I have been selfish: I like the cooling effect on my skin of their colder weather. I don't mind the huffing and puffing if I can earn some visible and actual altitude. I enjoy steep fast descents at the end of my journeys. Sometimes they shine with a lustrous sheen when they are covered in granite or lava. They can also be multicolored and unstable when they are made of sandstone. In the tropics, they are massive and oftentimes you discover a rich mineral red under all that vast vegetable greenery. Most of all, I like them when they are jagged and covered with snow. I do love my mountains!

It happened at the base of Headwall at Squaw Valley, one on my favorite California ski resorts. I had already cleared what is considered to be the most difficult part of the run and was cruising from a set of moguls to another one over un-groomed terrain. Apparently I was going too fast and landed improperly on a mogul. I was skiing by myself but I was on my annual All Boys Trip (ABT). Most of the guys on the ABT went to UC Irvine and all we seem to have in common is that we were part of a Team, Association or Club as in rowing, sailing, surfing and of course skiing. I was found by one of my friends. I knew I was in trouble when I couldn't move my legs. My friend knew I wasn't playing one of my usual practical jokes when I asked him to remove the snow from my mouth so I could breathe more easily. I later learned that my ABT friends rallied for me while I was in the Intensive Care Unit; Somehow that makes me extremely happy.

I was rescued off the mountain by the great guys and gals of the Squaw Valley Ski Patrol. According to them, I was the worst accident of that year. My wife and I had to fill innumerable insurance forms and had to call them to get some needed paperwork. I was glad to discover that one of the injured guys still works for this outfit handling insurance paperwork. I was airlifted by helicopter from the mountain and ended up in Reno’s Renown Hospital. I had burst my C5 cervical vertebrae. C3, C4 and C5 had to be fused together in order for me to survive my injury. Five days later, as a result of this surgery, I suffered a cerebellum clot which naturally caused a stroke. That cerebellum clot made my brain too inflamed and it was too close to my stem cell. I had to have another surgery to remove all the necrotic tissue. A couple of tubes were implanted on top of my head to relieve most of the pressure. To this day, I am convinced that most of my physical problems have to do with the stroke and not the original accident as I was fooling around with my ABT friends after the skiing misfortune. After recuperating from my stroke for almost a month, Renown couldn't do anything else for me. My wonderful wife chose to transfer me to Colorado's Craig Hospital where I spent almost four months recuperating from my injuries. I became what is known as an incomplete paraplegic. Prior to this ski accident, I have never been to a hospital, not even for stitches. I had a bad childhood bout with asthma but that improved with lots of strange tropical home remedies and disappeared with relentless adolescent aerobic sports.

I do remember the original ski accident and the initial days at Renown but I have to admit that I don't remember my days after the stroke and the early days at Craig. Everyone tells me that's for the best! Family and friends came to visit me during this time. Unfortunately, I do not remember any of this. I knew I had suffered a serious accident when I learned that my mother and sister had visited me in the US. I do remember my aunt and cousin visiting me later while I was in recuperating in Colorado, where three angelical women took care of me at Craig: My speech therapist who gave me the ability to eat and talk again; My physical therapist who showed me how difficult it would be to gain some strength again; And my occupational therapist (OT) who showed my wife and I how to make everyday life a little easier. My OT also knew what was to come: The only place where I still have pain is in my hands and wrists. I have worn all kind of splints on my elbows and forearms but the Dynasplint seem to work the best. Fortunately, I don't have to do serial casting anymore.

Why did this happen to me? If you are a good Christian you have to believe that “God won't give you more than you can handle” If you are into Eastern religions you understand the concepts of reincarnation and karma —Who knows what bad deeds I did in past lives or this one. I just don't remember— I do tend to think like my mother, it is all a matter of statistics; If you ski and you ski fast you are going to get hurt about 16% of the time. I happened to fall in that percentage on that particular date. That date was Friday the 13th, March 2009. I am not a superstitious person and I like to think that I learn from all my experiences. For example, I have learned that there's a maximum of three Friday the 13th’s in one particular year. 2009 happened to be one of those. Most buildings in the US don't have a 13th floor because of that superstition. There is even a name for this phobia which is friggatriskaidekaphobia.

On Memorial weekend, just two months away from my accident, I was supposed to take my son backcountry skiing to Shasta Mountain in northern California. Like most kids, my son learned how to ski early and then moved on to snowboarding. He decided to get good at skiing so that he could go into the backcountry with me. We had taken avalanche courses together and I had even chosen backcountry gear. We had gone on a few snow backcountry outings but not overnight yet. I had decided to get a guide, not only to be sure to make it to the top but also to aid in case of any emergencies. Shasta has the longest run in the lower 48 States, in the spring when corn snow is available. I wasn’t looking for the warmer temperatures of spring but wanted to ski this beautiful corn snow having tried some dirty patches in the Mammoth Lakes area.

I don't know if I'll ever make it to Shasta Mountain for spring skiing but I miss not being more available to my daughter and not teaching her a couple of adult skills. She never learned how to drive stick shift and off-road like my son learned from me. I have given her what seems to be an egotistical project that may take her ten years to complete: To drive at least a couple of days of the Baja 1000 course. Whether we drive on a sponsored truck or a dune buggy, slapped from an old Mexican VW that I should be able to afford, it's entirely up to her.

Most of the time I feel like a cross between a baby and a circus performer. But once in a while I feel like I am accepting an Oscar or I am a talking head on CNN; Except there will not be any unexpected  music or an annoying clock buzzard if I run out of time. As a matter-of-fact, one of the tags for this post is ramble, which means I can jump from theme to theme and take all the necessary time and space in apparent disorganization; I will thank my wife of almost 30 years because without her love and attention I would not be alive. We have known each other for more than those 30 years and our marriage and love for each other is one constant that I hope never changes in my life. This woman is the Yin to my Yang.

Some great friends threw me a fundraiser. Others decided to cook for me and my family. Still others created an e-group to keep their thoughts and prayers coming my way. Many came to visit me at Reno, Denver or my home in Southern California. As previously described, I may have forgotten some of these visits but I have an impatient lifetime to repay all of this kindness (Repay: What a wonderful English word, sometimes it doesn't involve money).

