God it shits me when the media in this country go apeshit over someone because of their sporting prowess. Ian Thorpe has retired from competitive swimming. Frak, with the blanket media coverage this morning you’d think peace had been declared in the middle east. Actually I don’t think that would get this much press.
Channel 7’s Sunrise show has declared it “Thorpe Day”. Get over it people. He can swim. Yeah – pretty fast. Great. Wonderful. Do you realize he kicks his feet for a living? That’s it. That’s his contribution to the world. Kicking his really big feet fast. Is this reason to get all slobbery over him like teenage girls at a Robbie Williams concert?
Bigger news this morning is that Robert Altman died aged 81. He directed 87 films and TV shows since 1951, including classics such as MASH, McCabe and Mrs Miller, Nashville, The Player, Short Cuts (I still fondly remember Julianne Moore’s full frontal doing the ironing)… oh and Popeye. Altman was Mr Ensemble. He had the ability to pull together a large cast of character actors and bring them together into a cohesive ensemble. If you haven’t seen those films, treat yourself this weekend.
Dude, I can see why your leaving Melbourne. I couldn’t image living in Melbourne and hating sport. It would be like living in Brisbane and hating the heat!
Maybe I should send you some Boony dolls to cheer you up.
Molly
There’s plenty in Melbourne other than sport. The only sport I have an interest in is Rhythmic Gymnastics and thats only because I used to do it and I haven’t noticed any difference between here and anywhere else in Australia.
And the Google lads just designed some code for a living… yet I don’t see you on an endless tirade about them, despite the fact we have had blanket Google coverage for years and it’s shares are now worth over $500 each. I mean, get some perspective on this, Cam. Anything in the world can be broken down into core components that don’t sound all that important.
Because, hey, Napoleon was just a short, fat Italian who thought he was French, right? 😛
More seriously, something like Thorpe’s achievements in sport or the Google boys in the tech industry or whatever else you want to critique – and the effect they have on people as a whole – actually end up greater than the sum of their parts… and is the reason they are celebrated.
Miriam, your Sydney native right? Enough said. Next!
Melbourne is the greatest sporting city in the world!
Aghhhhh. You got love that its one day till the Cricket starts, yet Footy preseason is in full swing!
I love this city. Sydney you can have the harbor/Opera House (hehe, what a joke) and that silly Bridge thing, we have the G and thats all that matters.
Any surprise that Melbourne is the Worlds most livable city?
molly
ridiculous comparisons Rob. The Google boys have changed the world by giving us better access to information and more targeted advertising. Napoleon changed the world by helping destroy feudalism. What is Thorpy’s contribution to the world? How has he made the world a better place?
Yeah, Cam, but how many gold medals did Napoleon or the google guys win at the olympics?
Molly
I love Melbourne too Molly. Sydney is kinda icky by comparison.
Oh I forgot another sport I watch religiously. MotoGP and Superbikes.
There you go! See, if we can get another 10 comments or so, you will admit your love for AFL as well! 😉
You do know Cam is a Closet AFL Fan, right? The I hate sports thing is a bit like the sunnies. More for show and building an image for differentiation. I think he is a Bulldogs support, but could be wrong.
Molly
Well, I’m happily Sydney to the bone. And that’s all I’ll say about that.
On the other topic, Cam, Thorpe has given immense pleasure to sports fans for a decade. What about the incredible thrill of watching him line up at the Sydney Olympics in the relay when the Americans said they were going to “smash us like guitars”? He and the other lads pulled us through… and then played air guitar at the Yanks from poolside. You just can’t buy the happiness that moment put in people’s hearts across the nation.
Or what about the hear-in-mouth stuff when he went to Athens and everyone wondered whether he could defeat Van Den Hoogenband (or however the heck you spell it?) who had previously beaten him… and he pulled through. Great, exciting sports moment.
Of course, if you don’t “get” sport, you won’t “get” what I’m saying. And that’s a shame. But it doesn’t mean that appreciating Thorpe is somehow wrong or strange. Go outside and ask 10 people what’s given them more pleasure – Napoleon smashing feudalism, or Thorpie winning gold and you’ll soon see how you’re the odd man out here 🙂
yeah I’ve watched AFL before… really not that interesting. I’ve played if before too. Also not that much fun. I just can’t get my head around the ‘you didn’t get the ball in but you were close so we’ll give you a point anyway’ thing.
Football (as in the proper type) is good but I only watch it if I happen to find it on tv and there’s nothing better on.
I am always interested by the argument about points in AFL. To me it would be like arguing that if you don’t get triple 20 in darts you should get nothing!
