Praise the Snow Gods

Nothing gets East coast skiers stoked more than an unexpected blower powder day.

                                                                                  Stowe Vermont, courtesy of Uvm Ssc

NFL Pro Bowl: The All-Star Game Nobody Watches

Professional all-star games normally are something to behold. They are a showcase of each leagues most remarkable players. Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League all have phenomenal events that pit the best of the best against each other to the supreme benefit of the fans. One league however, can’t seem to find the right formula to bring the same amount of interest as the others. The National Football League just doesn’t bring the heat when it comes to all-star games. The NFL Pro Bowl has the talent and it is the most popular sport in America so it comes as a real surprise that no one seems to care about the game.

I mean its football! It’s easily my favorite sport to watch, but for some reason I couldn’t care less about the Pro Bowl. To me it’s simply filler in the two-week hiatus between the conference championships and the Superbowl. During this time everyone is gearing up for the big game, picking out chip and dip combos, and finding the right sized cooler for the beer they have bought. No one is thinking about this meaningless game that has no weight on the outcome of the season.  It’s all about funny koozies, hot wing sauces and determining which of your friends has the biggest TV.

The Surprising Sixers

The Philadelphia 76ers have been a joke around the NBA for a number of years now. Yes, they've made the playoffs a couple of times here and there, but since the departure of Allen Iverson in 2006, the team has been downright lousy and not considered much of a threat throughout the league. Heck, Allen Iverson was having issues with the team back in 2003 before he was eventually took his talents to Denver.

This season though, things have seemed to turn around at the Wells Fargo Arena. Where the team lacks a true superstar, they make up with youth and athleticism. A condensed 66 game schedule is like music to the ears of 76ers fans. For many older teams, such as Boston, San Antonio, and Dallas, this condensed schedule is going to result in a great deal of limping and groaning. The 76ers are one of the youngest teams in the NBA and their 14-6 record is showing it. Over a quarter of the way through the season, Philly is on top of the Atlantic Division (by far) and have yet to have any serious injuries to their team.

My Beef With Danny Ainge - Part 1

As the current competitive situation of the Boston Celtics relative to the rest of the league has been described thoroughly and accurately by my colleague, I would like to revisit last year's NBA season and the mid-season trade made by the Celtics that prematurely dismantled a core group that had all the ingredients of a championship contender.  To name a few; veteran experience, defensive grit, arguably the best point guard in the league with a steadily improving jump shot (point guards are not conventionally supposed to be the primary scoring option on a team despite the current trend in the NBA today) not arguably the best jump shooter in the history of the sport of basketball, Paul Pierce (no superfluous characterization needed), effective role players, a fully healthy Kevin Garnett, and most importantly cohesiveness.  The Celtics had an extremely successful first half of the 2010-2011 season and were deemed by many experts to be atop the list of favorites to win the NBA championship.  As of February 22nd the Celtics were 41-14 and had defeated every other elite team in the league at least once (The Miami Heat twice, both times in convincing fashion; they would later fall to Miami in the playoffs) Furthermore, they were fully healthy for the first time in a long while.  Everything seemed dandy in Beantown.  


What happened next was inexplicable.  The Celtics starting center Kendrick Perkins, who had been with the team since the very beginning of his NBA career and was feared around the league for his toughness and defensive prowess in the paint, as well as his size and length (I can't even count how many times I witnessed him SHUT DOWN Dwight Howard without any double team, a few times in person) was traded.  I was personally in a state of disbelief when I heard the news.  Initially I was in denial, due to the fact that I first read about the trade on the internet and was stubbornly attributing the story as an internet rumor with no merit whatsoever.  Just the idea of it seemed so absurd that I couldn't wrap my head around it.  'What team trades their starting center, during the season, when they are by every objective account one of, if not THE best team in the league?'  Unfortunately it was all too true.  Instead of waiting until the Celtics were actually too old to contend for a championship, the general manager of the Celtics Danny Ainge (a former Celtics guard in the '80s) decided to pull the plug mid-season and dismantle the best team in the NBA.  The Celtics proceeded to stumble into the playoffs with a new group of misfits and get their asses kicked by The Heat 4-1 in a best of 7 series.  Thanks Danny.  Despite the success of Ainge's blockbuster trade that brought Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to Boston, he does not get a pass for this nonsensical and unforgivable blunder.  Danny cost us another championship; thanks again.  Although the photo below was taken during the early 2000s when the Celtics were godawful, the gentleman on the left makes a point that rings true to this day.  To be continued...

