I had a chance to visit St. Louis to watch the Midwest Throwdown. This is a multi-day Ultimate Frisbee Tournament. My daughter was playing for Washington University Women's Ultimate Locomotive team. The competitive team is Iron Horse. The men's side does the same thing with Contra being the competitive team and Contraband being the development team. It was really great to see them play and understand the game a little bit more. I still don't know what to yell from the sidelines, but it was cool to see the offensive (horizontal and vertical stack) and defensive (man on man or zone) and how team's match up. Carlton has (6) teams. Other schools are in their first season.
We really could not spend that much time together, but I did watch three of her six games and we went out for Ted Drewes Frozen Custard on Saturday night.
Her classes are going well including Foundations in Mathematics, Physics, Physics Lab, Hindi, Differential Equations, Independent Research and two Electrical and Systems Engineering classes. It has been a long time since I could help with her homework, but it is also great to see she is still dancing with the date that got her admitted to WashU. She is going to class, studying, taking advantage of office hours and developing relationships with her professors and teaching assistants.
Sunday was much colder than Saturday. After freezing through one game, I bailed and went to the Horseshoe Casino. I was playing well, but could not beat the games.
I lost $105 playing craps. Simple strategy of placing the 9, collecting the first payout and pressing after that and playing the pass line without odds when I was shooting. Bankroll management was perfect and I could have passed more time with that strategy, despite the table being cold.
My name finally came up for a poker seat and I sat with $100 in the $1-$3 NLHE game. Action was good. I was getting reasonable cards and playing conservatively. I lost my first buy in on AJ in the hijack. I raised to $20, the button made it $65 and I called what was essentially all in for me. I lost my second buy in on KQ in hijack plus one. I made it $10 to go and flopped top pair on a K-10-8 board. I bet $60 and was called by the player to my right. The turn brought the Q, which should have raised some flags, but I was excited to see top 2 pair. I went all in with my remaining $45 and was quickly called by J9 for the turned straight. River was a 4 and missing my full house, I bid the remaining players adieu. It sucks that I lost to a gut shot straight, but that is the way things go.
I had a chance to see Cowboys and East Indians at DCPA recently. The premise of the play is an Indian couple who relocate to Wyoming from Toronto after emigrating from Madras. It relays the challenges of no one willing to rent them a house and their two daughters growing up in cowboy culture and being confused as Native Americans (dot Indians versus feather Indians in the play's vernacular).
The main character is the younger daughter who put off her dreams of graduate school at MIT to nurse her mother was dying of cancer. The elder daughter has restarted life in New York City. The father is trying to fit in and accepts the teasing from his boss and others for being different. The mother is hesitant to try to fit in, but certainly does a better job. Finally his boss holds a secret that is revealed by the end of the play.
The story of a petroleum engineer in Wyoming along with the open landscapes is something I could relate to. Of course, I could also relate to growing up Indian in the United States. The play is based on a book and is well written and entertaining. The acting and production was very good as well. My only criticism is that I did not leave feeling entertained. I would recommend the play to most audiences.
I had been toying with the idea ever since the movie "I Love You, Man" came out in 2009 and Paul Rudd's character is a fencer. My daughters were born and I thought about getting them involved. However, 5818 East Colfax was just enough of a hurdle that I never followed through.
From time to time, I would see something about pentathlon or biathlon and be intrigued again. This time the impetus was laser shoot and I wanted to try out some of the equipment. I called over there and Elain Cheris was very friendly, welcoming and encouraged me to drop in during her usual hours of 4-6PM M-F and 10-12 Saturday.
I finally made it over to Cheyenne Fencing Society of Denver on Thursday around 3:45 PM. There is some construction on Colfax so parking was a bit of a bear. As I drove by, Elaine seemed to be wandering around outside and was still doing so when I parked and walked over. As I arrived, she greeted me and suggest we walk over to the juice place to meet the proprietor. After chatting about cold pressed juices, she introduced me as her new fencer. We then went on to do the same thing at the nearby Mexican restaurant and truck topper yards. It was a bit surreal, but shows her ties to the community. She has been in the same spot since 1981.
