Went to the younger's track meet last night. Stood around in the rain and watched teenagers gaggle about and occasionally do something. Track meets, like their close cousins wrestling meets, are ungodly boring.
It did get me thinking about sports in general. All the parents are certain that the big money will keep flowing into the big time sports like football and basketball and the smaller sports will be left to die on the vine. I think that the other option might be equally probable.
Let's look at sports here in America. Football is in the process of devouring itself. The athletes are too big, too fast, and too well armed. The sport itself has a long history of leaving half-crippled men in its wake. Revenues are going down, costs are going up. Owners are testosterone-patched viagra addicts with greed and power issues. Something is going to give.
Basketball is becoming increasingly marginalized as the players become ever more self-absorbed and greedy. The owners cupidity and the costs to the fan are becoming absurd. The game itself is becoming boring, it moves fast granted, but rather than a team sport, it seems to be degenerating into a one on one competition with a couple of people on the court watching.
Baseball is an enigma. The only people who seem to like it are the folks who believe in the gold standard, the American dream (circa 1965) and apple pie. They are lost to the past with a booorrrriinng sport as their standard.
So, I encourage the boys in their off sports. Good healthy competition. Not too many parents about. The kids having fun by themselves. Oh, the young one will play football, but I think that I like this better
1 comment:
Wrestling and track are great for reading a book. But both football and baseball also have a tiny amount of actual action time compared to the length of the event.
Generally the open field with a goal games (soccer, lacrosse) and their indoor substitutes (basketball, hockey) have a lot more continuous action.
I like baseball because you can let your mind wander, and then perk up when the action gets going.
Football is most fun when you have a recording with good camera work and can go over the plays many times. There are so many moving pieces happening so fast that it is the only way you will ever know what is really going on.
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