EAGLESPORTS DIRECTOR'S BLOG

10/3/11 03:12 am

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     I have held off on this post until such time as I could actually find the official results of the 2011 Mosocw International Peace Marathon (MMMM in Russian) online. I'll cut right to the finish and say that I finished in 3:50:45, which was good enough for 444th place out of nearly 1200 starters. The fact that it took me about an hour of searching on the internet to find the results is one of the many nagging negative impressions I have from having participated in the event personally, and professionally.

The last marathon I ran was the Minsk International Marathon on July 2nd, 1994. I was 27. That marathon was the first Marathon organized in Minsk, and it was actually run on July 3rd, which is the anniversary of the Liberation of Minsk during World War II. As I was one of the pricinipal organizers of that event, I had to run it the day before. So Sergei and I got up for a 3:00 am start (hey, we both had to work!) and ran the course. I don't remember the time I ran, but I do remember being at work when the Spalding store office opened at 8:00 am. I remember Yuri Petrovich, our driver, escorting us through the streets of Minsk with his son, and that somewhere there is a video of all of this.

The 1994 Minsk Marathon was the most memorable of all I have been involved in. Not so much for the running of it, as for the interesting organization of the race. First of all, I loved the course. Two loops around a relatively flat course through the center of the city, starting and ending in Dinamo Stadium. Running through the tunnel and onto the track in a stadium to finish a 26.2 mile race is awesome. Second, you have to remember that 1994 was still very close to the breakup of the Soviet Union. The t-shirts and other prizes that we gave to all participants were more appreciated than at any other race I have been a part of. Finally, there was the solution to the issue regarding the closing of the streets.

In early April, we had applied through the ministry of Sport to have the streets included in the route of the marathon closed for the necessary time period. We were refused without explanation or alternative suggestion. We assumed that this would mean the end of the marathon, but an opportunity to informally "Reapply" would soon crop up.

April 26, 1994, marked the eighth anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. So much of Belarus had been affected by this event in one way or another; many Belarusian firemen, policemen and soldiers lost their lives extinguishing the fire and capping the damaged reactors. On April 25th, I got a call from Sergei, marathon co-organizer, inviting me to attend a memorial event in Vitebsk, Belarus. I agreed to go.

Upon arrival at the (Interior) Ministry's offices in Vitebsk, we were met at the door by a uniformed major, who escorted us upstairs to a conference hall, where a number of tables had been set up along the perimeter of the room. The tables were set and covered with food, and of course.......drinks. Sergei and I were lead to the head of the table, where a bear of a man, a general, waved us to our places on either side of him. Other than the Major, the General, Sergei and myself, there were a number of women in the room. Each of them had lost their husband to Chernobyl on April 26th, 1986. As we took our seats, the General began to speak. As he spoke, the Major began filling my glass with "Zubrovka", the amber-colored vodka that was somewhat popular at the time. It was a large glass.

"My dear ladies", the General began. "Today we meet to honor the sacrafices of each of you and your husbands, made for our country 8 years ago. We will honor them, and you by, drinking a toast to each of these brave men." So he began, beginning with the woman to my right. He drained his glass. I did some quick math. 12 widows, 12 full glasses of "Zubrovka" (Bison) vodka. I settled in to meet the challenge of whether this amount of consumption would be survivable. What else could I do? There was no way I was going to risk offense (real or perceived) to any of these women, so I drained mine too.

Here is what I remember about the rest of that day. Actually, it would be truer to say, here is what I pieced together from the physical evidence, because I do not remember anything clearly. 1. Not only did I make it through all 12 toasts (glasses)- I added one of my own. I know this because there was a picture of this on the front of "Na Strazhe" (On our guard) the Ministry's daily newspaper the next day. The picture further proves that I was still standing at that point. 2. After the official part of the day was over, General Bear invited me up to his office, where there was a small table set, with more food and more drink. Perhaps impressed that I was still alive, the good General presented me with a wooden bison, which is the national animal of Belarus. I know this, because I still have it. It sits grazing on my desk in my office to this day. 3. The General and the Major then took me, each under one arm, out to the car where my driver was waiting. My feet, I am told (by said driver), were dragging well behind me. 4. It was a long, winding drive home. We made many (sudden) stops, and by the time we returned to Minsk, I was well enough to take part in the final of the first annual Minsk Commercial Indoor Football League. At this event, both teams were disqualified for a bench-clearing brawl in the second half, which I did not have the energy for. 5. General Bear pulled some strings and, you guessed it, the streets were closed for the marathon.

