Sports on Rinsland's Corner

That time in the 1904 Olympics

Fri, 18 Nov 2022 09:12:05 -0600

I ran across this on reddit somewhere a while ago, posted it on FB, and am now posting it here because it needs to be seen.

There’s bizarre history, and then there’s the Marathon at the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis History.

The first place finisher did most of the race in a car. He had intended to drop out, and got a car back to the stadium to get his change of clothes, and just kind of started jogging when he heard the fanfare.
The second place finisher was carried across the finish line, legs technically twitching, by his trainers. They had been refusing him water, and giving him a mixture of Brandy and Rat Poison for the entire race. Doping wasn’t illegal yet (and this was a terrible attempt at it), so he got the gold when the First guy was revealed.
Third finisher was unremarkable, somehow.
Fourth finisher was a Cuban Mailman, who had raised the funds to attend the Olympics by running non-stop around his entire country. He landed in New Orleans, and promptly lost all of the travelling money on a riverboat casino. He ran the race in dress shoes and long trousers (cut off at the knee by a fellow competitor with a knife). He probably would have come in first (well, second, behind the car) had it not been for the hour nap he took on the side of the track after eating rotten apples he found on the side of the race.
9th and 12th finishers were from South Africa, and ran barefoot. South Africa didn’t actually send a delegation – these were students who just happened to be in town and thought it sounded fun. 9th was chased a mile off course by angry dogs. Note: These are the first Africans to compete in any modern Olympic event.
Half the participants had never raced competitively before. Some died.
St. Louis only had one water stop on the entire run. This, coupled with the dusty road, and exacerbated by the cars kicking up dust, lead to the above fatalities. And yet, somehow, Rat Poison guy survived to get the Gold. The one water stop was an intentional design choice and not simply lack of oversight. The director wanted to test his theory on “purposeful dehydration” -during a marathon, on unpaved roads, while it was over 90F outside…
The Russian delegation arrived a week late, because they were still using the Julian calendar. In 1904.

Willful Ignorance

Fri, 07 Feb 2020 07:29:50 -0600

I will never understand the willful and loud ignorance of athletic sports, usually by people immersed in ‘modern geek culture’. If sports aren’t your thing, that’s ok. But to revel in and be proud of it by telling anyone who will listen (especially on Social Media) is straight up stupid, you look like an idiot, and most importantly: nobody cares.

Notes from the Chiefs vs Texans Game

Mon, 13 Jan 2020 08:41:21 -0600

Both teams set a NFL Playoff record with 52 points in the 1st half.
The Chiefs scored 41 unanswered points, first team to do so in the playoffs since the 2002 Jets, and outscored the Texans 28-3 in the second quarter.
Travis Kelce become the first player in NFL history with 3 receiving TDs in a quarter. Damien Williams also ended the game with 3 TDs.
Pat Mahomes threw 4 touchdown passes in a span of 9 minutes. He ended the game with 5 TD passes, 300+ pass yards and 50+ rushing yards (a NFL first).
The Chiefs first 10 offensive possessions went PUNT-PUNT-PUNT-TD-TD-TD-TD-TD-TD-TD.
The Chiefs are the first team to tie or lead at half-time after trailing by 24+ points.
The Chiefs are the first team since the 2010 Packers to score TDs in 6 consecutive drives. They set a new record with 7.
The Chiefs set a franchise record for most points scored in a playoff game. They also scored the most points in a playoff game since the 2009 Cardinals.
The Texans allowed 51 points today, the most ever in franchise history. That was after scoring the most points in the first quarter in team history.
Both teams had 20+ points leads during this game.
Andy Reid is now the only coach in NFL history to be on both sides of a 20+ point playoff comeback.
Arrowhead stadium ran out of fireworks due to the Chiefs offense scoring so much.
With this win, The Chiefs will host the Tennessee Titans next week in the AFC championship game. They are currently on a 4 game losing streak against the Titans.

credit to /u/Palifaith on reddit for compiling the list.

Some Clocks Were Cleaned NFL Week 1

Mon, 09 Sep 2019 11:00:01 -0600

Here are my thoughts as of the end of Sunday, September 9, in regards to the NFL.

Lamar Jackson and the Ravens put on an absolute beat down of the Miami Dolphins, to the point some Dolphins players reportedly contacting their agents and asking to get them out of there. Final score: 59-10.

Patrick Mahomes had an injury scare as he limped around a bit with a potentially sprained ankle, Tyreek Hill got injured, and Sammy Watkins had the game of his career as the KC Chiefs looked really good form against the Jaguars. Who lost Nick Foles to injury, and was replaced by the surprisingly solid rookie Gardner Minshew. Final Score: 40-26