A very eventful two weeks in sports

It's been almost two weeks since my last column. There are a few reasons for my brief sabbatical.

No, it isn't because the Havre Daily is trying to conserve paper.

No, it isn't because in my last column, I wrote about living in my parent's basement and I was hiding in shame or looking for an apartment. I know no shame and where else would I hide besides my parent's basement.

The real reason for the absence is the amount of sports coverage that needed to go in the paper on Fridays.

With tennis and track in their postseason stretches, the Northstars and Comets' seasons beginning and the NBA playoffs in full swing, those things took precedence over my weekly diatribes concerning how my life somehow revolves around the world of sports.

It certainly wasn't because of a shortage of things to write about. On the contrary, there were a passel, a plethora - okay, I've put down the thesaurus - there were plenty of things to write about.

At the Class A and C track meet alone I witnessed plenty to write about.

I watched a 140-pound kid run much faster than a 140-pound kid should.

It was not long ago, that I was umpiring, my neighbor Stevie Heberly's B-League baseball games. Did I know back then that he would run a 10.74 100-meter dash? Of course, but I also thought I would be playing in the major leagues and married to Helen Hunt.

Do you realize how fast 10.74 seconds is? About the time it took to read these two sentences. If there are 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour and 24 hours in a day, that means that Steve could have run the 100 1,234,456 times during my two week break.

I watched a sprinter from Belgrade, who is not only faster than me, but could also pound me into a bloody pulp. Did I mention that SHE is on only a junior? Kalindra McFadden is not only fast, but big. I would look like an ewok if I stood next to her.

I watched a school so small that it's name has two letters in it, continue its unprecedented dominance in Class C boys track by winning its fifth- straight championship game. There are Class C track teams and then there are the KG boys. Every year that you think they will be challenged, they simply outwork and outrace opponents.

I watched the epitome of a student-athlete overcome not only injuries, but her own fears to win her third-straight Class C state title in the javelin. Even though journalists are supposed to be unbiased, you can't help but cheer for someone like Kim Berg. To overcome one serious injury commands respect, but overcoming two that's commands applause.

I watched the Havre High girls track build a solid foundation for a very bright future in the coming years. The girls 400 relay team was dominant and three of the four components return next year. Rylee O'Connell, Alicia Overcast and Kelsey Smith will be forces next year in Class A girls track.

But there was more than just track in the past two weeks. I could have written about the Havre High boys tennis team's walk through the divisional and state tournaments.

It was as if the HHS boys were instructors giving out tennis lessons for free. Four state titles and a solid nucleus returning, Class A opponents should sign up for lessons now, so they don't receive any during next tennis season.

There were plenty of national sports events that I could have written about as well. Let's see in the two weeks, we had a woman play on the PGA tour, the Los Angeles Lakers' title hopes end and Dave Dickenson return to the CFL.

Yes, Annika Sorenstam played on the PGA tour, and no the apocalypse didn't come. Dogs and cats aren't living together and republicans and democrats still can't agree on much and the foundations of golf weren't destroyed. It's still for the most part a rich, white, elitist game that frustrates the hell out of me whenever I play. The only thing that changed is a newfound respect for the LPGA's top golfer.

Sorenstam played well, she didn't play great and she missed the cut finishing 5-over-par for the tournament. She still finished tied for 96th, which meant she beat 11 other male golfers. It's too bad Vijay Singh wasn't of them. Annika didn't need to just beat Vijay on the golf course, but she also should have beat him with her nine-iron.

Let's be real honest here, the reason that men on the tour were against Annika playing on their tour is because they didn't want to lose to her.

It's something that gets ingrained in young boys heads. "You play ball like a girl." "She can't play, she's a girl." "You just lost to a girl."

Guys are brainwashed into this idea that you can't lose to a girl in anything except for cooking, sewing and baking. That thinking is slowly disappearing in most plays except for Augusta Country Club. I stopped thinking that way after former Skylight Sheila Green scored every point in a pick-up hoops game to 15 on me when I was in high school.

What we fail to realize as men is that we lose to women all the time, when was the last time a man has ever won an argument with a woman?

As for the Lakers, it just goes to show that having Shaq and Kobe still doesn't make up for the fact that your next best players are Derek Fisher and Devean George. It may sound mean, but there was no better site than seeing Kobe sob like a third-grader on the Laker bench as the Spurs were celebrating.

Dickenson signing with the CFL's B.C. Lions was disappointing because if he were ever given a chance in the NFL, he would excel. But he wasn't and that's just number 1,345 on my list of reasons I can't stand the NFL. It's right behind Jerry Jones and just ahead of Kurt Warner's wife.

There was still more stuff, I could have written about like the NHL. Okay, maybe I couldn't have written about hockey. I do have a question, "Is the season just beginning or coming to an end?" From my observation, I don't think the NHL season ever really ends. It's just keeps going on forever without a break like a Walker, Texas Ranger.

It's been an interesting two weeks with plenty of sports to write about. Unfortunately sports, local sports in particular, slow down a little for the next few weeks. I should still have enough to write about, there's baseball, Tiger Woods and the NBA finals. And if that doesn't work I can always write about living in my parents basement.