Rat City Sports

Even though we all have a tendency to assume that bowling is a fairly modern sport, the truth of the matter is, that the history bowling reveals is varied a lot and it appears to have independently developed in different places around the globe. Even though the people that were participating in bowling didn’t always speak our modern language or wear the same clothes that we did, when it all boiled down to the actual use of a ball that was being rolled in order to knock over the pins that were standing upright, now that is something that many of them would definitely be able to recognize.

Among the very first places that bowling can be traced back to is ancient Egypt. There was a version of the bowling ball and pins that were all sized for a child that was found that was very primitive, that were discovered along with a couple of artifacts that could actually be dated back to thirty two hundred BC deliberately, something that will make all of them well over five thousand years old.

However, this isn’t the only suggestion that have been made referring to the fact that bowling could be quiet ancient. There were some individuals that claimed that the ball and the pins represented a totally different game completely and stated that bowling originated within Germany only about two thousand years ago.

Among the very first mentions of bowling from what we can tell is known to involve one of the English King’s outlawing it because of the fact that all of his troops were bowling instead of participating in their archery practice. So, this would place bowling in England during the thirteen hundreds. However, because of its depictions in literature and art, we can tell that it was legal and popular once again just a very short time later. But this time around, there were some different variations of bowling, which from one country to the next, varied in the number of pins and the size of the balls that were used.

At the time that the very first European settlers came into America, bowling was brought along with them. In America, the very first mention of the term bowling is related to Rip Van Winkle, a very famous story in the Washington Carver that was published during eighteen twelve.

This story reflects the main character meeting men that are strangely dressed which are enjoying the game known as ninepins. As you can tell, this differs a little from the modern game we have, which is known to consist of ten pins, and the story hiding behind the addition of the tenth pin is a very interesting one.

Due to bowling being very popular among gamblers and criminals, bowling as a game suffered from a shady reputation and in several places there were laws passed which actually forbidden the owning of any bowling establishments. In order to get around all of this, there were many establishments that simply decide to add another pin to the bowling set and claimed that they were actually playing a totally different game.

From the outside looking in, you can easily see that the history behind association football, normally known as simple football, is able to be traced all the way back to the traditional football games that were played within Europe in ancient times, specifically Medieval Spain. Whereas on the other hand, the modern game of football has buried its roots within the overall formation of the FA or The Football Association, that took place in England during eighteen sixty three.

There were several different clubs that met within London in order to create some type of universal code, which would allow all of the clubs to have the ability to play one another without the worry about a dispute. It was at this time, that all of the football clubs were played by some of their very own individual rule codes, and the rules for game-day had to all be agreed upon by both teams before they could ever play one another.

Because football as a sport was still thought of as an amateur activity, the football association code was immediate. After some of the working class people started taking part in the sport, the very first professional clubs were then formed, and all of the entrepreneurs saw a very great opportunity to earn money from all of the spectators that were coming to see all of the star players. Once the time came and professionalism took hold, football’s popularity became very immense and it was soon spread by British expatriates throughout the entire world.

A Look into the Football Association

In England, within the early part of the eighteen sixties, there was an increase in the attempts that were made in order to reconcile and unify several football games that were being played within England’s public school. Then in eighteen sixty two, one of several driving forces in place behind the original set of Cambridge Rules, J.C. Thring, also a master at the Uppingham School, took the time to issue his very own set of rules that he referred to as “The Simplest Game”. Later in the early part of the month of October, eighteen sixty three, there was another new revised version that surfaced of the Cambridge Rules which was drawn up by a committee of seven members that represented the former pupils from Shrewsbury, Harrow, Rugby, Eton, Westminster, and Marlborough.

One of the solicitors from Hull, Ebenezer Morley, wrote in the eighteen sixty three newspaper by Bell’s Life, proposing that there should be a governing body in place for the sport of football. It wasn’t long before Morley was able to become the football association’s first secretary which he held the position from eighteen sixty three until eighteen sixty six and then he was moved up to second president from eighteen sixty seven to eighteen seventy four, however he is especially remembered for being the one that drafted the very first Laws of the Game, which took place at his home within Barnes, London, which are played today all over the world.

It is for this reason, that he is not only considered the football association’s father but of association football altogether.

I imagine the conversation went something like this as Tiger called Elin, his supermodel wife.

“Honey, I’m in a playoff tomorrow with Rocco. “Who?” ya know Rocco Mediate. Ive never heard of him but please be home by dinner .

When Tiger Woods goes up against the field there is usually one who hangs in there till the end. The legend was of course started when woods came back to beat Steve Scott to claim his 3^rd straight U.S am, followed by Bob May, and countless others.

This one however, was different. Nobody expected a hobbled David to win this one.

Tiger has been a consistent even money choice against the field his entire pro career. At 5/1 David was a longshot. The only reason he wasn’t 100/1 was the stupidity of the public who actually thought David could walk on a golf course for the 1^st time in months and win the most treacherous event of all.

I am the degenerate sports gambler. I always have “action” Usually I bet the underdog , but I always bet. My choice for the 08 Open championship didn’t make the cut. Although my rooting interest may have been thwarted, this tournament reminded me that I actually do LOVE sports.

I have always been intrigued by “Best of” sports lists. Not only do they spark debate, but as a sports fan I enjoy the “Memorable” events.

As 2008 nears its half-way point I have compiled a list of the most memorable moments so far in 2008. I encourage anyone who disagrees to post a comment with your opinion.

1. New York Giants.. This is easy. the hated patriots were 18-0 and every pundit in america predicted Tom Brady and Co to easily win their 4th super bowl. A win would have catapulted this team to “The greatest team in the history of the N.F.L.  We all know the 1972 dolphins were the only team to go through an entire season undefeated, there mark of 17-0 is regarded as the greatest accomplishment in the history of sports. A New England victory seemed certain, and with the 24 hr ESPN coverage along with other factors the 2007 Patriots would have easily replaced the Dolphins as the “Greatest” team ever. David Tyree made a catch in the Super Bowl that defied logic. The Giants upset was special and is easily the best moment so far of 2008.

2. Big Brown…Just when we thought horse racing was dead this 3 year old male rolled through the Kentucky Derby and Preakness and looked unstoppable. At the Belmont this horse was a 1-5 favorite to become the first triple crown winner in decades. There had not been this much buzz since Secretariat in 1972. Although there have been numerous horses to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown in recent years, no horse appeared to be as unstoppable as Big Brown. But as my favorite ESPN announcer Chris Berman once said, “Games are not played on paper”. Of course Big Brown finished dead last and now will probably retire to stud and lead a life most men could only dream of.

3. NBA FINALS… The only reason this is not higher on the list is that the games were pretty boring. That did not take away the excitement of these rivals back in the finals for the first time in 22 years. Lets hope these marquee franchises stay on top for the next decade

4. Tiger…Ho hum Tiger Woods won his 14th major. Hopefully you spent fathers day watching this incredible athlete on a bum knee making amazing shots, only to whince in pain often. Rocco Mediate did everything he could to dethrone “The Man” but as usual, Woods came out on top.

5. I would have to say that when Joel Russakov was invited to the ESPNZONE for a sports spelling Bee, he was a heavy underdog. When he correctly spelled Angel catcher Mike Napoli to win the first ever Sports Spelling Bee it was an incredible moment. If for ANY reason you missed this incredible moment I invite you to go to YOU-TUBE and view this amazing feat.