Day 183: First Half Recap: 6 Months Down, 6 Months to Go!

The Balls of All Sizes quest for 365 consecutive days of sports blogging is half over as of today. For six straight months, I have (surprisingly) stuck to my goal and it has been a blast doing it. I've learned a lot about sports I don't normally watch and blogged about some that don't really involve balls. A lot has happened over the past six months—some pretty awesome stuff and some pretty awesomely bad stuff. 

Just in case you're new to Balls, here are a few of my favorites:

April 12:  Day 12: Happy Birthday, Dad!

What better way to honor my dad on his birthday than to write a post for him. He's the reason I love sports so much—it's his fault I care so deeply about every win and loss.

April 24:  Day 24: Happy Birthday, Mom!

It just wouldn't have been fair to honor dad without giving mom her day in the sun. She also has a lot to do with my sports addiction. She allowed it.

May 10:  Day 40: An Act of Kindness. A Happy Fan.

Even though I'm not a Dodgers fan and really don't care what they do, I fell in love with this story and Matt Kemp's selfless act of kindness making a young man's day.

May 22:  Day 52: Jerry Remy: Commentator Extraordinaire or Playgirl Pinup?

This post totally cracked me up to research and write and it was one of my most successful with 122 views. (For me, that's a banner day!!)

June 27:  Day 88: Aaron Hernandez is a Dumbass

Even though there were a couple Hernandez posts that precede Day 88, this one is by far my favorite. Not only because I got the chance to rant about a completely ridiculous situation, but also because the damn post got 251 views. Must've been the title!

June 29:  Day 90: These are a Few of My Favorite (Fenway) Things

Just because I love Fenway Park so much... if anyone ever tears this ballpark down, I'll be forever broken. Baseball season is the only time of year I sort of wish I lived in Boston.

July 16:  Day 107: An Open Letter to the Pre All-Star Break Red Sox

I actually got to the point of hating the Red Sox towards the end of last season. I went to a game in August and wanted so badly to throat-punch each and every guy on the field. It was just to nice to love this team again.

July 17:  Day 108: Those Rolling Stone Idiots Really Have No Clue

I've never been so disgusted with a publication as I was with Rolling Stone for glorifying that asshole who was responsible for the Boston Marathon Bombings. 

August 8:  Day 130: Wes Welker Left Because Bill Belichick was Mean... Really?

I love this post for many reasons, but mainly because I was half in the bag when I wrote it. And I still think I managed to write a pretty mistake-free post that actually made some sense!

September 9:  Day 162: Red sky at night, sailor's delight.

This post was a favor for a friend who loves sailing. Who knew that I would become so caught up in the America's Cup, I would write not one, but three posts about the oldest trophy in sports. It was fun doing the research and learning all about this rich man's race.

September 21:  Day 174: Red Sox Clinch the AL East... And I WAS THERE!!

Of course this one is on my list... I've never been to a division clinching game before so this was so much fun. What a season for the Sox!!

Well, I think that's probably enough favorites for now. I just hope the next six months provide as much material as the first six did. Minus murderers on my favorite teams... I've had enough of that. 

Do you have a favorite?

Day 178: Holy America's Cup, Batman!

The 35th America's Cup is officially over and the Auld Mug is unbelievably staying on American soil after a stunning Oracle Team USA victory over Emirates Team New Zealand Wednesday afternoon. For just the third time in the Cup's history, it came down to a winner-take-all race and Oracle took that race by 44 seconds after trailing at the start.

But that's almost not the real story here. The USA team began the America's Cup behind after a two point penalty for "juicing" their boat. So in a first to nine wins contest, the Oracle team needed to win 11 races. After the first 11 races, the Team USA crew found themselves in a deep hole trailing the Kiwis 8-1. It was starting to look as if the Cup was making a long trip down under.

And then something miraculous happened. Something that's never before happened in an America's Cup contest. In its 162 year history, no team has ever overcome a deficit so large to win... and no team has ever won eight straight races.

This collapse by the Kiwis has to be the biggest of all time in any sport. Bigger than the New York Yankees losing a 3-0 series lead to the Red Sox in the 2004 ALCS. Bigger than the New England Patriots losing in the Super Bowl after an undefeated season. Bigger than Phil Mickelson's failure at Winged Foot in 2006. Huge.

Oracle Team USA deservedly erupted in celebration after their win with hugs, high-fives and champagne showers for the team members and owner Larry Ellison aboard the winning yacht. Nineteen days is the longest the contest has lasted since its inception in 1851.

I would like to say I cozied up to a bar somewhere and watched this miracle unfold, but I didn't. You see... I didn't watch a single race live. If you know me at all, you know of my severe sports superstitions. I couldn't be the jinx that stymied this historic comeback.

You're welcome.

Day 170: America's Cup Update: These Guys are INSANE!