But back to Moscow and the present. I decided to sponsor the event with our Compex brand while watching last year's event. Together with Nikolai (our marketing director) we visited the offices of the director of MMMM, where he laid out the requirements, which we readily agreed to. At that time I had no intention of also running it, but I did take note of the fact that the man was still conducting correspondence via pen and ink, with carbon copy between his two sheets of paper.

I didn't decide to actually run the marathon until July 22, during a run in the fields around Natasha's parents' house in Minsk. I figured that if I had to be there the whole day to sponsor the event anyway, why not run it as well? If I kept the goal simple (like finishing in less than 4 hours) there was certainly time to get some good mileage in, especially since we planned on spending most of August in Western Massachusetts. I was excited by the challenge- and started running daily, without fail. While home in the U.S., I ran a lot of easy mileage with Natalia each morning. I also ran my first 10k in more than 20 years, the Bridge of Flowers Classic in Shelburne Falls, MA. It was a very comfortable 51-minute race, and I really enjoyed it. In order to help keep me motivated, I bought a new Garmin Runner's watch and heart rate monitor- which would prove essential for monitoring pace, distance and heart rate.

Upon our return to Moscow, I began increasing both mileage, and the intensity of my workouts. I still never ran more than 50 miles during any week, but I started with hill and speed workouts a couple of times a week. I began my Compex endurance training on quads, hamstrings and calves. I only dropped my mileage during the week before the race. I felt great on the morning of the marathon. Here are my thoughts on the race itself:

Not nearly enough water. Four water points on a 10.5km loop, placed on either side of the road, under two bridges. The water that was issued, came in cups like you get in airplane meals; a small plastic cup with a foil top. Not real easy to open those while running
The water was rationed during my last loop. One cup per runner. Note to self for next year: Run fast enough to beat the rationing.
There were no electrolytes in any form. Good thing I had my own goo shots, replenished by my daughter as I ran by.
On a loop course, lead runners were not provided with significant escort. They had to fend for themselves as they lapped uhm....us slower runners. Not such a problem as the runners stretched out in later loops, but rough in the early running.
Honestly, during all 3 hours and 50 minutes, all I thought about was my race management. Constant monitoring of heart rate, pace, water, nutrition made for a successful run. During the entire run, my heart rate never exceeded 150. During the middle of the race, I felt great, but told myself to wait until the final loop before taking off. Good thing, because when the final loop came, and the water stopped, it was all I could do to keep running. Pulse started going up, speed went down.
Compex works. No cramping during the race, largely due to the endurance program used frequently leading up to the race on quads, hamstrings and calves. After the race, Compex's Actvie Recovery program restored energy and flexibility to my legs nicely. In all, we treated more than 60 runners. A special thanks to Pascal Adam for his help and guidance over the weekend.

Sasha and Pascal working on early finishers

Oliver, Pascal and Sasha, with me on the table, rear right

While this was the 31st running of the Moscow Marathon, there were almost no spectators. In fact, in a city of nearly 20 million people, I would expect more of a turnout from runners. I was happy to have my own cheerleaders, Natalia and Vasylisa, urging me on.
In short, the organizing committee got the little things wrong. It is a very easy thing to announce the names of the runners as they finish, for instance, and they didn't do that, either. I'm glad I ran, but it would be easy to make this race better.

So what's next? Conn College Men's Invitational, in New London, Ct. on October 15th. It's an 8000m X-Country race, and Coach Butler's 25th year since we hired him for my senior season. I'm looking forward to running in New London again!

Happy Trails!

9/27/11 12:41 am

LAUNCH OF COMPEX WIRELESS, LUASANNE, SWITZERLAND JUNE, 2011

On June 14, 2011, Compex officially launched Compex Wireless at the Olympic Museum in Luasanne, Switzerland. Compex Wireless is the first wireless electro muscle stimulator (EMS) in the world that offers professional, safe and effective muscular contraction while using wireless technology. For current electrostimulation users, this finally takes away the last hurdle for regular, comfortable use. Compex Wireless has no limits in time, place or frequency of use. New Features of Compex Wireless:

No cables mean easy set-up and freedom of movement
Electrode placement is shown directly on the coloured LCD remote screen
Large choice of training objectives, which will be updated regularly
Create your own objectives online and manage planning of your training
Choice of more than 50 programmes available online
All info just one click away: the simplest way to select the right programme
mi-Technology installed on each of the four modules, with pulse adapted to each muscle physiology
Four channels offer a complete and effective workout
Daily use autonomy for the modules

Our good friend and distributor for Compex in Slovenia, Andrej Svent, putting the Compex Wireless to the test; the control unit works at more than 30 meters distance from the electrodes!

