Team

BOLDNESS

February 19, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Lose this day loitering—’twill be the same story
To-morrow–and the next more dilatory;
Then indecision brings its own delays,
And days are lost lamenting o’er lost days.
Are you in earnest? seize this very minute–
What you can do, or dream you can, begin it,
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it,
Only engage, and then the mind grows heated—
Begin it, and the work will be completed!

—– John Anster*

However you go, it’s a wild and dangerous ride through the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River. The first to do it was geologist/explorer, John Wesley Powell, and his team during a three month expedition in 1869. A hundred and fourteen years later, the river had changed because of the river’s damming in 1963, but remained a formidable challenge when three river guides in a small wooden boat rowed the 277 miles from Lee’s Ferry to the Grand Wash Cliffs in 36 hours and 38 minutes. No one much cared about their accomplishment until the story was told by Kevin Fedarko in his book, The Emerald Mile (2013)**, inspiring more paddlers to make an attempt to break the record. The current record (34 hours, 2 minutes) was set in 2016 by Ben Orkin in a sea kayak.

After eight months of preparation and training, the USA Men’s Rafting Team launched an attempt to beat Orkin’s record on January 13, 2017. The Time Travelers short documentary video chronicles the journey with “a dose of inspiration” for all of us.

Not going for speed, but for study — A group of scientists took a 16 day journey down the Colorado River thru the heart of the Grand Canyon to observe and study the river and its environment. It’s a breathtakingly beautiful view, but much has been lost during the 50+ years since the completion of Glen Canyon Dam. So, the goal is to find a way to restore and maintain a ‘naturalized’ ecosystem that’s currently in peril.

Information/Resources:
Grand Canyon Private River Trip Planning and River Trips and Permits, US National Park Service
10 Peaceful Places To Paddle by By Bill O’Brian, US Fish and Wildlife Service (for paddlers looking for an easy, scenic ride in a canoe, a kayak, a rowboat, or on a paddleboard through natural beauty of America’s wildlife refuges)
Colorado River: Grand Canyon Rafting Trip Reveals River in Peril by Brandon Loomis, Arizona Republic (October 22, 2018)

*Boldness has genius quote is taken from 1835 publication by Irish poet, John Anster, whose words were inspired by translation of “Faust”, Part One, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Feature photo is a screen shot taken from video, “The Time Travelers”, Gnarly Bay Productions, Inc.

**Editor’s Note: Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for a book purchase you make via the Amazon link within this page. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.

More stories of great adventure are available on-demand at Watch: Tours de Force, an On2In2™ collection of favorite videos

We’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to comment on this article, join the conversation, or share your inspiration, and you have not yet registered as an On2In2™ playmaker, please sign up via the ‘Engage page’. Don’t worry, it’s pretty quick and easy (unless you’re a robot).

Rowing Regatta LIVE

August 16, 2019 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

The competitive sport of rowing (‘crew’ in the US) is one of the oldest Olympic sports, and has a history dating back to early 10th century when races were held between professional watermen on the River Thames in London. At the end of the 18th century, amateur competition began with the organization of “boat clubs” at British public schools and universities. Inter-colonial racing began in Australia in 1833 when a Sydney crew raced against a Hobart crew in whalers. The first rowing club in the US was the Detroit Boat Club, founded in 1839, and the first American college rowing club was formed in 1843 at Yale University. Rowing in New Zealand has been a competitive sport since the 1850’s.

Competitive rowing events are divided into two disciplines: sweep rowing and sculling.

Rowers with two oars, one in each hand, are called ‘scullers’. There are three sculling events: the single – 1x (one person), the double – 2x (two), and the quad – 4x (four).

Rowers with just one oar are ‘sweep rowers’. Sweep boats sometimes include a ‘coxswain’ to steer the boat, and those without, are steered by one of the rowers moving the rudder with a foot. Sweep rowers come in pairs with a coxswain (2+) and without (2-), fours with a coxswain (4+) and without (4-), and the eight (8+) always have a coxswain. The eight is the fastest boat on the water, capable of moving almost 14 miles per hour.

