A Sports Bridge to Football Season

Today marks the beginning of the 2014 World Cup. And, I'm excited for it! It's the best soccer (futbol) you're going to see at any time...truly great athletes playing a compelling game.

But, the World Cup also marks the start of what I'll call my own "sports bridge to football."

Since I'm not a big baseball or golf fan the June-late August period is often devoid of anything interesting to in the world of sports. But this year there are three things I think will do the trick to get me from now to that magical time of the year called "football season."

Perhaps you may find interest in these events too:

First up is indeed the World Cup - mid-June to mid-July. You can bet I'll be rooting for the USA as my #1 teem to support, but the odds are they won't go far. So, I've picked a few backup teams to root for that might do better. First, England. I've got English heritage, English friends and English players are among the best in the world. After that, I like Chile (fast paced offensive style), Netherlands (just like the country) and Uruguay (liked how they played last time).

Next up is the Tour de France - July. This is a highly compelling event for me. The team aspect, the individual races (overall leader, sprint champ, king of the mountains), scenery, strategy and sheer endurance make this a wonderful athletic event to watch. Has it been marred by doping scandal in the recent past? Yes. But, so has baseball with steroids. Like baseball, cycling has cleaned up its act and what you're seeing is (as far as anyone can tell) legit. And I love it. I'll be watching. I'll be rooting for any American who can get himself into the top 5 overall (TJ Vangardren may be the guy) and some favorites (Sagan for sprint points, Cavendish for sprint finishes, Jens Voigt...he's 40-something and still going strong...and a few others).

As a kicker, I'll be doing the Seattle to Portland (STP) bike ride during the Tour. So, I'll be participating in a cycling event as well as watching one on TV.

Sounders FC - July onward. Yes, more soccer. It's my local MLS club and they feature a great record and stars (Dempsey, Yedlin, Martins, Neagle and Alonzo to name a few). This is a fun club to watch and I think they have a real shot of going far this season. I'll be watching them on TV and also attending a home match Aug. 30 - the same day college football kicks off.

So, that'll be the end of the bridge. I'll be safely across the chasm and into the fat of my own annual sports schedule rooting for my Oregon Ducks and Seattle Seahawks.

And hey, if the Seattle Mariners somehow emerge after June above .500 I may take some interest in them too. I'm on record as being an out-and-out fair weather fan when it comes to the Ms. If or when they are good (not often) I'll take interest.

D-Day Anniversary Post #3: A Common Misconception About the Invasion

Here is my third and final post on this 70th Anniversary of D-Day.

My first post of the day was a "now and then" photo comparison using the historic pictures and ones I took myself when I visited Normandy in 1994. The other is a photo of a few D-Day related items I possess.

One misconception I think many people, particularly in the west, have is that the opening of the western front with the D-Day invasion of France is THE single event that sealed Hitler's fate.

Yes, D-Day and the ensuing liberation of France and other western European nations by US, British and other Allied nations were a monumental and profoundly important in terms of winning the war. They were vital and without them the war would likely have come out much different - and not necessarily in a good way. But, at the same time they weren't the ONLY thing that cast the Allies on the inevitable path of victory over the Nazi regime.

More specifically, Hitler's ego-maniachle invasion of the Soviet Union, subsequent defeat at Moscow and Stalingrad and steady drubbing by the Red Army were equally important to the outcome of the war.

Why? 

Well, by1941, Hitler had conquered  all of western Europe and north Africa while also holding the Soviet Union out of the war with a non-aggression pact he signed with Stalin. This would have left Germany free to pour all its military resources into things like conquering the UK, oil rich areas like Iran and expanding its hold in Africa.

But, Hitler decided to break his non-aggression pact with the USSR and invade its territory - believing his armies could not be defeated and he would put down the Russians before turning to the rest of the world. 

Guess what? His armies were not invincible.

Indeed, after initially conceding a lot of territory to the Germans, the Red Army stiffened to defeat them at Stalingrad and turned the tide of the war in the eastern front. At the cost of millions of lives.

So how does this relate to D-Day?

