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Baseball immortal Ty Cobb, one of the greatest hitters of all time, was also a base- stealing “demon” during his playing days. In his autobiography, My Life in Baseball, the True Record, Cobb admitted that often he would use trickery to fool his opponents and steal a base.
Hockey Chat: There are a lot of superstitions and traditions that the NHL players have. On the Blackhawks, John Madden used to change his laces every single time he skated. Patrick Sharp always wears his headphones with his iPod on before the game. Brian Campbell doesn't like anyone touching the knob of his stick before the game, or he has to re-tape it. Brent Seabrook gets ready at the exact same time every game. Tomas Kopecky during warm-ups always spits on all four faceoff circles. But regardless of whatever superstitions these guys have, there core ability is what makes them great players.
To kick off the summer vacation, my youngest daughter and I went on a 20-mile, three-day back-packing trip. I have been on several trips, but this was her first. We were hiking a section of the Monadnock-Sunapee Trail and followed their guidebook and trail markers for the three days of hiking. By following their book, we found shelters or platforms on which to spend the night and we found plenty of water to pump into our water bottles.
Imagine fielding a ground ball, throwing it to first base, and no one is there. Imagine running the bases, coming into third wondering whether to keep running, and no base coach is around. We depend on our teammates and coaches to be there. When we commit to a team, we commit to be there—win or lose, good or bad. We depend on our teams, and they depend on us.
Off the field, life is similar. When times are tough, we expect our friends to be there. When we arrive home—needing a meal, support, and love—we expect our parents to be there. When I come home at the end of the day, I expect my wife to be there. More importantly, when life is good or bad, I expect God to be there.
We live all of our lives by faith, whether we realize it or not. We have faith that a light will come on when we flip the switch. We have faith that our friends and spouses will be faithful to their relationships. Managers have faith that players will perform as they hope. Players have faith that everyone on the team will perform. The Bible describes faith as “the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen” (Heb 11:1).
“I was telling myself 20 times a hole (to) keep my focus, keep my focus, keep my focus,” Michael Campbell said, “and it worked.” Michael Campbell began the final round of the 2005 U.S. Open at Pinehurst four shots behind the leader. However, he was one of only four golfers who shot under par on the final day, while those atop the leader board crumbled, giving him a two-shot victory over Tiger Woods.
Campbell’s focus on the golf course paid off—to the tune of $1.17 million. “I worked really hard for this, ups and downs from my whole career,” Campbell said. “But it’s worth the work. It’s just amazing.”
During our football season, whenever we were down by a lot at halftime our coach would tell us, "You're getting outwanted. They have more will to win than you do."
Any competitor wants to win. But our coach did have a point in that some want it more than others. They tend to play harder because of their will to win. One reason desire is so important is that it motivates us in everything we do. A player can try and try to force himself to give outstanding effort, but he won't be able to keep it up for long unless the final goal of winning motivates him.
Hockey Chat: Could you imagine what the scores would be like if goalies weren’t allowed to wear any equipment. We’ve got some talent between the posts during our skates but they thank much of that to the equipment they put on. Not only does it help to stop the pucks, it stops the pain as well. Going out there unequipped would be disastrous. Sure they would stand there for a few minutes and maybe even grab a slow sliding puck with their bare hands. But as the attacks keep coming, their lack of preparedness would leave them broken down. Every player has equipment to keep them safe. It helps them stand their ground and play hard.
While a health “detox” can help restore vibrant health, don’t follow in Oprah’s footsteps!
Hockey Chat: You can feel effects being out on the ice for the first time in a while. You can also feel the effects from working out or keeping active in preparation for game time. Devoting the extra effort helps you be a better skater. That helps the whole team win. Individual dedication leads to team victory.
When Laura Wilkinson says she used to be a very quiet and shy person, it’s a little hard to believe. That’s because these days, the outgoing, personable world-class diver is one of sport’s most outspoken Christian athletes.
Wilkinson is also very articulate when it comes to matters of faith. She strives to live with integrity in an effort to maintain solid footing on the broad platform that worldwide notoriety as an Olympic gold medalist has afforded her.
“I’ve had to learn to speak up for God in my life,” Wilkinson says. “I’ve realized that if He has a presence in my heart, He needs to have a presence in everything. If He’s really the center of my life, He’s really going to be involved in everything.”
Hockey Chat: The current engraver, Louise St. Jacques is the engraver of the Stanley Cup every year. During engraving, the Cup is disassembled from the top down. The band being engraved is clamped onto a homemade circular jig that creates a steel background for stamping. Special hammers with different head-weights are used to strike against a letter-punch to sink each letter into the silver. When complete, it is another part of the awesome masterpiece.
Let’s be honest. There are some days when we just don’t want to have it all together! I’m a coach’s wife, and as such, I sometimes don’t want to be the patient listening ear for my coach and his frustrations. After all, isn’t it his fault that we are in our situations and dilemmas? Our kids miss their dad while he spends time with someone else’s kid.
In today’s devotion, I want to speak directly to the coach’s wives and hope that the rest of you can take away a small bit of spiritual encouragement, as well.
The Lady Bing trophy is awarded to a player for the most sportsman like conduct. This is the only sport that actually gives an award for playing within the rules. Sounds ridiculous? Not really considering it’s the only sport where fighting is generally expected and only punished by 5 minutes of offsetting penalties. The point is that to play in such a tough field, and still keep courteous to those who generally don’t deserve it, deserves to be acknowledged and rewarded.
I have a handful of life principles. One that I see played out over and over again is just how much competition reveals a person’s heart. In the heat of competition, true colors are shown. It is hard to hide your heart when you are sweating and giving it your all. Everything seems to come out, and sports have a way of exposing the truth. That can be really good or really bad, depending on what is in your heart.
A few days ago I went to the funeral of a huge sports fan whose love for life was evident to all. His name was Mike. His father had worked for FCA for several years and was responsible for getting FCA started in the SEC schools in the 60s and 70s. Mike’s life was full of joy, but it ended tragically with a sudden heart attack. He left this life way too early in my opinion, but his legacy will live on. His life was based on hope in Christ.
If you listen to people, being thankful is not a very common attitude. They complain about their classes, their jobs, their practice schedules, their parents (or kids), their friends, the weather, their teammates, and on and on it goes. In the world, it is easy to complain because everybody does it. Yet, as followers of Jesus, we are called to be thankful. That is no easy task when everyone around us is doing the opposite. It is just easier to fall in with them and do the same thing.
Hockey Chat: A goal on a break away is a sweet play to watch. But even better is when the team works together and through a series of good moves and great passes they get a goal. When all these elements fall into place it makes for a truly good play and tough puck for the goalie to stop. A half-hearted toss at the net is no real challenge for the goaltender.
Hockey Chat: You’ve seen hockey players try to argue there way out of penalties saying that it was just a little hook or they just slashed at the puck not the opponent. They try to minimize the offense. Fact is, when they are called for penalty, it’s a penalty. If they say they just barely hit the guy with their stick, they still are called for slashing. If plead that they just nudged the guy head first into the boards, they still get called for boarding just as if they slammed him. When the ref sees a penalty, regardless of the degree, he calls it.
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