When watching a race and the graceful rowing of the competitors, many of us don’t see the physical and mental demands of the sport. A 2,000-meter (approx 1.25 miles) rowing race, demands extraordinary athletic capabilities: “aerobic ability, technical talent, exceptional mental discipline, ability to utilize oxygen efficiently and in huge amounts, balance, pain tolerance, and the ability to continue to work when the body is demanding that you stop.” (US Rowing) Just try it sometime, and you’ll understand soon enough what it takes.

RACE WATCHING – What To Look For

While you’re watching, look for a continuous, fluid motion of the rowers, with no discernible end or beginning. The crew making it look easy will likely be the winner of the race.
Synchronization. Rowers strive for perfect synchronization in the boat.
Clean catches of the oarblade. If you see a lot of splash, the oarblades aren’t entering the water correctly. The ‘catch’ (oarblade is placed in water) should happen at the end of the recovery, when the hands are as far ahead of the rower as possible. Rowers who uncoil before they drop the oarblades do not get a complete drive, and that sacrifices speed.
Even oarblade feathering. When the blades are brought out of the water, they should all move horizontally close to the water and at the same height. It’s not easy, especially if the water is rough.
The most consistent speed. Shells are slowest at the catch (when oarblade is placed in the water) , quickest at the release (when oarblade is removed from water). Good crews time the catch at exactly the right moment to maintain speed.

RACE WATCHING TIPS

Race times vary depending upon the course and weather conditions. Tailwinds will improve times, while headwinds and crosswinds will slow down a boat.
If a crew “catches a crab,” it means the oarblade has entered the water at an angle instead of perpendicularly. The oarblade gets caught under the surface and will slow or even stop a shell.
A “Power 10” is a call by the coxswain for 10 of the crew’s best, most powerful strokes. Good coxswains read the course to know how many strokes remain for their crew to count down to the finish.
Crews are identified by their oarblade design. The USA blades are red on top and blue on the bottom, with a white triangle at the tip. List of national team oars
It doesn’t matter whether you’ve won an Olympic medal or don’t make the finals, each and every crew carries the boat back to the rack.
A worldwide tradition – coxswains from first-place boats are thrown into the water by their crews.
Coxswains don’t yell out “stroke! stroke!”, and probably never did. Their job is to steer the boat, implement the coach’s strategy during the race, and keep rowers aware of where they stand in the race and what they need to do to win.

Information/Resources:
Viewers Guide, US Rowing
Rowing 101, US Rowing (quick facts, glossary of terms, fundamentals, and equipment)
International Rowing Rule Book, World Rowing Federation (‘FISA’ from the French, Fédération Internationale des Sociétés d’Aviron), governing body of the international sport of rowing
Rowing development projects and Training Camps, FISA website
Find a rowing club in US, (search tool and club information)
Rowing New Zealand, The New Zealand Rowing Association
Rowing Ireland (formerly Irish Amateur Rowing Union) is the governing body of rowing in Ireland. There are more than 100 affiliated clubs.

⇒ ⇒ Recommended Reading: The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown – It’s the poignant story of personal and physical struggles faced by a University of Washington eight-oared crew during the Depression, and triumph as the team made it to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Regardless of your experience or interest in rowing, it’s a compelling read and Zola favorite. Sure to inspire as well as give you some history and understanding of the commitment required in the sport of competitive rowing. [Editor’s Note: Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for the purchase of a book made via the Amazon link within this page. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.]

WATCH LIVE & FREE On2In2™

Coastal rowing in Ireland is something you’ll see along coastlines as well as on some lakes. Equipment varies from area to area, from traditional boats which have been used for centuries to specifically designed racing boats. Crews race over different distances depending on the event. The Irish Coastal Rowing Federation Ltd. is the governing body of coastal rowing in Ireland, and there are seven affiliated associations.

If you missed the 2019 All-Ireland Coastal Rowing Championships, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the racing competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button located on the media player below.

Southern California teams competed in the beautiful Newport Harbour at the 54th Annual Newport Regatta on Sunday, March 24, 2019. If you missed the live stream broadcast of the event, there’s still time to watch a video recording. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button located on the media player below ↓

If you missed the big season opener on March 2 as teams from UC Irvine, Berkeley, Davis, UCLA, San Diego and Santa Barbara competed at the 2019 UC Challenge Cup, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the races. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button located on the media player below ↓

First organized in 1965, the Head Of The Charles Regatta, also known as HOCR, is a rowing head race* held each October on the Charles River, separating Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, and it’s the largest 2-day regatta in the world, with 11,000 athletes rowing in over 1,900 boats in 61 events.