Primarily it is that by diverting the bulk of his forces to the long and costly invasion of Russia instead of fortifying the west, Hitler left France far more susceptible to invasion. Imagine if the German forces deployed in Russia were instead massed in France and Belgium. Wow. D-Day may have been a disaster.

D-Day Anniversary Post #2: D-Day Items

As a second post in honor of the 70th Anniversary of D-Day, I thought I'd post a picture of some D-Day related items I possess.

Below is the picture and below that a description of the items in it...

D-Day Related Items (C) Marc Osborn

Helmet. In the middle on top of the books is a WWII-era U.S. tankers helmet. It is not vintage from the time, but is a 100% replica. Tankers landing on D-Day would have been wearing one of these. Sadly, most tanks and the men in them did not make it to the beach or much farther because pre-invasion Allied bombardment did not take out the heavy German guns on the beach.

Books. The helmet is sitting on two books by author Steven Ambrose about June 6, 1944. One is simply titled D-Day and gives an account of the invasion, primarily but not all, from the American point of view. The other book is called Pegasus Bridge. It tells the harrowing tale of British glider-borne troops who landed in the early morning hours behind enemy lines to take and hold a key bridge so troops coming in from the sea could move inland.

Rocks and Sand. These are actually from Omaha and Utah Beach respectively. I collected these on my visit to the two beaches in 1994. The taller, skinnier bottle contains sand from Omaha Beach. The other bottle has sand from Utah Beach in it. The rocks are from Omaha Beach.

Pouch and Patch. The pouch is vintage WWII era, although not used on D-Day in Normandy. It held first aid items and could be affixed to a soldier's belt. The patch is the insignia of the U.S. 101st Airborne Division. This division began its legend on D-Day by dropping behind enemy lines at night and proceeding the seaborne assault to capture and hold key towns, bridges and crossroads behind the invasion beaches.

Concrete Chip. This is an actual chip from Hitler's "Atlantic Wall" in Normandy.

D-Day 70th Anniversary Post #1: My Own Now-And-Then Photo Comparison

Today marks the 70th anniversary for for Allied D-Day landings in Normandy, France. Below I've marked the occasion by posting a "then and now" series of photographs. The "then" shots are historic photos taken by war correspondents. The "now" pictures were taken by me in the fall of 1994 when I visited a number of sites where the landings took place, along with other locations around France.

You can see a bigger set of pictures of my visit to D-Day locations from that trip by clicking HERE.

OMAHA BEACH
This was one of two beaches where American forces landed. It's also the place where the fiercest resistance came from the Germans that day, making the beach's unfortunate nickname "bloody Omaha."

First below is a historic shot taken on the day of the invasion by a photographer at the back of one of the landing craft. You can see the soldiers wading ashore into the carnage.

Below that is a picture I took standing at the water's edge on Omaha beach in 1994.

Omaha Beach (C) Marc Osborn

Between the two pictures, you can see how far it was through the water and across the beach to some relative safety of a sea wall and vegetation. You can also see how looming and dangerous the ridge overlooking the beach is. From there, the Germans had a perfect position to shoot down on the Americans. Through their determination, creativity and sheer guts...the U.S. soldiers worked their way up and around the emplacements and slowly, painfully knocked them out over the course of the day. Having paid a high price in lives, however, the US Army took Omaha Beach in one of the most epic days of battle ever.

UTAH BEACH
This was the other major beach where Americans landed. Resistance here was lighter, but by no means non-existent. Ultimately, the Americans took Utah and moved inland earlier than their comrades over at Omaha.

First below is a historic picture showing some U.S. soldiers on Utah Beach as something blows up down by the water's edge at what appears to be a low tide.

The next picture is a shot I took while standing on Utah Beach in 1994 from a similar perspective. The tide is a bit farther in on this one, but you can see the beach looks very similar.

Utah Beach (C) Marc Osborn

POINT DU HOC
Point Du Hoc was where American Rangers landed on a rocky beach, scaled a sheer cliff face and defeated the Germans defending that position. The Rangers' mission was to knock out large guns that resided there and could easily fire down onto Omaha Beach. A monumental task to be sure...and they did it.