My boss, who I also consider a friend, has been greatly instrumental in my recuperation. Not only did he visit me in Reno, he has also made sure that I keep current with all the technologies used by our company. Physical recuperation from my injuries is a great challenge but improving mental agility is just as difficult. It goes back to one of our initial meetings when we founded the company. I wanted licensing fees for software I had written and he just didn't have the money. We reached an impasse after an hour of negotiations, the dealmaker (who also turned into a great friend) walked out of the room to take a personal call. When the flabbergasted dealmaker returned, my boss and I had an agreement in place; I had explained to him how Hernán Cortés set about to conquer one of the greatest civilizations of the Americas: the Aztecs. Cortés ordered for his ships to be burned. Him, his sailors and soldiers would perish in their enterprise or be successful in their conquest; There was no going back to Spain! I hope my boss takes me on his next expedition; I know he’ll understand if I really need to go back to Spain.

I am currently going to Project Walk twice a week for a couple of hours each visit for some rigorous exercises with young, enthusiastic, knowledgeable therapists. We address one of my principal goals which is to walk again. I also go to a hand therapist and although he got rid of excruciating pain in my forearms, I still have to deal with my hands and wrists and the progress is slower. I love to get into the ocean and have done so thanks to Wheels2Water and LiifeRollsOn. I have started going again for aquatics therapy, once a week and getting in the pool is one of my favorite activities. I recently started some hippotherapy and that, of course, always puts a smile on my face. What is great about hippotherapy is that not about strength; it's all about balance. Supposedly, a horse and a human gait are very similar although we clearly do not run as fast.

I see a physiatrist (watch the spelling) every four to six months. She is a woman doctor and very knowledgeable with my type of injury. She recommends new therapies for me to try and approves my current and future goals. She is always a joy to visit. I also see an excellent urologist with the same frequency. She also happens to be a woman doctor and specializes in my type of injury. I have suffered several urinary tract infections (UTIs) including two that landed me in the hospital again for several days. I have become very hygienic and deadly afraid of UTIs. As part of their drug protocol, Craig Hospital prescribed an antidepressant. Most people suffer from a depressive episode as a result of my type of injury. That has not happened to me yet. Nevertheless, I must acknowledge that I am totally obsessed with time. I am not talking about just keeping appointments and meeting deadlines. I am talking about the natural progression of time. Time may be a man-made artifact but I believe it is real. I guess it is all relative.

There is a group of people, nurses and caregivers, that make everyday life possible and easier for the rest of us. Most of the time they are used to dealing with an aging population and maybe someone not as demanding. One always thinks that most of them need training to be able to adjust to one’s requirements but it is usually the other way around. They may have their own dreams and aspirations and sometimes they do not involve caregiving. What is certain is that these human beings are full of compassion.

I have to admit that I did not see everyone that I have ever known and passed away, waiting for me with a big smile by some pearly gates; My whole life did not flash by me in seconds during my accident; A bright light did not guide me; A booming voice did not tell me to go back and complete my work; 80,000 servants and 72 virgins did not anticipate my arrival; I did not perceive blissful nothingness. But when it counted, I was painfully aware that family, friends and total strangers cared for my well being and that makes all the difference in this world.

The other tag that I am applying to this post is SCI. I wished it stood for the Science Channel; it stands for Spinal Cord Injury.

Labels: ramble, SCI

Here it is February and I am writing about New Year's Resolutions. I must not be taking this blogging too seriously. Actually, that is one my New Year's Resolutions: Blogging is for fun! For when the muse strikes me and I feel like writing; For posting whatever I want, whenever I want. I don't have to keep my blog "fresh!" Or Trackback every other post on VentureBeat. I don't have to monetize my blog or focus it to a targeted audience! And I certainly don't have to move my blogs to Wordpress or host my blogs on a dynamic IP over my home DSL connection on a C#, ASP.NET & XML backend Open Source project just to show I am techie! I will blog whenever I want, whatever I want. And I'll play with the blogger JavaScript and update to the new templates and tag on all my previous posts only when and if I feel like it. The only commitment I will make is that I will write more technical articles on my other blog and that I will be be just as unfocused and erratic about that blog as I am with this one. I will not just rehash the latest iPhone news. I will not review Windows Vista. And I will not pontificate about the best and latest Linux distro. This is supposed to be for fun! I have an interesting and challenging job! I have a loving family and happy friends to spend time with! I also want to spend time volunteering for groups like the San Gorgonio Search & Rescue Team. I have skis, a mountain bike and a spear-gun in the garage! I have a life! I'm fortunate!

Something is missing though, I need a clear, concise New Year's Resolution for 2007. One that I can achieve with some effort and that will be a visible mark of self-improvement. Something that will show me I can discipline myself and give me a self-deceiving, superiority complex over my fellow human beings when I accomplish it!

It turns out that this New Year's Resolution is going to be easy. I actually already accomplished it over the Holidays. Here we are in February and I'm going strong. The inspiration for my New Year's Resolution came to me last year when I read one of the best rants I have read in a while. The Shaving Cream Racket was a revealing and revolutionary article that exposed the fallacy of that supposedly special shave I could only accomplish with my Edge Shave Gel Sensitive Skin With Aloe. This article also gave me irrefutable proof that I had been not only a wimp but a also dupe ever since I proudly shaved that first peach fuzz off my adolescent face. For years, all I really needed for a perfectly good shave has been simple soap.

Starting on this New Year's Resolution did take some effort; You see I am one of those guys who hates running out of stuff; Buy two of each staple or sundry item and when one runs out, you have plenty of time to replace it. You will never run out of important things at an inconvenient time, like the one announced by the sound of a sputtering can of shaving cream. So I had a couple of cans of the stuff to run through. I had the opportunity to implement my New Year's Resolution when I traveled abroad for the Holidays and I did not want to worry about all the new TSA regulations about liquids and toilet items. I also liked the idea of not having to pack one of those monstrous cans of shaving cream that never seem to fit anywhere and always seem to vomit its content over the hair and tooth brushes. It was also great timing because I was on the last can of my shaving cream stash. From Christmas Day on, I have used nothing more than soap to shave my face: Cheap, plain soap from a modest hostel in Barcelona; Fancy, luxurious soap from an elegant four-star Spanish hotel in Santander; And a sublime organic lavender soap that my wife hid into my travel bag as a Christmas stocking stuffer.

