Sports imPULSE

Is Golf A Sport?

It's an age-old question debated in pro shops and pubs across America: is golf a sport? Neil Wolkodoff, director of the Rose Center for Health and Sports Sciences in Denver, thinks it is, and he has some data to back up his claim. Wokodoff took eight better-than-average golfers and tracked their heart rate, oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, and how far they were walking through a few rounds.

"The study shows there's significant energy expenditure in golf, more than bowling and some other sports it's been compared to," Wolkodoff said to the AP. "There are a lot of sports that don't have this level of energy expenditure."

Subjects walking and carrying their clubs burned 721 calories per round, while the lazy folks in the carts burned just 411. Surprisingly, there was no difference in carrying clubs versus using a push cart, so save your back and rent the cart. The data also suggested that players went past their anaerobic thresholds after walking through two uphill holes (feeling the burn).

So golf burns more calories than an hour of billiards (216), fishing (302), or even a relaxed canoe trip (345), but we're not sold that energy expenditure alone defines what a sport is. Everyone agrees that cheerleaders have bodies to prove they're burning calories, but good luck getting consensus on whether it's a sport. Curling only burns 345 calories during an hour of competition, but in Canada, it's not just a sport, it's the national pastime. Is Tiger Woods proof that golf is a sport, or is John Daly confirmation to the contrary? That probably depends on whether you've got a set of clubs in the garage.

Know Your Sport: Gymnastics and the Science of Bending

Apparently a simple split is not enough. With degrees of flexibility correlating with tenths of points, gymnasts will try any form of Voodoo to get that limb just millimeters higher.  So you can imagine, the USOC got pretty excited when they uncovered researching showing 100 percent improvement in flexibility in male phys ed students.

The source of the absurd improvement relied less on Voodoo than it did on vibration. Research had shown that resting a limb on a vibrating surface during stretching greatly increased the flexibility of that limb.  So, Dr. Bill Sands, leader of the Recovery Center for the USOC cobbled together $1,000, a local machine shop and an engineering intern to make his own vibration box. The machine itself is surprisingly simple. It’s shaped like a small pommel horse and shakes continuously at 30 hertz. After trials with young male gymnasts showed 400 percent improvements acutely and significant increases they felt that the device was ready for Olympic prime time.

In short, the results have been staggering, so much so, that they simply stopped studying because it works.  Now, not only are gymnasts using this device, but synchronized swimmers, divers and even figure skaters are increasing their flexibility with this new device.

The Beckham Of Field Hockey

Bending it like that guy, special shoes, and one very hot training chamber are all part of the making of a modern player.

Dutch defender Taeke Taekema is known for his ability to curve shots off of set plays. He even has his own piece of equipment to help amplify his talents. Bend it like Beckham? How about twist it like Taekema.

The legend of Taekema was cemented following the European Championship in 2007 where he scored 16 goals in the tournament (apparently that’s good). Taekema’s skills are centered on his ability with penalty corners. Similar to a soccer free kick, a special shot known as the “drag flick” has revolutionized the game in just the past 15 years. And like pulling a wrist shot in ice hockey, the player drags the stick along the permanently wet ground (more about that in a future post) allowing him to either lift the ball or sling it along the ground. In a quasi jai-alai move, the ball rolls up the stick and then back down again adding more speed.

Beckham could bend before his Adidas Predator shoe and Taekema doesn’t need his Adidas TT-10 stick to flick—but apparently it doesn’t hurt. The TT-10 is a carbon fiber stick designed with a more extreme curve and lower blade profile than traditional sticks making it ideal for flicks. With the advent of flicks, the governing bodies have even begun to limit the amount of curvature allowed in the equipment

We'll continue this series in future posts and learn more about the game of Field Hockey.

Sports Momentum: Is It Scientific Or Just A Cliche?

There's a crowded leader board at the top of overused clichés in sports.

Undoubtedly ESPN.com has or will conduct a poll, but my No. 1 is "momentum." There ought to be a wanted poster in post offices. AKA "Big Mo." Whereabouts: Everywhere. Last seen: Leaving the mouths of athletes and coaches. Considered disarmed and dangerous.

Momentum began as a mechanical term. One dictionary defines it as "a measure of the motion of a body equal to the product of its mass and velocity."

Sports derive many clichés from science, right down to the term "chemistry," which, in sports parlance, means a team that "has the right mix." The informal sports formula is that chemistry plus momentum equal championship.

The sports incarnation of momentum is "forward motion." Success feeds upon itself, thus gaining, yes, momentum. It's the opposite of the "slump,' which, of course, means "the losses pile up."

Sport, however, isn't science, and momentum is measured, declared and analyzed at one's peril.

For instance, on July 1, the Baltimore Orioles seemed to have extreme momentum. The night before they had overcome a 10-1 deficit en route to an 11-10 victory at home over the Boston Red Sox. What happened the next afternoon? The Red Sox, trailing 5-1 with two out in the ninth inning, tied the score and then won, 6-5, in 11 innings.

So much for momentum. Alas, the Red Sox "bounced back." They "came off the deck swinging." By fighting back against the Birds' "momentum," they found some themselves. It was probably easier for the Red Sox, who were in first place while the Orioles were in last.

Boston had that great momentum beater. It had the better team.

Momentum is like getting five hits in five at-bats. The batter feels blessed and confident. There are short-term benefits. In the long run, however, he's still going to be lucky to hit .300.

