Sports Advice

By Sandy Peaks

Golf is one of the few sports where your main opponent is - yourself. Many a good golfer has tried to correct a few small faults only to ruin what they did well! So before you take apart a perfectly good swing to cure a perceived problem with distance or drift, check that your problem is not caused by such simple things as alignment, grip or stance.

When taking a shot, start with alignment. View the main target and any intermediate targets such as a clump of rough grass. Align the clubface behind the ball; the center of the clubface should line up directly between the two ground targets you have viewed. Grip the club lightly, with fingers pointing directly down the shaft. Align your feet a shoulder width apart, with knees slightly flexed. Stand at a distance from the ball that allows your arms to hang down comfortably without stretching. Ensure your weight is evenly distributed over both feet, if not, move until it is.

Don't lean over the club too much, or you will shorten the swing and reduce its power. You should feel right away when your posture is right; back, elbows, knees and the balls of your feet all align. Moving out of that imaginary line is a common problem with new golfers.

Keep your shoulders back and your arms close to your body throughout the swing. Don't reach for the ball. The clubhead should start back in an arc, with the right shoulder turning backwards. Swing back until your hands are at the level of your ear, almost at a 90 degree angle at the top of the backswing. The right knee remains in the same position, while the left knee moves toward the right knee with the turn of the upper body and against the resistance of the lower body. Complete your swing with a high follow-through of the club. You should find that your hips are turned toward the target, and your weight is firmly on your right foot.

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By Ruth Cracknell

Good baseball players need to learn to pitch. However, until a boy gets out of high school, he doesn't need to develop more than two basic pitches-the curve and the fast ball. In the first place, he'll get four pitches with the fast ball alone-low inside, low outside, high inside, high outside. Ditto the curve. If he then learns to change the speed of each pitch, he can double his assortment.

The overall grip is the same for the curve and fast ball; forefinger and middle finger spread in a comfortable V on top of the ball, thumb underneath. For the fast ball from the overhand or three-quarter delivery, the hand should be directly behind the ball. When the ball leaves the hand it should rotate upward, or toward the pitcher. To make this spin more effective, pitchers usually grip the ball across the stitches-some across the fat part of the figure 8 pattern, some at the narrow part.

To throw the curve, the pitcher makes the ball spin, or rotate, away from the hitter at an angle. He wants the ball to go out and down; not on a horizontal plane or "flat." To accomplish this, run the top fingers along the stitches. Go slowly through the delivery as with the fast ball.

At the forward snap of the wrist, twist the hand outward and bear down on the outside finger. Beginners should first learn to twirl the ball at the proper angle. (It's a good idea to paint a large black spot on one side of the ball to help get the correct angle to the spin.)

To improve a pitcher's control, managers might consider erecting a set of "strings". Here's how it's done: stretch a string between two poles, or trees at average shoulder height. Stretch out another one at knee height. Then tie two pieces of twine, 12" apart, to the top string and loop both around the bottom string. The rectangle forms the strike zone. To complete the job, build a pitching mound in front of the strings at the proper distance.

The Windup

Let's switch to the body movements now, using the three-quarter delivery as our example since it is the most popular. Two basic positions are employed-the full windup and the "stretch". The full windup is used mostly when the bases are unoccupied. In professional ball, it is used when runners are on 3rd, on 2nd and 3rd or on 1st, 2nd and 3rd. Pitchers usually "stretch" with runners on 1st, or 1st and 2nd, and also 1st and 3rd.

Good baseball players at eight years old probably should first be taught to throw from the stretch position and then gradually be introduced to the full windup. Before starting any move, the pitcher must learn how and where to stand on the mound. The rules say he must have one foot in contact with the pitching rubber until the ball is delivered.

This means his pitching foot-the right foot for a right hander, the left for a southpaw-is to be an the plate at the start of windup and remain in contact until the body is in the final part of the delivery cycle. (The pitcher cannot step forward to the pitching plate and make that part of the windup.)

The toe of the pitching foot ought to extend over the forward edge of the rubber with the heel on top. The weight should be on the back foot, located comfortably behind the rubber. The pitching hand holds the ball out of the batter's sight behind the pitching leg.

As soon as the pitcher gets his eyes on the target, with the catcher in proper receiving position, he can start his move.

Remember that faithful, regular practice is the best way to improve all aspects of your game. Good baseball players are made, not born!

Want All The Tips And Tricks To Have You Pitching

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By Ian Hugh Scott

If your an avid angler, have you ever considered making your own fishing rod, tying your own flies, or making your own lures? There is nothing more rewarding for me to hook and land fish using flies I've tied and with a fly rod I've built for myself. If you're serious about your fishing, building your own rod should be a major consideration.

Building your own rod does not have to be difficult and is fairly easy to learn how to do. One of the great things about building your own rod is that you can customize everything from the shape and length of the handle grip, choose your own blank to build your rod on, and select higher quality guides (sometimes referred to as "eyes," that the line runs through) than what you might find in a rod off the rack. Although there are many manufacturers that make some very good fishing rods, you have to remember that they are made for the "average" angler, whatever that is. When you build one for yourself, you can turn a fishing rod into a real fishing tool that can outperform most anything you'll buy at the local hardware store.

Building a rod is not that difficult, either. You don't need any fancy tools although some of the specialty rod building equipment can be helpful if you decide to build more than a few rods. When I built my first rod about 30 years ago, the only tool I used was a round file that I needed in order to make the hole in the cork grip larger to slide down the rod blank and glue into place. Everything else I used were things found in any kitchen and livingroom: Medium size books for thread tension (nylon thread is used to hold the guides in place on the rod) and a mug to hold the thread.