My face seems tougher. I don't cut myself anymore which happened regularly when I used shaving cream. I love the freedom of knowing that all I need to shave is a simple, disposable double-blade razor and a bar of soap. (Does anyone really need three, four or five blades in a razor?) I am certain that I will never buy another can of shaving cream for myself. It is only the beginning of February and I have already accomplished my New Year's Resolution. With that out of the way, I been thinking about how to improve it and about getting one of those fancy horsehair shaving brushes. Except that I have learned that a good shaving brush is not really made our of horsehair but out of badger hair. And they are very expensive! This New Year's Resolution keeps getting better and better!

Labels: ramble

Last January, on a cold and somber Sunday afternoon, on my way out of the Ashes and Snow exhibition, I walked by the Santa Monica Pier and into a field of white crosses There was little left to the imagination but the Arlington West Memorial stirred my heart. The white crosses were for all the fallen military men and women, most of them very young, that the war in Iraq has claimed. I now vividly remember that Sunday afternoon because I recently read that a similar memorial in Santa Barbara was being discontinued; There are too many crosses and it is difficult to properly maintain the Memorial.

Obviously, current political events have brought the war in Iraq into sharp focus but it all pales in comparison to the reality portrayed by all those white crosses. I consider myself non-partisan and as such give little attention to the all the political reasons for the war in Iraq and all the political fallout that has resulted and will continue to result from it. However, all those white crosses require reflection. I do not want to be part of a cynical nation that believes in sinister reasons for the war in Iraq. I rather believe that our President and his administration were misguided. I rather believe that our President's intentions were good: To combat global terrorism far away from our shores and to establish a beacon for democracy that would spread throughout the Middle East. Otherwise, how can one properly acknowledge all those white crosses sown into the sands of Santa Monica? All those dreams never to be reaped from the sands of Iraq?

Of course, I also believe that "... the road to hell is paved with good intentions!"

Labels: ramble

Last January, on a breezy and breathtaking Sunday afternoon, I took my wife to see Ashes and Snow. What is there to say about about an exhibition that stirs your heart and captures your imagination? It starts with the venue! What at first seemed like the ill-conceived idea of using shipping containers as building blocks, turned out to be a brilliant idea. Upon closer inspection, it was easy to see that the exhibition's building was just not a stack of containers arranged into a box. It was a delicately designed structure of interlocking blocks. Some giant genius had used shipping containers as his Lego's and created an architectural masterpiece by the side of the Santa Monica Pier. The real beauty of the building was obvious when one learns about its function. It is a Nomadic Museum designed to house the Ashes and Snow exhibition as it travels around the world.

The flavor of the exhibition was teasingly revealed by the unusual pictures I had already seen for its announcements: Impossible pictures of people and animals living in a universe of the imagination. Except that all the pictures are real. According to the artist no image had been manipulated. Yet the pictures seem unreal because those of us immersed into modern lives regularly forget that we are part of the web of life. We either pretend that the huge mechanized industries that slaughter our daily sustenance do not exist or we anthropomorphize animals into surreal caricatures of their wild counterparts. We have forgotten that there are still wild places on this Earth where people and wild animals still interact on a daily basis and not always with a biological imperative.

Nothing had prepared me to enter the cathedral built to house Gregory Colbert's art. Maybe it was the cavernous, dimly-lit space created by all those shipping containers. Maybe it was the soothing background music and voices intoning barely understood mantras. Or maybe it was the controlled way in which one proceeds through the exhibition carefully placing each step in order to catch the beauty and essence of each picture from different angles, walking back and forth between both sides of the aisle. Maybe it was the self-conscious realization that certain pictures seemed to attract only certain people while all were looking for a meaning that is carefully unfolded as one progresses through the exhibition. Maybe it was the complementary short films that provide more sensuous input just when one needs it, tying all those pictures into another medium and revealing more of this unusual artist that has taken ten years of his life to create this experience. Maybe it was finding out that an integral part of the exhibition was in yet another medium, A Novel in Letters, "...a fictional collection of letters written by a man to his wife over the course of a yearlong journey..." that promises to reveal the source of the Ashes and Snow title "...on the 365th day of writing." Maybe it was the fact that it was a Sunday; The experience was religious!

I have not read the novel, so I'm not sure about the real source of the Ashes and Snow title for the exhibition. Maybe Colbert already gives it away on one of the film's mantras or maybe he is still weaving his artistic vision and I will have to read 365 fictional letters to find out what the following means: "Flesh to fire, fire to blood, blood to bone, bone to marrow, marrow to ashes, ashes to... snow."

Labels: art

Labels: ramble, soccer

Tour of the crazy! That is what the French called the 93rd edition of their most cherished sporting event and what is regarded as the most grueling professional sports competition. By now, the Tour de France needs no introduction because of what has been happening for the last seven years, during which a certain Texan has laid exclusive claim to its most priced trophy, the Maillot Jeune.

This year, another American, Floyd Landis won top honors or as it remains to be seen, top dishonor! But more about that later, let's first talk about what has made this year's Tour de France probably the craziest ever. For starters, there were all the non-starters. On the eve of the Prologue, the top two favorites were disqualified, casualties of the Spanish police investigation better known as "Operacion Puerto." Both Jan Ulrich and Ivan Basso were not permitted to start the race because of their connections with a Dr. Fuentes who apparently ran a blood doping lab serving some of best known names in the peloton. That is a shame because Jan Ulrich was the sentimental favorite to win this race after first winning it back in 1997 and promising a lasting winning legacy. Alas, those plans were derailed in 1998 by Marco Pantani and for the next seven years by Lance Armstrong. Here was Jan's chance to possibly finish his career with a win that would have proved he was always second best. It was a double shame because Ivan Basso was my favorite to win this year. Last year, he had shown that only Lance was a better rider. This year he had already won the Maglia Rosa and was poised to win both "Il Giro d'Italia" (Tour of Italy) and the Tour de France in the same year, a feat that Lance never accomplished and has not been repeated since Marco Pantani did it in 1998.