The first picture below is a historic picture of Point Du Hoc. You can see the point where the Rangers landed and at the far right of this picture...just where the one rocky point meets up with the rest of the coastline.

The second picture is one I took at Point Du Hoc in 1994. The monument you see towards the right of the picture is where the Rangers crested the bluff as they climbed and fought their way to victory.

Point Du Hoc (C) Marc Osborn

PEGASUS BRIDGE
Before the Americans, British and Canadians landed at their respective beaches, airborne troops from the UK landed in the middle of the night right next to this bridge and took it - securing a passage across a major canal for advancing Allied troops. It is now called "Pegasus Bridge" in honor of the 6th Division of the British Airborne who assaulted the span. Their insignia is of a flying horse or Pegasus.

The first two pictures - a historic one taken after the battle and my picture taken in 1994 - show the bridge from the side of the canal where the British troops landed in their gliders and began the fight to take the bridge.

The following two pictures show where the gliders landed. The historic shot looks from the location of the bridge back at the gliders. My picture from 1994 looks toward the bridge with the landing spots of the gliders off to the right signified with small markers.

Pegasus Bridge (C) Marc Osborn

Pegasus Bridge and Glider Landing Spots (C) Marc Osborn

SAINTE MER EGLISE
This is a town behind the American beaches that U.S. paratroopers took as part of the invasion. The idea was to drop troops behind the beaches to take and secure towns, bridges, causeways and other vital territory so that the invading soldiers from the beach could quickly advance inland. While this is what happened, the paratroops did not all land where they were supposed to. Rather, they were scattered all over the place. However, as a testament to their bravery, training and toughness, groups of them came together here and there to take objectives in the wee hours of the morning and into the day.

Famously, in the confusion a contingent of U.S. paratroops were dropped directly onto the town of Sainte Mer Eglise. Now, the town WAS an objective, but dropping them directly into the town square was not the plan. The result was a lot of fighting immediately in the town, and unfortunately, a number of paratroopers killed before they even hit the ground. If you've ever seen the movie The Longest Day, you know the scene. That actually happened.

One incident in that action was one paratrooper landing on the church steeple and becoming stuck there during the fight below. This is also depicted in the movie. Anyway, because of that, the church in the town is what most people associate with D-Day.

Below is a historic picture of the town church. If you look closely you can see American soldiers creeping up along the low wall in the middle of the picture.

The next picture is one I took of the church when I visited the town in 1994. Because that year was the 50th anniversary of the D-Day landings, there was a full sized dummy dressed as a U.S. paratrooper up on the top of the church, held there by his parachute as it hung on the roof line of the building.

Church in Sainte Mer Eglise (C) Marc Osborn

So there you have it. Some comparison pictures from "then" and, well, kinda "now"...or at least the modern era.

I was profoundly impressed with what I saw on my visit and in awe and thanks to each person who participated in that great invasion that day 70 years ago. Thank you for what you did.


NOTE: All color photos in this post were taken by Marc Osborn. Copyright for this pictures is owned by Marc Osborn and no use of any kind of these images is permitted without the prior written permission of Marc Osborn.

Mod Scooter in Ballard

I like The Who. I like their movie Quadrophenia. I like its exploration of a young person's struggles as viewed through the fashion, social settings and tribulations of the "Mod" culture in Great Britain in the 1960s.

If you know the movie or anything about Mod culture, you know that motor scooters were (are?) their preferred mode of transportation. "Rockers" of the era rode motorcycles. That was too crude, low and rough for the slickster, hipsters of the Mod scene. Nope. They coveted the more elegant Italian scooter.

The movie Quadropheia features the main characters cruising around on such scooters all the time.

Anyway...

...as my wife and I walked down a street in our neighborhood this week, I saw a scooter that reminded me of the movie and Mods. Now, it's not a high end, customized unit. In fact, it was kinda dinged up. But, there was something about its silver finish and how it was rocked back on its stand that caught my eye and reminded me of Quadrophenia. So I took a couple pictures.

