNING!!! AAAARRRRRGG!!!
That's after he hucked up a hairball on the bed on Sunday.
DEATH TO THE CAT!!!!
Categories: Misc, Personal
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Safe on the road
I know there hasn't been much on the blog. It's hard keeping up with three practices per day and the boat repairs that caused. I know rowers won't believe this, but coaches need rest as well. Such a schedule can really make one's launch driving hand tired.
Anyway, we're back now in lovely Pittsburgh. Warm and raining this weekend, followed by chilling temperatures just cold enough to drive us back inside. I can hear the groans and knashing of teeth now. Yes, children, more ergs.
First story of the drive back happened last night. When towing a boat trailer, I'm generally one of the longest rigs on the road. With Pitt's truck, the entire setup is just as long as a tractor-trailer. Such length gets me some discretion from other motorists, especially in West Virginia, where such equipment generates strange looks. Having University of Pittsburgh all over the truck did earn us one flip-off, I guess from a disappointed basketball fan.
Imagine my shock when we came upon a guy towing a rig like what's pictured below.
Yes, a fifth wheel camper towing a fishing boat. Guy was alone, watching a movie as he drove along. I had never seen such a setup before or even heard about it. With the way the boat was swinging around, I figured he was about to kill somebody or do some great insurance damage, so I called the cops. They took my information and location and said "We're sorry you have to see something like there here. We'll get on it to make the roads safer." We followed awhile to see if the West Virginia cops came to get him, but no action at all.
Turns out, this is actually legal in most states. I simply can't believe it, but that's the case. Your average American idiot (redundant, I know) can do this if he/she's got the toys. I'm wondering if I can hook up anything to the back of the boat trailer.....
Categories: Rowing, Coaching, Training, Safety, Misc
Anyway, we're back now in lovely Pittsburgh. Warm and raining this weekend, followed by chilling temperatures just cold enough to drive us back inside. I can hear the groans and knashing of teeth now. Yes, children, more ergs.
First story of the drive back happened last night. When towing a boat trailer, I'm generally one of the longest rigs on the road. With Pitt's truck, the entire setup is just as long as a tractor-trailer. Such length gets me some discretion from other motorists, especially in West Virginia, where such equipment generates strange looks. Having University of Pittsburgh all over the truck did earn us one flip-off, I guess from a disappointed basketball fan.
Imagine my shock when we came upon a guy towing a rig like what's pictured below.
Yes, a fifth wheel camper towing a fishing boat. Guy was alone, watching a movie as he drove along. I had never seen such a setup before or even heard about it. With the way the boat was swinging around, I figured he was about to kill somebody or do some great insurance damage, so I called the cops. They took my information and location and said "We're sorry you have to see something like there here. We'll get on it to make the roads safer." We followed awhile to see if the West Virginia cops came to get him, but no action at all. Turns out, this is actually legal in most states. I simply can't believe it, but that's the case. Your average American idiot (redundant, I know) can do this if he/she's got the toys. I'm wondering if I can hook up anything to the back of the boat trailer.....
Categories: Rowing, Coaching, Training, Safety, Misc
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Spare parts, spare thoughts and the salad bar that wasn't
Just a little update from down here in South Carolina.
Overall, the setup is better than what I had at Yale. Boats are closer, rooms and beds are better spread out, so there is a little space for everyone and the food isn't as "institutional" as at University of Tampa. The problem with that sometimes is that they sometimes run out.
There are close to 1200 rowers here this week. That's a lot of food. Sometimes, it's not easy to predict what they'll eat. Therefore, the camp ran out of vegetables two nights ago.
I'm not kidding. The only vegetable available was the canned corn off the salad bar. The salad bar that had no lettuce. Dinner was pasta, mashed potatoes, mac 'n cheese and chicken in some sort of gravy. I know rowers crave carbs, but this was a little out there.
The Wintech 8 got here without a footstrecher. Jason and I have no idea when it fell out, because the boat was complete when we stopped on Friday night. A new one should be here this morning, but we've been rowing that boat as a 7 since we got here.
Adding insult to injury, the wheels on the Empacher are going bad. The bearings in the wheels aren't doing very well, and the boats sounds like a Hot Wheels car being wound up when the crew goes up the slide on the recovery. I took all the wheels off to clean them out and that didn't make a bit of difference. Then, to punish me for disturbing their Karma, the bow seat blew up a wheel, slinging bearings all over the boat. It's been replaced with a Wintech wheel now, but now that means the Wintech isn't rowable (again.)
This is the reason many crews are going to one manufacturer now, because of spare parts. Vespoli parts don't fit anything else, and vice versa to a point. This forces everyone to buy parts from the various builders, and then you've got a huge stack of spare parts from three different builders. When something breaks, you're more likely to not have what you need.
I checked. Empacher wheels are 11 EUROS per. An 8 has 32. Do the math, and you're talking about one expensive replacement. I'm wondering who broke a mirror before we came down here, or walked under a mirror, or whatever. As usual, I'm feeling a little snake-bit.
Categories: Boats, Rowing, Training, Memories, Yale,
Overall, the setup is better than what I had at Yale. Boats are closer, rooms and beds are better spread out, so there is a little space for everyone and the food isn't as "institutional" as at University of Tampa. The problem with that sometimes is that they sometimes run out.