Another great rider, Alexander Vinokourov was not implicated in the Operacion Puerto affair but five of his Astana teammates were, leaving him unqualified to start without a team. I like Vino because he has always been a gutsy rider. He made last year's Tour a lot of fun to watch by attacking in the most crucial stages and unexpected places, even getting a win on the last stage usually reserved for the sprinters. Quite a number of Spanish riders were implicated in Operacion Puerto. Among them was Francisco Mancebo who still had a bright career ahead of him but decided to retire after learning of his implication in the affair. There was also Joseba Beloki who I was hoping would return to prominence after that disastrous accident in the 2003 Tour de France where he had been second to Lance; He has never shown that form again. Another Spanish rider, which I have been following for years, is also implicated in Operacion Puerto and doubly so since he was Jan's teammate; "El Niño" Oscar Sevilla is one of many promising Spanish riders who cannot seem to rise anywhere close to the mystique of the great Miguel Indurain.

So what about the prospects for American riders? I have to admit that I had no interest in watching George Hincapie, Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis line up for the start of this Tour. All these guys had the aspiration to win but let's face it the most interesting part of their careers seems to be that at some point they were Lance's domestique. A couple of other American riders, like David Zabriskie and Bobby Julich have lots more charisma than the three American favorites to replace Lance. Though they cannot be considered for the General Classification, they are always fun to watch because of their exploits. Zabriskie is a talented young time-trialist, who set the fastest time ever for a Tour time-trial in stage 1 of the 2005 Tour de France. Julich has been around forever and can always be counted to come out of nowhere and win a stage of one of the Tours. Unfortunately, this year Julich crashed out in stage 7. Zabriskie's time trial results were not what was expected and he was eclipsed as was the rest of the peloton by Serhiy Honchar, a relatively old rider with an ugly mashing style and beatifully fast times. He won both time-trails stages this year, becoming the first ever Ukrainian rider to win a stage and wear the yellow jersey at the Tour. To add the the weirdness of this year's Tour, Yaroslav Popovych, the youngster in the Discovery Team, considered to be Lance's true heir is also an Ukrainian and became the second Ukrainian to ever win a stage after his great performance in stage 12.

So what else made this year's Tour a crazy, weird one? There was Hincapie's cheeky exploit on stage 1 that got him the yellow jersey for the first time. He was paying attention and picked a few extra seconds in one of the intermediate sprints. It was enough to put him in yellow at the end of the day. Unfortunately, it seems like Hincapie lost all focus after that and was not able to shine for the rest of the Tour. Alejandro Valverde a talented Spanish rider who has been on fire throughout the year and was considered one the favorites for GC, crashed out in stage 3. Another Spaniard, Iban Mayo, who was expected to excel in the mountains, disintegrated in the first Pyrenean stage and abandoned the Tour. Landis grabbed the yellow jersey on that same stage and seemed poised to be in yellow all the way to Paris. In stage 13, Oscar Pereiro who was almost half an hour behind in GC was part of a break away that made enough time on the peloton and Landis giving Pereiro the yellow jersey and setting up a few interesting last days for the Tour. There was even a Frenchman, Cyril Dessel in stage 10, wearing the yellow jersey!

Landis got back the yellow jersey on stage 15 after edging Pereiro by 10 seconds on l'Alpe d'Huez. Things were starting to look good for Landis; Tour de France lore (and statistics) has it that whoever has the yellow jersey by this fabled mountain stage goes on to win the Tour in the Champs Elysées. This was also the point when I started to like Landis. I had been part of the crowd questioning Landis as Tour de France champ. The French did not like his uninspired performance to the extent of making fun of him in the press in a mousy caricature. I changed my mind for two reasons: First, he battled it out against Pereiro on the l'Alpe d'Huez, made up a deficit of 1:29 minutes and conservatively but surely claimed his prize. Second, a friend gave me an ESPN Magazine that had an extensive article about Floyd Landis. From that article, I learned things that changed my mind about Landis. I learned that he had been a gifted Mountain Biker in his youth and won the 1993 Junior National Championship. I learned about his strict Mennonite religious upbringing and his youthful rebellion against that upbringing. I learned about his early cycling years and I specially liked learning about his character and work ethics that were a product of that upbringing he rebelled against and put him on an inspired path to become a Tour de France champion.

On stage 16 things went really crazy! Landis cracked, lost more than eight minutes to Pereiro and fell to 11th place in the GC. It was painful to see Landis loosing time while everyone in the peloton seemed to be passing him effortlessly on the climb to La Toussuire. But there was something I liked about his stoic demeanor. He did not make excuses at the end of the stage. He obviously bonked but you did not see him giving excuses to the press. Instead he got himself a beer, thought things over and prepared for the next day. The option of abandoning the race was never considered as would probably have happened with other prima-donnas of the sport. It had to be difficult when he had been virtually eliminated from the GC and he still was expected to show up the next day for another tough Alpine stage.

Stage 17 of this year's Tour was tough. Take a good look at the map I include for this article: The snow capped mountains are the Alps and the zig-zag yellow line on the left side is the border between the countries of Italy, Switzerland and France. The blue sea on the horizon, at the top, is the Mediterranean sea and down its coast on the upper right is Spain. "Genève" in the lower-right side is the great Swiss city of Geneva. Paris is barely off the middle-right side off the map. The green line is the course for stage 17 between Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne and Morzine, a distance of 125 miles (200 km) of Alpine terrain. Look at the monumental proportions of stage 17 as it relates to the size of France and its neighboring countries. Lance called stage 16 of the 2000 Tour on a similar course from Courchevel to Morzine "..the hardest day of my life on the bike..." This was the stage that Landis chose to show us what kind of a Tour de France champion he wanted to be. And show us he did! He lead the stage from virtually the start to the end, riding on his own on an epic break away with no help from teammates or other riders. The peloton let him go because they thought his effort was suicidal and because he was now in 11th place more than 8 minutes back from the yellow jersey. He made up most of those 8 minutes and at one point he was the race leader on the road. He ended the stage in third place in GC, well positioned to regain the jersey back from Pereiro after the final time-trail in stage 19. He did win back the yellow jersey and wore into the Champs Elysées on the next day and final stage 20.

