A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

opinion

Golf has ups and downs like other recreational activities

Recently, a local newspaper noted a low turnout in two county golf tournaments – the women, and the junior.

The women’s tournament only featured 32 players and the junior tournament only features six. The women’s tournament is by flights, so it’s not as though all golfers competed in the highest group.

Conversely, the men’s county tournament, which was held a few weeks ago has a strong turnout as normal, drawing about 125 people. Still, that number even seems down from the past. I remember when I used to play golf and played in that tournament, there was a larger turnout and often a sellout (which I believe was about 156 or so).

The big number, to me, when it came to the men was the numbers in the two lowest – the D and E – flights, which had a combined 55 players. That means nearly 50 percent of the field were in the two lowest groups.

Like other sports, golf's participation can sometimes go up and down.

Like other sports, golf’s participation can sometimes go up and down.

So what’s happening? Why are numbers down all around?

Probably price and time.

When I switched to playing disc golf a few years ago, my two biggest reasons were because of the time aspect (I can play 18 holes of disc golf in about an hour and a half; 18 holes of ball golf, even with a cart, is 3.5 to 4 hours minimum), as well as the price point. In disc golf, the majority of courses don’t cost anything to play. Your biggest cost is the discs. And, if you aren’t competitive, a mid-range disc and a putter (so, about $20-$25 total) will be just fine for you.

Anybody price out decent clubs recently?

It’s also not cheap to play golf. If you want a cart, which I think the majority of golfers choose, it ups the price even more. Heck, there are some courses out there that require you use a cart!

Greens fees aren’t cheap.

Balls aren’t cheap.

You get the picture.

Our economy, while showing some signs of getting better, isn’t what it once was. That cuts into people’s “recreation” budget. More people are finding cheaper alternatives for their recreation, which is understandable.

I stopped playing because it got too expensive and I just didn’t want to sit out and play a round for four-plus hours. I’ve thought about getting back into it. I liked playing (at times). I liked it more when I walked the course and played, especially if I was by myself or just one other person. I got exercise and it was enjoyable for that long amount of time because I could kind of be in my own thoughts. My golf bag is one of those backpack-style ones and I tried not to pack it so much, making it decently comfortable.

But, like many people, I got frustrated. I wanted to do better. I hated shanking a ball or duffing a shot. I wanted to be some top-level player, even though I didn’t have the time, patience or money to put into being that strong. Let’s face reality – if you are going to play at a very high level, you need to put the time into it. I didn’t do that enough.

The same can be said for disc golf. To be good, you need to put the time in. I don’t have any decent courses too close to me, so getting better was tough. I didn’t play enough. And, honestly, one can only throw discs in a field or put on a portable basket so often before it gets amazingly boring.

The reality is times are changing. People are more in tune to expenses and what they do for recreation. This is all way too understandable, that’s for sure.

People still play golf, that’s for sure. Tournaments cost money, though. Sometimes people just don’t want to pay to play in the tournaments anymore.

Maybe it’s becoming more recreational and not so competitive. Maybe some people just want weekends for other things, leaving golf for a few rounds after work during the weeks. Like other things, though, it’s likely cyclical. I’m sure it will go up again at some point.

Hopefully, the reason isn’t just economical, rather family or friends or something along those lines. Diversity in what people do is an important aspect in life, and it’s always good to broaden horizons and see what else is out there.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Society needs to take a deep breath, and fix itself

Allow me to start by saying I’m not a parent.

So, I don’t know exactly what goes through one’s mind when dealing with something like this. But what I am writing about today is just downright ridiculous.

Look, I’m in favor of a government organization that watches over children — to a point. It’s needed because there are some families who fully and utterly neglect kids. However, “protecting children” has gone from being smart to being downright ridiculous. Since when is a kid walking a few blocks neglect?

It seems Child Protective Services can do pretty much anything they want. And if somebody wants to be a jerk, they can call the cops or CPS, say they think a child is being abused, neglected or whatever and things can hit the fan quite quickly.

What I’ve read about a situation in Ohio is downright ridiculous.

It seems a 6-year-old wanted a little independence. So her parents allowed her to walk a few blocks to the post office. Seems harmless, right? When I was 6, I’m pretty sure I was able to roam freely, to a point. Could I run anywhere? No. Did my parents or brothers know where I was? Absolutely. Could I go a couple of blocks to another kid’s house? Sure.

