Three American buddies, two Canadian brothers and a couple of Mexican entrepreneurs walk into a fantasy sports trade show…

Fantasy sports bring out peoples’ passion. Roughly half of the people I met in Nashville, at the Fantasy Sports Trade Association (FSTA) winter conference, started their business because they love playing fantasy sports.

Ballers

I met The Footballers, three longtime friends who podcast about fantasy football all year long. There’s no offseason for them. Because they love fantasy football.

I shared a breakfast table with two guys from Mexico who built a daily fantasy service to satisfy Latin Americans’ passion for football — American football and soccer.

I pitched an idea for an eBook dedicated to sucking at fantasy football. My pitch was funny.

The two Canadian brothers who won the pitch contest were funny too, plus they have cool technology that curates all of your fantasy news. Dang those Canadian overachievers.

What do you do when you’re a doctor who’s passionate about fantasy sports? You create a company that projects injury risk for every NFL and NBA player. Here’s Tom Brady’s recent prognosis:

Tom Brady clearly had a lot of success in 2016. One big reason why? The #Patriots' O-line. The group has a "peak" h… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…

—
Inside Injuries (@InsideInjuries) January 24, 2017

Another pitch showed how big data is improving the fantasy experience with customized, SportsCenter-like highlights reels. Check out this version for NASCAR fantasy:

No love for kickers

Speaking of SportsCenter, an ESPN writer provided my favorite stat of the conference: Over 70% of fantasy players think that kickers should be…kicked out of fantasy scoring.

I agree. (Nothing against kickers).

There was free pizza during the conference. And hot dogs. And bottomless bags of my favorite food, popcorn.

I’m passionate about fantasy sports and about writing, so pitching a book idea at the FSTA conference was a golden opportunity.  Throw in a fantasy buffet of endless ballpark food and, well, that definitely does not suck.

I play fantasy football. I’ve played in the same league, with the same group of friends, for 24 years. During that span, I won the league championship once.

That’s a 4% success rate. The other 96% of the time, I’ve been bad.

My team is named the UndaDawgz. A more appropriate name might be the UndaPerformerz, since I finished in dead last place 29% of the time.

This season was going to be different. For starters, I had more time to prepare: 67% of all fantasy sports players have a full-time job. I had no such distraction. Suckers!

The average player spends $9 on fantasy magazines. I had no desire to be merely average. I spent twice that amount.

Advanced scouting

A good fantasy draft strategy is critical. I created a spreadsheet of nearly 250 players that stack-ranked, color-coded and annotated all of my potential draft picks.

Jen and I even attended the real NFL draft in Chicago. Talk about next level preparation.

I had the #11 pick in my fantasy draft. Statistically speaking, #11 is the worst draft position in our league.

How do I know this? Because I analyzed our league’s historical data. I might have too much time on my hands.

I was confident on draft day. My draft headquarters, the couch, were distraction free. I had good snacks.

The first 10 picks proceeded as I expected. My spreadsheet was on point. Then it was my turn.

I chose Le’Veon Bell, star running back for the Steelers. Almost immediately, I started second-guessing my decision.

Bell was suspended for the first four games of the NFL season. He’s a high-impact player, but did I draft him too soon? He wasn’t even going to step onto the field for another month.

As a backup plan for Bell’s suspension, I drafted his backup, DeAngelo Williams, with my fifth pick. More hand wringing and second-guessing. Did I just waste a high pick on a part-time player?

I wasn’t the only one second-guessing my decisions. CBSSportsline gave my final draft a mediocre B-minus grade.

Reality bites

In week one, the backup Williams had a monster game. Unfortunately, the rest of my fantasy team lived down to its B-minus rating. I lost the first game by 12 points.

My second game was against another team that received a B-minus grade. I lost by 16 points.

I made reactive changes. My team reacted by losing in week three by 21 points.

I made more changes. In week four I suffered my worst defeat yet, by 34 points.

