Hi, and these are a few of my favorite things
Hi all! I’m Minda, and this is my first post here. I’m not sure how to go about starting a blog with a broad topic like “sports.” So here’s a taste of who I am as a sports fan, based on sports happenings of today and the last week or so.
The NBA Finals:
Basketball is an awesome sport, but I can’t make myself care much about the NBA, not even when the Finals matchup is so historically relevant. Dynasty vs. Dynasty, I get that. I’m supposed to be enthralled, but I change the channel. I don’t know, I think it’s just the amount of showboating, whining, and ego that detracts from what should be happening on the court. Turn-off. The Celtics are ahead, three games to one, and I hope they go ahead and win Game 5 so this can be over.
No Triple Crown for Big Brown
I love how anyone can jump into the world of horseracing for just a few weeks out of the year, and then forget all about it until the next year’s Derby rolls around. Though I never fully bought into Big Brown, I love when a horse wins the first two Triple Crown races because it gives everyone a chance to embrace a story that is centered around a beautiful creature instead of the usual selection of egomaniacal athletes we typically have to watch.
When my parents were teenagers, three horses won the Triple Crown in a span of just a few years, so they didn’t realize what a rare treat it really was. Obviously no horse has won since then, but a glut of them have won the Derby and Preakness recently. Mom and Dad and I have gotten to bond over horseracing when that happens, because they know I’ve never seen a Triple Crown winner and they’d love to share that with me. [/awwww]
Euro 2008
I really enjoy watching the occasional soccer match, but I’m not always good at following the ins and outs of many teams, whether they are here in the States (MLS) or across the pond like these fellows. But regardless of whether I know every team’s roster and backstory, this fine tournament is a chance to catch up on some of what I’ve missed before. The only problem is that this tournament falls during almost the same time as…
The College World Series!
Starting this weekend, eight fine college baseball teams and countless thousands of their fans will be descending on Omaha, NE - my town! - for the College World Series. Even for those who don’t follow baseball, it’s easy to tell when it’s CWS time: Bars roll out all their tents, fences, and lights to prepare for the crowded beer garden scene. All types of businesses all over town put up signs, “Welcome baseball fans,” and such. Traffic gets kind of dicey and restaurants get crowded, but this is heaven for a college baseball fan.
As a lifelong Nebraskan (and a student at the University of Nebraska), I am a Husker fan, so I’m sad that my team isn’t a part of the CWS. However, I should be there every day, because it really is baseball at its finest: all the heart, all the hustle, glorious heaps of superstition and of course elite skills. And a big messy dogpile for the winners at the end.
But my first and greatest love:
The Kansas City Royals
The story on the Royals is that they’ve been losing a lot lately, but there is legitimate reason for hope for the near future. I was born a Royals fan and I’ll die one too; it’s as much a part of my identity as my gender or natural hair color. I love all of Major League Baseball but the Royals are my team. As a KC fan, I’m obligated to hate the Yankees, the Cardinals, the White Sox, and I really do. If I’m not at a ballgame or watching one at home, I’m scouring for interesting trade rumors, reading baseball blogs, or poring over tables and graphs in books from folks like Bill James or Baseball Prospectus.
But I know not everyone feels like I do about baseball, so I’ll try and present a variety of sports here.
If you’d like, you can check out my other work at my personal blog, Baseball and Other Things, and see my contributions for the Ladies… .
What I hope to figure out from you all is how much of the sporting world do you want here? In-depth analysis? Touching human interest stories? Attractive athletes (kidding…sort of)?