There are close to 1200 rowers here this week. That's a lot of food. Sometimes, it's not easy to predict what they'll eat. Therefore, the camp ran out of vegetables two nights ago.
I'm not kidding. The only vegetable available was the canned corn off the salad bar. The salad bar that had no lettuce. Dinner was pasta, mashed potatoes, mac 'n cheese and chicken in some sort of gravy. I know rowers crave carbs, but this was a little out there.
The Wintech 8 got here without a footstrecher. Jason and I have no idea when it fell out, because the boat was complete when we stopped on Friday night. A new one should be here this morning, but we've been rowing that boat as a 7 since we got here.
Adding insult to injury, the wheels on the Empacher are going bad. The bearings in the wheels aren't doing very well, and the boats sounds like a Hot Wheels car being wound up when the crew goes up the slide on the recovery. I took all the wheels off to clean them out and that didn't make a bit of difference. Then, to punish me for disturbing their Karma, the bow seat blew up a wheel, slinging bearings all over the boat. It's been replaced with a Wintech wheel now, but now that means the Wintech isn't rowable (again.)
This is the reason many crews are going to one manufacturer now, because of spare parts. Vespoli parts don't fit anything else, and vice versa to a point. This forces everyone to buy parts from the various builders, and then you've got a huge stack of spare parts from three different builders. When something breaks, you're more likely to not have what you need.
I checked. Empacher wheels are 11 EUROS per. An 8 has 32. Do the math, and you're talking about one expensive replacement. I'm wondering who broke a mirror before we came down here, or walked under a mirror, or whatever. As usual, I'm feeling a little snake-bit.
Categories: Boats, Rowing, Training, Memories, Yale,
Sunday, March 05, 2006
The Late Show
Tonight, coming to you live from the beautiful Hampton Inn Orangeberg, it's the Late Show! Featuring the three-year old still awake! The "bucking bronco" truck! Astonished stares from South Carolina drivers! Musical guest tonight the truckstop country music DJ! ...And Sirius channel 33! ...And now, heeeeerre's COACH!
Thank you, thank you all. Thank you, you're too kind. Settle down. Wow. Thank you.
How about that drive in, huh? You know, trailer towing really is an art form, and we've got some real Picassos down here in the South. The guy who drove off from the truck stop without paying for his gas was a real master, you know? Yeah. Big Ford truck with a beat-up motorcycle in the bed towing a utility trailer emblazoned with NASCAR stuff on the side? Up where I come from, that's an easy guy to find on the road. Down here, that could be Osama Bin Laden. Great disguise. (Laughter) I mean, that's every other vehicle on the road down here.
Ok, so I overestimated a little on how long it would take to get down here. By just a couple hours. Really, it wasn't that bad, Emily and Will were racked out in the back of the truck, so they didn't complain that much. Yeah, my wife didn't complain that much. (light laughter) No problem at all. Not once did she ever say "I told you so." Sure. And if you believe that, I've got a great deal on some land in Iraq. (Laughter) Great vacation home, excellent views, private security, the whole bit.
Well, we've got a great time coming up. Spring break! (Cheers.) Time on the water, sunburn and coxswains running into each other. I just can't wait. I'm told the beach down here is supposed to be great. I'm a little iffy on the directions, though. Like most directions here in South Carolina, they include "past the Wall-Mart, through town, take a left at the 'live bait' sign, go straight until the road ends, then keep going." (Laughter.) The guy I need to call if I get lost if somebody named "Bo." (Laughter) Yeah, 'Git 'er done.' (Cheers). I somehow doubt there is an espresso machine within forty miles of where we are.
Categories: Coaching, Personal, Training, Rowing
Thank you, thank you all. Thank you, you're too kind. Settle down. Wow. Thank you.
How about that drive in, huh? You know, trailer towing really is an art form, and we've got some real Picassos down here in the South. The guy who drove off from the truck stop without paying for his gas was a real master, you know? Yeah. Big Ford truck with a beat-up motorcycle in the bed towing a utility trailer emblazoned with NASCAR stuff on the side? Up where I come from, that's an easy guy to find on the road. Down here, that could be Osama Bin Laden. Great disguise. (Laughter) I mean, that's every other vehicle on the road down here.
Ok, so I overestimated a little on how long it would take to get down here. By just a couple hours. Really, it wasn't that bad, Emily and Will were racked out in the back of the truck, so they didn't complain that much. Yeah, my wife didn't complain that much. (light laughter) No problem at all. Not once did she ever say "I told you so." Sure. And if you believe that, I've got a great deal on some land in Iraq. (Laughter) Great vacation home, excellent views, private security, the whole bit.
Well, we've got a great time coming up. Spring break! (Cheers.) Time on the water, sunburn and coxswains running into each other. I just can't wait. I'm told the beach down here is supposed to be great. I'm a little iffy on the directions, though. Like most directions here in South Carolina, they include "past the Wall-Mart, through town, take a left at the 'live bait' sign, go straight until the road ends, then keep going." (Laughter.) The guy I need to call if I get lost if somebody named "Bo." (Laughter) Yeah, 'Git 'er done.' (Cheers). I somehow doubt there is an espresso machine within forty miles of where we are.
Categories: Coaching, Personal, Training, Rowing
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