Retaining the America's Cup trophy, the Auld Mug, is looking bleak for the Oracle Team USA. They currently trail the Emirates Team New Zealand 7-1 which means the Kiwis need to win just two more races to swipe the Cup and take it Down Under.

In watching these races, I've come to one conclusion. The guys manning these catamarans are freaking insane. The boats look like they're almost floating, only touching the water on thin, underwater daggerboards which reduce drag and increase speed. Like they need to be going any faster. While doing research for my first sailing post, I discovered that just six years ago, the average top speed of these yachts was 10 knots. This year, it's 40 knots.

What I failed to understand was how the equipment evolves over the years and that the Cup's defender gets to determine the race rules, including what types of boats are used. Billionaire Larry Ellison of Oracle Team USA chose the new AC72 catamaran over the heavier, single-hulled boats used in the past. These new boats not only hydroplane on the water at speeds of almost 50 miles per hour, but they are the fastest, most expensive and most dangerous ever built. Nothing like adding a little peril to your day.

The USA team really had an uphill battle and the chances were slim they can come back from the two point penalty they were given for illegally weighting their boat. And some of their tactics have come back to bite them in the ass. In race five, Oracle attempted a sharp tacking turn with the hull out of the water. When the maneuver failed, the sailboat stopped almost dead in its tracks, and the New Zealand team won the race. Ooops.

The Kiwis nearly had a tragedy of their own on day five. And this is were the title of the post originated from because if you watch this video, I think you'll agree that this is some insane shit. I most certainly would've soiled my draws had I been on this boat. But then again, I'm pretty sure you couldn't pay me enough to participate in one of these races.

Crazy, scary shit. I will admit, I'm not much of an adrenaline junkie so reaching ridiculously high speeds while skimming across the top of the water doesn't much appeal to me. Plus, I'm not a very good swimmer. Golf is more my speed.

[Source:  Larry Ellison’s Oracle Team USA Faces America’s Cup Defeat]

Day 162: Red sky at night, sailor's delight.

Let's just get this clear before we go any further together: I know nothing about sailing. Nada, zilch, zip, zero, diddly-squat. I've been on a sailboat exactly one time and it was one of the least fun things I've ever done. I'm pretty sure the fact that we were racing and I was expected to actual work didn't help the matter any. And feeling slightly seasick was a real pisser. Oh and almost getting hurled over the side of the boat sort of sucked.

Photo from HERE.

But it's America's Cup time and this shit doesn't happen that often—less than the Olympics, in fact. The last Cup was held in 2010. Because I'm not a sailor or a wealthy entrepreneur, I really didn't know what exactly the America's Cup was (besides an expensive boat race)—but Wikipedia is wicked smaht and gives a great quick and concise explanation of what this prestigious competition is all about.

The America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two sailing yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging for the cup. The America's Cup is the oldest active trophy in international sport. 

The trophy was originally awarded in 1851 by the Royal Yacht Squadron for a race around the Isle of Wight in England, which was won by the schooner America. The trophy was renamed the America's Cup after the yacht and was donated to the New York Yacht Club (NYYC) under the terms of the Deed of Gift, which made the cup available for perpetual international competition.  

Any yacht club that meets the requirements specified in the Deed of Gift has the right to challenge the yacht club that holds the Cup. If the challenging club wins the match, it gains stewardship of the cup.  

The 34th America's Cup finals are happening right now in San Francisco with the Cup's defender being the Golden Gate Yacht Club. The GGYC's racing team, Oracle Team USA defeated a Swiss team in 2010 to take the Cup. They are being challenged by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron's racing team, Emirates Team New Zealand.

But the race finals have been overshadowed by death and controversy. Wait... what? This sounds interesting... almost like one of my television stories. Add in some infidelity and you've got yourself a daytime soap drama. Some say the race is cursed... Back in May, a sailor with Sweden-based Artemis Racing, died when a large catamaran capsized on San Francisco Bay and trapped the man under the boat for 10 minutes. And then US was accused of "juicing" their boats and got caught. Oh and the whole race is costing San Fran a butt-load of money.

The 72-foot catamaran style boats used for this race are some of the fastest boats on the planet. In 2007, the average top speed of an America's Cup yacht was 10 knots or 11.5 mph. The boats this year are averaging 40 knots or roughly 46 mph. At 43 knots, the 72-foot catamaran will sail its entire length in one second. So that explains why these guys are wearing freaking helmets! If you're wondering how the America's Cup qualifies for "Balls of All Sizes," now you know—these guys must have giant balls of steel.

As it stands right now, the Oracle Team USA is down three races to one to the Emirates Team New Zealand. But with the two point penalty assessed prior to the race start for boat doping or "making illegal modifications to its boats during exhibition races in 2012 and earlier this year," the USA team needs to win 11 races to New Zealand's nine. But there's still time!

The racing will continue as needed through September 21st and the races can be found on NBC Sports Network afternoons from 3:30-6pm ET. Now I definitely have to watch.

[Source: Billionaire death race]