The Olympic Museum provided the perfect setting for the Compex Wireless Launch, and we could not have asked for better weather. Naturally, everyone was in a celebratory mood, and a good time was had by all:

Enjoying the company of Olivier and Heiko, two guys who have played huge roles in the success of Compex in Russia;

A little later in the evening, with Tina, Pascal, Andrej, Olivier and part of the French sales Team;

Later still, with Olivier and Jeroni, from Rehab Medical in Barcelona; and finally,

The French Sales Team, last left standing! All in all, a great day, a great event and a game-changer of a product in Compex Wireless. There is literally nothing like it in the market today!

At Eaglesports, we are looking forward to receiving our first sample of the Compex Wireless device in the beginning of October. Personally, I am looking forward to using it myself, to help improve my recent time of 3:50:45 at the Moscow Marathon. Please call and ask for a demonstration today!

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1/31/11 08:55 am - BEKO PBL

     As a partner of the PBL, the premier men's basketball league in Russia, I was allowed to attend today's press conference announcing BEKO, a Turkish appliance company, as the League's new title sponsor. At the press conference, I was surprised to hear that Beko, a name I had never heard before today, was one of the top 10 consumer appliance manufacturers in the world. Not saying it's not true, just that I have never seen, nor purchased, anything branded as Beko.

     After sitting through six or seven questions from the gallery, I realized that the most important question of all was being completely avoided.   As a sponsor of the league, I didn't think it appropriate to stand up and ask my own question- so I turned to a journalistic-type guy to my right and asked him why nobody thought it was important to ask how much it had cost Beko to become the title sponsor of the League.

     After the next question had been answered, he stood and asked if the representatives from Beko would let us know, in very general terms, what the contract had cost them. "It is a company policy not to divulge such figures to the public" he was answered, "but we did sign for 3 years with a three-year option to prolong".

     Most of those present understood; this is Russia, and there are risks, perceived and actual, to making the amount public. At any rate, nobody in their right business mind wants to raise an eyebrow at tax inspection.

     But what a missed opportunity. As opposed to most sports sponsorship contracts in this country, this one seems to be strictly commercial; in other words, no one in the Russian (or local municipal) government "Requested" this of Beko. Nor was it Gazprom charging in to save the day (as has happened with football, hockey and basketball federations). Beko saw the opportunity, and decided it was in their best interests to take advantage of it. What we could have learned and didn't, was the exact worth of a professional sports league (in this case basketball) in Russia.

     When asked what the money received from Beko would be spent on, we were given two answers. First, according to the contract with the Russian Basketball Federation (for the right to run the Russian Men's Basketball Championship) a "Certain percentage" will go to Luzhnetskaya Naberezhna, the Federation. Second, the League would move closer to becoming self-sufficient. Today the league runs on funds collected from its member teams (entry fees, disciplinary fines, etc.) and Beko would help alleviate the burden to those teams.

     In the six short months of their existence, the PBL has attracted a serious, long-term and commercial sponsor, whose contribution is significant enough to rename the league. As I made my way out of the Marriot Grand Hotel I realized that in the almost 20-year existence of the Russian Super League- that had never been accomplished.  While the amount spent for the title sponsorship will remain undisclosed, there is finally confidence that the money will reach its final destination, building and developing a strong, competitive and popular men's basketball league in Russia.

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11/26/10 05:04 am - Thanksgiving, 2010

THANKSGIVING DAY, 2010

There is so much to like about this holiday; it is a time for putting petty worries and unimportant matters aside, a time to be thankful for the blessings in life which are surprisingly plentiful if you stop and think about it. Here are the 10 things that I am most thankful for today:

1. Health. The continued good health of my family and friends. We tend to take this for granted, until something goes wrong. The older we get, the more things go wrong. If you got up feeling normal this morning, be thankful, whether 10 or 100 years old.

2. My family, all of you. I am blessed to come from a relatively large family. Having each member of my family in my life continues to be a major source of joy, strength and confidence. Thank you all.

3. My wife and daughter. Growing up I had a vision of what married and family life would be like; the reality is even better. I'd be lost without them. I am thankful for their love, especially when I don't deserve it.

4. My country. I've seen no other place where an individual is as free to decide his or her own fate on a daily basis. I am thankful to those of my ancestors who brought us here. God Bless America.

5. U.S. Armed Forces. See point 4; they are the ones who are truly sacraficing everything, EVERYTHING, so that you and I don't have to, to keep our country the way we like it, even through the heyday of terrorism.
My thanks to each and every service member and their families.

6. My Job. Thanks to Paul and Carl for hiring me; thanks to those of our partners who are so much more than partners. Thanks to our staff, past and present, and most of all, I thank all of our customers for all of the good years. I have held jobs that I couldn't stand, I am thankful to have one that I love this much.

