The People's Sports Network | War-torn.com

Archive for August, 2010

A bicycle, pushbike, or bike, is a pedal-driven land vehicle which has two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. They were first introduced in 19th-century Europe and then quickly evolved into its familiar, current design. Numbering over 1,000,000,000 in the world today, bicycles provide the chief means of transportation in many regions and also a popular form of recreational transport in others. The bicycle is amongst the most notable of human inventions. However there is a lot of confusion regarding when and who invented the very first bicycle. According to general belief, the earliest bicycle was a wooden scooter-like contraption named ‘celerifere’ and it was made by Comte Mede de Sivrac of France in about 1790.

An Overview of the Bicycle –

The basic shape and configuration of the frame, wheels, pedals, saddle and handlebars of the bicycle has hardly changed since the first chain-driven model that was developed in around 1885, though many important detail improvements have been made since, especially recently by the use of modern materials and computer-aided design. For example, the conventional design of the saddle or the seat of the bicycle has remained more or less the same. Though there have been experiments with noseless seats, people still prefer the conventional size.

Lights are another important yet ignored factor in bicycles. Even if one does not intend to use ones bicycle during the dark, one must have a precautionary lighting system. Lighting in the bicycle will serve the purpose of seeing others and making yourself visible to others both of which will help in avoiding any possible casualty in the dark.

As far as the frames are concerned, different materials have come to be used. Carbon, aluminum and magnesium are frames which are very popular. Even titanium frames have been promoted but as they are quiet expensive, they are used only by the cream.

Warning: Do Not Practice on Living People

Do not practice these techniques on other people. These techniques can cause serious injury and have a high potential to be lethal. Do not use these techniques unless it is to defend yourself in a serious life or death situation. Also, do not practice these techniques at full speed or power or with real intention on another human being or on any other living thing.
For example, a serious knock out hit to the jaw can shatter the jaw and if the intent of the force or the physical force is driven upward with enough power then the strike can break the small bones of the cheek or and the connecting eye ridge causing such massive trauma that the injured person will die from the shock let alone the trauma.

One of the dangers of learning a true method of 1 Hit Knockouts is that quite often, at first, the practitioner can’t tell how much power they are generating and assume that since they don’t feel much power that they don’t have the hit yet or that they are not generating a knock out hit. However, once true knock out power is learned it is generally easier to do a knock out quality hit than it is not to do one. So, students have to be seriously warned to be careful not to really hit their training partner(s) when practicing. There is, of course, the liability issue but even more than that is the real possibility that someone can get seriously injured because the practitioner doesn’t realize their own power. So, we never hit another person with even a medium hit and certainly not with a fast speed or penetrating strike. We limit our hits to air strikes or striking on boards, bricks, bags and pads and will only demonstrate very limited hits to a person on rare occasions.

When one of my senior students first learned “No Distance” hitting he did not understand how serious these hits really are and consequently he broke 2 different training partners ribs by mistake before he realized he could not even moderately practice on people. Fortunately, he was not hitting any major pressure points or he may have done much more than just crack a rib or two. He honestly didn’t think he was hitting with any power. I have always warned my students about the dangers of these hits but ever since his experience I have always EXTRA stressed the importance of not practicing these hits on people and that is why I am sharing his experience with you.

What is a 1 Hit Knockout:

There are different kinds of knockout hits including but not limited to pressure point hits that require a series or combination of hits to achieve a knockout. This kind of knockout hitting is very popular today in Okinawan and Kenpo Karate. The series combination pressure point method is also the way that I was originally taught to apply the moves in my Kung Fu forms. Kilap Silat is an art that usually hits multiple pressure points all at once with the same strike causing a system overload that causes a knockout. Fa Jing or explosive energy hits emanate from the entire body and tend to be whip like. Most real Tai Chi and Internal Arts instructors know or have a version of Fa Jing in their art. Whole body power striking is typical of the hitting method in Poekilan and Tji-Mande Silat. Some advanced hits include Poison Hands, Shock Power Hitting and Vibrating Palm Hitting. These skills can be found in most Internal Arts but are much less commonly known. Other advanced strikes include 1 Touch Knockouts and short distance knockouts including heavy hand techniques.

A 1 Hit Knockout can be as simple as a finger jab to an eye, a punch to the throat or a light slap to the testicles. A 1 Hit Knockout can be as sophisticated as a light tap underneath the jaw at the correct angle and direction such that the person just drops, a whole body power hit, to snap the arm, that is done in such a way so that the person who receives it goes into shock from the trauma and passes out, or a specialized frontal or side strike that causes the heart to fibrillate and then the blood circulation stops temporarily or permanently causing death. In Kun Tao and Pentjak Silat there is a study of striking the joints to disable an attackers ability to physically move in case the attacker is crazed (or in today’s world on drugs or heavily under the influence of alcohol) so that the attacker is unable to continue. I place this body of information as a priority along with my study, practice and teaching of knockout hitting because I believe that the average attacker on the street is not in their right mind to begin with.