See, it’s lessons like this that allow a kid to grow.

I do realize that the threat of something happening is greater than it used to be. Well, at least reported on. Things happened back when, too. But with media, social things and everything else, it’s reported way more. When I was younger, a convicted child rapist and murderer was sent to my town by the department of probation. He didn’t have the chance to do anything because people knew who he was and he spent most of his time shuttered up in the basement of a local church. He was run out of town a bit later. During that time, our town was quieter, that’s for sure. But when it ended, kids started to be seen again.

In this day and age, we also have lists you can see to know where these creeps are. Well, at least the ones convicted. Depending on the town or area or whatever, though, I would hope parents have a good grip of where their kids will be going.

So back to the current situation.

Would I let my kid walk 3-4 city blocks in New York to go play in Central Park? Probably not. But in a small town where most people know who you are and such? I’d feel a lot better.

The realization is this — kids have to grow, explore and learn. It’s part of life.

Anyway, it turns out this poor child has been taken into custody more than once because she was walking alone. According to the parent who wrote into the Free Range Kids website, the girl knows her address, phone number and all vital things. She does small errands within a few blocks (store, post office etc.) and she’s been detained or stopped by “concerned citizens.”

Am I missing something? Is there a law that says a 6-year-old child can’t walk somewhere? Especially in an area where she is known?

I can’t rehash everything here. I’d encourage you to read the whole story/timeline on Free Range Kids.

I dug around and somebody in the comments noted their situation, which had been previously reported on Free Range Kids. The “charges” are just as silly, but the one that caught my eye — she was a bad parent because she let her kids (aged 8 and 10) walk together to a bus stop 300 feet away.

Seriously.

That’s not even the FULL LENGTH of a football field!

A 10-year-old kid can’t walk with an 8-year-old sibling to a bus stop 300 feet away without setting off a red flag?

We have issues in this country. Our politicians spend more money on so many frivolous things that it makes people’s heads spin. These same people get paid oodles of money to do what? We have these organizations that flex their muscles like they own the world. It’s time to back off. While these may be isolated incidents, they happen. And they shouldn’t. Not once. Let kids grow. A parent needs to be able to do what they need to do to raise their kids.

I once said I’d love to live forever. But I have to admit, with the way society is going, I don’t know if I want to see what it’s like in 75 or 80 years. It’s going to be downright ridiculous.

The biggest thing? People need to get their noses out of other people’s business. If you see something truly bad (such as a parent beating a kid or something crazy), it’s one thing. But a kid walking to the store or the post office in a quiet area where people are bound to know one another?

It’s called growing up.

I have no issues with parents who want to make sure their kids are supervised on these trips. And I have no issues with parents who trust their kids or surroundings enough to let them walk freely, as long as they know where they are going. It should be up to the parent. Respect the parent to know and believe what is best for their kid.

Reality is this — who are CPS to tell somebody what’s best for somebody else’s kids? They aren’t. Back off.

I roamed with my friends as kids all the time. We explored the woods. Played in creeks. Played sports and rode our bikes. In the winter, we went sledding at the local college. We did some crazy things and parents weren’t always around. We were allowed to scrape our knees, get dirty and whatever else. Our parents trusted we knew right from wrong, wouldn’t talk to the wrong people and would run, yell and scream if anything was to happen to us or if we got into a sticky situation.

We’re all fine.

Kids need a chance to grow and learn just as much as anybody else. It’s up to the parent to decide the criteria for that, not the cops, CPS or any other government agency.

Period.

Fundraiser: I am, again, trying to raise money for the Relay For Life. If you donate to me — a minimum of $5– you will be entered to win a super-sweet quilted lap quilt or pillow. Click here for all the information!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

The Baseball Hall needs to shake up its election process

Preserving History, Honoring Excellence, Connecting Generations.

That’s the motto of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. The Hall is a not-for-profit entity that is independent of Major League Baseball.

Well, so it goes.

For many years, I covered the Hall of Fame. I know many of the employees and the countless hours they put into everything that makes the Hall one of the most wonderful places in the world, especially if you are a fan of baseball history.

As a paying member of the Hall, I get free entry all year, so I can come and go as I please. It’s nice to go escape and look at the history of the game. I spend hours there, even when I plan on just checking a few things out. I’ve also spent time in the research library, looking up players for the HooHaa 9.

