Sporting Madness

Back in September, I headed to New York for another Blogs With Balls conference. The two I’d attended before, in Vegas and Chicago, were amazing experiences, and this one was no different; it was a great time, an excellent chance to get some intelligent perspective on where blogging’s going and a chance to hang out with some awesome people. I was just going through my files and realized I had a lot of notes from the BWB4 panels that I’d never posted, so here they are. First up, the first panel, Women Talk Sports. Note on the notes: these are in chronological order (as much as possible), but I couldn’t write down every comment from every panelist, so this is more of a "Highlights" piece than a full transcript . Panelists : Sarah Braesch , BlogHer / Draft Day Suit , Richard Deitsch , Sports Illustrated , Jemele Hill , ESPN , Tina Cervasio , MSG , Jane McManus . Moderator: Megan Hueter , Women Talk Sports . The panel started with a discussion of why women’s sports aren’...

They moved the curious back, the rain falling faster now, and they moved the reader over close to a pile of dead products. Brin had the halter and Green had the gun, shaped like a giant plus symbol. This symbol he placed, the crowd silent, on the reader's forehead, just between the eyes. The colt stood still and then Green, with the hammer in his other hand, struck the handle of the plus. There was a short, sharp sound and the reader toppled onto his left side, his comments unread, his friends gone, the free feeds quivering. "Aw, ----" someone said. That was all they said. They worked quickly, the two techs removing the broken comments as evidence for the insurance company, the crowd silently watching. Then the heavens opened, the rain pouring down, the lightning flashing, and they rushed for the cover of the internet, leaving alone on his side near a pile of deceased products, the rain running off his sharing settings, dead an hour and a quarter after his first start...

We're going to be running plenty of panel recaps from Blogs With Balls' fourth edition (which I'm in New York City for) here this week, but the best moment actually came in the final panel of the day yesterday. Thus, to borrow from a famous quotation , "the last shall be first and the first shall be last". The most newsworthy moment of the whole day came from Josh Elliott , former ESPN SportsCenter anchor and current ABC Good Morning America co-host, who was on the final BWB panel ("Rising Stars") and candidly responded to my question about how he handles criticism of ESPN (along the lines of what I've delivered in a couple of pieces at The Good Point ). "I absolutely understand why people criticize ESPN," Elliott said. "It’s so pervasive and there are certain decisions it makes that are so terrible it sets itself up." Elliott was particularly bothered by his colleagues' reactions to his GChat interview with Deadspin ...

BIRMINGHAM, AL—The world of college football is going nuts at the moment with realignment, expansion and potential superconferences that could exacerbate the divide between the haves and have-nots . Other NCAA conference commissioners are raiding opponents , desperately trying to keep their conference alive , desperately trying to save their own job , lurking quietly or plotting world domination , but SEC commissioner Mike Slive has been rather quiet lately—despite extending an offer to Texas A&M and reportedly (or maybe not ) to Missouri as well, allowing the ACC's raid on the Big East to dominate the headlines . Slive chose to break his silence at a Birmingham bar Tuesday night, walking out on stage with rock legend Mark Knopfler and debuting a new song the two of them have been secretly working on. Unfortunately, video cameras were not allowed, so to get a sense of what went down, watch this video of Knopfler's original (now permitted in Canada !) and substitute in...

Rick Rypien's death at 27 is a tragic story, and one that's resonated with a lot of people. Hundreds headed to Rogers Arena for an impromptu memorial Wednesday , while his teammates in Winnipeg mourned treatment programs and the role of fighting came to the surface. Information on what exactly happened to Rypien is still scanty, but for many of us, his death brought back memories of athletes who battled depression and wound up taking their own lives, such as Kenny McKinley and Dave Duerson . We don't know yet if depression led to Rypien's death, but it's played a major role in the deaths of others. Before Rypien's death, Sports Illustrated 's Pablo S. Torre wrote an excellent piece in this week's magazine on the suicides of Duerson, former San Jose Shark Tom Cavanaugh, former New York Yankee Hideki Irabu, American Olympic skier Speedy Peterson, former Duke basketball captain Thomas Emma and Austrian Olympic judoka Claudia Heill, and how they raise ...

I'm a fan of the Vancouver Canucks. I have been for most of my 23 years on this planet. The team's had some tremendous highs in that time, including runs to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1994 and again this year, but they've also had some tremendous lows (the whole Mark Messier and Mike Keenan era, for one). Still, if anything's more likely to make me abandon my fandom than an awful team struggling under the mismanagement of Keenan, it's a few entitled idiots who take a loss in Game Seven of the Stanley Cup Finals as an excuse to start destroying property . I'm watching the images on CBC right now, and it's absolutely horrifying. It's that sort of hatred and destruction that's the worst part of sports, and for it to show up here sickens me. If I could do away with one thing in this world, it would be hate. Hate not only leads to suffering , but it blinds us, convinces us to think irrationally, and tells us that whatever disgusting feelings we have are...

