Mitch Seavey managed to hold off Aliy Zirkle to win the 2013 Iditarod.  Seavey, at age 53, becomes the oldest winner of the 1000 - mile race across Alaska.    The winning time was  9 days, 7 hours, 39 minutes, 56 seconds. Zirkle finished in 9 days, 8 hours, 3 minutes, 35 seconds making it one of the closest races ever.

Seavey last won the race in 2004 and his son, who was the youngest winner, crossed the finish line first in 2012.  An amazing family accomplishment.   Runner up Zirkle seemed to think the Old Dog knew a thing or two in assessing the outcome.  She noted that Mitch knew when to take a break to rest his team while others kept a pace that was not sustainable.   

Until next year, trail lovers....

The 2013 Iditarod is more than halfway complete as the mushers work their way to Nome, Alaska.  The Great Race has had to contend with a new face of Mother Nature in the way of warmer temperatures.  The leading musher at the moment is former champion, Martin Buser.  Martin is currently the musher with the most consecutive Iditarod finishes, 27 races completed in row - an amazing accomplishment.  He is also multi-time winner of an award that goes to the musher that gives his dogs the best treatment.

According to the news reports, the warm weather has caused the mushers to have to move their teams through long stretches of standing water in the remote portions of the trail which are not maintained by the Iditarod trail masters.  One has to wonder if the race is going to be able to continue if the warmer weather continues.  Lance Mackey described his team as "slower than drool" as the racers had to deal with temperatures reaching 50 degrees!  Generally speaking, the dogs like it a lot colder.

Without trying to make too much of a commentary on global warming, I think it is safe to say that we are in a strong warming trend and we should be alarmed.  As George Carlin pointed out, it is not about "Save the Planet," the Earth will be just fine...it's the Humans that we should be worried about.  I believe he put it as, "The Earth is going to shake off Humans like a bad case of fleas!"  Perhaps appropriate analogy when put in the context of a dog race.

The top 5 racers include Aily Zirkle, last year's runner up and my pre-race choice, rookie Joar Leifseth Ulsom, Nicholas Petite and Jessie Royer, putting 2 women in the Top 5.  I saw a note that Buser's team had to be treated for a parasite, so-called Beaver Fever (no additional comment necessary there) which can slow a team down.  In my notes, humans can also get Beaver Fever from drinking contaminated water...and I leave it at that.  

Saturday Face-Off....World's Great Athlete - ESPN's pick Bo Jackson versus...Pick 'em

I was drawn into the very interesting debate about the Greatest Athlete of All Time - a discussion / poll sponsored by ESPN and the subject of a special broadcast tomorrow night on the Sports Mecca of Television...(SMOT may be better than ESPN...which was so named as the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network when it debuted in 1978...but that is a subject for another day).   Their ultimate champion is Bo Jackson, no doubt an excellent athlete, but is he really the greatest athlete of All Time ?

Well, Bo was special, if for no other reason that the Bo Knows ad campaign.  Besides that, he played college & pro football and baseball, had 4 seasons with over 20 homers and a lifetime .250 batting average.  With the Raiders, he played 4 seasons rushing for over 2,700 yards at 5.4 yards per carry.  A hip injury brought his career to a premature end but he has to be viewed as one of the most dynamic athletes of our time.  

Now, the question I pose is whether he was greater than...

Willie Mays - my favorite all time baseball player, denied his place as the all time home run king as a result of his service to our Country

Babe Ruth - my second favorite ball player, who not only set the home run standard but also pitched his way into the record books and cursed a franchise for the better part of the 20th century.

Jim Thorpe - widely thought of the best athlete of his generation and apparently not given serious consideration

Mohammed Ali - how literally was the Greatest

RGIII - the future of Greatness  (oh, is my Redskin bias showing?!)

Jim Brown - he made their list, but lost in the semi finals

Any Olympic Decathlon winner - who must excel in 10 sports to win

And, oh yeah, some guy named Jordan...

http://youtu.be/9sz6xhPkGJ4

Bo Knows.  How about you?

