Biggest gap between professional & enthusiast?
Discussion
Nom de ploom said:
how can you be "naturally" talented at usung a stick to hit a ceramic sphere into one or more other ceramic spheres with the aim of placing said second ceramic shpere into a bag on a bed of slate?
not very useful for hunting bison that one, I mean you'd need the extended spider for starters....
Well you can have naturally good depth perception, be naturally light handed with a subtle touch or naturally good at seeing the angles. Many subtle natural talents that together work well for playing snooker. not very useful for hunting bison that one, I mean you'd need the extended spider for starters....
Forbes82 said:
Nom de ploom said:
how can you be "naturally" talented at usung a stick to hit a ceramic sphere into one or more other ceramic spheres with the aim of placing said second ceramic shpere into a bag on a bed of slate?
not very useful for hunting bison that one, I mean you'd need the extended spider for starters....
Well you can have naturally good depth perception, be naturally light handed with a subtle touch or naturally good at seeing the angles. Many subtle natural talents that together work well for playing snooker. not very useful for hunting bison that one, I mean you'd need the extended spider for starters....
Forbes82 said:
Maybe basketball? How many normal people are realistically going to score against a team of 7ft + pros. Average NBA height is 6ft7, and a fair few tower many inches over 7ft.
I'd agree for different reasons - I play at local league level but my club has guys playing at National Level too. Even at local level the size is there - I am 6ft6 and thats about the norm for the NBA. Most teams dont have lots of 7ft players in the NBA and plenty of guys close to that (or above) crop up in all teams down to local level. Sure, there are more bigs in the NBA but its not just size.What makes the difference is that basketball is a combination of athletics and skill. You cant (nowadays) be one or the other. Someone like LeBron James (6ft8 260+lbs) is probably the most perfect sporting athlete ever seen. It's something that only comes from years of developing skill, athleticism onto a perfect physic for the sport.
In contrast, someone mentioned rowing - I rowed sub 6m for 2k on an ergo as a teenager having only used one a few times.....I rate it as hard (to train for), but not difficult.
Forbes82 said:
Maybe basketball? How many normal people are realistically going to score against a team of 7ft + pros. Average NBA height is 6ft7, and a fair few tower many inches over 7ft.
I like how you think tall=good, the tallest players have terrible stamina, terrible athleticism and very low levels of skill compared to say, a shooting guard.Obviously in a 48min game an amateur team would get stuffed, but I wouldn't go as far as to say they couldn't store a fair few baskets
superkartracer said:
Was going to be my suggestion, or MMA, good luck trying to land a punch on one of those boys!Pete102 said:
Happy82 said:
Agree with this, I'd leave on a stretcher if I tried to play at pro level 
Unlike other sports, you need the ability to skate to start with, and then the ability to handle the puck, and then to be able to put the two together. I started a few years back thinking I was a good enough skater to play and it was a huge learning curve! The agility of some of the recreational players is unbelievable, but even the better ones look like bambi on ice compared to the pro-level
Glad you agree Happy, I started out very young (10 or 11 IIRC) plied my trade at junior level, played conference (midlands) and had the obligatory GB trials etc. It wasn't until last year when I had a 2 week trial with Hull Stingrays and played a couple of Elite league pre-season friendlies that I got a taste for it - big big step up, but a brilliant experience playing in front of a few thousand. Unlike other sports, you need the ability to skate to start with, and then the ability to handle the puck, and then to be able to put the two together. I started a few years back thinking I was a good enough skater to play and it was a huge learning curve! The agility of some of the recreational players is unbelievable, but even the better ones look like bambi on ice compared to the pro-level I've had to stop playing as quite frankly my day job pays considerably more and I'm half way through a degree, however, I am tempted to go back and play recreational hockey for a giggle and no stress - although I do like to drop the mitts every now and again!
Rec level is good fun! There's a mix of full and non-checking sides so a choice for everyone, although I'm sure there's more fighting in rec than pro level
gmh23 said:
Forbes82 said:
Maybe basketball? How many normal people are realistically going to score against a team of 7ft + pros. Average NBA height is 6ft7, and a fair few tower many inches over 7ft.