7. Boston Sports Teams. Trivial, you say? Not for me. Other than the Larry Bird era, we had quite dryspell for a while. Lately it has been a great run, I thank the respective owners and I pray for the Bruins.

8. The Yankees, The Habs, the Jets/Giants, and the Lakers. Thank you. Without you, the highs wouldn't be high, the lows wouldn't force me to hibernate.

9. John Galt.

10. Russia. It's not perfect, but it has been my home away for home for nearly half of my life. An amazing place to live in so many ways.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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1/6/10 08:57 am - 10 THINGS ON MY MIND AT THE END OF THE DECADE....

10. Year after year, London's Heathrow Airport is the worst that I travel through. Much of this may be due to the fact that in order to secure the cheapest tickets, I often opt for layovers of 10 hours or more in duration. The cheap flights from Moscow arrive late in the evening, and the cheap legs to New York, depart first thing in the morning. In most international airports that I fly through, all terminals are kept open 24 hours a day. When I fly through Heathrow, I am usually traveling through terminal 5, which closes at 10:00 pm. The only terminal that is open all night is number 1, which is very cold in the winter. Only one coffee shop is open. During operating hours, the airport is a zoo- crowded, hectic, diverse. Flight gates are posted minutes before boarding, sometimes correctly. Baggage allowances always seem to shrink if Heathrow is part of my itenerary.

9. Facebook.com, nba.com, nfl.com and mlb.com, drudgereport.com, skype.com. People who know me well are aware of the staple foods that I carry back to Russia with me after every trip to the U.S. Collectively, I refer to them as "Moodchangers". Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. Thomas' English Muffins. York Peppermint Patties. Kellogs Froot Loops. Duncan Hines' Lemon Cake Mix. Familiar brands, familiar packaging, familiar taste. Amazing how settling they can be, thousands of miles away from home, at the end of a dark and difficult day. The five sites I list above play a similar role. Without them, it is difficult to maintain my "Americaness" as I choose to define it. Facebook allows me to keep up with the present of my past. nba, nfl and mlb.coms allow me to follow my (beloved Boston) teams live, even if that means getting up to watch games at 3:00 am. Small sacrafice to see games in their natural, un-interpreted progression, as I would sitting in a living room in New England. I can almost feel the warmth of the fire on a cold Autumn day, or the breeze from the ceiling fan on a hot and humid August afternoon as I watch the Pats or Sox. After many years of silence, I can once again participate in guy-talk when stateside. I love that. Drudge is great. All the world's news at my fingertips, updated regularly every day. Conservative spin. Amen. Skype is a lifesaver. Live, FREE telephone/video calls with friends and colleagues.

8. My neighbor. Don't know which. He or She is the one whose unsecured Wi-Fi makes the above possible in our apartment, nearly 24/7. I want to use this opprtunity to say thank you, whoever you are, and ask that you please don't power down in the fourth quarter of the playoffs, ever again.

7. Moscow DPW. Same all over the world. 5 guys (lot of women here too) grab-assing, one guy (40+ woman) digging. Amazing. But here in Moscow, there are four aspects of public works that are simply unjustifiable/inexplicable. 1. The street waterers. (see below).

Night or Day, Rain or Shine- these guys are out watering the streets; All the streets. I swear, it's as if asphalt is a living, photosynthesizing organism! Street watering does transfer dirt on streets to just-washed cars most effectively. In fact, a conspiracy between the mayor (actually, his over-indulged, corrupt and nasty wife) and the car washes of Moscow is the only logical explanation for their existence. Process can be humorous when they move on to washing crowded sidewalks, though. 2. Tree-truncators. A lot of places in the world pay attention to cutting back limbs that might interfere with utility lines, etc. In Moscow they cut off all of the branches; every horizontal limb, leaving a living post where a tree once stood. On synical days, I do believe that this must be some form of pychological warfare.....The tolerance of such defoliation (my theory states) leads to muscovites becoming more tolerant of similar acts in the political/economic world. 3. Snow removal. COMPLETE FAILURE. Recently, Mayor Luzhkov blamed the citiy's failure to deal with a storm on, who else? the citizens of Moscow. Their being out and about on a week day before Christmas was an intolerable interference to snow removal, he said. Why hadn't Muscovites heeded his warning and stayed home? Why hadn't 14 million people all crowded onto/into public transportation that morning? Well, I for one would have- if he and Mrs. (Baturina) Luzhkov had. Plowing/shoveling snow into the center of the street is another technique they like to use. Apparently the nasty stuff will go away more quickly if run over many times; Why didn't I think of that? Finally, they use a liquid agent to melt the snow. It does that pretty well. Unfortunately, the agent/melted snow mix does not dry or evaporate until such time as they can get the street watering going again....sometime in May. Mayoral/Carwash Conspiracy again.