A Tribute to Sarah Burke

Over the years the ski community has grown larger and larger, successfully connecting East and West Coast rivalries. However, we have suffered some tremendous losses in the last three years, Shane McConkey “Saucer Boy”, C.R. Johnson, Jamie Pierre and this past week, our beloved Sarah Burke.

                          

Sarah Burke often know as the pioneer of superpipe skiing pushed the boundaries of women’s skiing even at a young age. Starting her career in 2001 she won first in the US Freeskiing Open and continued to become a six-time Winter X Games gold medalist.

On January 10^th 2012 Sarah was seriously injured while training in Park City, Utah. Nine days later she succumbed to her injury at the University of Utah Hospital. Sarah WILL, continue to be an icon and inspiration to all skiers worldwide.

Head over to www.espn.go.com, search for “Sarah Burke memorialized” and watch a few videos recapping the accident, paying tribute and highlighting her skiing achievements.

The Boston Celtics: The Beginning of the End?

Since the acquisition of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen prior to the 2007-2008 season, the Celtics have been a force to be reckoned with. With help from the likes of the emerging Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo, the Celtics cruised to a 66-16 record in their first season together. With tough playoff series' against Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, and Los Angeles, the Celtics became kings of the basketball world.

Now five years later, the only remaining Celtic players from that championship team are Rajon Rondo and the "Big 3" (Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen). Rajon Rondo is now one of the best point guards in the league, but both Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett seem to be showing considerable age. Ray Allen is still one of the best shooting guards in the game and is showing it with his amazing 3-point field goal percentage. Being the oldest of the Big 3, Ray Allen still looks like he could play for many years to come. However, without a worthy KG and Paul Pierce, the Celtics will struggle this season.

Superbowl XLVI: The Most Anticipated Championship Game Ever

Giants, Patriots. That is all that needs to be said in order to get sports fans jacked up in the northeastern part of the United States. Two Sundays from now marks the rematch of one of the biggest upsets in the history of football, if not sports period. Four years ago these two teams squared off in a match-up of David vs. Goliath. One in which the Davidesque Giants prevailed over the previously unbeaten, and 18-0, Patriots.

The Beast of the East

The Winter Dew Tour 2012 held at Killington (commonly called “The Beast of the East”) this last weekend was a sight to see. As all the best snowboarders and free skiers from around the globe gathered, so did the crowds of onlookers. But as all extreme sports enthusiasts know; nothing recaps an event better than a well-edited video. So head on over to www.allisports.com/winter-dew-tour or Killington’s main web page to view photos, results and some more stellar videos.

For all those Winter Lovers out there this weekend was one of the best up at our towering Stowe Resort. With last weeks mid-week snow and sunshine pouring down on the slopes everyone had smiles on their faces. And all the features from the USASA competition on Friday night will be on Chin Clip Runout for the rest of this week, for any park rats looking jib all week. But lets be honest, it’s nearing the end of January and Stowe needs to get their main park, Tyro, open.

 Across the ridge lays Smugglers Notch that received as much or more snow that opened up a whole other level to the playing field, for anyone seeking backcountry adventures. Some say that Smugglers is build around its renowned back-bowls, and this weekend could have been the best they’ll be for a while, however keep those fingers crossed for snow this week. A Boarder-cross and Skier-cross was held this weekend at Smugglers. It was a chaotic battle as contestants fought their way down the course against the clock, each other, and tough conditions.

A Time of Few Centers

Dwight Howard

As the NBA has developed over the years, the center position has become somewhat of a lost art. Sure, there are centers in the league, but I mean true centers. These days, the NBA seems to be controlled by the guard and forward positions. When I think true center, only a couple of names come to my mind in today’s game: Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum. There are also emerging centers, such as Roy Hibbert, JaVale McGee, and Tyson Chandler, but Howard and Bynum dominate in their positions. I watched them play against each other on January 20 and it immediately brought to mind the great battles between Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain during the 1960’s. The spotlight today is typically on players with high scoring potential, such as LeBron vs. Kobe. Now, there’s nothing wrong with this shift necessarily, but to me, the center position is what makes basketball my favorite sport.