One good reason to build your own rod is that you have a lot of choice as to the components that build it with! Maybe you've found the perfect rod that has the action that is just right for you but you don't like the shape or length of the handle. Perhaps the guides are poor quality or you would like a heavier duty reel seat. When you build your own rod, you can consider these things right from the start and get exactly what you want in a fishing rod.

Will a custom fishing rod you've built help you catch more fish? I'd suggest that yes, it can. If you have confidence in the tools you are using, that confidence will spill over into how you fish, for one thing. Further, when a rod is built correctly, it will outperform and outcast other similar rods off the rack, which means your lure or fly can be in the water, where the fish are, longer. As well, once you have hooked a fish, a properly built custom rod can give you an edge in fighting that fish and bringing it to hand or the net.

Today, there are a number of retailers that specialize in providing custom fishing rod components and who will be happy to help you select the right components for your own custom built fishing rod. You might even end up saving a bit of money too, by building one yourself!

Be sure to check out these custom rod building resources I've provided for you while you consider the idea of building your own rod.

Ian Scott is a free lance writer who spends much of his time when not working and writing about a variety of topics, with a fly rod in hand. He is a frequent contributor to About Fly Fishing.

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By Philip Sebastian Schilling

Snowboarding is an awesome sport that has become more and more popular in recent years. Originally the inspiration came from skateboarding, surfing, and skiing, the sport of snowboarding evolved in the United States back in the decades of the 1960s and 70s. Most people agree that the original snowboard was an invention that was manufactured in Utah in the 1970s. As you can imagine, the extreme nature of the sport caught on fast. The popularity of this sport really grew quickly when a few pioneers made some innovative designs that have lasted up until now.

In the 1970s and 80s, a few men founded snowboarding companies that would produce some of the most innovative designs ever conceived for the sport. Jake Burton Carpenter is probably the most famous of all. He founded Burton Snowboards in Vermont. This is one of the most respected and widely used brands in the history of snowboarding. Jake Burton dreamed up special designs and new mechanisms that made it much easier to ride and lead to the rise of new tricks and techniques. How did he make his way into the mainstream? Well, snowboarding was originally called snurfing, a reference to surfing and snow. The first World Snurfing Championship was held in 1979. Jake Burton Carpenter made the trip from Vermont with a custom snowboard that he had designed. It was quite different from the snurfer boards that other competitors were using. After some protests about the different design, it was decided that he should be permitted to race with his model. Jake ended up winning and that race is now considered to be the birth of competitive snowboarding as we know it today. His designs caught on, and things have never been the same since.

The first National snowboarding race took place in 1982 in Vermont. After that, things began to really spread like wild fire. Tom Sims, founder of Sims Snowboards, took it upon himself to organize the first World Championship halfpipe competition in 1983. The sport continued to gain popularity, and the first World Cup of snowboarding was held in Austria in 1985.

Back in these times, snowboarding was not allowed at most ski resorts. If it was, it was only permitted on separate slopes. However, pioneers continued to push the envelope and advocate for the sport. It was not long before snowboarders got the respect they deserved. Almost all ski resorts now allow snowboarders to use the same slopes as skiers. Events like the X Games and other snowboarding competitions are getting more media exposure than ever before, and the sport has nowhere to go but up.

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By Mark Grey

The ultimate achievement of any NFL team is reaching the Superbowl - held traditionally on a Sunday which has become known as Super Bowl Sunday. It has become one of the most viewed television events of the year with viewers tuning in from al over the world to see two of the years best teams battle it out for the championship and be awarded with the golden Super Bowl trophy (The Vince Lombardi Trophy). With the number of viewers tuning in for this across the US it has also become the second highest food consumption day in America after Thanks Giving.

The first championship game of this style was the AFL-NFL World Championship Game, played on 15th January 1967 prior to the NFL being formed of the two leagues. Since then it has gone on to become known worldwide as the Super Bowl. The trophy took it´s name from the Green Bay Packer´s coach who won the first two of the Super Bowls and then a further 3 from the preceding five.

As for the TV coverage of the Super Bowl, so far it has been spread across ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC with CBS set to cover the 2010 Superbowl at the end of the next season. The coverage generally includes the half time entertainment which has included many stars through the years including the controversial appearance of Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson in the 2004 Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show.

The Super Bowls halftime entertainment show has also included Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, The Rolling Stones and Prince amongst a huge range of others, but this provides you a guide as to how the Super Bowl is so highly rated and has been since it commenced back in the 1960´s.

The Super Bowl is played at a neutral venue each year, with the three leading arenas being New Orleans, Louisiana, The Greater Miami Area, and then the Greater Los Angeles area. Miami is set to host the 2010 Superbowl which will then make it the arena to have hosted the Super Bowl the most times, a total of 10.

Prior to the Super Bowl fans go crazy for apparel, gifts and memorabilia which can now be purchased all year round from QuarterbackFan, they provide official merchandise from an undisputable retailer at great prices and have something for everyone whether your team, or loved ones team makes the next Super Bowl, or appeared in the previous Super Bowl.

As much as the Super Bowl is the highlight of the NFL season, QuarterbackFan should be the highlight of any NFL fans shopping adventure, and being able to do it from the comfort of your own home and online makes it swift, and easy to find the ideal gift or present whether it be for yourself, a friend or a loved one - Love the NFL, love QuarterbackFan

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