Photo courtesy of Andrew King - D4 Productions

Saturday, June 12, 2010

18 myles - 3.13:49

Manitou Springs - 7:30 A.M.
50s, raining, sloppy
mind/body - strong
easy effort

I woke up at 5 AM, looked out the window, and almost let the weather talk me out of running today. Weather reports were predicting rain all day. I took a chance thinking Colorado Springs might be clear of the storm... I was right to begin with but as the day progressed and the higher I got, the wetter it got. My route was Longs-Bob's-Barr-Barr camp-Addaman rock-Barr-Incline-J pipe-Longs. In all about 5000 ft of climbing. I went in to talk with Neal and Teresa and who do I find sitting the corner drinking a beer?? Yep JT. Nah, just kidding, he wasn't drinking a beer... we talked shop and then I followed him out to Addaman Rock via Elk Park. Obviously above 10,000 ft it was colder but also wetter so I quickly made my way down. Also ran into Andy Henshaw who is gearing up for the Western States show down. Talk about dark horse, he'll be one to watch.

Anyways had to rush home to catch the USA/England World Cup game... hind sight I should have not even bothered. US played terrible! Should have lost, thanks for the gift Green. The US weren't making runs into open space, they weren't clearing out of the back, they were simply trying to play over the top and use speed - doesn't work against one of the world's best team. Donovan and Dempsey need to stop being so selfish and LAZY! Mark UP for hells sake! OK, I'll get off the bitching session but it pisses me off that the US sucked so bad. Bright spot was Tim Howard, really saved them. On another note, how about Bafana-Bafana's goal yesterday? First goal of the World Cup might just be the best!


Myles watching the World Cup with his favorite jersey - Ajax

16 comments:

trudginalong said...

RE USA: A bit harsh, LD and CD were mediocre at best, but Demirit, Onyewu, and Bradley calm on the ball were bright spots. Simply, we cannot lose the next two. Compared to 06, this is a huge start. Love me some World Cup!

Nick said...

SA's goal was definitely a beauty, but there'll be better to come. And you're welcome on the freebie today.

Agreed on your assessment of the US - not a great performance and very lucky to come away with a draw. Second half was particularly lackluster.

Not been impressed with any team yet, but then it's always a bit edgy in the first game of the group stage.

Unknown said...

No. Not a bit harsh - sorry. I expect more, especially since LD is so critical of others - he needs to step up or shut up. I will say Onyewu was huge for the US, just like Howard, but the back line was not communicating. If they continue to play this style they will not make it out of the bracket - they need to keep control of the ball and not give it away when there is no pressure. I LOVE the World Cup and really want the US to do well, that's why I'm a bit harsh I guess..

trudginalong said...

1 point was good enough. After the opener we could have completely buckled. We'll get out of the group but we need a #9 to start putting balls in the back of the net. JA should have scored the free header he completely missed with the goal gaping, and Findley was never going to score. I think Gomez needs some minutes.

Nick- England were tame in front of net (Heskey needs to go). Still not sure why they don't use Carrick and drop Gerrard off Rooney in a 4-5-1. Will we see Calamity James against Algeria???

Unknown said...

true one is better than none. You make good points - JA did miss a golden opportunity - it looked like he closed his eyes! Did you see Gomez was going to come in at the end? I hope Gomez starts next game cause he is electrifying.

Rooney was non-existent for most of the game, started to come alive at the end. England needs him to step up too

Nick said...

Having followed England's various disappointments in the Euro and World cups my whole life - USA '94 being the crowning non-moment (I was Irish for that one) - I have come to expect the kind of performance I saw on display today.

Comparatively speaking, I actually thought they looked quite dangerous and uncharacteristically sharp at times, creating a lot of good chances. Yes, Rooney was a bit disappointing, but he did create some opportunities, had a few, but probably needed to be a bit more selfish. He needs to have a solid tournament if England are going to do anything this time around.

Heskey clear on goal should have scored. Looked like he scuffed it. Replaced by Crouch, ughhh. Defoe should start - much better instincts in front of goal.

Any which way, we'll progress and lose on penalties somewhere along the way in the knockout stage. I'm predicting QFs again.

In nets, we need to bring back Peter Shilton, or get Howard a passport. But, yeah, Capello will probably stick to his guns and keep Green in goal.

trudginalong said...

Yeah, was bummed that they didn't bring Gomez in, he'll be fun to watch for sure if he gets his shot.

England did look more dangerous going forward than they have in a while, particularly Gerrard imposing himself on the game early and Lennon, though they still seemed timid to take a big shot (Lennon's cross when he was clear on Howard should have been taken on goal IMO). I saw Gerrard in a position ~25 meters out a few times that he would have crushed a screamer for Liverpool but instead played wide.

It'll be fun to watch what comes out of this, just watched the replay of the Argentina/Nigeria match and I'll be damned if Maradona doesn't run that team into the ground...

Brandon Fuller said...

Looking forward to following your lead in Lake City!

Unknown said...

Hey BF - don't follow me, I get lost. Just ask Burch. Can't wait to get back to the San Juans, especially the Colorado Trail!

Anonymous said...

USA AND ENGLAND ON THE NIGHT WERE BOTH VERY AVERAGE.ENGLAND PLAYED BETTER AND LOOKED MORE OF A GOAL THREAT THOUGH.BIG BLOOPER FROM GREEN GIFTED THE DRAW TO YOU.WE NEED TO TOP THE GROUP BECAUSE WE DONT WANT TO MEET THE GERMANS IN THE NEXT ROUND!!!!

PAUL-LONDON

Unknown said...

Paul - England did look more dangerous, especially in the end because the US failed to clear the back. Rooney was starting to come on. I'm not so sure about the Germans though... Ballack is hurt so who will step up? We'll find out later today.

WMRC said...

Love the new Blog design! Kevin

Unknown said...

Thanks Kevin! Gotta keep it fresh. Few more tweaks and it should be good. See you in Squaw?

Brett said...

Dig the backwards picture on the header...was that in a mirror?

The US could have actually won - they hit the post on a clear breakaway.

But they were not the best team on the field. England could have also won 3-0. Thats soccer. You can't put too much blame on your PK if you only put up 1 goal yourself against the US.

BF, you and SJ leave crumbs for me so that when I come by hours later I will know where the trail is...

Unknown said...

I actually flipped the picture because I can't figure out how to move the blog title to the right (endside) - too much on the left. The html is a bit different than the other blog. Good catch.

Should be fun at SJS! Can't wait to get up on the Colorado trail, almost like a reunion.

That is soccer. If the US comes out of the group 2nd, they will surely face the German's and lose handily if they try to play over the top with speed. Possession with composure is the key.

Brett said...

"If the US comes out of the group 2nd, they will surely face the German's and lose handily if they..."

You can finish that sentence any number of ways or stop it there. :)

Yea I noticed your shirt and thought 'well maybe its inside out' but then caught the backwards race bib...