The Wildcard Movies crew gets some sun on build day in the Baker backcountry, complete with the legendary grandma's step up and a number of beachwear backflips.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Jake Shields' Head Trainer on the UFC 129 GSP Fight, Nate Diaz + The Skrap Pack's Success - UFC 129
*** Watch Complete 1/2hr HD Episodes on http://www.MMAheat.com *** MMA H.E.A.T.'s Karyn Bryant spends a few minutes with Jake Shields' head trainer, Tareq Azim, and hears why GSP will be pushed harder than he ever has been before when he faces the former Strikeforce champ. Tareq talks about Jake's weight cutting and preparation, and also gives insight to the Skrap Pack team's psyche (teammates include Nick and Nate Diaz, Gilbert Melendez and Daniel Roberts) Tareq also lets us know how ready Nate Diaz is for his fight against Rory MacDonald, which will be seen on Spike TV before the UFC 129 PPV event. Be sure to visit http://www.MMAheat.com for more interviews and archived episodes of our 1/2 hour TV show. N�s falamos Portugu�s! * We're on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MMAheat * Follow MMAheat on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MMAheat * Follow Karyn on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/KarynBryant
PWA Slalom South Korea
The conditions here at Jinha Beach in South Korea are quite ok. We got wind on several days and so far almost 4 eliminations could have been finished. So far it�s one of my worst events, but two more days to go. Let�s hope for some more action. Some shots of Victor Couto and John [...]
Friday, May 27, 2011
While NFL and MLB fear Twitter, UFC will pay year-end bonuses for Twit-beasts
When a league gets incredibly corporate or is run by a fossil, you'd expect there to be a huge gap between the head honcho, the players and most sadly, the fans.
MLB just fined Ozzie Guillen for venting some postgame frustration on Twitter, while the NFL has handed out multiple fines for tweeting at inappropriate times. As far as the UFC is concerned, there is no inappropriate time for fighters to deliver their message on Twitter.
According to MMAFighting, the fighters have a bonus system to reward success on Twitter:
Starting June 1, UFC and Strikeforce fighters will be divided into four categories, based on how many Twitter followers they currently have. At the end of each quarter, three fighters from each category will be awarded a $5,000 bonus. The three winners will be based on who has gained the most followers since the start of the quarter, who gained the highest percentage of new followers and who wrote the most creative tweets. White will be the judge of the last category.
At the conclusion of a full calendar year, the UFC will end up paying $240,000 a year to its fighters for their Twitter usage.
Twitter is double-edged sword. It's crushed a few athletes who sent out controversial messages, but for the most part it's served as a revolutionary way for athletes to close the huge perceived chasm between themselves and the fans.
There's no gap between Cagewriter.com and our "fans." Follow Yahoo! Sports MMA on Twitter @kevini, @yahoodoyle, @maggiehendricks and @stevecofield.
Maynard-Edgar off: Guillard says let all the champs fight before he gets a shot
Melvin Guillard had just arrived in Las Vegas for the UFC Fighter Summit when he was told about the lightweight title bout at UFC 130 being cancelled. The Frank Edgar-Gray Maynard fight set for May 28 is off and could be re-scheduled for some time in August or September. Guillard hadn't been on the Internet and doesn't always follow MMA news, so he was shocked.
The cancellation is bad news for him. Guillard, a winner of four straight and 7-of-8, is one of the top lightweights battling for the next title fight. Surprisingly, Guillard said he's willing to wait a while until he gets his shot.
"I'd rather [Edgar and Maynard] go in healthy anyway because you don't want any flukes in a fight. You want to know who's the dominant guy. I wouldn't want somebody to win a belt and have someone say 'well that guy didn't really win. He only won because that guy got injured.' And then next thing you know I take a belt from one of those guys and then they say 'he wasn't the real champion.'"
Guillard also said he's fine if all the "champions" that UFC has brought on board recently get their shot first.
"They need to weed out all the champions because if you don't do that, then you still have a cluster[expletive]," Guillard said. "That was the best thing about Dana and those guys buying all those companies is to see who's the No. 1 guy on top."
Guillard thinks former WEC 155 champ Anthony Pettis should get the next shot followed by Strikeforce 155 champ Gilbert Melendez. He also knows that if he steamrolls a few more opponents there's always a chance he leapfrogs one of those champs into a shot at the UFC strap.