One thing with the Hall, though, is it seemingly has no say in who is enshrined there.

Though the Hall decides the veteran committees, the main election is done by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. On Wednesday, those writers decided nobody would be elected to the Hall this year.

I could spout number after number about the players I think should be elected. Or about how certain players were dominant for a generation. But let’s call it as it is — the steroid era is what did this election in.

What I have issue with is the fact that voters seem to treat the Hall like it’s the Hall of Perfection. It’s not. There are a lot of scumbags in the Hall. There are a lot of people with low moral character. And I guarantee there are cheaters in the Hall.

The ball Barry Bonds hit to become the all-time home run king is showcased in the Hall of Fame, though if the writers will likely continue to make sure he’ll never be enshrined.

Again, the ones who decide who goes into the Hall are writers. That’s needs to be changed. I don’t think players should be in total control. I’m all for writers having a say, but the process needs to be changed.

Let’s do a history lesson. In 1994, baseball went into a labor war, which ended up canceling the World Series. In the meantime, it was the beginning of the end for the Montreal Expos, who arguably had the best team in baseball that season.

Once it returned the next season, baseball slowly worked back into the hearts of people. But what really did it? The Mark McGwire vs. Sammy Sosa home run race in 1998.

Remember “Chicks dig the long ball?”

Steroids were rampant in the game that time. I find it hard to believe people didn’t know about it. But nobody cared. Money was flowing. The game was back and people were slamming home runs, which the crowds loves.

Then it all started to fold.

Steroids became the worst thing. Reports came out. People admitted guilt. Moral objections flew all over the place. Then came the “cleaning” of the game.

I’m all for cleaning up the game. I don’t like performance-enhancing drugs. I’m not a supporter of drug use. I want to see the game pure, just like anybody else. That being said, it was an era of the game, so people like Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds should be in the Hall.

It’s part of baseball history.

This game has gone through time. It hasn’t always been great. There’s been racism, drug use, cheating and anything else you can come up with. Ask some of those old timers about greenies. How about the amount of players who did — and still do — cheat on their wives? There’s been many other illegal drug uses. Talk about morality.

There might already be someone in the Hall who used steroids. I have no clue who, but Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins confirmed there has been “talk” among some Hall of Famers that there’s suspicion of one person as being a user.

Everyone in the steroid era is under suspicion though, and apparently that’s enough to keep people out.

Jeff Bagwell is close, but not in. Mike Piazza was fully looked over this year. Craig Biggio — and his 3,000 hits — were left out this year. Though some people might question Bagwell and Piazza, they haven’t truly been connected to any steroids scandal.

Heck, people like Clemens and Bonds never failed a drug test. Though there’s not likely many people on this planet that don’t suspect steroid use for the two, the facts are the facts — no drug tests have been failed.

My favorite is the first-ballot setup, where it’s some special honor to be in right away. That’s silly, too. You’re a Hall of Famer or you’re not — it’s as simple as that. In the 15 years it took for Jim Rice to get into the Hall, his statistics never changed. Never. He didn’t get any more homers or hits.

This is the power trip for the writers.

Let’s remember, too, that I spent much of my career as a sports writer. I covered the Hall. Though the minor leagues, I covered pro baseball.

But I never understood why covering baseball meant somebody should be able to decide who is in or out of the Hall of Fame.

I still can’t figure out why Jack Morris isn’t in the Hall. Or why Dale Murphy didn’t get more of a look. Heck, Fred McGriff, who I don’t ever think I heard in the steroid discussion, hit 493 home runs and garnered a whopping 20.7 percent of the vote this year.

Now, to be fair, I’m not against players of this era having it being noted on their plaque. But it would have to be everybody. As far as I’m concerned, everybody is possibly guilty.

For heaven’s sake, Andy Pettitte admitted using PEDs at one point during his career.

It’s time for a change to the system. The Hall needs to stick to its mantra and start preserving history. Players like “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and Pete Rose should be in the Hall. Should it be noted on their plaque what happened? Absolutely. But they are Hall of Famers.

So are Clemens and Bonds. And others who are in the steroid era. Eventually Alex Rodriguez, who has admitted use, will be up for election. I don’t like A-Rod and his moral character goes beyond steroids. But is he a Hall of Famer? Yes.