Landis' heroic win in stage 17 made him an instant celebrity. The French press who had depicted him as a timid mouse now called him the lion that roared. They compared his ride to the great historical Tour de France exploits of all times. He was placed in the same pantheon of great heroes of times past as Charly Gaul, Bernard Hinault and the greatest of all times and personal hero: Eddy Merckx Interestingly enough, Eddy's son, Axel Merckx is Landis' Phonak teammate and he helped pace Landis during his bad spell on stage 16. Reportedly, cagey Eddy understood the greatness of Landis and placed a $100, 75 to 1 bet on Landis to win stage 17. The American press was no less flamboyant in their report of Landis win in stage 17 calling it the "...greatest single-stage performance ever...topping LeMond and Lance..."

How could this Tour be any crazier? I knew how crazy it could get the minute I read the cryptic news about one case of an "adverse analytical finding" at the 2006 Tour de France. Landis had not been named yet but I understood that he would be one of the most tested cyclist in the peloton because of the testing protocols for stage winner and leaders of the GC. Weeks have gone by since the end of the Tour and I have kept up with the developments of the Floyd Landis case. I have considered almost every argument from both points of view:

• Why would Landis be so stupid and take testosterone when he knew he was going to be tested at the end of the stage? He accidentally injected himself with what he thought would be another non-detectable performance enhancing drug!
• Why didn't all the other tests come back positive? He only used drugs in stage 17 in a desperate attempts regain the yellow jersey which accounts for his extraordinary performance! There have been many instances of riders recuperating from a bonk to come back and win subsequent stages. The fact that Landis won stage 17 after his awful performance on stage 16 does not prove drug use. Landis is a highly trained athlete who was in top form for this year's Tour. He performed poorly on stage 16 because he forgot to intake enough fluids and food, not because he is a poor rider incapable of the extraordinary performance on stage 17.
• Why did he make up all those excuses about the cause for the elevated reading and the testosterone being natural? All athletes have a life-long profile of testing and when they have a natural occurring anomaly, it is well known and documented. Landis samples were also proved to contain testosterone from synthetic sources. On the other hand, if Landis is telling the truth he must be baffled as to the source of the positive tests and any explanation with a scientific background must be considered.
• Is there a conspiracy from the French lab conducting the tests? After all, they leaked the results in an improper manner! And aren't these the same folks who unethically resurrected some old samples from the 1999 Tour, supposedly belonging to Lance Armstrong and then leaked to the French Press that the samples showed traces of EPO? Isn't the French press who reported all of this related to the lab conducting the tests and also related to the organizers of the Tour de France? I'm tired of conspiracy theories but chauvinism is a French word!

Floyd Landis is on the verge of becoming the first ever winner of the Tour de France to be stripped of his title. As he gets ready for what will be a long legal battle, time and public opinion are not on his side. Only something crazier than this Tour will completely prove or disprove his innocence (His confession or revelations of a conspiracy) In either case, I believe this challenge will ultimately determine what type of champion Landis really is. As for my personal sentiments, the guy says he did not take any banned drugs and that he won the Tour because he was the best rider. I am still willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. However, as a German sports doctor told the press, testosterone can be used for a quick recovery; All a rider has to do is to apply a patch to his scrotum for a few hours. If that is what Landis did then the patch must have been huge because without question, he has some big cojones!

Labels: cycling, sport

The World Cup is over! And the final match between Italy and France was totally unbelievable! I can't really say that I had a favorite between these two teams but there were plenty of mixed feelings: Should I have rooted for Italy because of some last name ancestral loyalty? Or simply because the Squadra Azzuri are the bad boys of Soccer and always fun to watch. There is no question that the Italians are the most fun of the European teams even if they always seem to be surrounded by controversy.

But what about the French? I love an underdog and everyone had written France off as an over-the-hill team. They steadily advanced by winning some of the most difficult match-ups of the tournament: A 1:3 win against Spain in the round of 16, a 1:0 win against Brazil in the quarter-finals and a 1:0 win against Portugal in the semi-finals. All while being superbly captained by the great Zidane playing his last games. How fitting would it had been to have France win the 2006 World Cup during Zidane's last game? It was he who gave France its only World Cup when France hosted the 1998 World Cup.

I thought I had my answer while watching the extra time of a hard fought match; Zidane fired a great shot that Buffon, the Italian goalie, miraculously deflected. A few seconds later everything was chaos on the field with Buffon aggressively complaining to the referee! But what was he complaining about? The replay made all it clear: Zidane viciously head-butted Materazzi for no apparent reason. The referee, after consulting with his sideline assistant, sent Zidane off in disgrace with a deserved red card. Why would Zidane lose his cool? The replay shows Materazzi  exchanging words with Zidaine but that was no chit-chat between two players on the field; That had to be some nasty trash-talk from Materazzi. Mixed feelings again: Italian bad boy vs. not-cool-under-pressure French star! The match ended up in a penalty shootout that the Italians won 5-3, a result that would have not been the same had Zidane remained in the game. I feel sorry for Zidane! What a way to write the last chapter of his playing career in the eve of his retirement.

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What about the statistics for this World Cup? I think that is better left to the pro's but I have to record my favorite goals and favorite matches. So here they are:

Favorite Goals: You have to separate these into individual vs. team efforts;

• For personal brilliance I have to start with Ronaldo's goal in Brazil's win over Ghana (3:0). Ronaldo bolted from the Ghana's defense, then beat the goalie and made a shot after beating a final desperate defender. The goal was even more amazing when you consider that it was Ronaldo's 15th in a World Cup breaking the all-time record.
• Then there is Beckman's goal in England's win over Ecuador (1:0). Beckman knows how to bend it!.
• Zidane was flawless in taking a couple of penalty shots that were crucial for France's wins. But Zidane's goal in France's win over Spain (3:0) was spectacular and showed that old Zidane could still mix it up with the youngsters.
• All the sports pundits agree, the best 2006 World Cup goal was Maxi Rodriguez goal in Argentina's win over Mexico (2:1). In a goal that defined the game, Maxi stopped the ball with his chest and while the ball was still in mid-air kicked a long-range bullet that totally surprised Mexican goalie Sanchez.



• For team efforts, I begin with the goal that Cambiasso scored after a tricky "taquito" from teammate Crespo in Argentina's trouncing over Serbia & Montenegro (6:0).
• A perfect example of a goal that involves team effort with personal talent was Torres' goal in Spain's win over the Ukraine (4:0) The goal was scored by Torres after teammate Puyol received a pass from another teammate and with a header passed it to Torres who scored a great shot.
• Klose was the top goal scorer at the 2006 World Cup. One of his best goals was scored in Germany's win over Ecuador (1:0) He was perfectly positioned and got a perfect pass from his teammates to finish it in an unstoppable cross shot.

Favorite Matches:

• Obviously, the final championship match between Italy vs. France (1:1)(5:3) there was enough drama in this game to keep the 2006 World Cup after-glow going for a few weeks.
• The semifinal between Portugal vs. France (0:1) was boring! The only goal was a penalty shot by Zidane, but this was one of the best matched teams in the World Cup. Both teams knew their adversaries and played with great respect for each other. How wonderful to see two great stars, Zidane and Figo sharing what was to be either one's last game. They had been teammates at Real Madrid for a number of years and they both had been named FIFA World Player of the Year, Zidane in 1998, 2000 & 2003 and Figo in 2001 with a second close to Zidane in 2000.
• The round of 16 match between Argentina vs. Mexico (2:1). Argentina was the favorite and Mexico had just squeaked in past the first round. The Mexican fans were not happy and the fact that their Coach was suspect Argentinean La Volpe made for a match full of intrigues. Argentina won but not easily, Mexico gave a valiant fight.
• The round of 16 match between England vs. Ecuador (1:0) How exciting to watch underdog Ecuador on its first ever World Cup battle it out against one of the all-time greats. Ecuador played fearlessly and almost advanced to the quarter-finals had it not been for an amazing goal by Beckman.
• The quarter final match between Germany vs. Argentina (1:1) (4:2). I think this would have been the dream championship match of the 2006 World Cup. How perfect if the host country Germany would have been in the final and how perfect if the final would have been between an European and a South American team. Argentina's was clearly better than Brazil in this World Cup. The game was closely disputed and ended in a 1:1 tie. Germany won the nervous shootout because of the coolness of its great goalie, Lehmann. In soccer, it doesn't get any more classic that that!

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Just as in the Super bowl, add campaigns during the World Cup were great!  Since I have been watching mostly the Spanish language TV coverage, I have seen mostly the very funny adds targeted to the US Latino market (Think Bud & Chevy!) But there were also a  number of interesting add campaigns put on by soccer equipment manufacturers. Soccer equipment manufacturers? Soccer is a simple game played with what should be a simple ball. So what other equipment is there? If you are a poor kid from Africa, Asia or Latin America, there is none! Not so fast, there are shoes to be made and dreams to be sold! And the main selling is being done by the big three in soccer shoes and apparel: Nike, Puma & Adidas.



Nike's Joga Bonito is adopted from the Brazilian's "Beautiful Play" and repackaged as "Keep Soccer Beautiful!" Supposedly, this add campaign is an attempt by Nike to slam Adidas, I liked most of the ads, specially this one showing wizard Ronaldihno cleverly interspersed with video of him as a kid.

Puma's “WILLKOMMEN ZUM FUSSBALL” is funny in a "Let's all be paranoid about conspiracy theories" nicely juxtaposed to the "joy soccer brings around the world." Some soccer players in the add are not identified to see if they can be recognized while under surveillance, except Pelé who is unmistakable even if he is speaking German.

In view of his great performance in the championship match shootout, I found the "Where's Buffon?" game to be great fun!

By far, the best campaign, or the one that struck a note with me, was Adidas' "Impossible is Nothing +10" The premise is simple: Two kids, José and his friend Pedro decide to have a pickup game in the center courtyard of what looks to be some Spanish (not Latin American) tenement. They start choosing players for their teams from some of the best in the world and a great pick-up game ensues. The adds work because José and Pedro act naturally just like kids playing street soccer, to the point that José reprimands star Cissé when he tries to take over the captain's privilege of doing the coin toss and Pedro laughs at José's pick of Beckenbauer for his team. The best part is how the game ends! What great fun! I do feel fortunate that I connect to these adds because they somehow transport me to my childhood. I could not resist picking my own +10 team. It is not a fantasy league game and the players are limited to Adidas' sponsored players but to me it was fun because there were a lot of stars, all strikers and midfielders, with very few defenders. That took me back to my eight years as an AYSO Coach & Referee when my toughest task was developing the match line-up cards; Same problems: Too many stars, strikers and mid-fielders but not many defenders. I had to force everyone to play goalie and every other postion at least once during the season!

Here is my line-up for my +10 team. Goalie: Khan, Defenders: Beckenbauer, Pope & Bergomi (Notice that when I picked my +10 team, Eddie Pope was a choice, alas he no longer is. That can only mean that Pope is no longer sponsored by Adidas.) Midfielders: Beckman, Zidane & Kaká. Strikers: Messi, Raúl & Zico. All in my favorite 3-4-3 youth formation for an attacking game. So there are +10 players, where am I? Right there in the midfield between Beckman & Zidane; Otherwise, who's going to keep all that talent together?

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The World Cup is over! What to do now? I wonder if there is some other "quirky" sports event, taking place in Europe, with some great American athletes that almost no one in the US knows or cares about?

Labels: soccer, sport

I’m disappointed that the USA team did not advance past the first round of the 2006 FIFA World Cup! If you are a US sports fan you have probably dismissed not only the USA soccer team but also the World Cup and soccer as a sport altogether. You don’t what you are talking about and you don’t know what you are missing!

For starters, did you know that the USA team was ranked fifth coming into this year’s World Cup? Did you know that the USA got to the World Cup by classifying first in CONCACAF and winning games in the final round against other World Cup qualifiers such as Costa Rica, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago? Did you know that one of the reasons that soccer has advanced in the US is because there actually is a professional soccer league? MLS no longer stands just for the Real State Multiple Listing Service it also stands for Major League Soccer!

Maybe, you think that soccer does not have a US tradition like other American sports. But did you know that at the first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930 the USA Team was there? And they finished third in the tournament right behind powerhouses Argentina and Uruguay. And did you know that the USA has pulled some amazing upsets over the years in World Cup matches? Like the upset against England in 1950 that was misreported as a 10-1 English win by the British media and a win against dark-horse favorite Colombia in 1994 to advance to the second round (An infamous game I was lucky to witness at the Rose Bowl accompanied by some rabid Colombian friends who had to share the Stadium with a crowd of mostly Mexican-Americans rooting for the USA team)

Of course, your last recourse is to claim that soccer is a boring game with low scores, slow play and stupid rules. Well, I got you there too! If you think that it is only because you suffer from the same sports malady that affects all people who have never played a sport they criticize. You never played the sport as a youngster so you don’t understand how difficult it is to score a goal and how talented you must be to be a striker. Or the level of endurance and intelligence that is necessary to be a mid-fielder. Or the level of mental and physical toughness it takes to be a defender or a goalie. As for the rules, they may be stupid but they are fairly clear; the difficulty stems from their interpretation and enforcement by the referees. Soccer is one of the few sports where the conduct and expertise of the referees does determine the final outcome of the game. For the knowing soccer fan, referee performance is just to be as closely watched as that of the teams.

Maybe you did not play the sport in your youth but I have seen you at your children’s games. I have seen you kick the ball back and forth with your daughter. I have seen you screaming at the top of your lungs when your son almost scored a goal. I have seen you console your goalie after a tough loss and I have even seen you questioning the occasional off-sides and penalties.

So why have you shown lack of interest in the World Cup? Because the English language coverage sucks! The drowning, serious monotone may work for the NFL but what we need are characters like the great announcers of Baseball and Basketball. It’s interesting to watch Alexi Lalas, Eric Wynalda and Julie Foudy on EPSN doing the side-kick analysis. These guys and gal were in a couple of World Cups as part of their USA teams so they know what they are talking about. But what we need is a guy that screams Goooooool! for 30 seconds or his current counterpart who prefers a long cannonade of Gol, Gol, Gol, Gol, Gol!

That is why I watch the Spanish language coverage and that is why I am thoroughly enjoying this World Cup. I get to watch the pre-game silliness of TV hosts dressing up and cheering for Mexico one day and for Ecuador, Brazil, Costa Rica or Spain the next. I get to watch some goofball pull silly tricks at the German venues and get the fans into a state of frenzy. I get to listen to a game narrated by guys with passion for the sport and I get to listen to comments that I do not hear or read anywhere else.

While watching the Brazil vs. Japan game, I already knew that Zico , a great Brazilian player, had closed his playing career in Japan and has been the coach (“Director Tecnico”) for Japan since the last World Cup. What I didn’t know was that Santos , the left winger was also a Brazilian born, Japanese citizen. I also learned that Scolari , better known as Felipão in his native Brazil is now the coach for Portugal. And Saudi Arabia’s coach Paqueta is also from Brazil. The coaches for Tunisia and Ivory Coast, Lemerre and Michel are both French. Iran’s Coach Ivankovic is from Croatia and will probably be sacked after Iran’s lackluster performance. Coach Suarez from Colombia is loved by his Ecuadorian team and the nation as a whole, since he has been instrumental in getting Ecuador into the World Cup for the first time. La Volpe the Argentinean who coaches Mexico has had a tenuous relationship with his team and things will not get better after Mexico’s elimination by Argentina. It probably does not help that New Age La Volpe has tried to use hypnotism and Feng Shui to improve his reluctant Mexican team, that he left beloved Cuauhtemoc Blanco off the team and instead included Argentinean born Franco and Brazilian born Zinha.

You probably already knew that some of the best soccer players in the world now playing for their national teams ( Ronaldo, Robinho, Roberto Carlos & Julio Cesar from Brazil; Zidane from France; Beckman from England; Casillas & Raul from Spain) happen to be teammates for what is considered the best club team in the world, Real Madrid (I hope no one from Barcelona reads this post!) But do you know who el conejo, el ratón, el payasito, el gringo, el pato, el apache, el borrego and la pulga (The rabbit, the mouse, the little clown, the gringo, the duck, the apache, the ram and the flea) are?  These are all nicknames that I heard during what has to be one of the best matches of the World Cup, Argentina vs. Mexico. The Univision announcers know the players so intimately that they give them nicknames! I can’t think of a single USA player that has a nickname!

So who is my favorite to take the Jules Rimet cup? As I watch what I think should be final World Cup game, Germany vs. Argentina I have to go back to the team I have been rooting for since watching soccer on a black and white TV as a child in my native Venezuela. Being from the only South American country not totally crazy about soccer (Beisbol rules!), I have to root for Pelé’s team.

By the way, do you know what the US Spanish language TV calls the USA Team? "El Equipo de Todos" (Everyone's Team!) And that is why I'm truly disappointed that the USA did not advance past the first round!

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PS: My friend Adam took me to task because I posted about the World Cup and I did not mention Ronaldinho, best FIFA player for the last two years. I did not want to do that because I would have to list all the Barcelona players in the World Cup.  Here it goes: Ronaldinho from Brazil; Brazilian born Deco from Portugal; Marquez from Mexico; Messi from Argentina; Puyol, Xavi & Iniesta from Spain. After what transpired in this match, I think the most interesting instance of club teammates playing for their national teams has to be Manchester United's Wayne Rooney from England and Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal.