Guillard fights in July at UFC 132 against former WEC lightweight Shane Roller.
Explore Magazine Reviews ?Heading Outdoors Eventually Leads Within?
Ryan Stuart, Gear Editor for Explore Magazine, recently wrote this review of our most recent book, Heading Outdoors Eventually Leads Within: http://explore-mag.com/article/tips/copelands-newest-book-inspiring-hikers/
Georges St. Pierre on Jake Shields, UFC Undisputed + His Round 5 Action Figure - UFC 129
*** Watch Complete 1/2hr HD Episodes on http://www.MMAheat.com ***MMA H.E.A.T.'s Karyn Bryant spends a few minutes with UFC Welterweight Champ Georges St. Pierre, right after his photo shoot and scanning session with Round 5. Georges talks about having his own action figure, and also admits to us the one thing in this world he's not good at: video games. The conversation turns to his title defense against Jake Shields at UFC 129, and Georges lets us know what this fight means to him and how he prepared for his biggest challenge. The champ also tells us about his workout DVD set "Rush Fit," and whether or not it's possible to actually complete it.Be sure to visit http://www.MMAheat.com for more interviews and archived episodes of our 1/2 hour TV show. N�s falamos Portugu�s! * We're on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MMAheat * Follow MMAheat on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MMAheat * Follow Karyn on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/KarynBryant
Thursday, May 26, 2011
The Foam Shop in Bellevue ? Thumbs Up for Kayak Outfitting
I stopped in at the Friendly�Foam Shop in Bellevue today to pick up some kayak outfitting stuff and thought I’d give it a shout out for our local kayakers.� They have a good selection of�kayak outfitting type foam, ranging from thin pieces to 4-inch blocks.� Prices are reasonable, and Emy, the manager, was nice enough [...]
Source: http://www.ireneskayakingblog.com/gear/the-friendly-foam-shop-in-bellevue-thumbs-up/
Hiking-Boot Field Test
Backpacking Boots: Salomon ?Cosmic 4D GTX? vs. Asolo ?Synchro GTX? Dayhiking Boots: La Sportiva ?Thunder II GTX? vs. Asolo ?Spyre GV? A couple years ago, having worn numerous brands and models of hiking boots, I settled on Asolo. I?d worn several models of Asolos and all met my essential criteria: light yet [...]
Source: http://www.hikingcamping.com/blog/2011/03/hiking-boot-field-test/
Deal with it
Now that the skydiving season is in full swing, it’s time to get real about something – lifestyle. What I mean by that is, figuring out what kind of skydiver you are and coming to grips with that. As the weather warms and many of my friends are out at the dropzone during the week [...]
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Eniz Fazliov
The street skating starts in about a third of the way through Eniz Fazliov's IT� part. This guy is definitely on of my favorite euro rippers right now.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/u90RgGu4NqU/eniz-fazliov.html
Access Fund Action Alert: Restore Funding for California State Parks!
Your help is needed to stop the indefinite closure of 70 California State Parks. As budget battles continue in Sacramento, parks around the state face an uncertain future. In response to recent cuts, the California Department of Parks and Recreation … Continue reading
'Rampage' Jackson's Toughest Role? Convincing Us He Still Wants to Fight
Filed under: UFC
Let's say, for the sake of wild, purely speculative conversation, that Quinton "Rampage" Jackson could stay home this Saturday night. Say he could press a magic button (years of TV and movies have taught me that this button would necessarily be big and red, and may or may not be covered by a glass case) and create a Rampage clone that would go and fight for him at UFC 130. Say Real Rampage would get the money and Clone Rampage would do all the work, make the decisions, and live with the pain of defeat or the satisfaction of victory, but to the rest of the world the two would be indistinguishable.
My question isn't whether Jackson would choose to press the magic button under these circumstances. That's too easy. Obviously he would press it. The way he talks about his fighting career these days, I don't think you could keep him away from that button with a pack of wolves and a stun gun.
But say he pressed the button. Say he sent Clone Rampage out into the Las Vegas night to do his bidding against Matt Hamill. My question is: would Real Rampage, still lodged comfortably at home, bother to buy the pay-per-view so he could watch what happened? Or would he decide to do something else instead, maybe opting to find out the results via text message later that night?