A *head race is a time-trial competition in the sport of rowing. Rowers race against the clock where the crew or rower completing the course in the shortest time in their age, ability and boat-class category is deemed the winner.

The challenging 3-mile course (4,800 meters) of the HOCR starts at Boston University’s DeWolfe Boathouse near the Charles River Basin and finishes just after the Eliot Bridge and before Northeastern University’s Henderson Boathouse.

If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2018 HOCR, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the races. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or select from the video posts on the media player below ↓

Watch as 8 paddlers set out to break the rafting speed record through the Grand Canyon on the wild and dangerous Colorado River in The Time Travelers video

Feature sculling race photo, by Flickr user, Annie C, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Canoe Team Racing

February 25, 2019 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

WATCH LIVE & FREE On2In2™

The Sydney Harbour Challenge is Australia’s biggest international, competitive 6-man outrigger canoe race – mixed crews, women and men. If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2019 Sydney Harbour Challenge (February 22-23), there’s still time to watch all the racing. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button located on the media player below ↓

Every year over a thousand paddlers in teams of six from around the world test the limits of their strength and endurance against extreme elements over the 41 miles of the Kaiwi Channel between the islands of Molokai and Oahu at the Moloka‘i Hoe, men’s World Championships of Outrigger Canoe.

If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2018 Hawaiian Airlines Moloka‘i Hoe , there’s still time to watch a video recording of this historic race. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button on the media player below ↓

Red Bull Wa’a, a crew of paddlers from Hawaii and Tahiti, won the 2017 Hawaiian Airlines Molokai Hoe with a finishing time of 4:50:02. It was the first win at Moloka’I Hoe by a home based crew since 2005. If you missed the live broadcast of this prestigious competition, there’s still time to watch a video recording. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or the post on the video player below ↓

Weather created some challenges, but the race was on and ultra-competitive. If you missed the live broadcast of the 2017 Sydney Harbour Challenge, there’s still time to watch a video recording of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button on the video player below ↓

A team of paddlers set out to break the rafting speed record through the Grand Canyon on the wild and dangerous Colorado River in The Time Travelers video

Watch the 2017 Western Intercollegiate Rowing Championships

Feature photo is courtesy of Nelson Pigossi Jr/Unsplash CC0

Beach Volleyball

July 11, 2018 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Beach Volleyball started on the beaches of Hawaii and California about the same time as modern surfing began to emerge in the early years of the 20th century, and has developed into an international team sport (as well as official Olympic sport since 1996) played by two teams of two players on a sand court divided by a net, although recreational games are often played by more players as they were in the early formative days of the sport. A game of beach volleyball is still a lot like indoor volleyball as the primary objective of both is to send the ball over the net and ground it on the opponent’s side of the court while preventing the same effort by opponents. However, differences between the two volleyball sports (e.g., 2 player teams, no substitutions, and no coaching in beach volleyball) affect game tactics, player technique, culture and style.

The ball is put in play with a ‘serve’ hit over the net to the receiving team by a player from behind the court back line. Each team is allowed up to three touches on the ball to return it back over the net to the opponents. The ‘rally’ continues until the ball is grounded on the playing court, goes outside the court boundary lines, or is not returned correctly over the net. The team winning a rally scores a point and serves to start the next rally. The four players serve in the same sequence throughout a match, changing the server each time a rally is won by the receiving team. See Official International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Beach Volleyball Rules (2017-20) → here

WATCH On2In2™

If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2018 FISU World University Beach Volleyball Championship finals on Friday, July 13, there’s still time to watch a video recording of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button on the media player below ↓

Feature photo of AVP 2017 beach volleyball event is courtesy of Flickr user, Ralph Arvesen, CC BY-NC 2.0

Water Polo

March 16, 2018 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Water polo is a contact sport played in water between two teams, each made up of six field players and one goalkeeper. Teams attempt to score by throwing a ball into the opponent’s goal, and the team with the most goals at the end of the game wins. Except for the goalkeeper, players participate in both offensive and defensive roles. The rules of water polo cover the play, procedure, equipment and officiating and are similar throughout the world, but rule variations do occur regionally, and depending on the event and governing body. See international rules → here

WATCH On2In2™

Both men’s and women’s tournaments of the FINA Water Polo League – 2018 Inter-Continental Cup (April 2 – 7) were hosted by New Zealand Water Polo at the Sir Owen G. Glenn National Aquatic Centre on Auckland’s North Shore. The competition was action-packed, and gave us a chance to see the Olympic champion US women’s team.