Odds & Ends

Well the streak had to end some time...the 'Hawks finally tasted defeat in 2013 at the hands of the Avs, 6-2 tonight.   What is really interesting / maddening about the NHL is how little the regular season means in picking out a Champion.  This will be worth following as the second season unfolds later this spring.  

Speaking of the Second Season, if the playoffs started today, the Toronto Maple Leafs would be a playoff team for the first time in eons!  I don't recall the last time they were in, but it was a long time ago.  They must be beside themselves in the TO.

The stupidity and impact of the lockout will be felt by teams on the outside looking in.  With all games restricted to in-conference match ups and the huge number of 3 point games this year, making up ground is going to be very, very difficult.

The Nationals & Phillies already exchanged pleasantries in Grapefruit League play with Strasburg and Halladay throwing at hitters "by accident" - it is going to be a fun season.

Well, I'm on the road again this week but at least it is to a pleasant venue - Barcelona.  Just a long business trip but the food is good once you get there.  Nice city.    See you next week, amigos!  Adios!

This week’s Saturday entry comes to you from the West Coast as I had a crazy week of business travel.  Two days in NYC and then 3 days in San Francisco.  As a bio-entrepreneur, hoping from place to place to raise money is part of the job.   After a while, business travel gets old…too many nights away from home, too many meals by yourself, bad TV, not enough sleep…the list goes on.  Which brings me to my first sports thought for the day – for all the glamour of the life of the pro athlete, it is has to be tough to be on the road all the time.  My guess is that baseball travel, even though they probably have every perk known to man, has to wear on a team by the end of a long season.  I have never really studied on the impact of travel, but you would have to believe that most of the teams with heavy travel schedules – say a Seattle or a Miami – start the season with a disadvantage over say the Yankees or Orioles who are more optimally situated.    

Saturday Face-Off:  Who was the best steroid era slugger?

With the Hall of Fame voters roundly rejecting all of the steroid era sluggers up for election this year snd with A-Roid back in the news with another go round, I pose this question:  if the HOF puts up a Steroid Wing, who is first in line for admission?  I will start this debate off with A-Rod versus Barry Bonds and a second tier discussion of Mark McGuire or Sammy Sosa.

The Barry Bonds – A-Rod debate would seem obviously in Bonds favor as the reigning HR champ but would A-Rod have passed him by given unlimited chemical  resources in his old age.  Bonds was a beast as a baseball elder.  It is unlikely anyone will ever come close to Bonds numbers because of PED testing.  Both Bonds and A-Rod were HOF shoo-in’s before they became tainted by cheating.  The numbers at this point in time and maybe forevermore will favor Bonds.  Without a little help from HGH, how will A-Rod ever recover and be a force in his late 30’s?  (And pity the poor Yankees and that contract!)

As we look at the McGuire & Sosa battle, there was a certain charm to Sosa that I enjoyed as part of his daily show.  McGuire seemed so much more of the pure slugger – a feast or famine type of hitter – but maybe there was a little more depth to Sosa’s game.  I am probably in the minority here, but I liked Sammy.

One last thought…if these cheaters are so reviled as to never get into the Hall, why was Gaylord Perry so easily voted in?  Why did a guy who used every gimmick imaginable to cheat get a pass?  Keep in mind that the spitball was banned because it was so dangerous to hitters.  During the spitball era, no pitcher was a success without a spitter but apparently in the absence of batting helmets, it was also too risky and was eliminated from baseball.  Maybe its not the same as ‘roids, but cheating is cheating.

Iditarod Ceremonial Start is Today!

The beginning of the 2013 Iditarod, the Great Race to Nome, begins with the traditional start in Anchorage.  I am pulling for Aily Zirkle to be the first female musher to win since Dee Dee Jonrowe won about 15 years ago.  I find it hard to imagine the mental challenge that goes with being in the Alaskan wilderness with you and 14 dogs…these folks have serious sand.  I don’t like walking the dog when there is frost on the ground.  I’ll put some posts up during the week to keep you updated.