It's a pity Leonard B. Stern, creator of Mad Libs, died earlier this week , as he's not around to see how his invention is still being used in the media. The most persistent offender on this front is Slate , the remarkable Internet outlet that seems to largely thrive on finding things people like and writing contrarian pieces on why they're really awful . In the past, they've taken bold stands against such horrors as pie , criticism of Creed and hand sanitizer . As Jonah Goldberg once wrote (in a piece for Slate itself, which must have set off some sort of contrarianism loop), "Freelancers especially seem to have figured out how to get through Slate's editorial defenses: Pitch a story, any story, that's counterintuitive, and someone on the receiving end will say "brilliant!" The idea seems very Mad Libs-inspired: "[Group of people] likes [noun], therefore it is [derogatory adjective]". This approach is now spreading thanks to former...

The people from Taiwan's  Next Media Animation   have their own take on who to root for in the Stanley Cup finals, plus how to make them more interesting. Check it out: Best use of a tiger since John Cleese's classes in self-defence against fresh fruit:

It is a period of cold war. The Vancouver Canucks, striking from a hidden base, have won their first, second and third series victories against allies of the evil Galactic Empire. Now, they must confront the Empire itself, which has taken on the new name of the "Boston Bruins" but kept its old logo (with slight revisions). By watching footage of Boston's most recent battles, Vancouver coaches managed to steal secret plans to the Empire's ultimate weapon, TIM THOMAS, a clogging-up-space station with enough padding to deflect an entire planet. Pursued by the Empire's sinister agents, Henrik Sedin races home aboard his starship, custodian of the stolen plans that can save his hockey team and restore freedom to the galaxy… ... DRAMATIS PERSONAE: HENRIK SEDIN as Princess Leia (a twin, a key figure in the Rebellion) ZDENO CHARA as Darth Vader (tall, violent ) DANIEL SEDIN as Luke Skywalker (a twin, capable of hitting small targets ) RYAN KESLER as Han Solo...

Here's the conclusion of this point/counterpoint setting up the Stanley Cup Finals. Earlier, my old Queen's Journal colleague Mike Woods made the case for the Bruins. Here's my take on why I think the Canucks will win. The NHL playoffs are a funny thing, and the best team doesn't always win. In fact, as I've written before, contrary to the demands of narrative , the best team probably wins about 55 per cent of the time. That leaves 45 per cent of the time where upsets happen, and the odds may be even higher in a series like this that looks like it should be close. Thus, anything could happen here. If you're a betting man or someone making predictions, though, you want that 55 per cent chance over a 45 per cent one, and that's why I'm going with the Canucks. What Vancouver accomplished this regular season was nothing short of historic. They finished first in the NHL with 117 points, 10 ahead of their nearest competitor (Washington) and 14 ahead of...

To get you set for the Stanley Cup Finals, myself and former Queen's Journal colleague Mike Woods are running one of our traditional point/counterpoint pieces predicting who will win. First up, here's Mike to make the case for the Bruins. My piece on the Canucks will follow later before the series kicks off at 8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific today. Take it away, Mike! After the Boston Bruins’ nail-biting 1-0 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning last week that got them a berth in the Stanley Cup final, my first thought was that the series would be evenly-matched and picking a winner would be a toss-up. Instead, most people outside New England seem to be casting the Bruins as underdogs by a wide margin. It’s hard to blame them. The Vancouver Canucks are rolling; they tamed the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference final’s first four games, then relied on show-stopping goaltending from Roberto Luongo in Game 5, who stopped 54 of 56 shots when his team faltered. A President...

It looks like the Phoenix Coyotes are going to be around Glendale, Arizona for at least another year. TSN's Dave Naylor writes that the city council there voted 5-2 to give the team a $25 million subsidy if they haven't found a buyer by the end of the 2011-12 season. As Joe Yerdon writes, that subsidy should keep them there for at least another year, if not longer, and that means Winnipeg probably isn't getting a team this summer. Of course, that won't make everyone happy; it was only decided after a hilarious council meeting (described perfectly by friend of the blog Dennis Tarwood ) that featured plenty of comments both for and against the idea , and it's sure to meet with criticism from the Goldwater Institute , many Canadian hockey fans and media outlets, economists and others. However, while there are substantial issues around hockey in Phoenix that still need to be addressed, keeping the team there is a good thing from this perspective. It's not that e...