I can understand you not being interested. I personally don’t like the sport of motor*! Why don’t the mechanics and the designers get all the credit? Lets face it, 8 times out of 10 the result is in there hand and the driver might as well be a robot or the race held in a simulator (wonder if Thomasr is monitoring this thread).
Hey Cam, seeing you are PLFWTS, how about reigniting the energy/god debate again. That was interesting!
Molly
Its a bit half and half with the credit for motor racing. Without a good vehicle the driver can’t get up to the front due to lacking acceleration on the straights, but on a corner its all in the hands of the rider/driver. This is less the case with cars but on bikes the best riders are constantly on the edge.
Case in point Valentino Rossi. He used to ride for Honda, hands down the best manufacturer in the MotoGP. After winning the championship a couple of times he asked for a raise. Some smart arse at Honda goes, “fuck off, the bike won the races you just rode it.” Valentino Rossi goes “screw you, I’m heading over to Yamaha” who incidentally weren’t going even nearly as well as Honda and are still far slower on the straights, and proceeded to win several more championships.
It takes a good bike, good tires, good rider and the right combination of these three to make a winner.
Also the manufacturers do get credit. That’s what the manufacturers championship is for.
Yeah, but really. Why don’t they all just have the same equipment. No tweaking. Same everything.
Because the entire point if the MotoGP is for the manufacturers to show off what they can do.
Its a show of talent from the riders and engineering brilliance from the manufacturers.
They have plenty of races where everyone has the same equipment in the car side of things but those races aren’t nearly as popular.
hey i know I’m the odd man out when it comes to following sport. i have a brain.
Miriam: So its not a sport its and exhibition?
Cam: Thats your opinion! I am not the one losing money day after day and then not talking to someone that could take my company where I want it to go (http://forum.thepodcastnetwork.com/viewtopic.php?t=208).
Molly
PS. Actually I do seem to be losing money daily but not because of my business interests.
Its both sport and exhibition.
Its as much a sport for the engineers who design the machines. There’s competition and rivalry between them as well as the riders.
Cam: In case Justine Parker hasn’t told you apparently Lindsay Lohan and Keira Knightley are playing lovers in an upcoming movie.
And, in case you’re curious as to who female celebrities would switch teams for:
Kirsten Dunst: Patricia Arquette
Drew Barrymore: Cameron Diaz
Fergie: Dita Von Teese
Carmen Electra: Scarlett Johansson/Kate Moss/ Joan Jett.
Cosmo is SUCH a trashy magazine lol
yes, I was following this thread.
Drivers and riders always talk in the royal “we”- “We are very happy with the progress of the bike, WE hope for a good result” bcause it is very much a team effort.
I agree that the best bike often wins- but the skill lies not just in the riding, but also in the riders ability to “translate” the behaviour of his vehicle into tangible tech changes and improvements. Next year in MotoGP the bikes are going to 800cc(from 990cc) so in this prototype development time the best development riders will do well early.
Rossi is not just a great rider but also able to get the most out of the package he has. His chief mechanic, Australian Jerry Burgess is vital to his success. He followed Rossi to Yamaha and told the Japanese very early “you pay, you listen, you do as we say, we win” and they did- first year.
For me, motorsport is the ultimate sport as it combines my love of high tech with fitness, speed and the inate ability of someone like Rossi to understand intuitively what his bike needs to go faster- while racing it.
If you have never seen this in action, then i can HIGHLY recommend a trip to Phillip island in January (TBA) to see the bikes in testing. Just you and 10 others watching the best in the world ironing out the bugs! I’m quite determined to get Cam along to PI to see this in action and have a look at one of the bikes stripped- along with the huge amount of IT work involved.
thomasr
Wow that would be cool 🙂
You should go Cam.
Drew Barrymore? I thought she already batted for the other team on occasions!
Who’s Justine Parker? And what has Cam got to do with her? Is she some chick he has on the side in SF (or some guy he has on the side in SF, maybe he is batting for the other side)?
And wow, what Karma! My wife rang and told me we owe the government more money within hours of me writing about losing money!
Maybe I need a donate button on my Boony Blog!
Molly
Co host… Showbuzz…
All I’m doing is reporting the juicy celeb goss from cosmo. But it wouldn’t surprise me.
No, the Co-host of ShowBuzz is J-Pizzle 😉
Come on MP-Pizzle.
M-Pizzle!
Cam – what do you think of the Rocket Racing League? It’s not an average sport.
Mim, thanks for the rundown on who the celebs would switch teams for. I sense a blog post on this topic. Who would YOU switch teams for?
Cait – I hadnt heard of the the RRL until you mentioned it but i just read up on it and THAT SOUNDS FRAKKIN COOL. Sign me up.