Alex, I’ll take Hodgepodge for $1000

….Did anyone see that dunk Thursday night by Blake Griffin? – the guy is a monster going to the hoop.

….The Blackhawk’s continue to play great hockey.  Does the fact that we are looking at a 48 game season impact the greatness of their accomplishment?  Will this year’s Cup winner have a tainted victory?

….The toll of every young talent bailing out of college as a freshman has finally and fully depleted college basketball of any program continuity.   While this year’s March Madness will certainly be wildly entertaining and totally unpredictable, it must be tough for coaches to plan even 1 year into the future.  I think the kids would be better served to stay in school for at least 2 years and learn how to play ball before turning pro.

....I notice Bryce Harper, SI cover boy, is hitting about .500 in Grapefruit League ball so far.  The kid may blow up or he may be a bust but he will never be boring.  I love all the young talent in baseball right now - I can't wait for opening day!

Time to board my redeye folks...gotta love these road trips.

"Bringing you the Thrill of Victory & the Agony of Defeat..."

Since I started posting again about a month ago, I have been seeking a good title.  Perhaps last week I inadvertently stumbled upon my weekly tag line as "The Saturday Sports Extravaganza" - now for the moment so titled.  This particular line of thought led me through the various sports anthologies that have been on - the CBS Sports Spectacular and of course, the Granddaddy of them all, ABC's Wide World of Sports.

Take a little stroll down memory lane and watch this video:

http://youtu.be/w1FWG0WziRU

Hosted for the most part by Jim McKay, the Wide World of Sports is what most of used to facilitate that Saturday afternoon nap.  It also served to introduce us to sports not otherwise available on broadcast TV.  Some of the events that stick in my mind include the Acapulco cliff divers and the demolition derby.  While researching this, I was surprised to learn that WWS was the first to broadcast Wimbledon and the Indy 500.  It was truly a pioneering sport show that also created the almost as exciting Pro Bowlers Tour spin-off along with American Sportsman and Superstars (which was fun).   In 1998 after 37 years on the air, Jim McKay announced the end of the Wide World of Sports. We certainly have more options for sports now - all live of course - and we have a multitude of options for sports talk shows, but I can't help but feel a little bit nostalgic about the "thrill of victory" and "the agony of defeat" - which pretty much sums up my golf game.

The Saturday Morning Face-off:  Magic Johnson Versus LeBron James

This weeks debate centers around choosing between Magic Johnson and LeBron James.  I remove the whole Michael Jordan debate because there isn't one.  A lot of people are willing to compare Jordan and his accomplishments so easily these days with respect to James, but I think that discussion is still a long way off.  Consider the Jordan - at the peak of his career - retired to go play baseball. It is possible that if he had not decided to pursue that passion that he would have won 7 titles in a row.    

So let's look at Johnson vs. James.  Johnson, in my opinion, is often left out of many best player debates for reasons that I can't understand.  Magic could play every position on the court and play it well.  He was a 3 - time MVP in the era of Larry Bird and Celtic domination.  He took the Lakers to 9 NBA finals and collected 5 rings.  

What is really impressive is that Magic is second all-time with 138 Triple Doubles.  His career numbers are 19.5 ppg, 7.2 rebounds and 11.2 assists.

With all of Magic's assets, most of his career he had a great supporting cast, a situation that has only recently unfolded for James who is arguably the most dominant player in the game today.  He already has 3 MVP awards and is the youngest player to reach 20,000 points.  He has 35 career triple doubles and recently went on a tear of 60% or better shooting.  His career numbers are 27.6 ppg, 7.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists.

So at the end of the day, I still think Magic is underrated when we look at the greatest players ever.  I am sure he will always be in the Top 50 all time players, just like James, but I doubt he is going to get much talk as the best ever.  I suppose if I had to choose which player I would pick to build a franchise around, I would have to pick James because he is such a brute force, but I my heart is still with Magic.

Iditarod 2013 is only 1 week away!