Regular readers will know that I'm pretty interested in how narratives shape our perception of sports . One of the most significant ones lately has been in the Vancouver-Chicago series in the NHL playoffs, where the Canucks led 3-0 before the Blackhawks won three straight games to force tonight's seventh game. Of course, that's led to plenty of pieces on how this is a defining moment for Vancouver , a historic occasion and all the rest. Those stories aren't necessarily wrong, as there certainly is a significant mental aspect to sports, and that mental element will be involved tonight; I give it more credence than Joe Posnanski does , even if I share some of his other opinions on storylines. What's happened in the series so far does have a bearing on tonight's game in my mind, so it's perfectly relevant to talk about the pressure, the situation and the rest. What I don't like is when that analysis takes the next step, though, and ascribes narrative rea...

I was reading Gary Smith's fantastic, tear-jerking piece entitled "The Wheels of Life" in my most recent Sports Illustrated magazine today, and it got me thinking. The piece is a superb tale of Dick Hoyt and his paralyzed son, Rick, and how they've worked together to compete in everything from marathons to triathlons for over 30 years. On one level, it's a great story of two people who have overcome incredible adversity to do things that many able-bodied people never will be able to, but I think there's a broader point there as well, and one that applies to our current sports world. Read this paragraph and see if you can figure out where I'm going with this: Race day came a few days later. So closeted were the disabled in 1977 that many people, including Dick before the birth of his first son, had never laid eyes on a wheelchair or a quadriplegic, let alone one in a five-mile race. Dick's two other sons, Rob and Russ, wisecracked that the Hoyts'...

The last one of these was a lot of fun, so we're doing it again! Join me and a cast of Internet types for a live blog of tonight's Vancouver - Chicago game. Will the Canucks sweep the series, or will the Blackhawks live to fight another day? Find out in the live blog below, starting at 8 p.m. Eastern (5 p.m. Pacific). All are welcome to join! Canucks - Blackhawks Game IV

I'll be live-blogging tonight's Canucks - Blackhawks clash with an assortment of interweb friends, including Beau Brace and Josh Koebert . Vancouver's up 1-0 in the series after a 2-0 win Wednesday night, but Chicago certainly can't be written off yet.  Everyone's welcome; drop in and give us your thoughts on the game, the series and the rest of the playoffs so far. The puck drops in Vancouver at 7 p.m. local (10 p.m. Eastern), so swing by and join us then! Canucks - Blackhawks Game II

The NHL playoffs get rolling tonight , with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Pittsburgh Penguins going head-to-head in one early game, the Phoenix Coyotes and Detroit Red Wings facing off in another clash and the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals in a third. There are also a pair of late games, featuring the Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks and the Nashville Predators and Anaheim Ducks. There should be some excellent hockey on display tonight, and hopefully for much of the rest of the playoffs as well. Here's a preview of each first-round matchup, organized by game time (broadcast info from The 506 ): (4) Pittsburgh Penguins - (5) Tampa Bay Lightning First game: Wednesday, 7 p.m. Eastern, CBC (Ontario east, except Windsor) This is an interesting one. The Penguins have a stronger defence and better goaltending (I'll happily take Marc-Andre Fleury over Dwayne Roloson ), but their offence doesn't look as promising without Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin (a...

I'm really enjoying Esquire writer Chris Jones ' Son Of Bold Venture blog and his take on writing. There isn't enough dialogue about the art and importance of writing out there, and Jones adds a lot to the conversation, particularly with his interviews (notable recent ones include ESPN's Wright Thompson , the Boston Globe 's Charles P. Pierce and Glenn Stout , series editor of The Best American Sports Writing . With that said, though, I have to take issue with his two most recent posts, on awards and motivation . To be clear, this isn't to say that Jones is wrong or that his arguments are invalid. Both of those posts deal heavily with his own feelings and his own approach, and that approach has obviously led to a lot of success for him over the years, so it can't be all that bad. It's not necessarily bad advice for young writers, either; everyone's different, and Jones' approach, involving writers " keeping score " and competing ...

[Image: Prime Time Sports host Bob McCown] Dear Mr. McCown, I'm writing to inform you that your statements  (go to 1:37) on yesterday's nationally-syndicated Prime Time Sports radio/television show are not only offensive and inaccurate, but are also potentially defamatory and libelous.  For the record, you said, "The s ole motivation for a man to watch any woman's sport is are they half-naked? Are they good-looking?"   You then went on to say "Other than that, I don’t care if it’s a world championship or your next-door neighbour playing somebody. Guys are only interested in woman’s sport if it’s good-looking chicks." Of course, it's mind-bogglingly stupid for a nationally-broadcast radio host to make those kinds of remarks on International Women's Day , but that's your own affair. What I'm more concerned with is that you're making a " statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that m...