Unfortunately, things aren’t going to change. The Hall won’t sever ties or start a war like this to take control of it. You risk a lot by doing that, without a doubt. And I understand their spot. Still, something should be done. Because to let a bunch of writers who are preaching morality decide who is in or isn’t in the Hall is not working anymore, plain and simple.

I don’t mind a morality clause for gaining induction, but it needs to consider many things. This is a full era of the game we are talking about. Players are going to go into the Hall who may have used but never been suspected.

Plus, it would appear that the writers are also punishing those who aren’t directly connected to the steroid scandal, anyway. Otherwise Morris and Lee Smith would already be in. And players like Curt Schilling would have been much closer this year, if not in.

But hey, you have to protect that first-ballot status.

I still love the Hall of Fame. I love the history. I love the game. And I realize steroids are an extremely important part to the history — now and in the future. You can’t tell the story of baseball without them.

Leaving these players out might make some living Hall of Famers happy and allow the voting contingent to feel like they are doing the right thing, but in the end, they are trying to ignore history.

It’s time for the Hall to step in and start work on a new way so it can be honestly looked at in more than just a morality clause.

Until then, this will continue for at least the next 15 years, if not longer.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Good riddance: Geocaching challenges finally sent packing

Finally.

Groundspeak, the owners of geocaching.com, have finally come to some sort of senses and gotten rid of Challenges, a feature they launched last year. Though nobody ever came out and said this (that I saw), it was undoubtedly a way to try and appease the mass of people who have been clamoring for the return of virtual geocaches.

I gave this concept thumbs down last year when it was created. I never saw enough improvements to change that opinion. Apparently Groundspeak’s opinion of the Challenges wasn’t great either.

See ya, Challenges! Don’t let the door hit ya on the way out!

Everything seemed so rushed. There were countless numbers of flaws with what they launched and it was way too easy to get around the system and users could score more “finds” by doing all the work from their computer. I saw several challenges where people from around the world found an image needed and posted it, despite the reality that they didn’t actually complete the challenge.

And, “owner’s” hands were tied.

See, with geocaches, an owner owns the geocache. That means if you armchair a find, I can delete it. With challenges, you didn’t have that option. In fact, once you created it, it was done. You couldn’t do anything from that point forward. You didn’t even get notifications that somebody completed the challenge you created!

No editing.

No deleting.

No verifying.

Nothing.

What’s the point then?

The idea of geocaching is to get out and find something. It’s a way to get outside and see something. Not just sit on the computer and search for images so you can “claim” a find.

Heck, after initially having them “count” toward your finds for geocaches, Groundspeak at least was smart enough to switch that up.

This is what Groundspeak had to say in a post to its forums Tuesday afternoon:

In our effort to inspire outdoor play through Geocaching, we are often faced with decisions about what to focus on next, and what to focus on less. It is through these decisions that we explore opportunities to grow the global game of geocaching.

Occasionally, during this process, we are faced with the reality that certain ideas don’t catch on as we had hoped. In these situations we owe it to ourselves and to you to make tough decisions about the future of every project and the resources to be applied to each. Sometimes, as a result, cool features must become casualties.

In this spirit, we have decided to retire Geocaching Challenges.

This means that, effective today, we have disabled the ability to create new Challenges. We have also removed the Challenges application from all mobile application stores. In approximately 7 days, we will be removing all traces of the Challenges functionality and related content from Geocaching.com.

On an office wall here at HQ is a sign that reads, “Let’s make better mistakes tomorrow.” By accepting that we will sometimes get it wrong, we can allow ourselves to learn from and imagine new opportunities in the world of Geocaching. Our hope is we can take the lessons from Challenges and create better tools to guide you on your next adventure.

Kudos to Groundspeak for realizing that this was a failed idea.

Geocaching had grown to an amazing size and with Groundspeak being the main players in this game, the company needs to try different things. I don’t blame them for attempting this.

And I personally hope Groundspeak doesn’t decide to bring virtuals back. The ones that are out there now are just fine. They are able to be done and that’s great. But as this game continues to grow, if there’s not a serious set of rules with virtuals, they’ll be overused and become a bunch of trash. I don’t want a virtual cache to take me to a parking lot, which you know would happen.

If Groundspeak wanted to work with some National Parks or something and unveil some virtuals in conjunction with places like that, I’d be all for it. But not for opening them back up to anyone. It would get out of hand.

