Posted On Wednesday, March 4th, 2009 By David Veatch
I’m not dead. I’m very much alive, in fact. I’ve just had precious little to write about with regards to the primary focus of this blog… cycling. So instead of blurring the focus of the subject matter, I’ve opted to just wait until I had more to write. However, it’s been a while and some of you know nothing about me but what you find out here. So… Some very positive things happening personally. Since I decided long ago to keep such things off this blog, you’ll just have to wait to meet her. I will say this… she must be pretty special. I’ve not been to church in 20 years, and she’s gotten me there no less than 4 times since late December… and maybe 5. My attitude towards organized religion is perfectly summed up by the Mohandas Gandhi quote “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” That said, I have met quite a few very nice people through her and the friend that set us up together, all of whom go to their church. It’s an interesting change of pace for me… Besides Church, we’ve done quite a more »
Posted On Friday, January 9th, 2009 By David Veatch
I really didn’t plan on it, but I’ve found myself on a third pool team. I’m now not only playing at Shooters on Monday nights, and Sharks on Wednesday nights, but at The Clarette Club on Thursday nights. This is in addition to the semi-regular tournament play on Saturday and Sunday nights. Throw in some afternoon tournaments on Sunday followed by a few hours of free pool before the Sunday night tournament, and you may start to wonder how I have time for anything other than smacking balls around with sticks! You wouldn’t be the only one. The competition is very tough, and is guaranteed, if I pay even a smidgen of attention, to improve my game. I’ve been trying for a couple years now to get in on the Thursday league, and when I was asked to join up while on the way out Shark’s door Wednesday night, I just couldn’t pass it up, even with the already hefty time commitment. I’m “just” an alternate, which means I won’t play every week, but I’m treating that as a foot in the door, and who knows, maybe I’ll play more regularly than I imagine. Between fighting for every point Monday more »
Posted On Thursday, August 21st, 2008 By David Veatch
Last night was the last night for our Wednesday night pool league. Tuesday night was the last for the Tuesday night league. I still love the game, and am 100% certain I’ll get back into it, but it was taking too much time, and there are so many other things I want/need to take care of. It’ll be nice to have free nights for a few months to get caught up. We’d only been playing the Tuesday night league for a single session, but already made our mark pretty well. The wait staff, as well as others working there made it a point to tell us, in no uncertain terms, that we would be back, so just accept it and move on. It was very nice, and made us feel very good. The whole night was fantastic. The four of us had a blast, and made sure that the last night would be one to remember. We’d been playing the Wednesday night league for some time, and felt it was just time to let it go. Last night was, also, a lot of fun. I’ve enjoyed playing there for the last few years, but I’m thinking it’s time to expand more »
Posted On Wednesday, August 6th, 2008 By David Veatch
Finishing last night leaves two more weeks of pool for the Tuesday night league. Wrapping up tonight will leave two more weeks for the Wednesday night league. After that, we’re going to take a session off. Playing two nights a week is good for the game (though not as good as 5 or 6 nights a week), but it’s bad for the sanity at this point. I have too many other things I want to focus on, and it’s time to take a break. All that said, last night was pretty good. I ran out on two opponents for two 10-0′s. Well… ok, I ran out on one, and while I missed the 8 ball on the other after a tight 7 ball run, he missed, leaving me clear on the 8 for a two inning 10-0. The other two games weren’t so cut and dry, but I did win them 10-5 and 10-4. I remember back in the day when I was playing nearly every day, I noticed that a really bad day was often followed by a really good day, and then things would level out a while until the next really bad day, which would then be more »
Posted On Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 By David Veatch
In a stunning upset last night, Deep Pockets, formerly in 6th place out of 10, defeats the 1st place team 8-Ball Junk-eez 3 and a half rounds to 1 and a half rounds. When asked how she felt about the outcome, one team member replied simply “Hell YEAH!!!” It is uncertain how last nights stellar showing on the part of Deep Pockets will change the overall rankings, but one thing can be certain: they are out of their slump. Defeating the first place team did a lot to bolster the flagging confidence of the team members. Over the course of the last three weeks, they went from splitting the rounds even, to suffering two 1 round nights in a row. Out of 12 rounds, they won 4.5. While last nights performance may not have improved their percentages enough to put them in one of the top three spots, winning the majority of the rounds against the first place team made the team members feel like they were already there. Of the four team members, two monopolized the 8-ball, each sinking it three times out of four for 37 points each. While the other two team members weren’t able to pot more »