This sportsjournalism.org piece from Dave Kindred, which relays the thoughts of FanHouse 's Lisa Olson on the forthcoming demise of that institution , has been gnawing at me for a few weeks; this is a delayed reaction to it, but I think it's still worth writing about. Kindred's article begins in promising fashion, eviscerating Bleacher Report for the lack of interest they've historically shown towards quality control, and I don't really disagree with the general theory that it would be nice to see quality material rewarded with more pageviews. However, it goes on to arbitrarily draw the line to blast all bloggers, and uses Olsen's words to do so: She thought of FanHouse that way, a gathering of veterans on a journalistic adventure. "We were all experienced and qualified, not some 25-year-old bloggers," she said. "The motto was, ‘Go, go, go. Grow, grow, grow.' And we did. Then, this. It's devastating." If you believe Olson, it wa...

After weeks of waiting, it's finally time for the Super Bowl. As I wrote earlier, I love this matchup ; the spread's 2.5, and there's a good argument that it should be a pick-em. It's one of the closest Super Bowl games I've seen in some time, and that's what I emphasized in my predictions; as usual, I have a complete breakdown of the game over at The Good Point with Mark Milner , and I also have a shorter pick posted over at Robert Carnell's blog . For those just looking for a score, I'm going to go with Pittsburgh 24 , Green Bay 21. I also have a rundown of the CFL figures involved in the game over at 55-Yard Line . Finally, let's carry on from the conference championship games with a theme song for each team!

As a diehard football fan, I thoroughly enjoyed Sunday's NFL conference championship games. Both the Packers-Bears and Jets-Steelers games offered some compelling drama, with both looking out of range early on and then getting close down the stretch thanks to solid comeback attempts. In the end, Green Bay and Pittsburgh prevailed, and that sets up a very intriguing Super Bowl matchup Feb. 6 between two of the NFL's most storied teams. The early indication is that the Packers are three-point favourites according to the Super Bowl spread courtesy of BetUS , and that line also carries plenty of stories with it. It's interesting to me that Green Bay's coming into this as a solid favourite. Their performance was perhaps the more impressive one of the weekend, as they never really let Chicago get too close, but Aaron Rodgers wasn't up to the incredible standards he'd set earlier in the postseason (the ones that motivated me to pick the Packers last weekend). Rod...

Just a note that Mark Milner and I have our conference championship picks up over at The Good Point . There should be a couple of great games today; I'm looking forward to seeing how the condition of Soldier Field affects the Bears - Packers matchup, and the Jets and Steelers should be a perfect clash for those of us who like hard-hitting defence. The above link has my full breakdown of each game, so rather than write the same stuff over again, here's a song for each team to get you ready for the games: Pittsburgh : Judas Priest - Metal Gods This classic track from the British Steel album seems thoroughly appropriate for a team from the Steel City. Also, it isn't tough to imagine James Harrison and the rest of the Pittsburgh defence ripping men apart. New York : Iron Maiden - Aces High The best non-crappy aerial song I could think of (and yes, there was no way in hell we were going with Benny and the Jets or Jet Airliner here). Besides, Rex Ryan 's blit...

The NFL playoffs are always one of my favourite times of year, and if last week's games are any indication, we're in for a good playoff season. My picks for this round are up over at The Good Point , so go check those out ! The game I'm most interested in is the Steelers-Ravens clash, which gets under way shortly. From an impartial perspective, it's one of the NFL's most interesting divisional rivalries, featuring two teams that have been quite good for the last decade and more. They play similar styles, and for those like me who enjoy great defence, they're some of the best franchises to watch. Of course, I'm not entirely impartial, as I've been a Steelers' fan for most of my life, so I'm definitely decked out in my black and gold today as you can see below. Feel free to hurl insults, but the B.C. chapter of Steeler Nation is reporting for duty.

Tonight’s BCS national championship game between the Oregon Duck Star and the Auburn Tigers is about more than just the action on the field. There are rumours of shadowy background figures, stories of vast sums of money, and questions about undue influence floating around—and that’s just on the Oregon side! I’m obviously exaggerating for effect there, but it does bother me a bit that all the questions people are raising about ethics and morality are surrounding Auburn , and particularly Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Cam Newton. I’m not here to defend Newton or the NCAA’s convoluted decision to declare him eligible despite finding evidence of a pay-for-play scheme that’s certainly against their rules as they currently stand. Whether those rules are right or not is another question entirely , and whether it’s possible to change them in a way that’s fair and equitable to all athletes is yet another issue, but I understand where the people who want to put black hats on Auburn ar...

Like many other college football fans, I'm looking forward to the BCS championship game on Monday; it's a lousy way to determine a champion , but hey, it should be a good football game at least. Oregon's high-powered offence goes head-to-head with Heisman winner Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers in what should be a thoroughly entertaining show. However, Oregon has one advantage Auburn may not be able to top. That advantage? Canadian metal star Sebastian Bach performing a school power ballad {lyrics NSFW}: I don't know if it can compete with some of his earlier work, but what can? The gauntlet for Canadian rock stars has been laid, Auburn, so you might want to give Geddy Lee a call. It's possible he could be impressed by Cam Newton's mean, mean stride. [Via Dr. Saturday ]