The facility itself shows its years and looks as much like a second home as it does a business. Her dog was there roaming around, along with several birds (in cages), a large macaw and a ferret. The entry way has a host of plants. The facility itself feels cluttered with scores of water bottles, coffee cups, makeshift desks, loads of training equipment, random conditioning equipment and a chalk board. There are bicycles and a scooter piled along one wall. There are lots of sofas. The upstairs has a number of sofas, pantry, prep kitchen and several pianos. Decoratively it is history come alive with Olympic and World Championship posters, testimonials from athletes including Neil Diamond. She is a big fan of Neil Diamond and he came up several times on the playlist.
There was only one other student. Steven dropped off his five-year-old son Logan. Her son and granddaughter were there for a little bit, but were not training.
Eventually we did start warming up (around 4:15 PM-4:30 PM) with "circuits" which consist of rounds of push-ups, sit-ups, star jumps, burpees, jump rope, power jumps and bounding up the stairs. I did not even get a chance to change into sweatpants and just kind of emptied my pockets and got rolling in jeans.
I did get to work with the EcoAims laser pistols. She gave me some tips about foot position, locking my back, bringing the pistol up quickly and squeezing as I am on target, leaving it on target and then bringing the pistol down smoothly to the table to reset and restart. It could have been the sights or just me, but I had to move up pretty close (2-3 meters) to consistently hit the target. Competition is 10 meters.
Then we picked up swords and started on a trainer where a light comes on and you poke the corresponding box with the aim being quickness. I was averaging around 0.6 seconds with fastest of 0.26 seconds. It resets after 99 hits. Eventually, she started correcting how I hold the sword, my stance, bending my knees, keeping the back straight and poking with my arm rather than reaching in.
Next we did the same thing with golf balls suspended from the railing.
Logan spent most of the time with a tummy ache and was not in the mood to train. Eventually we did run outside. These 40 yard efforts felt silly, but Logan was going full send while I trotted behind him.
Finally we wrapped up with Elaine throwing dive rings which I tried to catch with my sword. I had a success rate of 10-20%.
Around 5:15 PM I was ready to be done and Elaine was good with that. Unfortunately she had misplaced her keys and we spent the next 15 minutes wandering the entire facility until she realized they were in her pocket. I learned how to lock the back door, get the birds water, lock the front door. The music stays on. There are workbenches in the back for assembling equipment and a second office. There is a small half bathroom and laundry machines for jackets.
Finally locking up, she gave me a hug and asked when I would be back. I hedged and said that I would text her and let her know about next week. To get better, I would have to start by practicing at least 3 days per week and focus on fencing. I am not ready to take on a new hobby. Especially one that is 20 minutes from my office and 40 minute from my house. Elaine is certainly a talent and an icon in the sport.
This is youtube video from 4 years ago and the place was certainly cleaned up for the shoot.
The full house in the video may still happen and Elaine did mention that sometimes there are several athletes and sometimes just a few. We never got around to talking price, but she is willing to work around my schedule within reason if I want to learn to fence.
Modern Pentathlon was traditionally fencing, 200m freestyle swimming, riding (show jumping), and a combined laser run (pistol shooting and running). Following the 2024 Olympics, the riding discipline is being replaced by an obstacle course for the future.
https://wolfpackpentathlon.com/costs/
Laser gun set up is $570 for the Ecoaims PP320EXP Laser Pistol and $200 for the LT50EXP Laser Travel Target.
https://www.ecoaims.com/
https://www.atlantalasershot.com/
https://www.coloradofencing.com/about
I called Elaine Cheris and she was very encouraging for me to drop by and try out the laser pistols and go to fencing. Classes are M-F from 4 PM to 6 PM and 10 AM to 12 PM on Saturday. She lives a few blocks away and is happy to let me in. I let her know that I would text, but was planning on dropping in next week.
