Bruce Lee is considered the most influential martial artist of the 20th Century, a legendary pop culture icon, a revolutionary philosopher, and a pioneer for civil rights within the film industry. Whether you study martial arts or not, you have to admit Bruce Lee is a total beast.

An interview with an Oklahoma City Thunder Honorary Team Captain at the Festival of the Arts in Oklahoma City, April 25, 2014.

The Mooseville High Bees baseball team kicks off their spring season tonight with a doubleheader against the Elkton Longhorns in Elkton. The first game starts at 6 p.m. with the second game scheduled to begin at 8. Coaches have yet to say if senior pitcher, Tosh Instinger will play in either game.

Instinger has been recovering from a shoulder injury he suffered during the All-County Championships last fall. The Bees lost the All-County title to the Catnip County Cougars, 11-7. In a recent interview with local reporter, Cindy Scoops, Instinger said the mental anguish of the loss is something he has yet to recover from.

Now that doctors have given the Mooseville High hurler the green light, Instinger says he’s ready to get back on the mound. Instinger has made some big promises for next year, including bringing home the All-County Championship trophy.

Although Instinger says he’s ready to get back in the game, coaches say they’re not so sure.

“It’s a long road to All-County,” said Bees’ Head Coach, Carl Couch. “We got plenty of boys that need some innings under their belt. Lee Goodenough’s been throwing hard in practice, and Tucker Jenkins, his curve is actually starting to curve. Some of our boys have really been stepping up since Tosh has been out. It’s going to make us stronger as a team.”

Despite Coach Couch’s focus on his team, part of his reluctance to play Instinger is in part because he wants to protect his pitcher’s career after high school.

Before Instinger can pursue his baseball options after high school must first get past Elkton’s Longhorns.

More than likely Carlos Santiago will start on the mound for the Longhorns, and senior first baseman, Butch Callister and junior catcher, Gordy Morgie will threaten the Bees with their bats.  

The gate opens at 5:30 and admission is 25 cents for adults. Students get in free.

The lure of the Winter Olympics eludes many Americans. Outside of a handful of events, winter sports are left in the cold when compared to the Summer Games.

Some of the problem might be because there are only certain parts of the country where one can participate in and enjoy winter sports.  America is a big place, and a lot of people have never been to a snow-capped mountain, let alone tried luge.

The sports at the Summer Olympics are more appealing to the masses because the likelihood of the masses having participated in those sports, in some form, is great.

Most people have competed in a foot race in their lifetime. Many have practiced dives at community or backyard pools. We often join basketball and soccer teams or take gymnastics and martial arts at an early age. 

Whether it’s a lack of interest or a lack of resources, a lot people have never tried winter sports, and that makes it difficult to muster up enthusiasm for the Winter Games.

Lack of Knowledge About Winter Sports

Unless you have some knowledge or experience with the sport, watching many of the events in the Winter Olympics is like watching a foreign film without subtitles.

There are many winter sports that have rules or judging that anybody, regardless of education or experience level, can understand. With some of the events it’s easy to tell who the winner is.

Who got down the mountain the fastest? Who jumped the farthest? Who scored the most points? Who got closest to the target?

There are other events at the Winter Games, however, where the rules, lingo, and scoring are so foreign that it’s hard to get engaged in the competition because you really don’t know what’s going on.

To be fair, some of the events in the Summer Games have the same issue. Sports like gymnastics, diving, and race walking are the jargon-laden, foreign, and awkward equivalent to figure skating, snowboarding, and curling, yet we are still more likely to watch even the most boring of events at the Summer Games over those offered in the Winter Olympics

We’re Hibernating

Another problem with viewer enthusiasm for the Winter Olympics revolves around the season more than the lackluster and specialized sports.

In the summer time, we are more active. The days are longer. We’re soaking up the Vitamin D, and we typically have more energy. The same can’t be said in the winter.

Winter is grey. Winter is cold. We hibernate in winter. Our energy is low. Our heart rate drops to a crawl as we shovel heavy, hearty, stomach-warming meals down our throats with no thought to our bulging body parts because we’re wearing cozy, comfy sweat pants.

Then we crash on our couches or lounge in our recliners and turn the TV on to watch the Winter Olympics.

The flurries and blur of whites and greys are a lullaby as the skiers race down the mountain and commentators recap the bios and technical achievements or shortcomings of athletes we’ve never heard of.

Our eyes droop as ski jumper after ski jumper and snowboarder after snowboarder takes their turn, the attempts blending together like they’re on a video set to loop. Was that a good trick jump? I don’t know. It looked just like the other two before it, to me.

Head to Toe Coverage

Take the monotonous backdrop of isolated places in the mountains or man-made ice shoots and add in figures dressed in full body suits; thick, tinted goggles; aerodynamic helmets; snow boots and bulky mittens, and we don’t know if we’re watching a person or a Power Ranger.

I never had a favorite Power Ranger because I couldn’t see their faces. My favorite color is orange, but that wasn’t an option, so therefore I never got into that show.

Polar Opposite

There are some sports in the Winter Olympics where you could pick the athletes out of a line-up, if need be. Figure skating is one of the few sports where you can actually see the athlete’s full face and body.