Check them out...

(C) Marc Osborn

(C) Marc Osborn

NOTE: Copyright for the pictures in this post are owned by Marc Osborn. No use of either image is permitted for any purpose without prior written permission from Marc Osborn.

Happy 50th Birthday Ford Mustang!

Happy 50th birthday Ford Mustang!

Yep, the good old Mustang turns the big 5-0 today. Perhaps no American car evokes notions of freedom, speed, rebellion and pure road power like the Mustang. It's introduction five decades ago, just as Baby Boomers aged into driving age young adults, ushered in a new era of cars...taking automobiles from forms of transportation (economic or luxury) to an exciting expression of personality, youth and breaking with tradition.

I was too young to experience the first generation of Mustang when they were new. But, by the time I was old enough to think about things like cars, the Mustang instantly stuck out to me as the obvious cool American car. Whether in the movies or driving down the street...when I saw a 1960s Mustang (and in particular a fastback) I thought..."Man, that's is so cool. I want one of those."

So, on this anniversary, below is a quick history of the car followed by a shot of the Mustang I  did eventually buy...

Under the project leadership of Lee Iacocca, in the the middle of 1964 the first model rolled off the assembly line and went on sale to the public. Here's a picture of one of those first versions:

1964 1/2 Ford Mustang

Initially marketed to women drivers as a practical, sporty car, it didn't take long for other demographics (male, young) to become interested given the car's looks and nascent horsepower.

From there, yearly updates and upgrades in the look and power plant turned the attractive, zippy "sports" car into a powerful and very fast "muscle car"...but not just A muscle car, THE muscle car.

A buddy of mine had a metallic green 1966 Mustang coupe during our time in high school (1984-1988), and we had fun working on its engine and roaring around in it. I seem to recall one incident of catching some air one night on a hilly suburban back street. Good times.

 Below are some other Ford Mustangs from the 1960s and early 1970s:

1966 Mustang Fastback

1965 Mustang Coupe

1972 Mustang

1968 Mustang

As you can see, the Mustang evolved into a bigger and bigger vehicle with correspondingly bigger and bigger engine options. 

Other car companies followed suit in the late 60s and a whole class of muscle cars came on the scene during that same era, each year getting faster and sleeker. You know these cars: Chevy Camero and Chevelle, Plymouth Barracuda, Pontiac GTO, Dodge Challenger and others.

But, by the early 1970s things changed. For safety reasons and in reaction to the oil crisis, muscle cars basically went away as Detroit focused on smaller, more fuel efficient cars. During this change, the Mustang brand didn't dispensary, but the car became much smaller, less powerful and used less fuel. While there are some who are loyal to their "second generation" Mustang IIs of the mid/late 1970s, there aren't too many. Perhaps you can tell why from this picture...

Mustang II of the 1970s

The 1980s saw a re-birth of a more powerful Mustang. Updated styling helped sell more units too. While perhaps not as cool as the 1960s models, this "third generation" of the car re-booted the brand in a positive direction.  This version lasted into the early 1990s. Along the way, however, Ford almost discontinued the Mustang in favor of the Ford Probe. All concerned are glad they did not. Here's a Mustang from the tubular times know as the 1980s...

1986 Ford Mustang

In 1993, Ford introduced a "fourth generation" of the Mustang. Looking a bit more like the originals, this version also had increasingly more powerful engine options. All told, it moved the needle further on building a modern Mustang following.  

1998 Form Mustang

And then finally, in 2005, Ford went full retro with the Mustang and introduced the "fifth generation." Taking major styling queues from the famous Mustang fastbacks of the late 60s, these new Mustangs also incorporated big horsepower V8 and V6 engine options (for example, the V6 option has more horsepower than many of the V8s of the 1960s). Throw in GT and Cobra versions and you have some serious horsepower that's as appealing as the look.