For today, Challenges are on the way out and I applaud Groundspeak for making this decision. It makes the game better by not having Challenges and it, hopefully, will help the game swing back to what it was originally intended to do — get outside and find something.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Will sports ever be clean?

Thursday really was a sad day for sports.

If performance-enhancing drugs weren’t all over as it was, Thursday’s news made it much worse.

For several years of my last newspaper stop, I worked with a gal who was a major cycling fan. When I say major, I mean take my obsession of baseball, multiply it by 15 and you might be close.

She knew everything there was to know about the sport.

The riders. Their teams. Who they ride with. Strategy. Seriously, she knew it all. Her and her sister would argue about the race as it went on.

She used words like “domestiques” and “peleton” like they were everyday words.

Being her desk was in front of mine, I often gave her a bunch of crap. Those of us in the sports department would really goad her. I often referred to the race as the “Tour de Bore.”

Deep down, I realized what these athletes went through to compete and win something like the Tour de France, or any cycling race for that matter. It’s not easy. And it seemed every year that some big name would get whacked with a drug charge.

So, of course, we’d note that when goading our co-worker. In reality, it always bothered me when these riders would be busted. I say that about any athlete in sports because it’s never a good thing. Ever.

Thursday, seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong said he wasn’t going to battle charges being brought against him by the US Anti-Doping Agency. That is leading to a lifetime ban and being stripped of his seven Tour titles. He noted in a story run by USA Today that he’d fight sanctions, however. Armstrong is saying the USADA doesn’t have the power to sanction him the way it is doing.

It doesn’t matter how this ends, it’s still a sad day.

No matter what you thought or think about Lance Armstrong, one thing he’s always stood by is that there’s been no tests that show he was doped up during the races. So if he did dope up, apparently it got covered well. But, he always had the suspicion.

He’s been battling these charges and accusations for a long time. And, well, I guess I could understand getting to a point where enough is enough. But I think I’d brawl until I was in the grave. After all, he’s only 40.

His story was amazing. He overcame cancer to — again — win the most grueling cycling race in the world. And for a generation, he actually made people care about that race. I’d be willing to bet that cycling — at least in the States — never was or has been as popular as when Armstrong raced.

Alas, if this means Armstrong doped, many won’t be shocked.

This generation of athletes — from the early 90s (and likely before) to now — has been under this cloud for a while. From baseball, football and Olympic sports to cycling and whatever else.

Even now, with extended testing, people still get caught. See Melky Cabrera and Bartolo Colon in baseball this year.

But every time I see it, I can only remember when Alex Rodriguez admitted to using ‘roids. I never was a huge fan of A-Rod, but I always was amazed with how great he was. Arguably, he was the greatest player of this generation.

When he admitted using, I was assigned a story to talk to some local baseball people — meaning those connected with the local minor league team I covered at that time.

One call went to former manager Andy Barkett, who shocked me by admitting that he had used (though his major league career lasted fewer than 20 games).

The second went to the former owner of the local team, Sam Nader, then in his late 80s. His one quote to me was one of the best ones I’ve ever got and it is something I always remember and truly resonates with this whole generation of players.

“I’m still a hero worshipper and I don’t like to have my heroes tarnished,” he said.

Amen.

Growing up, I idolized Pete Rose.

It broke my heart when he was banned from baseball for life. It burns me more that I might never be able to see him enter the Hall of Fame.

Thankfully, for now, none of my “favorites” have been tagged with the performance-enhancing drugs stuff. I hope it won’t happen.

Truthfully, though, who is safe?

This whole generation is under suspicion. Even those already enshrined in Hall of Fames, in whatever sport. So many names. So many people. All that for sports.

Again, no matter what you think of Lance Armstrong, this day is sad. Take away the racing and what he’s done with his foundation and his quest to cure cancer, he’s done some amazing things. His legacy outside of cycling is going to be hard to smear, no matter what people would like to do. And believe me, there’s people who will try and bury him every which way possible.

That’s the saddest part of all this. The things he’s done outside of cycling dwarf what he did on a bike, I think. That is what makes this even sadder. Heck with a lifetime ban or stripping of Tour de France victories.

What this does is re-enforce what I’ve often thought — nobody is safe from this. If you were part of this generation of athletes, suspicion will continue through a lifetime.

That, too, is sad. Because in the end, we the fans are the ones who lose here.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!