The costumes in figure skating are so eccentric it’s like Liberace designed the sport. Don’t get me wrong, figure skating is a difficult sport and figure skaters have mad skills, but how can you expect me to pick out the difference in a triple Salchow and a triple Lutz when the skater’s wearing a skin-tight bedazzled jump suit with lace fringe on the end of their sleeves?

I’d give one and a half toe loops if someone would wear something normal and weather appropriate on the ice. As it stands now, they’re all a bunch of Vampire Lestats.

The Olympic Spirit Flickers

There are times in the Winter Olympics when we get engaged. When a bobsledder or luger crashes, that’s exciting.

When figure skaters bite the dust, we like that. When it’s partners and one drops the other, even better.

When skiers plummet and snowboarders face plant, we’ll watch the replay and maybe stick around awhile longer.  If the crash is bad enough we’ll watch the next couple of competitors to see if they suffer the same fate.

The likelihood of competitors crashing are far better in the Winter Games than in the Summer Games, but it’s not enough to keep us tuned in for the long haul. Besides, you don’t have to watch the games to see crashes. If it’s bad enough it will be on YouTube.

Sounds of Silence

It seems like there’s a lot more cheering in the Summer Games simply because of the nature and venues required for the sports. Many sports in the Winter Games start in parts of a mountain so far removed from civilization that if a skier fell no one would be around to hear it.

Sure there’s cheering at the end near the finish line, but along the way, there’s nothing but the whip of the wind, the crush of snow, the flap of flags, and commentators swapping out uninteresting natural sounds with useless information.

Speed skating and hockey are exciting and filled with cheer, but bobsleigh, skeleton, and luge have a rhythmic rocking as the sleighs navigate turn after turn.

The same can be said for ski jump. You’ve got the starting beeps, the scrape of the skis sliding down the ramp, and then comes the wind for what feels like ten minutes before you finally hear the spectators’ cheers. 

Although figure skating is one of the more popular events in the Winter Olympics, the music played during those routines is so boring it could be marketed as a sleep aid. 

U.S. Isn’t the Best

Americans have pride. There are many who have never stepped foot outside of this country who claim it is the greatest country on earth, but even the least-traveled American citizen knows that on an international level, the U.S. sucks at winter sports.

Who wants to watch our team come in 9th behind athletes whose names have only a handful of vowels? Did you see who won Nordic Combined? No, but I wonder when the Jamaican bobsled team will race. I always did like John Candy.

Though our prowess is waning in the Summer Olympics we still dominate many events, which is good for our egos. With the winter games, however, we’ve never carried a big weapon. Sure we’ve got our all-stars in a few events, but as a whole, Americans just don’t perform well in more hazardous weather conditions.

Why Watch

As boring as they are, there are a handful of reasons you should watch the Winter Olympics.  

Danger Zone

The most important reason to watch the Winter Olympics, in my opinion, is that nearly every athlete who competes risks killing themselves.

Sure there are some dangerous sports in the Summer Olympics, but not like there are in the Winter Games.

Take skiing, for example. Skiers are racing down a treacherous mountain with nothing to protect them but a spandex body suit, two poles, a helmet, and a fresh coat of Chapstick.

Figure skaters are even less protected. They twirl around on thin metal plates with nothing but a pair of panty hose and a ponytail holder to protect them, and then we get pissed when they don’t do back flips in their routines.

In bobsleigh, skeleton, and luge, those people are like bullets inside the barrel of a very long, icy shotgun.

Ski jumpers? They just fly into the abyss and hope to land safely on the long pieces of wood that are strapped to their feet.

Sure not every sport in the Winter Olympics is dangerous. I don’t see any real threat to curlers other than tennis elbow.  I’m also not trying to downplay the safety concerns associated with the Summer Olympics.

All sports have a level of danger to them. For example, divers can easily smack their heads on the board if they’re not careful, but at least with divers, they have a shot at landing in the water afterwards. For winter sport athletes, if they smack their head, they almost always land on ice.

Any athlete willing to risk their lives to claim gold for our country deserves our attention, even if it is only until the next commercial break.

Games That Pays In Laughter

Another reason to watch the Winter Olympics is to make fun of the commentators. They say some of the funniest things.

To their credit, it’s hard to commentate something as technical and boring as say the biathlon, but when it comes to creating excitement about something that isn’t in the least bit exciting, no one does it better than Winter Olympic sports commentators.

If you listen to what they’re actually saying, you might just find the catch phrases and nuances of their broadcasts funny enough to be worth your time.

Oddity

The Winter Olympics, like the Summer Games, only come around every four years. Add in that we rarely get to see sports like slalom, skeleton, and curling, and it’s safe to say the Winter Olympics do provide a rare opportunity to experience something new. There’s no reason not to try to watch at least some events at this year’s Winter Olympics, if for anything than to say you saw something you don't see every day.

Something for Everyone

Though the Winter Olympics might not shine as bright in America’s heart as the Summer Games, there’s no reason why viewers at home can’t find some sort of joy in the festivities.