Indeed, Ford went all the way to reel in young and old Mustang fans alike - either you were re-visiting your youth with a new version of a car you once had OR you were able to buy a brand new Mustang that was very similar in look to the originals you coveted from the past. I fit the second category in 2006 when I finally bought one. Here it is:

My 2006 Ford Mustang (C) Marc Osborn

Notice how much it looks like the ones from the 1960s? The front end with its overhanging hood, the light assembly, badging, the fastback slope...all taken from the legendary designs. Over the years, I've received comments from quite a few people saying how cool the car is and how Ford "really brought the Mustang back." And it's interesting that the types of people making the comments vary widely. About half have been middle age guys..which you'd expect. But, I've had similar comments ("love your car," "sweet ride," "go Mustang" and similar) from younger guys, women and - in one case - some enthusiastic praise from a car full of young women as I drove along in my home town one evening. 

Did I mention the Mustang is cool?

From 2005 to 2011, the Mustang pretty much looked the same with a few modifications here and there. In 2012 Ford made some more aggressive changes that, while still technically built on the "fifth generation model," moved the design in a more modern, technical direction. I was not thrilled.

And now, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the car, Ford is introducing a "sixth generation" Mustang - one that it has built, for the first time, to meet global standards, tastes and budgets. You know Ford wants to sell this thing all over the world.

This generation furthers the modern styling trend, moving more away from the retro classic look of the fifth generation models. Notice that the rear window is now not separate, a more "jelly bean" shape, headlamps positioned almost on the side of the quarter panels and less pronounced slope to the fastback. To me, it looks more like a typical sporty hatchback than a Ford Mustang. 

But in any case, whatever I feel about this new version, I think the point is that instead of phasing the Mustang out (Probe) or turning it into something unrecognizable (Mustang II), Ford is instead investing in the Mustang as one of its premier vehicles and continuing to include styling queues from its illustrious history. With these moves, it appears the Mustang will be around a long time to come. 

And for all that - the history and the future - I say HAPPY 50th BIRTHDAY FORD MUSTANG!

NOTE: The photo of the black 2006 Mustang in this post was taken by Marc Osborn. Marc Osborn owns the copyright on the image and no use of it for any purpose is permitted without prior written permission from Marc Osborn.

Start of The Masters Renews My Question: Is Golf a Sport?

With The Masters golf tournament kicking off the professional golf "season" this week down in Augusta, Georgia I am once again pondering the question...

Is golf a sport?

I fully understand that most people and the media consider it so, but I wonder why.

Don't get me wrong, golf is REALLY difficult. I know I stink at it. It takes a lot of practice to be even decent at golf, let alone good to great. None the less, I'd suggest it's a game rather than a sport.

Think about it. Unlike unquestioned sports like basketball, football, soccer, baseball, hockey, tennis; in golf no athletic ability nor movement are required. Sure, some golfers are athletic...but it's not necessary by any means to play or be great.

Here is what I mean: In order to play golf, the most physically challenging things you have to do are: 1) swing a club at the tee and one or twice on the green...and while that is a physical movement, it's a finesse move more in line with casting a fishing line or throwing a Frisbee at a target, and 2) walk....unless you're using a cart, in which case don't even do that. So how exactly are golfers performing athletic movements?

Meanwhile, in traditional sports there is massive physical output and the ability to make sudden and agile movements required. Aggressive, sustained athletic exertion is a necessary part of participating those type of sports.

So why even bother thinking about this? Well...I guess for me it's the idea that loads of people say they are playing a "sport" when they are golfing when in fact they are playing a game...like poker, billiards or Monopoly. That is a false sense of ability and an overstatement of what they're doing. Our society puts a lot of value on golf "as a sport" and those who play it are usually thought of as "athletes." As someone who regularly runs, bikes and lifts weights it just annoys me that out of shape guys who smoke, drink and ride around in a cart while playing golf are considered athletes or are participating in a sport.

Hey, is playing golf better than sitting on your ass in front of a TV? You bet. Is it really difficult to learn and play well? For sure. Is it the same as going out and playing basketball, football, soccer or tennis? No...not even close.

You want to play a sport? How about taking a run? Pickup basketball? Bike ride? Flag football? Now you're talking. Golf? No, more like riding around in a car and stepping out 18 times to swing your arms.