It took five more weeks before I finally won a game. By then, all hopes of making the playoffs were gone. I won two games the entire season.

New technology, same results

Fantasy sports have changed significantly in 24 years. When our league began, roughly 3 million people played fantasy sports. Today, it’s 57 million.

We relied on the newspaper for stats and we calculated points by hand. There were no fantasy football websites. We submitted our weekly roster via a landline.

Today, stats are available in real-time and scoring is automated. Nearly 40% of all fantasy players get their information via cell phone.

My (lack of) fantasy success hasn’t changed much over the years. But I keep coming back. Our league began as a tight group of friends living in the same city. Today, we’re flung across the country. Fantasy football is the one remaining thing that we all have in common.

There’s always that tantalizing thought that this could be my year. Historical data suggests that my future fantasy prospects are dim. But who needs data, anyway?

My first time teaching exercise class to seniors, one of my female students announced, “I would do better if there were ass slaps involved.”

Despite lack of training in risqué scenarios, I was able to keep the class on track. Everyone kept their hands to themselves.

Most of the seniors seem to like me. People know me as “the exercise guy,” or occasionally “the dancing man.” Nonetheless, admiration has its limits. I had to bump the start of class from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, to avoid conflicting with The Price is Right.

My class shares a community room with other seniors who are eating their lunch, using the computers or watching TV. So, I arrive early to stake out a spot.

I bring a rolling tub full of exercise equipment and a Bluetooth speaker. I rotate a few different playlists. Kool & the Gang, ABBA and The Commodores are staples of each mix.

As I lead warm-up aerobics to a low-tempo version of “Brick House,” they mirror my movements from an upright or seated position. Each exercise has different versions. For example, a tricep extension exercise has two different base positions – standing or seated – plus several more variations depending on the student’s range of pain-free motion.

The average age of my students is 68. However, this group has endured surgeries and ailments that exceed their biological age. There are walkers, canes, artificial hips, fused necks and metal rods in legs.

And…there’s optimism. In a makeshift exercise room with fake flowers, there’s a sense of determination. There’s no whining or self-pity. The group possesses a quiet, persistent strength. So when a student tells me that her range of movement is improved or her energy level is higher because of my class, that’s an amazing feeling.

The favorite part of class for most students is the exercise ball. It’s a small inflatable that fits in one hand. We imitate familiar movements like dribbling, passing, shooting and bowling — without ever letting go of the ball. I think the ball activities inspire childhood memories.

I conclude each class by commending each student for their commitment to fitness. And I thank them, sincerely, for being there.

One thing you don’t learn while becoming a certified senior fitness instructor: How to choose proper clip art.

The first flyer that I created to promote my senior exercise class was a failure. I used a stock image of smiling, happy, silver-haired men and women of all races. I posted my flyer on bulletin boards at both of the senior apartments where I planned to teach.

The stock photo was indistinguishable from the half-dozen other flyers promoting the Avon lady, life insurance and healthcare providers. In one building, my flyers kept disappearing from the elevator. Very mysterious.

Exactly zero seniors attended my first exercise class.

I worked in the corporate world. I understand that success takes time and patience. But when you can’t even entice one senior citizen – in a building full of them – to show up in the community room for a FREE exercise class? Man, that’s a low feeling.

The Powers of Ten

Fortunately, there are two good books on this topic. Now, neither one of these books is, per se, dedicated to increasing BIS (Butts in Seats) at your senior exercise class. But I gleaned this important wisdom from both authors: If you want to be successful in your field, you gotta work very hard.

According to Malcolm Gladwell’s famous book, Outliers, it takes 10,000 hours of work to become elite in one’s professional field. That’s about 27 years. In The 10X Rule, Grant Cardone encourages readers to amplify their efforts tenfold to achieve true success.

Also, I found this pithy advice in chapter 6 of Cardone’s book to be oddly motivating: “Don’t Be a Little B*tch.”