Description of 1 Hit Knockouts:

A properly executed 1 Hit Knockout looks like the person throwing the hit barely did anything. One of the simpler and more advanced 1 Hit methods has been described by one author (Gilbey) as a just a dinky little poke. From watching the film footage I believe that this is the kind of hit that Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) used to hit Sonny Liston. Also, when a 1 Hit Knockout is done correctly the opponent typically falls like a sack of potatoes.

Once a good 1 Hit Technique has been trained in it is common to feel like you aren’t doing anything to make such an enormous impact when delivering the strike. To the person who is executing the strike the hit feels like nothing. To the person receiving the hit it is game over! Several people that I have trained have had to use this technique in a real situation. The vast majority of the time, the result of the strike was that the attacker was instantly knocked out. In one case the student hit the attacker on the arm and the hit was so powerful that it instantly snapped the attackers arm.

Properly trained 1 Touch Knockouts (Tai Chi, Shaolin & Petjut Silat) have an even much less feeling of impact to them than 1 Hit Knockouts and are usually done very quickly. In fact, typically they are done fast enough that the point of impact can not be seen by the average person. When someone really has the 1 Touch technique perfected they usually will not feel any impact at all from delivering the hit. However, when done to a 1 inch thick pine board the effect to the board is shattering.

One inch hitting is similar to that of a highly refined 1 inch punch and tends to have a shattering effect on boards although different kinds of energy can be applied for different effects. A good shock hit can be practiced by holding two boards in your hand and breaking only the second board. On a person the effect can be manifested in different ways including but not limited to the recipient moves or flies 8-12 feet or more or the recipient feels a deeply penetrating hit but is hardly moved at all. A large heavy bag (over 120 lbs.) with someone who knows what they are doing and what they are feeling for holding the other side is a good and safe way to work on manifesting the different kinds of power. Another good way to train one inch hitting power is to break patio blocks with it. I only recommend trying this under the guidance and or supervision of an instructor and I highly recommend easier breaks before advancing to the kinds of breaking I have been describing in this article.

No distance hitting at an intermediate level tends to look like the person doing it shrugged or let go of something very quickly or sneezed. At an advanced level the person doing the hit looks like they barely moved. The recipient feels a jolt go through their body. At a really advanced level the energy of the hit can be directed through the recipients body and sent out through anywhere on the recipients body or it can be made to stop so that serious trauma is caused. Our students mostly practice no distance hitting on boards or on a heavy bag. The first level of this hit can be done on a heavy bag such that when the bag is struck it does not move and the person who is holding the bag gets knocked away from the bag.

In the past I have had friends and students in the construction business and was granted access to a few houses, to practice on, prior to them being torn down. In my practice of no distance hits I have broken doors that were slightly ajar including taking one off of the hinges and by directing my energy I was able to hit a wall and caused a window to break that was over 8 feet away. I am not trying to brag here. One of my primary instructors is Willem de Thouars (Uncle Bill) and his striking ability is much greater than mine. Several other teachers I have studied with are also very impressive pressure point and energy power hitters. In this article I am simply stating what I have personally experienced with this kind of hitting.

In sports, sometimes you need the right outfit and the right gear and accessories to get you in the game. With that reason aside, there is also another purpose for gearing you up with the right outfits and equipment.

There is a science behind every outfit you see matched for every sport. Don’t you wonder why players of basketball, football, or hockey wear a different type of jersey? Sure it helps to tell them apart but the outfits are actually designed based on studies as to which type of clothing will affect the players’ performance. In extreme games such as skateboarding and skating, much is the same. Though you always see the characteristic casual clothing being worn by these extreme players, there is a reason that lies behind their choice of clothing.

The basic outfit of skaters and skateboarders alike are loose clothing. The sport itself can be rigorous and is usually done under the hot sun. Wearing comfortable loose clothing will help you in you performance. Remember, even a hint of being uncomfortable can affect the way you perform in a game. You wouldn’t want that to happen, even if you are just casually playing in a park or some place similar.