6. Russian Sporting Goods Retailer of the Year. Decathlon, hands down. Sportmaster, Intersport, Champion, Profi-Sport all have more doors- but this year was the first real "Year of Decathlon". Sportmaster may well be the current and rightfully proclaimed leader in the market in terms of sales and doors, but their focus is now clearly on fashion, rather than performance-driven customers. They believe that this is where the market is going- I disagree. The same can be said for Intersport, where their performance product range is decreasing with each season. Decathlon is the strongest player in the market financially, and they are still on their original schedule of opening 50 locations within the next three years. Their stores are large enough to be customer-friendly, with areas for skating, cycling, shooting hoops and playing table tennis. They have more cash registers per location than their customers, an extremely knowledgeable sales staff- and their pricing and product range seem more accurately tailored to the Russian Sporting Goods Market. Recently, while I was in a long line for the register at the Sportmaster across the street from my apartment, I overheard a group of impatient customers comparing the two chains. The consensus was overwhelmingly in favor of Decathlon.

5. Winter. This has been a good one. Cold and Snowy; just as it should be. Haven't played this much hockey in years, haven't been down-hill skiing in decades. Learning how to snowboard is painful. The long, Russian winters are not so bad when you are always out playing.

4. Duraki and Dorogi. Russia only has two problems; Fools and Roads, they say. While in the first they are no different from any other country- their roads do truly set them apart. The minute that you cross from Moscow to Tver Region, for example- you had better either be going slowly, or driving a T-90. I Recently drove through the night from Moscow to Riga on no rest. It was easy, I was too terrified to fall asleep. The governor of Tverskaya Oblast needs to make this drive, and I'd like him to have Putin in the passenger seat. From now on, my first rule for a country to be considered a superpower is: they must have roads you can easily fall asleep on. Sorry Russia, you don't make the cut.

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9/16/09 11:47 am

Thoughts on Driving to Moscow from Minsk on September 7, 2009

     700 km is an awkward distance to drive. In my childhood, long drives were measured against the three-hour, or five-hour drives from Amherst, Massachussets to our Grandparents' houses in Gorham, NH- or Wayne, Pennsylvania. As a family we made longer trips by car, and it's probably no coincidence that my parents got divorced after the second one. Four boys, lots of fighting, the pre-air-conditioneric period and me always getting car sick had to have a lot to do with that.

     As I told Natalia this afternoon, I could pick any road or highway in any other country- and I would see something extraordinary if I were to drive 700km on it. The Minsk/Moscow "Highway" has got to be the dullest 700 km drive on Earth. (Pennsylvania would be pretty close, were it not for the deer.) No mountains, No coast, no lakes, no cities, no parks and no over-groomed lawns with birdbaths and pink flamingos; nothing. Once upon a time, the trip was an extreme challenge; you had to make it on one tank of gas if the Yurtsevo station was closed, and many vehicles just weren't built to successfully navigate what passed as a road in Smolensk. The entire road consisted of one lane in each direction, and was neither lined nor lighted. Rainy, snowy or foggy weather would really make the trip interesting. As Europe began paying for widening and repaving- there was also the challenge of beating the previous speed record for the trip. This was easy at first- especially when fines for speeding amounted to $3.00 a pop. But once I got to 4 hours 58 minutes- I discovered I need another level of automobile to go any faster.  So the record has stood for three years. The modern placement of gas stations at 20km intervals, as well as the modern speed-enforcement equipment (and appetites) of the DPS (Road Police) have taken all the fun out of the drive.

     The distance is awkward because it needs to be carefully timed. The last thing you want is to be stuck in traffic for hours at the end of a 700-mile drive. On the approach to Mosow from Minsk- rush hour is between 7-10 each morning and roughly the same during the evening. During the dacha season, there are 24 rush hours a day for return to Moscow on Sunday, with SOME lighter traffic rarely appearing between the hours of 2-4 am. Anyway, to avoid traffic at the Moscow end, you either have to leave really early in the morning to avoid that evening's traffic, or later in the day to beat the next morning's. Either way, you must deprive yourself of sleep.

     On a drive as boring as this, fatique can get dangerous. The obvious remedy is the Oasis hotel, dead, smack in the middle of the trip at 350km. The coffee is better than bearable, the service is pretty good, and the restrooms (though not modern) are clean. The call girls (hotel on premises) have apparently all grown up and been married, but now and again you can still catch a local wedding in the restaurant. We (I) have been stopping here for years, and if there is one place in Russia "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" for me, it would be the Oasis.