This is the question I can't answer, and it's also why I don't know what to make of the current state of Jackson's MMA career.
To hear him tell it, fighting is just something to fill the time and earn a paycheck between movie roles. The minute he gets paid more to act than he does to fight, Jackson has said, he's out of here. Nobody can fight forever, and he doesn't particularly want to try.
Which is completely reasonable to most of us. If you can get paid more for sitting around on movie sets eating organic potato chips than you can for spending weeks living like a monk in training camp and waking up sore every morning, that's not too tough a decision for most people.
Then again, there's a reason most people don't become pro fighters, and a complete lack of skill and athleticism is only part of it.
What it comes down to is a lack of enthusiasm. All fighters have to have it to begin with, because when you're just starting out the money isn't good enough to justify doing it for any other reason. Unless you're Brock Lesnar. Or maybe Bobby Lashley.
But when Jackson made his pro debut in 1999 against a 175-pound Mike Pyle in Memphis, he did it for no more than a couple hundred bucks and a chance to punch someone in the face without legal repercussions.
I don't know what mix of ambition and anger and competitive zeal was driving that Rampage, but it seems to have evaporated in the eleven-plus years since then. Now when he talks about upcoming fights he seems to be the person least interested in the conversation. Even when he deigns to dredge up some the charisma that made him a fan favorite - such as he did last night on 'The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson' - he still seems far more enthusiastic about the after-party than the fight.
It makes you wonder, what exactly is Jackson trying to accomplish in MMA at this point? Is he only after the money? The fame? Is it nothing more than a way to keep him in the limelight just long enough to hold the interest movie producers? Or does he still want to etch a legacy for himself beyond what he's already accomplished in the sport? Does he want to be champion? He's still quite good at it, but does he actually want to participate in the physical act of fighting?
It's hard to come up with a clear answer right now, and that's a problem. This is the same Jackson who recently turned down a title shot because he thought six weeks wasn't enough time to prepare. It's also the one who waffles between mild interest and complete apathy when the subject of his next fight comes up.
Not only is he not fired up about fighting for a living, he rarely even pretends to be. I don't know what that means for his immediate future in pro fighting, but it's probably not the best sign for his acting career. If he can't convince fans that he's in the cage because he truly wants to be, how's he ever going to convince movie audiences that he's an entirely different person?
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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/05/24/rampage-jacksons-toughest-role-convincing-us-he-still-wants/
MMA Passes in New York Senate, Moves to State Assembly for Approval
New York again took the first steps to sanction mixed martial arts on Monday, as the state Senate voted 42-18 to approve the sport, clearing the bill to move to the state Assembly, where it has faced the most opposition in the past.
Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/18599/mma-passes-in-new-york-senate-moves-to-state-assembly-for-approval/
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Artist focus on Jenifer Prince
For no other reason than we recently re-stumbled upon her new work on her website and loved how she captures the surf culture of Hawaii & California so beautifully… We’d like to share with you the fine art (surf, island and plein air) by Hawaii based Californian artist Jenifer Prince. Below are a few of [...]
Source: http://www.clubofthewaves.com/blog/artist-focus-on-jenifer-prince/
What you need to know from this week on “The Ultimate Fighter”
If Season 13 of "The Ultimate Fighter" has been missing anything, it's a bit of that pizazz from Brock Lesnar's WWE days. The former WWE champ still hasn't gone back to his roots, but between Chris Cope's Ric Flair-like "wooos" and Junior dos Santos screaming "what" like he was watching "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Episode 9 felt like being at a wrestling event.
It also turned out to be about and looking past an opponent and weak excuses.
Cope is supposedly the weak link on the show, but he proved everyone wrong again by pulling the upset on Team dos Santos' No. 1 pick Shamar Bailey.
UFC president Dana White called it before the fight saying Bailey looked one-dimensional in his opening round win and was overlooking Cope. Cope wasn't exactly Mr. Aggressive, but he successfully defended against nine takedown attempts and gassed Bailey on his way to a surprising 20-18 win.
Dos Santos was shocked.
"That [decision] was terrible for me," dos Santos said. "I looked at Dana and said 'what?'"
Bailey was also in disbelief saying, "he fought well, but I don't know about that. You can't win backing up the whole time."
White seemed pleased that Cope got the decision and wasn't hearing Bailey's lame excuse during a one-on-one conversation shortly after the fight.