At any given time, one team is reeling and another is rocking. The great equalizer is that every game has a winner and a loser. For every team that wins, another must lose. The overall win-loss record of any league is .500.

Thus, the scientific term "momentum" becomes a completely unscientific term. It flourishes in the germ-rich swamp of the emotions. What passes for magic is often just random.

The only logical way to close this celebration of clichés is to note that "what goes up must come down." It's going to remain that way as long as they play the games "one at a time."

What's SUP? A Surf Sport That Needs No Ocean

 Stand-up paddle surfing may sound like a scene from a comedy movie, but no one's laughing in a sports and fitness industry that has hit the recession as hard as any other business.

SUP, as it's called for short, looks exactly as it sounds: you stand on a large surfboard and propel yourself forward with a paddle. But, unlike traditional surfing, you don't have to wait for the waves. In fact, SUP, which is wildly popular, can be done on lakes, rivers, pools or any sufficiently large body of water.

It's generally agreed that the sport has roots in ancient Polynesia, but it didn't really enter the modern mindset until the mid 20th-century, when Waikiki's "beach boys" decided to stand up on their longboards and paddle around with outrigger canoe oars to get a better look at their surfing students, spot far-off waves, take photos for tourists or simply to have something to do on flat days.  However, the modern explosion began in the late 90's when big wave surfer Laird Hamilton picked up SUP and started publicizing it as simultaneously adventurous, peaceful and a solid form of core conditioning for surfers and non-surfers alike.

But while SUP enthusiasts have became a daily dot on the horizon of many a coastal California city, it's the market for lakes and rivers that has everyone really excited.  Think about it, you don't need waves, just a board and a paddle.

It does sound interesting, we'll have to wait and see if this will catch on like windsurfing or kitesurfing

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Noise level, in decibels, recorded at Edmonton's Rexall Place stadium during Game 3 of the Stanley Cup final between the Oilers and Carolina Hurricanes in 2006; the noise was roughly the equivalent of a jet at takeoff.

Indy 500 - Did You Know?

5,000 - that is the amount of downforce, in pounds, an Indy race car generates at 220 mph, enough to allow the car to run upside down.

Source:  Indy Racing League

Getting On Board

It's not exactly clear who built the first snowboard.  Some say the sport was born in 1929, when M.J. "Jack" Burchett constructed a board out of plywood and attached it to his feet with clothesline and horse reins.  While this has yet to verified, it is certain that in 1965 Sherman Poppen of Muskegon, Michigan, created the prototype for the original mass-produced board, tieing two skis together for his daughters on Christmas morning.  His wife named it the Snurfer, and it became a hit.

Soon a young rider named Jake Burton Carpenter began toying around with the Snurfuer design, and in 1977, after graduating from New York University, he founded what would later become the biggest snowboard company in the world.  Meanwhile in 1970, a surfing fan named Dimitrije Milovich started working on another design, inspired by his sledding down a hill on a cafeteria tray.  Winterstick, the company he formed in 1976 , is still around today.  The industry was on it's way.

The first national snowboard competition was held in 1982 at Suicide Six near Woodstock, Vermont, and five years later, during the 1987-88 season, the four events that made up the first snowboarding World Cup took place.  But it wasn't until 1998 that the ultimate outsider sport received the establishment's highest recognition:  inclusion in the Olympic Games at Nagano, Japan.

How Technologies Change The Fans Experience

Technology is changing how people experience sports at many arenas and stadiums.

Fans can vote via text message for their favorite player; self-serve automatic kiosks can upgrade tickets; and credit and debit card transactions can be done in the stands for food and beverages.  Tickets are electronically scanned to expedite entry into buildings, and digital signs are being used to target fans' specific interests.

Some venues are Wi-Fi hotspots, allowing fans to watch instant replays on hand-held devices. Wireless technology can also be used by staff to redirect personnel where they're needed.

With the advances in technology, the competition for that entertainment dollar is greater than ever

Nortel is working with a few NHL clubs, such as the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks and Phoenix Coyotes, to give their venues a new technological infrastructure.  Additionally, they now have a footprint in two out of three NFL stadiums and half of the Major League Baseball stadiums.

Nortel also will be providing the network infrastructure for Vancouver's 2010 Winter Olympics and the 2012 Summer Games in London.

So what's Nortel have to do with me the fan?

Nortel's technology will allow fans to rent hand-held devices, not only to see replays but to do such things as co-ordinate cheers for players, play fantasy hockey or football, and track favorite players' points. They are working to ensure that the fan experience in even the worst seat in the stadium is better than being on the couch in front of a 60 inch flat screen.

F1 Races Towards Eco-Technology

There is widespread agreement that the fuel-guzzling sport must respond in a responsible way to the current environmental challenges.  The global sensitivity to the causes of climate change is continually increasing and Formula One is not exempt from this. 

This past weekend's Japanese Grand Prix began to address these issues with unique green-grooved tires.  Although largely symbolic, this ushers in next season's energy-regenerating hybrid devices, which store energy otherwise lost during braking and convert the energy into power.

This KERS (kinetic energy recovery system) technology is part of the FIA's (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) push to improve its environmental credentials and, ultimately, help increase awareness of fuel-efficient technology on public roads.

Formula One teams and drivers realize that the future of F1 is in green technology and they can help ensure it will be the future on our roads as well.