Whether it’s cheering for athletes as they cheat death, poking fun at the excited and nerdy commentator banter, seeing a sport you will never in your life play, or simply watching because there’s nothing else on, everyone can find something entertaining about the Winter Olympics.

Last-Ditch Effort

If none of that piques your interest, there’s still one more reason you should watch the Winter Olympics. There’s no other sport on TV, outside of maybe golf, billiards, and car racing that can make you fall asleep faster than winter sports like cross-country skiing and curling.  It’s better than Ambien, and if there’s one thing America needs, it’s a good night’s sleep.

You can enjoy the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia from now until the torch is extinguished Feb. 23.

Story by: Charlie Hustle

If you didn’t get enough treats for Halloween, the World Bodybuilding & Fitness Federation will provide plenty of eye candy at the Southwest U.S. Championship on Saturday.

“You’re going to see athletes from all over the world who’ve honed their bodies to extreme fitness,” said WBFF promoter Randy Sandberg. “It’s like a Victoria’s Secret show, but with better bodies.”

Oklahoma is one of seven states hosting a WBFF competition. Athletes from four countries and 13 states are coming to Rose State Performing Arts Theatre to battle it out in categories like bikini, fitness, and bodybuilding.

WBFF competitions are scored based not only on physique, but also on marketability and stage presence, which makes the tournament as much performance as competition.

“You have to keep in mind all of these athletes are under 10 percent body fat,” said Sandberg. “It’s still a competition for them, but for everyone else, it’s a show.”

For competitor Malorie Gulikers, a local business owner, there’s more to the sport than meets the eye.

“A lot of people don’t realize the kind of work that goes into building these kinds of physiques,” Gulikers said. “We’re talking near perfect, like statues. And everyone has a story, something they’ve had to overcome to reach this level of fitness.”

To prepare for a bodybuilding competition, many athletes train year-round. Most competitors begin increasing the rigor of their workouts and restricting their diets anywhere from 10 to 16 weeks prior to competition.

Gulikers said being a role model for women motivates her to stay fit.

“I want to inspire women to take time out for themselves,” she said. “Especially for moms like me. It’s important because it gives you energy at home, in work and with your family.”

Two opportunities exist to watch the tournament. Pre-judging begins at 10 a.m., with the finals at 6 p.m.

“The pre-judging is more of the competition side of things,” Sandberg said, “whereas the finals are more about the show.”

Story, as printed in the Oklahoma Gazette, by Moose Tyler.

It’s been nearly two months since the cupping of the Olympic torch in London. The athletes, spectators and media have long since migrated back to their home countries. The Olympic spirit has gone cold for many, but competition is just heating up for those participating in the Oklahoma Senior State Games.

Opening Saturday and running through Oct. 17, the games allow athletes ages 50 and older to compete in a variety of events including archery, cycling, swimming, basketball, tennis, and track and field. More than 400 competitors are expected to take part.

“We’re very pleased to be able to host these athletes,” said Wendel Whisenhunt, director of Oklahoma City’s Parks and Recreation Department. “These seniors are a testament to the importance of fitness at every age, and embody the can-do spirit we all strive for.”

The Senior State Games may not be as rigorous as the Olympics, but they’re a lot tougher than one might think. Its participants are serious about the competition. John Stroup, a 65-year-old swimmer, will be competing in eight events and hopes to set a state record.

“It’s always good to see everyone each year,” Stroup said. “There’s a social element to the games that I enjoy, but make no mistake about it: I’m here to compete.”

This year’s games will take place at 20-plus venues throughout Oklahoma City. Athletes whose times meet the qualifying standard for national competition in their age category can advance to next year’s National Senior Games in Cleveland.

“There really isn’t any place to compete after you’ve reached a certain age,” said Douglas Paulsen, coordinator of the games. “That’s why this event is so important.”

In addition to plenty of healthy competition, the event also offers the Games Gala, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-themed party from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 12 at the Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive. Tickets are $20.

Whether it’s for the social aspect or the competitive spirit, the Senior State Games gives participants something to look forward to each year. Stroup said he wishes more people knew about it and participated.

“Is it harder at 65 than it was at 45?

Of course,” he said. “But for me this is more than just staying active. I’ve got a lot going. The reason I can do what I can at my age is because fitness is a serious part of my life.”

Story, as printed in the Oklahoma Gazette, by Moose Tyler.

The Miami Heat is leading the NBA Finals over Oklahoma City Thunder, 2-1. Statistics, analysis, and highlights from all three games could be discussed, but only one piece of info is needed to understand why Miami is leading the series.

free' throw': n. Basketball - an unimpeded attempt at a basket (worth one point) awarded to a player following a foul or other infringement.

When you're sitting around some Saturday afternoon watching TV, munching on Cheez-Its, wondering what else there is to do, try playing an old-fashioned game of catch.

An old-fashioned game of catch includes a minimum of two people, each with a softball or baseball glove, throwing a ball of some sorts to one another.

When people think of boxing most conjure images of a heavily-lit ring with two opponents dancing around one another throwing punches until a bell dings and calls them back to their respective corners.

Although roped rings and title fights are part of one type of boxing style, there are many other forms the average person can use to help get them in shape quickly and to give them the skills they need to defend themselves in the real world.