"I just want to let you know I took a risk," Bailey told White. "I wanted to show you I could bang and not just wrestle. I left it in the hands of the judges. I could've took the easy way out and just took him down."
White quickly pointed to Bailey that he did try to take Cope down throughout the fight and had zero success.
There was no controversy in quarterfinal fight No. 1. Knowing that Ramsey Nijem is a strong wrestler, Brock Lesnar worked with Clay Harvison on his takedown defense. Harvison was drilled hard on getting out of the clinch.
Practice didn't make perfect. He was taken down just 10 seconds into the fight. When he tried to get back up he left his back exposed. Nijem worked to get the hooks in, then flattened out Harvison before locking on a rear-naked choke. It was all over in 56 seconds.
Next week it looks like Tony Ferguson goes psycho in the TUF house. He also faces Ryan McGillivray while Zach Davis battles "Cold Steel" Chuck O'Neil.
Sean Black Park City Spring Session
After a winter of filming with Think Thank, Sean Black hits Park City for a springtime rail session. Keep an eye out for appearances by Zak Hale, Alex Andrews and Alex Sherman.
Monday, May 23, 2011
What you need to know from this week on “The Ultimate Fighter”
It's Wednesday, so it's time for another episode of "The Ultimate Fighter." After tonight's episode, we'll know who most of the quarterfinalists are, as well as the recipients of the "second-chance" wildcard berths, awarded to two fighters who lost in the first round but deserve another chance. Who will win tonight's bouts? Who will get the wildcard? Will Junior dos Santos and Lew Polley appear to be coaching two different teams again? Is Dana White wearing a Stevie Nicks shirt as a cross-promotion with Glee's Fleetwood Mac episode from Tuesday night? Read on for spoilers and a recap.
Signals crossed of the night: After dos Santos gives a rousing speech to his fighters, who just suffered another loss, telling them that losing is part of the game, his assistant coach says, "No. It's your job to win, even if it is boring." Dos Santos tells Polley, in a very nice way, to shut up.
Oh No of the Week: At Lesnar's training practice, Len Bentley, their main wildcard hope, injures his knee. Clay Harvison is getting his finger, which was mangled in his last fight, checked out at the hospital. Both fighters assume that they're done.
But Wait! of the Week: Harvison's finger is easily fixable. Bentley's knee dislocated, but no ligaments were torn. I've dislocated my knee. It's awful, terrible, horrible, not-so-much-mind-numbing-as-blinding pain, but afterwards, it heals pretty quickly. (The surgery to keep it from dislocating again? I don't recommend.)
Junior vs. Lew of the Day: Dos Santos is ticked that Polley went to the fighters' house without telling him, and he feels like Polley is constantly going over his head. Probably because he is. Dos Santos lets the hammer come down, telling Polley it's time to go home. Polley is obviously disappointed, but there was only so many times that he could contradict dos Santos before this was going to happen.
Fight picks of the week: With control in their hands, Team Lesnar pits Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Edwards, which will put two wrestlers against each other. That means Lesnar's Chuck O'Neil will fight Zach Davis from Team dos Santos.
Good-Bye, Lou of the Week: Dos Santos' fighters are worried that they won't understand anyone from their corner ... and that's all they have to say about that.
Fight One of the Week: Tony Ferguson (Team Lesnar) vs. Justin Edwards (Team dos Santos)
Round One: Edwards comes out throwing every single punch ever invented ever. He then tries for a takedown, but can't get it done. Lesnar then announces, "He just blew his wad." Classy. Ferguson takes advantage, lands more strikes and shakes off an Edwards takedown. Just when it appears that Lesnar was right, Edwards starts coming back and gets a takedown. But Edwards' good fortune doesn't last long he stands up to reset, and Ferguson lands a heel kick, knocking Edwards out.
"That's the [expletive] that makes you want to get out of bed on a Saturday and watch a fight," Dana White said after the bout. Fighters can not have a more ringing endorsement than that.
Edwards is disappointed, but he should take consolation in the fact that he impress White. For Ferguson, the win is a great birthday celebration.