Posted On Thursday, May 29th, 2008 By David Veatch
Last night we won 4 of 6 rounds. That’s pretty good, and far better than winning 2 of 6 rounds like last week. However, while I had a perfect night (5 out of 5 games – can I get a “Hell yeah!”), everyone else on the team got only 1 game out of five. That makes for 9 games out of 25, giving the other team 16 games, nearly twice what we got. However, we still won over half the rounds. Odd. This can be explained by two things… We got 4 points a round in handicap. Take the handicap out and we still won 3 of 6 games, so the handicap only accounts for one round by itself. When my teammates did lose, they lost by a close margin, with 5, 6 and 7 points to the opponents 10. This accounts for some games, but there were some 10-1 and 10-2 games as well. On the other hand, when we won, we won well, keeping the opponents to 10-2 through 10-5. Still, even understanding the math, it’s just weird. That makes for two weird nights in a row. Two nights that really felt like we were going to come more »
Posted On Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 By David Veatch
… barely. Last night at the Clarette Club in Shawnee, my Tuesday night pool team Deep Pockets, through judicious application of luck, managed to score 4 rounds of 5. The round we didn’t take was… best left forgotten. Two 0-10 games, one of which was an 8 ball snap, made it a nearly impossible round to take. The whole night felt off, honestly, and when we got to the end, it was with some surprise that we realized the outcome. Mike sat out, letting the GF step in and get on the books for the session. He’d jumped up to a 9, so it also allowed us to give up one less point in the handicap scheme. Turns out one point wouldn’t have made a difference, but it’s a nice option to have. Chris had 2 wins with 26/40 points. Linda had 2 wins 27/40 points. GF had 3 wins 37/40 points. I had 3 wins 37/40 points. Chris should have had at least one more win, and I should have had one less. He’s been having a hard time adjusting to the tables. They’re a lot faster, and moving to a brand new environment can affect a player a more »
Posted On Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 By David Veatch
And by “flat”, I have several meanings. The first deals with mood. I’m flat. In a bit of a funk. Neither super low, nor super high. Pool league last night was… uninspired. Normally I really enjoy the game, but I could have just as easily taken a nap last night. I won 3 of 4, but only because they were given back to me, after I gave them away to begin with. The fourth opponent had the audacity to keep it. Eh. Flat. The second deals with my ride home last night. Almost 6 miles in, and just over 3 miles from home, I start bouncing up and down in my seat in an odd and unfamiliar manner. I start to get a sinking feeling, and sure enough, my rear tire is sinking to the rim. Slowly, but surely, it’s going flat. Nothing like forced recovery, eh? And there’s me, with no spare tubes, no pump, and no CO2. Believe it or not, this is the first road flat I’ve had. Ever. 30 years on and off the bike, and I do not remember a single time a tire has gone flat due to road debris while still on the more »
Posted On Friday, April 4th, 2008 By David Veatch
I drove to work yesterday. I have no guilt. Recovery days are a critical part of training, and I am officially In Training now. As of today, I have 3 months and one week remaining before the Triple Bypass, and it is time to kick it up a notch. On Wednesday, I rode the new route I spoke of. It was pretty brutal. Noah suggested I take it up a notch and head to 67th before turning off Lackman. Tonight, I’m going to give it a shot. It will add a bit more distance, and a few more feet of climb. I’ll let you know how that works out for me. ;) Yesterday, taking a recovery day was as much due to running errands as it was about recovery. I *finally* went to the optometrist to get my contacts replaced. Washing the contacts twice a day due to discomfort and haziness was just too much, and I caved. What really sent me over the edge to spend the cash (to be recovered via pre-tax Flex money) was that it was affecting my pool game. It was becoming increasingly difficult to focus on short shots, much less long shots. I hope more »
Posted On Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008 By David Veatch
That’s the name of the new Tuesday night team I’m on. It’s at the Clarette Club in Shawnee Mission. I really like the place. It reminds me of Terry’s in Topeka, where I used to play the Saturday evening 9-ball tournaments. Smaller, a little tighter in the quarters area, but not bad. You have to love a place that has the word “Sleazy” in it’s tag line. Plus, they have fried shrimp. The team is fantastic. I’m an alternate for this session, but will be a full timer next. Right now, there are 5 or 6 on the team, and I know two of them well, and have played with another twice. Next session it will be myself and three others, all of whom I know well, one being a good friend of mine outside of pool. I don’t know how well we’ll do, but I expect to have a great time. It’s a Valley league, which is a first for me. I’ve been in many house leagues, BCA, APA and ACS, but never Valley. The rules are generally all the same, though, so I’m not worried. As long as slop doesn’t count and the handicap system isn’t built for more »