  The Great Race is ready to kick off in just 7 days and I will be providing YouGab with my regular updates on the run across Alaska.  This year they are running the Southern Route which is 998 miles from Anchorage to Nome.   The race was first run in 1973 and the name "Iditarod" comes from the local word for "clear water" - as is the case with the Iditarod River.  

The dog teams run through thousand of booties to protect the sensitive paws of the trail dogs and there are mandates rest stops along the way.  

Last year, Aily Zirkle finished second, the best finish by a woman musher since Dee Dee Jonrow won the event several years ago.  It will be interesting to see if Aily can make up the 2 hour difference this year.

Lance Mackey won 4 years in a row before losing the last couple of races.  He was a minor celebrity after his last win...must have gone to his head, making all those big bucks!!

Odds & Ends...

It looks like Gio Gonzales is going to be the only one who is actually cleared in the Miami PED scandal.  Word here is that MLB is in agreement with Gio's denial of drug purchases from the clinic.  Could it be that one ball player is not lying?!

Jason Werth followed his "best team on paper" comment about the Nationals with a thought that the team could win 120 games.  That would not just be the best team in baseball this year, but would be the best ever....really, I like the Nationals chances, but that is really putting it out there.  

I think I am going to throw together an eggplant parm today...with potentially sketchy eggplant...should it go well, I will post my mom's famous recipe.  It's a little easier on the gastro-intestinal tract than the chili!

I picked up a new telephoto lens this week...time to test it out on the local bird population.  The red tailed hawk population has really exploded in recent years.  If I can get a decent pic, I will throw that up here...birding counts as a sport, right?

I won't step on Qwazier's space and talk about Daytona...I just hope my fantasy team kicks butt.   For the record, I picked Danica before she won the pole.

See you next week!

Hello and welcome to another Wednesday of deep thoughts. I spent Tuesday night grilling at my son’s high school baseball field. One thing that I love about sports and baseball in particular is that with a new season, hope springs eternal. Spring brings a year of freshness or at least it does for me. January is the month that many look at new resolutions, but spring is that time when I see a new year begin to unfold. The news that pitchers and catchers report is the alert that another baseball season is on the horizon. Have you ever planned a big vacation? The anticipation and planning is sometimes almost as enjoyable as the reality of the trip. That is how spring training is for me. Baseball is in the air, you know the season is coming…but you have to wait for it. As I stood flipping burgers and dogs last night, I thought back to the past seasons and the wonderful times that I have had at the baseball field. My son is a senior now, and in a few short months, his high school career will be over. What I realized last night is that the ballpark will always be a special place for me. From T ball and beyond, there are memories that will never fade. So, while my son will be graduating, there will always be something to bring me back to the ballpark. The game remains the same, with memories waiting to be made.

Who do you like to win the World Series this year? Who did you think would win it last year? I bet your answer is not the Giants. The media predictably focuses on the flash of the big free agent signings and assume that those teams will achieve the most success. The “experts” like Detroit, Toronto and LA…both the Angels and Dodgers. These teams have spent money to bring talent into camp. I read an interesting quote today from Brandon Belt. I will paraphrase, but it was something like, “you can’t buy chemistry”…an obvious shot at the Dodgers. I also heard this quote, the Dodgers are the kind of team that can get a manager fired...very true. Head on a swivel, Mattingly! The cool thing about team sports is the team with the best talent does not always win. In looking at the Giants recent success, you have to look at GM Sabean and Manger Bochy. Sabean obviously understands the type of personalities necessary to fit the Giants. He has done a tremendous job of constructing a great team. Bruce Bochy says his team’s success is due to the players’ ability to execute fundamentals and their unselfish tendencies. The Giants were a group that cared about each other. They took responsibility for being a teammate and I think that this was the reason that they won another WS last year. I remember a conversation with my son’s high school coach last year. He said it was a pleasure to coach that group because “they liked each other so much”. The Giants are not dumb…they bring back 21 of their 25 players from last year’s championship team. Of course, Andres Torres is one of the four being added and he was a former Giant. He actually lobbied to return to the Giants. I would think that is the sign of a good organization. It is hard to believe that this was the team that Barry Bonds played for only a few years ago.