     The top speed along the Russian portion of this trip is posted as 90 kph (55 mph) with very frequent reductions to 60 kph (35 mph) as the "Highway" passes through, or close to ,many cities, towns and villages- some of them no longer than a few hundred yards in length (Komissarovo, for example). The police hang out in many of these, equipped with either their hand-held radar guns, or the remote-controlled radar cameras. In almost all of these population centers, you will see the plywood police car parked, as pictured above; quite a force of those. Someone obviously thinks this is clever, but the reality is that the traffic police are never that visible if they are out looking for speeders.

    There seems to be no attempt at changing this situation, so we appear to be doomed to slow down through these villages until such time as many of them be razed as ghost towns. In some cases, this migh not take too long.

     Once you cross the "Border" into Belarus, the situation improves dramatically. 120 kph (75 mph) is posted, and the 250 kilometers pass in a heartbeat. The roads in Belarus are better, though there is no decent place to stop and eat or have a coffee along the way. We therefore stop at the newly opened Shell station in Smolensk, which is the only full-serve station along the way, and the only one with a decent convenience store, and coffee. A full tank of gas at that point is enough to get us to Minsk and back, so there is no real need to carry any Belarusian rubles.

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4/29/09 11:44 pm - BBL FINAL FOUR IN TARTU, ESTONIA

TARTU, ESTONIA

Tartu Town Hall

On April 24th and April 25th, The SEB Baltic Basketball League held its Final Four tournament in Tartu, Estonia. Tartu is the second largest city of Estonia. In contrast to Estonia's political and financial capital Tallinn, Tartu is often considered the intellectual and cultural hub, especially since it is home to Estonia's oldest and most renowned university. Situated 186 km southeast of Tallinn, the city is the centre of southern Estonia. The Emajõgi River, which connects the two largest lakes of Estonia, crosses Tartu.

BBL Final Four Program

Tartu University Sports Hall, site of the Final Four

After the long Russian Winter, the weather in Tartu was exactly what I needed. Sunny and warm throughout the weekend, I was able to go for long, leisurely runs along the river each morning, and walk around town in the evenings after the games. The BBL's hospitality, second to none as far as I'm concerned, made the event both enjoyable and memorable.

As for the basketball, of the four games that I watched, and the one that I played in, only the semi-final game between Tartu-Rock and Zalgiris was close and exciting. The home team nearly pulled off the upset, but in the end, there just wasn't enough bench...and Zalgiris went through to the final.

In the final, Zalgiris was handled easily by their archrivals Lietuvos Rytas from Vilnius, thus avenging the last-second loss in the final last year.

I was invited out onto the floor for the third-place group shot with Tartu Rock
To my left is the Prime Minister of Estonia, Andrus Ansip

As for the game that I played in, well....my stats line looked something like this: 5 Mins, 1 Assist, 2 Steals, and 5 Turnovers, all of them traveling calls. What can I say? It has been a while since I played with referees! At the end of the game, I understood "Move the ball first, then your feet!!!" in Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian.

Spalding, in addition to being the ball on the floor- had a strong presence throughout the event:

FIFAA organized this sales point, opposite the main entrance

Between the two final games, Vallo Teder, from FIFAA, our partner in the Baltics, was nice enough to take me around to some of the locations in which they sell our product in Tartu. It is always rewarding to see product on shelves in some relatively remote cities.

Sportland in Tartu

Spalding in Sportland

Between the games, the weather and the nightclubs....it was hard to see why anybody anywhere near Tartu would want to miss this. Thanks to the BBL, FIFAA and the people of Tartu- the event was a good one for Spalding. I'll leave you with this parting shot, which Arvids could NOT handle with steady hands....too bad; this is good marketing!!!

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4/18/09 08:45 am - Novy Urangoi

NOVY URANGOI

          There are many places in the world that I consider "Exotic" for their complete lack of anything that would attract the average tourist. Novy Urangoi is roughly 60 km south of the Artic Circle, and a three-and-a-half hour flight to the Northeast from Moscow. Its remoteness was one reason for making the trip; I had never been that far North. The fact that it is the location of one of Gasprom's largest natural gas reserves was another. It took an invitation from the team doctor of Novy Urangoi's professional volleyball team, "Fakel" (Torch) to get me to finally make the trip.

     Fakel is in the semi-finals of the Russian Volleyball League, and I was to travel to see the first and second matches of their best of three series with Zenit, from Kazan. We work very closely with both teams, fullfilling most of their sports medicine needs. This was a good opportunity to meet with both of them, see my first professional volleyball match, and travel to Russia's "Great White North".