Fight Two of the Week: Chuck O'Neil (Team Lesnar) vs. Zach Davis (Team dos Santos)
Round One: Davis shoots in and gets an immediate takedown. O'Neil tries for a guillotine, but can't hold onto it. Though O'Neil gets back to his feet, Davis continues to be in control in the clinch. He throws several knees into O'Neil's body, and then takes it back to the ground. Davis works on the ground before standing over O'Neil, allowing him to stand back up, and then taking him down again. This time, O'Neil sneaks out the back and gets top position, landing several blows. But Davis doesn't give up. He maneuvers around to slap a triangle choke on O'Neil, causing him to tap.
Again, White was impressed with both fighters and the way they had a war on the ground.
Heartbreak of the week: White calls Justin Edwards into the office to tell him that he was picked for the wildcard spot but (dramatic pause) he has a medical suspension for 90 days and he can't fight. He's broken-hearted, but will thank the commission when he's 53 and remembers his kids' names.
Missed opportunity of the week: As is the custom, White and the coaches ask every wildcard candidate to come in and say why they want the fight. Though they all seem to want it, no one blows White and the coaches away. Have they not watched the show before?
Confidential to future "The Ultimate Fighter" contestants: If you want the wildcard spot or the spot of an injured fighter, jump up and down. Yell. Swear. Write it on your chest then rip your shirt off, Hulk Hogan-style. It's obvious that this is the hoop that White wants you to jump though, so jump through it.
The coaches and White finish an oddly civil discussion about the wildcards, and announce that the wildcard fight will be:
Javier Torres (Team dos Santos) vs. Chuck O'Neil (Team Lesnar)
Consider Len Bentley pissed. But get excited. Next week is the coach's challenge!
Proposal in the cage: Baker scores KO and fiancee at Bellator 43
Now that's a night! Bryan Baker continued to climb up the middleweight ladder by destroying veteran Joe Riggs at Bellator 43 in Newkirk, Ok. The 25-year-old followed that up by winning Megan Vargas' hand in marriage.
"My heart is just doing back-flips right now," Baker told Sherdog. "I can't express how much this girl cares for me and how much I love her. I want to give world to her. That cage is hers as much as it is mine. We're going to conquer it together. There are a lot of good things in store for us."
Baker (15-2) drilled Riggs (34-13) with left hook at 3:53 of the second round to gain his way into Bellator's Season 5 middleweight tournament set to begin in the fall.
The last year has been a rollercoaster ride for Baker, who's battling chronic myelogenous leukemia.
"It's taken me into areas I could have never imagined," Baker told MMADieHards.� "From all different angles, whether it be telephone or emails or Facebook.� My doctor was talking with this patient who had testicular cancer and he heard my story, and he's a fighter as well.� We connected with him and it's been crazy how much of an inspiration shined through.� I want to continue that.� It's a blessing that I have the responsibility to show people that no matter what your body may endure or trials you go through in life, you're able to correct it to the fullest.� Its crazy that I can affect people in so many different ways"
Explore Magazine Reviews ?Heading Outdoors Eventually Leads Within?
Ryan Stuart, Gear Editor for Explore Magazine, recently wrote this review of our most recent book, Heading Outdoors Eventually Leads Within: http://explore-mag.com/article/tips/copelands-newest-book-inspiring-hikers/
Quick California Flow Update
This just in from HQ!� As of early March, we are at 126% of normal for water content/snowpack in California.� This is pretty cool news–especially because it seems we are still looking at a fairly wet and cool spring, conditions which will either add to the solid base, or will preserve all the good stuff [...]
Source: http://blog.aorafting.com/quick-california-flow-update/
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Williams Farm Second Design Meeting
The second design meeting for Virginia Beach's Williams Farm skatepark is happening on Thursday, May 5th from 6-8PM at Diamond Springs Elementary School.
"The purpose of this follow-up workshop is for the public to review the plans that have been developed based on the original feedback garnered at the first public meeting on April 7. Citizens were invited to provide input into the design elements of the skate park, which will be sized approximately 20,000 square-feet, in-ground and concrete, with urban street plaza elements like steps and rails. Plans also include a vert ramp/bowl component and a flow park."
Royce Gracie Talks Gracie Influence on UFC and MMA Growth - Royce Gracie
UFC Hall of Famer Royce Gracie talks about the influence of he and his family have had on the UFC and MMA in general heading into UFC 129 in Toronto. Get more MMA and UFC news at the World's top MMA News website http://www.mmaweekly.com.
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