For fencing, wear sneakers and casual clothes. Think sweat pants and a t-shirt.
I called over to Atlanta Laser Shoot and while the owner is in Patagonia, he informed me that EcoAims is currently not shipping to the United States and laser pistols are very expensive in the absence of new imports.
When available again, I will purchase
LT50EXP Laser Travel Target (218.86 Euros)
P3EXP (527.10 Euros) - OCR/Glock Style
OR
PP320EXP (475.65 Euros) - Pentathlon Style
These are manufactured and sold from Finland. I will likely start with the PP320 and only purchase the P3EXP if I get involved in OCR.
I expected the speculation, but I did not expect the sector specificity particularly land, cotton and railroads. I recall 1987, 2000 and 2008. For some reason, I missed 1992. The broad prosperity after 1937 shows that reasonable regulation works.
I returned to O'Kane Park for Ultimate Frisbee. I arrived a few minutes before 9 AM. The field was set up but, nobody was there. Folks started to trickle in and we were warming up and started playing 5 on 5 around 9:30 AM. Folks continued to arrive as late as 10:15 AM and we eventually had full 7 on 7 with 3-4 subs per team.
It was a chilly 18 deg F and I bundled up with long johns, sweat pants, t-shirt, base layer, sweatshirt, beanie and impact gloves. Everything felt good, except for the gloves. My hands were still cold.
I enjoyed playing, had a knock down, some fair passes, some bad passes (and turnovers). I paced myself much better and once we had suitable subs I was playing a few points and sitting a few points.
I called it a day around 10:40 (it had warmed up to around 20 deg F) and stopped by the nearby Einstein Bagels for a cup of coffee and a bagel. On the way home, I decided to stop by ARC to find a white sweatshirt to use for frisbee. We divide sides into whites and darks. They have pennies for newcomers, but most regulars have their own reversible pennies. I did not find a suitable sweatshirt, but I did come across some football cleats that were in my size and fit great. I decided to go ahead and pick them up for $6.50 (marked $12.99, but 50% off on Saturdays).
"Change the game in a flash with the Alpha Menace 4 Shark. With breathable mesh and synthetic leather harmonizing perfectly with our Nike Fastflex technology, it can help you make a game-saving tackle or hightail it to pay dirt.
Move Fast
Nike Fastflex technology with rubber studs creates flexibility and traction for bursts of speed, quick cuts and sudden stops.
Lasting Support
Synthetic leather is long lasting and supportive while keeping your feet comfortable. Molding over the front makes it tough and durable on the field.
Secure Speed
The fourth iteration adds another layer of containment and support with wings on the sides that integrate with the laces for a secure fit.
Breathable Comfort
Mesh collar and tongue give you comfort and breathability.
Product Details
Shown: White/Metallic Silver
Style: FN0028-101"
Per Google AI "The Nike FN0028-101 is the style code for the Nike Alpha Menace 4 Shark "White/Metallic Silver" football cleat, a versatile, affordable cleat known for good support, traction (Fastflex tech with rubber studs), and a comfortable fit for various positions, featuring breathable mesh and synthetic leather. Released around Spring 2025 with a ~$55 retail price, it offers a balance of performance for quick cuts, speed, and stability, making it popular for general field sports."
I could not argue with the price. However, these are not particularly expensive retail either. They list for $55 and are currently 45% off at Nike for $29.97.
Nike Alpha Menace 4 line up
Shark - $55 ($29.97) - entry level
Varsity - $95 ($57.97) - basic model (high school)
Pro - $125 ($66.97) - a little heavier than the Elite
Strong - $155 - lineman
Elite - $210 ($122.97) - running backs
Do I need multiple pairs of cleats? No. However, I do find myself with baseball cleats, soccer cleats and now football cleats.
I will try to dig up an old basketball jersey or football jersey to use as a reversible jersey.
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