Participating countries included:
Women: Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Kazakhstan, USA and New Zealand
Men: Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, USA and New Zealand

If you missed the live broadcast of the 2018 Inter-Continental World Cup or just want to see it all again, there’s still time to watch video recordings and highlights of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or select from the video posts located on the media player below ↓

2017 Summer Univeriade Water Polo

If you missed the live broadcast of the 2017 Summer Univeriade Water Polo finals, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or the posts on the media players below ↓

[su_dropcap]I[/su_dropcap]n the late 19th century, water polo began as a demonstration of strength and swimming skills at county fairs and festivals in England and Scotland. In 1900, men’s water polo was introduced at the Olympic games, and it’s become so popular over the years that variations of the sport have developed.

Inner tube water polo is a style of water polo that requires players, excluding the goalkeepers, to float in inner tubes. Floating on inner tubes allows recreational players to enjoy the sport without intense physical conditioning required for traditional water polo, but it’s still a good wet & wild workout for players. There are no standard rules governing inner tube water polo; therefore, organizers can create a set of rules that best fit specific competition requirements and individual needs. Other variations of water polo include surf polo, first played with surf boards on the beaches of Waikiki, Hawaii in the 1930s and 1940s, and canoe polo or kayak polo, one of the eight disciplines of UK canoeing.

2017 Beach Water Polo Cup

The Beach Water Polo Cup was originally a small challenge event founded by Robert Lynn in 2007, and traditionally held each August, just before schools begin Fall semester. Now in its 10th year, it has grown to be one of the largest and most fun beach water polo events in the world with four courses in Alamitos Bay, Long Beach, California. Event game/match scoring:

First team to score 5 goals wins game; first team to win 3 games wins the match.

Matches are 30 minutes of straight play with 5 minutes between. If 30 minutes expires before match has ended, the team ahead wins the current game. If the current game is tied, a penalty shootout of 3 shots per team will decide that game. If the match is tied, a final penalty shootout of 3 shots per team will decide the match.

If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2017 Beach Water Polo Cup, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the event. Click/Tap the “Watch Again” button or the post on the video player below ↓

Watch world-class athletes compete in synchronized swimming events

Feature photo is courtesy of Flickr user, Steve Allen, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Beach Soccer

November 2, 2017 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

WATCH On2In2™

The best beach soccer teams battled it out at the 2017 Intercontinental Cup (October 31 – November 4). If you missed the live broadcast of the competition, you still have time to watch a video recording. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or any of the posts located on the video player below ↓

It’s sun, sand and hot competition at the 2017 Euro Beach Soccer League Superfinal & Promotion Final. If you missed the live broadcast, there’s still time to watch video recordings of competition matches. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or on the posts located on the video player below ↓

⇒ There’s more to see & do On2In2™

Take a look at the Live Stream Program Guide

Search the MEDIA MIX category and PLAYLISTS in the main menu for live streaming, videos and music (all free to enjoy), and sign up for the On2In2™ newsletter to get a heads-up on future live streaming events and all other goings on.

[su_note note_color=”#fffcdd” text_color=”#34495e” radius=”7″]We’re the social type as well as lovers of sport. Please register via the ENGAGE page to join the conversation, share your inspiration, ideas and creation, and network with On2In2™ playmakers. [/su_note]

Feature photo is courtesy of Flickr user, Gerard Reyes, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Yacht Racing LIVE

September 25, 2017 By Zola Zeester 1 Comment

Yacht racing is a sport involving recreational sailing boats known as “yachts” (a term derived from the Dutch word jacht (a hunt, chase) that described light, fast sailing navy vessels used to pursue pirates, also jagt (Norwegian), jaght (Middle Low German)), that race around either a simple course of only a few miles marked by buoys and other fixed navigational devices or over long distances across open water from point-to-point.