Bring it on

I took my flyer game up a notch. Screw the boring stock images. I replaced them with bold, colorful clipart. Now, anyone walking past the message board was sure to notice the bright yellow smiley face, hammering out bicep curls while warding off sweat with his sporty red headband. Take that, Avon lady.

I posted my flyers on every floor. I put one in the laundry room, at eye level above the washing machines. I stuck a few in the magazine rack next to the TV in the common room. I even developed a theory on why my flyers were disappearing from the elevators: I suspected a rouge pushpin thief. My counterplan: Scotch tape.

Making gains

It’s been just over a month since I started teaching. A small, dedicated group of regulars attends each class. Several students use a cane or a walker. Many are coping with medical and physical limitations. No one whines.

I’ve seen improvements in some students’ strength and mobility over the past month. It’s an incredibly rewarding feeling. Sometimes a student will approach me and ask for help with a specific exercise or activity. Whenever that happens, I’m motivated to increase my own knowledge so I can be as helpful as possible.

So far, the attendees are all women. A few men have expressed interest; sometimes they stop by to chat or to check out the ladies.

With 2017 fast approaching, I’m planning a “New Year’s Resolution” marketing campaign to boost class enrollment among men and women. Now, I just need to find some really colorful clipart.

I like to mix in some trivia questions while I teach fitness class to seniors. Today would have been Frank Sinatra’s 101^st birthday. That was one of my trivia questions today. Then, I played “My Way” on Spotify. The song brought one of the ladies in class to tears. There will never be another Frank.

Seattle’s pro soccer team, the Sounders, won a championship this weekend. Trivia question #2: Name the Sounders minority owner who’s also a comedian and host of The Price is Right. The 1:00 PM class watches Price is Right together in the TV room, so they nailed Drew Carey as the answer (“He’s so nice.”) The 2:30 PM class whiffed on this question. Like me, the 2:30 group is sentimental for Bob Barker.

I provide strength and balance training to a group of about eight seniors. This group is no joke. They’re coping with serious medical conditions and traumatic surgeries. One lady does bicep curls with her one good arm. Another does aerobics with a metal rod in her leg. And so on.

There’s no complaining in this group. Just a straightforward reciting of medical conditions – fused neck, multiple sclerosis, cancer, etc. – so that we can appropriately modify the exercises.

Today a student told me that she’s finally able to wash her hair without pain, thanks to the exercise regimen she follows during our class. That made me very happy.

She missed the third trivia question of the day (What performer, born on this day, sang “Do You Know the Way to San Jose”?). But that’s just fine. There’s nothing trivial about the work that she – and this entire group of seniors – puts in during every class. I’m truly inspired by them. And that’s my final answer.

I caught my first two Pokemon while attending the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials. Pokemon number one, Charmander, was hanging out in our Airbnb. The second, Goldeen, was right outside the men’s room at the Eugene Airport. I have no idea how Goldeen got past security but, once captured she fit comfortably into my carryon luggage.

After I got home from the Track and Field Olympic Trials, I was fired up to get back in shape. I took the Pokeymon Go app out for a workout. I went with my Dad, who’s in his 70’s and is enviably fit.

The Results

According to Strava, Dad and I walked 2.7 miles in 74 minutes. Our pace was 27:13 per mile. I burned 434 calories.

Now, a 27-minute-per-mile  pace will not get me into the Rio Olympics. I’m compelled to point out that we stopped multiple times to — what else? — catch Pokemon.

Also, walking 2.7 miles won’t break any long distance records, but: That’s how far we got until my cell phone died.

We kept walking after that point but there’s no Strava proof and of course, there were no Pokemon bagged after my iPhone quit. We couldn’t use Dad’s smart phone because, well, he doesn’t own one.

The Analysis

I jumped from level 2 to level 4 in Pokemon Go, which is a personal record. I’m still trailing my best friend’s son, who is on level 9.

Goldeen and Magikarp Pokemon were prevalent along our our route. They are aquatic looking creatures. Our walk strolled along Elliot Bay so, maybe there’s a connection.

We passed my cell phone back and forth so that we could take turns catching Pokemon. Dad is much more accurate with the Pokeball.

We texted photos of our Pokemon encounters to our respective girlfriends and to my brother. No one was impressed.

The Pokestops

I’ve run along this same section of Elliot Bay dozens of times, but in the past I rarely if ever stopped to absorb and learn. Several Pokestops were quite informative, like this one:

The best part of the Pokemon Go workout was spending quality time with my Dad. I know that these times together are finite. And after this experience, Dad’s even thinking about getting a smart phone.

The U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials are a unique experience in sports. The competition is brutally precise. Athletes who finish in the top three of their event make the U.S. Olympic team. Miss the top three, and you’re out.

Take, for example, Brenda Martinez. Brenda was a favorite in the women’s 800M run but finished 7th in a wild, crash-marred race. Her Olympic dreams were temporarily dashed. Six days later, she returned to place third in the 1500M race with a gutsy dive at the finish. She’s going to Rio, and she has the scars to prove it.

Conversely, there’s hurdler Aries Merritt. He won gold in the 2012 London Olympics but shortly thereafter, he suffered health problems which ultimately required a kidney transplant (his sister was the donor). Amazingly, Aries worked his way back in less than a year and competed in the Trials last week. He finished fourth in the 110M hurdle finals by one hundredth of a second. He won’t be going to Rio.

It’s no wonder that the U.S. Olympic Track & Field squad has been called “the world’s toughest team to make.”

Occasionally, even a top 3 finish at the Trials isn’t an automatic ticket to the Olympics. This was the case for the top 3 men in the hammer throw, including Rudy Winkler, a.k.a. Clark Kent. Rudy’s modesty and his glasses begot his nickname. None of the top three hammer throwers achieved the Olympic standard of 77 meters. But after a week of nervous anticipation, they were invited to Rio based on their global ranking.

My first visit to the Trials was four years ago, in 2012. Hayward Field, the historic venue, accommodates more than 20,000 spectators. But even when the stadium is at full capacity, the connection between fans and athletes feels intimate. At Hayward, nearly everyone becomes fully immersed in the competitors’ successes and failures.

Racing meets reality

At this year’s trials, current events comingled with competition. Beneath a Hayward Field flag that flew at half mast, athletes tried to put their Olympic aspirations into context with the spate of tragedies in Minnesota, Louisiana and Dallas.

Kristi Castlin made the Olympic team in the 100M hurdles, then dedicated her performance to survivors of gun violence.

Justin Gatlin won a dramatic 200M race, then gave a moving call  for people to love each other.

Their words were poignant and memorable. Here are a few more unforgettable moments from this year’s U.S. Track & Field Olympic Trials:

Chaunté Lowe’s celebration. Chaunté, a 32-year-old veteran of 3 Olympics, finished first in the women’s high jump and achieved the highest jump in the world this year. Perhaps best of all, her celebration dances were solid gold.

Noah Droddy. Jen and I watched a long-haired, neon-clad dude with a backwards hat finish dead last in the 10K race. Then he got famous. He’s original, funny and totally legit as a runner.

Boris Berian. There are so many reasons to like @borisgump800. He went from McDonald’s employee to U.S. Olympian. He fought Nike and won. And his reaction to making the U.S. Olympic 800M team is genuine joy.

Youth. Sydney McLaughlin earned a spot on the U.S. 400M hurdles Olympic team. She is 16. Vashti Cunningham made the team in the high jump. She’s 18. Noah Lyles and Michael Norman, who both just finished high school, competed in the final of the 200M race. They barely missed making the team but gave a glimpse at two future track stars. 

Experience. My favorite moment was Bernard Lagat, aged 41, coming from behind to win the 1500M race. His victory lap with his kids was priceless.

The trials are over. It’s unknown whether they will return to Hayward Field in 2020. If they do, I hope to be there.

 

 

 

You know it was a good week when you only wore pants once. Long pants, that is, to celebrate the end of our adventure with a semi-fancy dinner in Portland.

The days leading to that particular moment were spent wearing shorts and soaking up sunshine, while exploring amazing things. Towering redwoods, plunging waterfalls and a jaded toad — were all parts to our road trip of a lifetime.

LAX to SEA

Ours was a one-way road trip from Santa Monica to Seattle. Our route followed the famous Highway 101 up the California coast, winding through Big Sur, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge and rolling through redwood country.

Approaching Oregon the route turned inland, rumbling on I-5 to Ashland, pausing for a milkshake in Eugene, then continuing to Portland. And finally, 1,500 miles later, arriving home in Seattle.

Jen flew into LAX at 10:30 AM on a Thursday. I picked her up in the Jeep and we hit the road, heading north for a week-long road trip.

Don’t leave home without a #

Everyone knows that the second-most important thing you need on a road trip is: a hashtag. Our was #1way2sea. Clever, right? Jen came up with it.

Of course, the single-most important thing to bring on a road trip is: country music. As Jen says, “Country music tells a story.” It’s true. A good story makes the miles pass more smoothly.

Our favorite country ditty was “Nobody to Blame” by Chris Stapleton. It’s a cautionary relationship tale for guys, who want to avoid having their whiskey poured down the drain or having sugar poured into their John Deere riding mower.

Our favorite things

Each day of our trip brought something exciting and memorable. Here are a few highlights.

Favorite sight: The redwoods. We stopped multiple times to walk among redwoods while driving through Avenue of the Giants and the Redwood Highway. Each stop was amazing, magnificent and unique. See the redwoods in your lifetime.

Favorite hike: Ewoldsen Trail, Big Sur. This 4.5 mile loop has a bit of everything: redwoods, ocean views and a peek down onto Highway 1 from a fairly precarious ledge.

Favorite wildlife: Elk grazing on the Trillium Falls Loop Trail in Orick, CA. Honorable mention: Seals and banana slugs.

Favorite meal: Jen loved her Wabi Wasabi Pita with chicken at the Lost Coast Brewery in Eureka. My favorite was the Castroville Enchilada at Plaza Linda Mexican Restaurant and Cantina in Carmel.

Favorite bar: The Jaded Toad in Windsor, CA. Grilled cheese, garlic fries, cocktails in mason jars and good tunes.

Favorite accommodation: Jen raved about the historic Ashland Springs Hotel in downtown Ashland, OR. I was a big fan of our tiny Airbnb with an amazing view (see photo above) in Carmel Valley, CA.

Favorite day: Mine was Day 2, Paso Robles to Carmel, featuring: Winding views of Big Sur from Highway 1; gorgeous hikes (see photo above); capped off with dinner at Plaza Linda. Jen’s favorite was Day 4, Windsor to Eureka. We spent this day immersed in Humboldt Redwoods State Park. We finished with dinner at Lost Coast Brewery.

Favorite bipartisan bumper sticker: “Somebody else for president.”

Favorite phrase: “I can definitely smell smelly.” Jen sharing one of her many talents.

Favorite TV show: Jen’s bedtime program of choice was Alaskan Bush People on Discovery. Mine was Life Below Zero on the National Geographic Channel. The Alaska theme of both shows is (oddly) coincidental.

Favorite technology: I liked my Olloclip Active Lens. It enables wide-angle and telephoto pictures using the iPhone (see an example above). Jen appreciated my Garmin Forerunner 15 GPS watch as a navigational aid. If you’re extremely bored, you can check out GPS profiles of our hikes: Ewoldsen Trail; Lithia Park; Trillium Falls.

#1waytosea – In (more) pictures

In closing, here are a few more favorite images from the trip.

If you made it this far, you’re dedicated! The photo gallery below contains additional images (with some duplicates from above) from our road trip.

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