As a new season approaches, I love to take stock of the changes that have occurred in the off season. The most recent change was Michael Bourn signing with the Indians. I like this deal for Cleveland. I really think that the Indians will be better, but the starting pitching will still be a source of concern. Ubaldo Jimenez needs to rediscover his pitching prowess. If Jimenez can somehow be what he once was in Colorado, the Indians could make noise. I don’t think that they will challenge for the division, but they could battle for a wild card spot. I like Terry Francona and think that his influence will help the Indians as well. I also like Nick Swisher and think his personality will have a positive effect on the Cleveland locker room. I just heard that Dice K was lurking at spring training and that he might be signing a deal soon? I am not a Dice K fan, but maybe the change of scenery will be good? There was a interesting comment released on Tuesday from the DBacks catcher Miguel Montero. He said that Trevor Bauer came in to camp last year convinced that he had all the answers. Montero said it was impossible to get on the same page with Bauer because he would not listen to him or anyone else. So, he was traded. Perhaps Bauer is an arrogant rookie or maybe he knows what works best for him? The Indians certainly hope that the latter is true. Baseball has a way of ignoring innovations sometimes. Change in MLB has been described as glacial. Time will tell if Bauer is better than his 6.02 ERA, but either way, the Indians got him on the cheap. I have a hunch that Francona is a better match for Bauer than Gibson and he has a better year with the Indians.

 The MLB TV guys asked an interesting question Tuesday night. Which team led MLB last year in stolen bases? The answer blew me away. My guess was way wrong. Did you know that the Tigers have hired a personal base running coach for Austin Jackson? I have said before that I think Jackson is an important clog in the Tiger machine. I guess they expect Jackson to be busy this year…I agree. For what it’s worth, I think that the Tigers beat the Giants in the WS this year.

I saw that Alex Rodriguez was staying in New York to continue his rehab. Yeah, that makes sense. Staying in the winter of New York is much better than rehabbing in the sunshine of Tampa. Staying in New York is much better than heading to Florida and facing the music regarding Biogenesis. I am sure that his teammates won’t mind answering questions each day of spring training about Rodriguez. Distraction can be a good thing, right? One thing that will never be said about ARod is that he is unselfish. What a prick…

                                                                                 Alex loves Alex...

I caught this today. The article asked...was the Pope a better hitter than MJ? He starts slow, but actually takes a few good hacks. Of course MJ was matched up against 90 mph heaters...

Have you heard about the new show coming tonight on the MLB channel? It is called “The Next Knuckler” and will feature R.A. Dickey trying to teach 5 guys to throw a knuckleball. I guess it is not fair to characterize the participants as “guys”. Actually here is the list of former athletes: Doug Flutie, Josh Booty, John David Booty, David Greene and Ryan Perrilloux. Kevin Millar is hosting the show and I suspect it will entertaining. The winner of the competition will be invited to spring training with the DBacks. It is funny, but I have often wondered why more players don’t attempt to throw a knuckleball. I have not met a baseball player that has not messed with throwing it. In fact, R.A. Dickey was a position player that got to the majors and learned that he could not hit the pitching. There is less stress on the arm and you can throw the pitch at 50…good news for Flutie.

I read yesterday that wrestling is being dropped from the Olympics? The 2016 games in Rio de Janerio will be the last time the event will be part of the games. Golf and rugby are being added and something had to go. The modern pentathlon was considered, but wrestling got the boot instead. What the hell? No wrestling in the Olympics? Golf is being added? I have one question…why? I have nothing against golf, but the games are about sports like wrestling, not golf. Rugby is okay as well, but not instead of wrestling. Dumb, dumb, dumb…

That is all I have today, but I will leave you with a bit of Jack Handey.

If you work on a lobster boat, sneaking up behind someone and pinching him is probably a joke that gets old real fast.

Whenever someone asks me to define love, I usually think for a minute, then I spin around and pin the guy’s arm behind his back. NOW who’s asking the questions?

Thanks for stopping by and feel free to leave a few deep thoughts of your own…