I like how you think tall=good, the tallest players have terrible stamina, terrible athleticism and very low levels of skill compared to say, a shooting guard.Obviously in a 48min game an amateur team would get stuffed, but I wouldn't go as far as to say they couldn't store a fair few baskets
And the best 2 guards are still 6'6.
Any sport that requires a combo of skill, athletic ability and suited body type is going to have the biggest gulf between pro and weekend warrior.
Joe blogs can hit a hole in one, anyone can (with enough attempts) kick overhead shot into a goal.....but there are some sports where the feats are simply not possible by "normal" people, no matter how much they try.
Animal said:
Tiggsy said:
Joe blogs can hit a hole in one, anyone can (with enough attempts) kick overhead shot into a goal.....but there are some sports where the feats are simply not possible by "normal" people, no matter how much they try.
Tell that to Spud Webb!He averaged less than 10 points a game his career - he wasnt a "great" pro - just short.
Tiggsy said:
What makes the difference is that basketball is a combination of athletics and skill. You cant (nowadays) be one or the other. Someone like LeBron James (6ft8 260+lbs) is probably the most perfect sporting athlete ever seen. It's something that only comes from years of developing skill, athleticism onto a perfect physic for the sport.
Funny you should mention him. I went to see Miami Heat on Friday night and this guy was incredible. I dont know much about basketball, but it was clear to me that LeBron was clearly in a legue of his own well above everyone else. An Awesome athlete.in fact, just found this on youtube from Fridays game.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RQ0OTuGyhc
Obiwonkeyblokey said:
Funny you should mention him. I went to see Miami Heat on Friday night and this guy was incredible. I dont know much about basketball, but it was clear to me that LeBron was clearly in a legue of his own well above everyone else. An Awesome athlete.
Indeed - people have no idea how huge he is (couple of inches and god knows how many lbs over Peter Crouch for example) yet he sprints like a track runner and jumps out of the gym. There's a misconception that if you are tall you can do what they do - trust me, getting your head by the rim when you weigh 260+ and have been running all night is a freak achievement no matter what your inside leg (which is why Nike gave him $90m out of High School before he played a pro game!)Any sport where you have to tick a large number of "boxes" to be the elite will widen the gulf between pro and non-pro. Size (be it big or small) is another box to tick. I expect pro-summo is a toughy!
Tiggsy said:
Do what? Blake griffin, d Howard, garnet, gasol, etc, etc. NBA is full of guys pushing 7ft that have staggering levels if strength/ co ordination/ agility.
And the best 2 guards are still 6'6.
Griffin is under 7ft, and has incredible talent for a guy his size, theres no-one the same size or bigger with the same athleticism.And the best 2 guards are still 6'6.
Howard, again under 7ft, huge explosive power but he lacks in a lot of areas
Garnett, once again under 7ft (you really should do some research) I wouldn't say he had "staggering" levels of anything
Gasol, well done you found someone who's 7ft (just), but his athleticism is awful and his agility is truly terrible.
oh, and Derrick Rose (reining MVP) is only 6'3", Wade is 6'4" etc etc. Only ones over 6'6" are a few shooting guards, who also play as forwards
Tiggsy said:
I wasnt saying they were 7ft - just that they are VERY tall people with (by any standard) not "terrible" anything!
For a non-baller it would be easy to get the impression from your first post that the bigs are lumbering, gangly, muppets always out off breath!
The point I was trying to make was that taller does not equal better. For a non-baller it would be easy to get the impression from your first post that the bigs are lumbering, gangly, muppets always out off breath!
Tiggsy said:
Derek Chevalier said:
Tiggsy said:
In contrast, someone mentioned rowing - I rowed sub 6m for 2k on an ergo as a teenager having only used one a few times.....I rate it as hard (to train for), but not difficult.
How much did you weigh at the time?gmh23 said:
Tiggsy said:
I wasnt saying they were 7ft - just that they are VERY tall people with (by any standard) not "terrible" anything!
For a non-baller it would be easy to get the impression from your first post that the bigs are lumbering, gangly, muppets always out off breath!
The point I was trying to make was that taller does not equal better. For a non-baller it would be easy to get the impression from your first post that the bigs are lumbering, gangly, muppets always out off breath!
Gassing Station | Sports | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff