The Modern Day "Athlete"

[racerba]

I gotta agree with Jake.

Consider the following:

STI,Glock,CZ,S&W,Springfield, whoever, gives you $1,000,000/year to shoot and win. Your suit and tie/12 a day UAW job is now replaced with being the best shooter that you can be.

Do ya think you'd be in the top 5 everywhere in the world?

It's a bold statement, but I know what my answer would be.

My answer is yes.

[Jake Di Vita]

I understand that is not what he trained for and he may be very proficient at playing his position. But if you can't run 100 yards without almost dying, there is something wrong there. Don't you think he would be a better overall player if he actually put a little training into stamina? How about fast feet? That is certainly a lot more useful in getting around an offensive lineman than raw power alone.

[wide45]

Athlete? He is an entertainer. He gets paid for performing his part in a show.

Success is measured by the number of people watching.

[Jake Di Vita]

I agree that he is an entertainer. But if you play a sport at a professional level you better be an athlete too.

[Flexmoney]

I understand that is not what he trained for and he may be very proficient at playing his position. But if you can't run 100 yards without almost dying, there is something wrong there. Don't you think he would be a better overall player if he actually put a little training into stamina? How about fast feet? That is certainly a lot more useful in getting around an offensive lineman than raw power alone.

I dunno, Jake.

[Al Bundy flashback moment on]

I recall my high school league championship from track. I was champ in the 800m, achored the winner 3200m relay, and ran the 1600 in the 4:30's...I was in pretty good shape. Our team also won the championship. We were taking a victory lap. I got the bright idea to carry a team-mate on my back as we ran our victory lap. Probably ended up being 290lbs I was trying to run with. I did over 75y...but nobody was chasing me. I got tired of that real quick.

Earlier that same year, in a duel meet, we had a team really gunning for us. In our 3200 relay, I got the baton neck-and-neck with the guy that wanted to beat me more than anything. We were so close at the hand off that we got tied up a bit and he lost his shoe...running on a cinder track !!! I couldn't believe it. He managed to stay with me for 600-700m of the final leg, and he finished pretty close...giving it all he had. When he was done...he was done. And, I mean done. He collapsed from exhaustion...and, as far as I know, he never ran again. (He didn't run again that year...for sure.)

Now, take your DT. Here is a guy that has to clean and press 300lbs guys all day long...who are just as big and just as strong as he is...and, who get paid millions to make sure he fails in the battle.

Somebody could do some math on it, but I am guessing the "work performed" by those linemen is a huge amount. (heck, I don't even want to carry loaded mags around on my belt during the course of a match).

Of course, we see examples of guys that are clearly out of shape. But, just think of the engine that has to be there to power the human machine that they are. How much work do the heart and lungs have to perform to get oxygen through a guy like that? If anybody could do it...well, supply/demand would take care of their pay check.

[Jake Di Vita]

I think you make a lot of valid points there.

I still think that a professional athlete should still be able to run more than 75 yards without being taken out of the game for a half though.

The example I used about the NFL player was just an entry into the rest of my rant (the main issue I was addressing).

[ima45dv8]

I'm by no means anywhere near the specimen Kevin Williams is, but I had an experience that leads me to cut the guy a little slack.

I'll skip what led up to this, but I found a guy face-down, out-cold, overcome by smoke in the middle of a forest fire. He literally was laying between 2 smaller fires that were approaching each other with a speed I wouldn't have believed if someone had told me. When I got to him these 2 fires were less than 10 feet apart with him in the middle. You've met me, Jake. I'm just a big old lumbering lard butt at 6'2" 295 lbs (don't ask me about the weight loss - I have no idea what happened to the other 15 pounds). Williams could benchpress me. I'd be lucky to lift the gear he wears on Sundays.

I swear I didn't think about it. There wasn't time. I grabbed that guy by the belt and the shirt collar, threw him up over my head and caught him across my shoulders. I turned and RAN about 2/10's of a mile with a 170 lb load, dodging burning trees and ready to piss myself from fright. It had to be pure adreneline because I'd never done anything as physically demanding in my life. For a lineman to have the opportunity he did, with a gang of guys chasing him ready to take him down, I bet his adreneline was full-bore, too.

After getting this guy to a hospital, we went to a party (our original destination before the fire). There were a number of lovely young ladies who were ready to show their admiration for what I had done, but shortly after we walked into the house I landed on a couch and passed out. I slept through the whole party. I didn't wake up until almost 10:00 the next morning, when everybody was telling me about the raucous wild-assed ear-splitting event that was going on all around me as I slept.

With a little oxygen and an IV I might not have missed the party....

[Brian Payne]

Jake,

I do get the idea you are getting across. My example would be some of the professional pitchers I have seen. I am 48 yrs. old and have been a donut eating cop for 28 yrs. My gut isn't as big as some of the pitchers I see standing on the mound.

I still wouldn't want to be standing in on one of their fast balls though.

[Micah]

I swear I didn't think about it. There wasn't time. I grabbed that guy by the belt and the shirt collar, threw him up over my head and caught him across my shoulders. I turned and RAN about 2/10's of a mile with a 170 lb load, dodging burning trees and ready to piss myself from fright.

Great story Mark You'll always be my hero

[Sean Gaines]

I think if one of Michael Vick's dogs would be chasing after that guy, he would still be running. He would probably take a pass on the oxygen and the IV for a while

[ima45dv8]

I swear I didn't think about it. There wasn't time. I grabbed that guy by the belt and the shirt collar, threw him up over my head and caught him across my shoulders. I turned and RAN about 2/10's of a mile with a 170 lb load, dodging burning trees and ready to piss myself from fright.

Great story Mark You'll always be my hero

Man, I struggled over posting that at all, just because I didn't want to seem like I was trying to make myself sound special. I'm not. Even so, I'm hoping that when the tally sheets are added up at the end of my journey that I get a few points for that moment of craziness.

I guess the point I was trying to make is that adreneline can make people do things they couldn't or wouldn't normally consider, but the after-action recovery is the fee that must be paid.