To focus more on basic sporting outfits, you can also be picky with the materials used for the type of clothing you wear. Under hot climates, it is better to wear clothing of micro-fiber material rather than cotton blend clothing. This is because the micro-fiber doesn’t absorb wet which can make you feel heavy and weighed down. Micro-fiber clothing helps wick sweat and moisture away keeping you feel lighter and better refreshed. Some prefer clothing that is made from spandex or lycra material. These types of material offer quite a good amount of protection from road rash but don’t protect you much from falls. Another reason why some skaters like spandex or lycra because this can be worn concealed under your loose shorts or pants and thus give you added protection.

However, with sports, it doesn’t end with the discussion of the right outfit. After you have decided on an outfit, you best fit yourself in protective gear. When you look at accessories for skating and skateboarders, you should always look towards the protective gear first. What protective gear should first be considered? Why don’t you start with a good helmet? You don’t see extreme sports gamers doing their stuff without their helmets on, don’t you? Of course not because this is practically the only accessory that protects one of the most vital parts of your body, your head. But you may ask what exactly to look for in a good helmet. What exactly makes a helmet exceptionally good?

When you are looking to buy a helmet, make sure you choose one that was made from a manufacturer reputed for quality products. It is also best that you look for helmets that are certified ASTM F-1492. Take note however, that this is not mandatory by law, ASTM is only voluntary but it helps with added safety and protection. But don’t stop from there because if you find helmets that are also certified by the CPSC bicycle standards, then this is a better choice. When you ultimately decide on a helmet, make sure it has the proper fit and the chin straps are adjusted correctly to your facial and head structure.

Since you are browsing for protective gear, you should also take into consideration the other areas of your body that are prone to contact the hard surfaces of the ground and such areas that are vulnerable for breaking. Wearing elbow, wrist, knee, shin, and ankle guards or pads will basically cover these risky areas. More often than not, being a skater or skateboarder you fall when you are playing or even when you are just practicing a new trick. Your body is not invincible to the surfaces you come in contact with, especially when you’re doing more daring moves. Though these protective guards don’t prevent you from having an accident, they lessen the damage you might incur and prevent you from garnering major injuries.

Sports clothing manufacturers have now incorporated the importance of protection rather than comfort and performance in their design. An example of this creation would be the padded shorts which you can wear as a simple short when you’re out skating. But rather than just feeling comfortable playing your sport, you are given the extra protection at the same time. This is a great solution for most skaters as they won’t have to constantly pad their clothing to feel safe in a game.

Of course, when you want to talk about accessories, there’s one item you shouldn’t miss and that is the belt or accessory bag. Skating and skateboarding require your hands to be free in order for you to fully enjoy the sport. Having a belt or accessory bag on hand keeps you close to your necessities such as mp3 players, mobile phones, and even a bottle of water. But there is an alternative to the belt bag and that is achieved by wearing loose cargo pants. You can wear these pants when you are out skating or skateboarding and the extra pockets it has gives you the necessary space to keep your things in. Just make sure you are not carrying anything too heavy. As skating and skateboarding requires the balance of your body and the dexterity of your legs, it is best you don’t weigh these areas down.

The next time you want to go out to the park or with friends to skate or skateboard, think about what you are wearing. There’s more to sporting outfits than just looking good. It has to protect you from injuries and enhance your performance as well.

A marathon is the ultimate dream for many runners. People who have been running for years and some that have never run a day in their life love the idea of finishing a marathon. There seems to be something magical about the concept of a marathon, almost as if it seems super-human to compete in one or even to complete one.

Have you been pondering the idea of running a marathon for fun or for competition? If so, you must know that it takes months of hard and consistent preparation before the dream can become a reality because a marathon is no walk in the park.

One of the best strategies for making the dream of a marathon possible for you is to find a partner. Talk to your friends and find someone who is willing to begin the journey of marathon training with you. Figure out a way to mesh your schedules so that you can train together, at least on your long runs. You’ve heard it said that ‘no man is an island,’ and that concept it certainly true when it comes to preparing for your first marathon. Most people last a few weeks at best when they have no one to train with and no one to hold them accountable as the training schedule becomes more intense.

Once you’ve found the perfect marathon partner you should also take time to research the best training schedule for your time, needs and running goals. Getting on a specific schedule for marathon training will prevent you from overworking yourself or underworking yourself. It is no easy thing to get your body in shape for a twenty-six mile run, so make it a priority to find a schedule and then stick to it.

Talk to your physician about your dream of running a marathon. It is never a bad idea to check with a healthcare professional for any warnings or advice. See if your physician has any suggestions for ways to supplement your training with adjustments to your eating or sleeping habits. Proper eating and sleeping will only benefit the physical training you do to prepare for the marathon.

Running a marathon is something that many people dream about but far fewer people actually accomplish it. With some careful planning and a lot of dedication you can be one of the few that makes the dream of running a marathon a reality.