It’s believed formal racing of sailing boats started in the Netherlands in the 17th century, and the love of sailing close to the wind with speed and efficiency in competition developed over the centuries into an organized, passionate world-wide racing community. Today, the sport of yacht racing is conducted according to the Racing Rules of Sailing established by the World Sailing governing body.

WATCH On2In2™

Eighteen teams from around the world competed in the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) Chicago Match Cup 2017 (September 27 – October 1) on the same race course used for the 2016 Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series-Chicago just off the end of Navy Pier, Lake Michigan. A match race consists of two identical boats racing against each other in a one-on-one duel of strategy and tactics with an objective to be first across the finish line. It’s fun & fast as boats used in match races are high perfomance multihulls with top speeds of over 30 knots.

If you missed the Chicago Match Cup 2017 live broadcast, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the event. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or the posts on the video players below. Find more information about match racing → Here, and Chicago Match Cup 2017 race results → Here

WATCH historic, majestic beauties take sail at
Nova Scotia – Annapolis Royal Sail Past
→ TALL SHIPS

WATCH a rafting team set out to break the speed record
through the Grand Canyon on the dangerous
Colorado River → BOLDNESS

⇒ There’s more to see & do On2In2™

Check out the Live Stream Program Guide

Search the MEDIA MIX category and PLAYLISTS in the main menu for live streaming, videos and music (all free to enjoy), and sign up for the On2In2™ newsletter to get a heads-up on future live streaming events and all other goings on.

Feature photo courtesy of Unsplash CC0

Lacrosse Championships

May 4, 2017 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Sometimes referred to as the “fastest sport on two feet”, field lacrosse is a full contact, outdoor men’s sport with roots in the cultural tradition of Native American people. This early form of the game was significant in the spiritual life of the tribal community, and played by warriors for glory and honor to the tribe and themselves. Jesuit missionaries were the first Europeans to observe the game in the 1630’s, and the name ‘lacrosse’ comes from their description of the players’ sticks as looking like a bishop’s crosier, ‘la crosse’ in French.

Modern rules of field lacrosse were first codified in 1867 by Canadian William George Beers as rules had previously been decided prior to the start of each game. Women’s lacrosse was established in the 1890’s and ‘box lacrosse’ (indoor version) originated in the 1930’s. All are played under different rules.

The game of field lacrosse is played by two opposing teams, each comprised of 10 players who use a long handled racket (the ‘lacrosse stick’ or ‘crosse’) to catch, carry and pass a sold rubber ball. The objective of the game is to score by shooting the ball into an opponent’s goal while the opposing team attempts to stop scoring and gain possession of the ball through the use of stick checking, body contact and positioning. The rules limit the number of players in each part of the field and require the ball to be moved continuously toward the opposing goal. Read more about the rules and regulations here→ Simplified Men’s Lacrosse Rules

The Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) is a confederacy of 10 non-varsity college lacrosse conferences featuring over 200 teams in two divisions across 43 US states and two countries.
Division I and II finals of 2017 MCLA National Championships were held on Saturday, May 13, at Chapman University Stadium in Orange, California. Concordia-Irvine v St Thomas (Division II) and Chapman v Grand Canyon (Div I) If you missed the live broadcast, there’s still time to watch recorded video of both championship games. Just click/tap on the “Watch Again” button on the video player below ↓

⇒ There’s more to see & do On2In2™

Take a look at the Live Stream Program Guide

Information/Resources: Wikipedia: Lacrosse, Field Lacrosse

Feature photo is courtesy of Pixabay/Pexels CC0

Team

BOLDNESS

Rowing Regatta LIVE

Canoe Team Racing

Beach Volleyball

Water Polo

Beach Soccer

Yacht Racing LIVE

Lacrosse Championships

MUCH 2 SEE

THINGS 2 DO

PLACES 2 GO

PEOPLE 2 MEET

FOOD & DRINKS

JUST LAUGHS

Team

Footer

MUCH 2 SEE

THINGS 2 DO

PLACES 2 GO

PEOPLE 2 MEET

FOOD & DRINKS

JUST LAUGHS