Labels: soccer, sport

Con gran interés leo que el pueblo colombiano de Aracataca ha decidido cambiar su nombre por el de Macondo. Lo más divertido del caso es que la refundación del pueblo no se debe tanto para honrar a su más ilustre hijo, sino por simple razones de lucro turístico. Aracataca es el pueblo natal de Gabriel García Márquez y Macondo es, por supuesto, el nombre del pueblo ficticio donde se desarrolla su obra monumental, Cien Años de Soledad.

Mientras leo el artículo y como mi cotidiano sándwich durante un ordinario día de trabajo, el sonoro vocablo me transporta a gratos recuerdos cuando era un joven liceísta que alegremente consolidaba su afición por la literatura latinoamericana. Desde niño me gustaron los libros y claramente me acuerdo pidiéndole permiso a mis padres para leer un grueso y apolillado tratado acerca de Rusia que languidecía en un viejo armario; Apenas cursaba el cuarto grado y a mitad del año escolar ya había devorado los textos de Geografía e Historia y requería de nuevo material absorbente. Afortunadamente, mi voraz apetito textual fue apaciguado cuando nos mudamos a Caracas y descubrí que por unos pocos bolívares podía comprar semanalmente, un tomo de una colección de grandes obras de literatura de edición popular. Cada martes visitaba a la librería para asaltar el ejemplar de la semana. Los de color verde siempre me interesaban ya que  eran tratados de ciencias como El Origen de la Especies. Los de color azul eran más difíciles de gustar pues eran guiones de teatro o libros de poesías como El Cantar de Mió Cid. Pero mi gran placer eran los más comunes que eran anaranjados, el color de las grandes obras de literatura donde predominaban las joyas de la literatura clásica española coronada con el Don Quijote de la Mancha. Aun hoy en día, conozco poco de los grandes de la literatura inglesa por el simple hecho de que cuando leo por placer casi siempre leo algo en español, preferiblemente de un autor latinoamericano.

Sin duda, mi predilección por la literatura latinoamericana fue moldeada aquel tercer año del Ciclo Básico Común en el Liceo Lino de Clemente. Todo cambio aquel día en que fortuitamente nuestra profesora de castellano escogió a Cien Años de Soledad para nuestro análisis de literatura. Aparentaba ser una tarea fácil al leer el divertido texto pero hasta la misma profesora parecía confusa; El libro de Gabriel García Márquez no se ajustaba al esquema requerido para completar el reporte: ¿Cual de los Buendía era el personaje principal? ¿Como describir el leitmotiv del libro? ¿Como catalogar el lenguaje de Gabriel García Márquez cuando “Realismo Mágico” seria una denominación inventada años después?

Y mientras me iniciaba en mi romance con la literatura latinoamericana, a las puertas de mi Liceo, jóvenes impacientes trocaban piedras por bombas lacrimógenas con la Policía Metropolitana de Caracas en divertidos disturbios estudiantiles. Que fascinante ser llamado “neófito” por un policía no mucho mayor que uno pero revestido de una indumentaria que lo uniformaba como un ser de otro planeta. Que irreal cuando un amigo advertía del inminente peligro cuando la policía era reemplazada por la Guardia Nacional lo cual anunciaba que las cosas iban en serio y era hora de irse a casa.  Que embriagante el ponerse de pie en medio de una clase y  seguir el llamado de un instigador que llamaba al “¡Paro! ¡Paro! ¡Paro!” y salir a la calle con una confusa concepción de supuestas injusticias pero una clara oportunidad de sumarse al “bochinche.” Y que extravagante regresar a una supuesta normalidad y completar la tarea de leer Cien Años de Soledad.

¡Macondo nunca podrá ser un lugar porque cuando uno es latinoamericano, Macondo se ha vivido!

Labels: book, español, ramble

Are you still on track with your New Year's resolutions? Not to worry, just like the inspirational year-end articles that got you into you current mess, there is also help to keep you motivated and hopefully salvage some of those well-intentioned resolutions.

Like everyone else, I made a couple of resolutions that I intend to keep. They are not directly related to family, friends, work or finances. I am blessed to have relative normalcy in those areas and just a little tweaking should do. My resolutions have to do with getting back in shape. I'm not talking about building bigger biceps or getting washboard abs. I'm talking about being able to run a 10k or swim a mile whenever I want to. I have been in that kind of shape not too long ago and I find that it gives me the confidence to confront any challenges in any area of my personal life. This year I want to complete an X-Terra off-road triathlon. I did one several years ago and I have fond memories of what was then, a quaint little race in Big Bear. I want to do an X-Terra because I hate gyms and the only way I get in shape is by doing outdoor activities like trail running or mountain biking. Having a race to show up to, with the intention of successfully completing it, has always been a great motivator for me. The other resolution also involves sports. I have been planning it for the last seventeen years: Completing the Newport to Balboa Pier-to-Pier Ocean Swim with my son and having him beat me. All he has to do is to show up and get in the ocean. The rest is inevitable!

While reading all about motivation, resolutions, financial tune-ups and all the assorted year-end crap, I came across a truly creative approach to make one reflect about the coming year. It is The Edge Annual Question which for 2006 is simply genius: What is Your Dangerous Idea? Pretend you are a Copernicus, a Galileo or a Darwin and think of an idea "...that is dangerous not because it is assumed to be false but because it might be true..."  A panel of experts, people smarter than you and me, tackle their dangerous ideas and "...stray...into the land of morality, religion and philosophy..."

My dangerous ideas are that of a simpleton: I'm glad that most of my synapses fire properly; And that my skeletal-muscular system responds instinctively to commands from my brain. I'm glad that the atoms that form my being are arranged in their current configuration and not in that of an asteroid or an anemone. More than anything, I am glad that the Godhead has endowed me with a glimmer of consciousness so that I can faintly perceive It, even if all my thoughts and ideas are the byproducts of the cauldron of biochemicals bubbling inside my head.

Do you have a dangerous idea? I think it is worth a thousand resolutions!

Labels: ramble