    "Vast" white North is a more suitable phrase. Sitting on the right side of the plane as we approached for landing- I saw no sign of life or civilization of any sort as I looked out the window. All there was to see was snowy tundra, in places dotted with trees, but otherwise only disturbed by its many frozen rivers. I didn't see a house or a road until seconds before landing.

This is Novy Urangoi's airport. The plane, a Boeing 737-200 pulled right up to the door (middle left of picture) and we walked right in. This was also the first Russian domestic flight where they conducted passport control on the arrival end. Rich in natural gas, the city is a vital national, strategic asset, and all foreign travelers must be pre-approved for entry.

The hotel that the team lives in, "Zapolarnaya" (beyond the Artic) also belongs to Gazprom, and admittance is by written permission from them only. It is more a dormitory than a hotel, as there is no bar, sauna, restaurant or internet access- just a small cafeteria, where the food was pretty good. The rooms are not cheap, mine was about $180 a night. The location is convenient to the gym where the team plays, an easy five-minute walk, but the team takes the buss anyway.

As I said above, there is literally nothing of interest (from a tourist's point of view) to see in Novy Urangoi. The first morning there I went out for a walk to see what was out there, a pointless endeavor if there ever was one.

This is the main pedestrian walkway, smack in the middle of Urangoi, and there is absolutely nothing going on. One store, one cafe, and plenty of snow and ice. This is as exciting as it got. In this sense, Novy Urangoi is a microcosm of Russia's economic priorities, which are to extract and export its natural resources (in this case natural gas) to support the corrupt elite governing the country. I found the run-down condition of this city incredibly disporportianate to the wealth it produces. There was absolutely no evidence of any attempt to provide a purposeful existence for the citizens of Urangoi. But then, Russia (and Gazprom) are in the midst of a crisis, and clearing the streets and sidewalks of ice (for example) would clearly destroy their bottom line.

Interestingly enough, the two Novy Urangoi volleyball teams (Men's and womens') don't live in Urangoi. They live in Moscow, and fly to Urangoi for their home games, usually a three-day visit during which they are either practicing, playing or hanging out in their hotel rooms watching their ipods. There is literally nothing else to do. It seems that the population of Urangoi (200,000) is there on contract with Gazprom, to work very hard for a couple of years, make a lot of money, and then return to civilization. I had often wondered why people from these remote cities seemed to like Moscow so much. The capitol of Russia must seem like heaven on Earth after four years of Urangoi!

U.S. National Team members Kevin Hansen, Sean Rooney and Lloy Ball

It was a privilege to be able to sit down with the American players and their families while in Urangoi. Four members of our Olympic Gold-medal team were there to play, Sean Rooney and Kevin Hansen for Fakel, and Lloy Ball and Clay Stanley for Zenit. They played in front of a capacity crowd on both nights, and both matches were fast and exciting. At the end of the trip, the series was tied 1-1 and we all headed out to the airport.

Finally, it was satisfying to see a lot of our products in action during the three-day trip. Cefar-Compex's Mi-Sport was in constant post-game use by Fakel, Game Ready by Zenit, and there was plenty of Mueller and Ankle-Activ product to be seen on-court.

Thanks very much to Aleksander Ivanovich for being such a good host during my stay. The late night conversation over vodka, sala, black bread and onions was, no pun intended, just what the doctor ordered.

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7/13/08 01:33 am

280 MILES ON A BIKE
(or: You Don't notice these hills while driving!)

Some time this Spring, I got an email from my older brother Brad, outlining a plan that he had been discussing with my younger brother, Chuck, about biking from Brandon, Vt. to Geneva, NY. I immediately told them to count me in, though the logistics of a). training while in Moscow, b). Getting to Vermont from Moscow, and c.) Buying a bike, would have to be figured out and, more importantly, paid for.

TRAINING

I run a lot. I work out at the club, World Class, where my wife and I are members in Moscow. At 41 years old, I do all right. Rarely do we run outdoors in Moscow, because there are so few places where running is pleasant, and for eight months of the year, the weather is not pleasant. I am therefore a treadmill runner, a spinning cyclist, and an indoor swimmer for most of the year.

When considering the upcoming trip, my older brother (the family cyclist) sent us a list of the things that he thought we should have. The list consisted of many things that I considered normal, such as helmet, gloves, cycling shorts, cycling jerseys, water bottles, camelbacks etc., and one thing which made me sure I was going to suffer, "A Chaffing Stick". I decided I had two things to worry about, considering I was in pretty good GENERAL shape; leg strength and, uhm...chaffing. So in the month and a half that I had to get myself ready in Moscow, I hit the spinning bikes- intentionally riding for 90 minutes a few times a week in nylon, unpadded shorts. I figured I'd better get any discomfort out of the way before I had to sit on a bike for 10 hours. This was extremely uncomfortable (those damn seats are damn small!), but necessary- and more importantly it proved effective.

THE TRIP HOME

If you live in Connecticut, and going to your parents' house in Massachusetts is what you call going home, you may not need a reason to hop in the car to do so. When you live in Moscow, and are married with a daughter, are running your own business and paying a small fortune to fly across the ocean to get home....I need a reason, or at least a major holiday in order to convince my wife to go. The real reason was of course, was the bike trip. I could get away with calling the Fourth of July a "Major" holiday, but not major enough to warrant a trip across the ocean. The NATA show and annual meeting were to take place in St.Louis in June, and we had previously invited one of our best customers, Valery Barishnikov of Salovat Yulaev, to attend the show as our guest. In addition, I threw in our 10th U.S. wedding anniversary, which we decided to celebrate in Chicago. All of a sudden, I had enough to sell the trip, and Natasha agreed to the "Bike" trip!

4/28/08 05:33 pm - Spalding The Official Ball of BBL Final Four in Siaulai, Lithuania

Spalding The Official Ball of BBL Final Four in Siaulai, Lithuania
April 25-26, 2008

I traveled to Siulai, Lithuania this past weekend to watch the Final Four of the BBL. While Friday's games were both won easily by the favorites, the second day of play was a bit more interesting. The Final, between Zalgiris (Kaunas) and Lietuvos Rytas (Vilnius) came down to a shot with under 3-seconds remaining, which was made by the game's MVP De Juan Collins. Check out the sites and sounds from the weekend in the pictures and Videos below.

Lietuvos Rytas' Fans Section

Zalgiris' Fan Section

Now, there was no limit to the number of beers that one fan could purchase at one time. On Friday night, during the second game, a fight broke out between the two groups, and it became pretty clear that 15 security guards at a game of this level was clearly not enough! Memo to organizers of next year's event: More security, less alcohol.

Spalding was clearly visible as the Official Ball of the event. Between two banners, the Game ball and the number of BBL Team Balls that were distributed (free of charge) to the Fans during the games, we definitely left our mark. We began discussing more opportunities for presence/signage for next season.

The Official BBL SMU Basketball (Spalding ZK PRO)

Spalding, as the Official Ball of the BBL was visible throughout the Arena, and throughout the weekend:

The BBL SMU Team Balls were especially popular with the fans, and were even being traded (one team for another) by those lucky enough to receive them:

In general, everyone (meaning fans) were enjoying themselves tremendously:

Let's get back to the game though. We pick up the action between Zalgiris and Lietuvos Rytas with Hollis Price (New Orleans) bringing Rytas to within one point of Zalgiris with 1:04 remaining in the fourth quarter. De Juan Collins (Youngstown) then brings the ball up the floor, keeping it to make a sweet fall-away jumper with :45 left on the clock.

Down at the other end Roberts Stelmahers (Riga) puts up a long three, evening the score at 82- and bringing half the crowd to its feet and leaving :29 seconds on the game clock.

Collins slowly brings the ball up the court, finally taking an outside shot near the top of the key. The shot is taken under pressure and the ball rebounds high to the left, clearly headed into the hands of Lietuvos Rytas- and for a split second it appeared that the game was finally going Rytas' way.

Hold on a second. A late foul is called on Matthew Nielsen (Sidney, Australia) under the basket. I didn't see the foul, as my view was obstructed by a third player- but I still think this should have been a non-call at this point in the game (5.9 seconds on the game clock), as at that point neither player was anywhere near the rebound, and there was at least a bit of a flop involved. Judge for yourself; here's the play as it unfolded:

Zalgiris hits both shots- Rytas calls time out, and I take this panoramic video of the enitre crowd. Most of the crowd is rather subdued, as this game is up for grabs:

After the time out, the Rytas in-bound goes to Price at half-court. He drives and is fouled (questionable call to make up for questionable call) and he hits both shots leaving the game tied with four seconds on the clock.

Here is the last play of the game, "No-Comment":

This was good basketball. The Baltic Basketball League could scarcely hope for a closer, more exciting game. Unfortunately, The BBL Final Four consisted of four games, and the Semi-finals were boring, one-sided affairs. While it is rumored that ASK Riga and Barons are closing the gap in talent and financing, I saw no evidence of that here, and the BBL will need to work on the disparity between their finalists (Zalgiris and Rytas) and the rest of the field. Either that or devise a new playoff system.

I look forward to seeing how they deal with this over the next few seasons.

My thanks to the BBL for their strong cooperation and hospitality during this first season of our partnership!

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