Friday, January 9, 2015

ROB KONRAD: 'UNBROKEN' OR UNBELIEVABLE?



Almost as soon as Diana Nyad completed her 112-mile swim from Cuba to Florida two years
ago, the marathon swimming community came out in full force and raised doubts about the
64-year-olds journey and whether or not it was legit.

So, when news broke Friday morning that former NFL player Rob Konrad swam nine miles to
shore in Florida after falling off his boat, there were more than enough haters who think there is
something fishy to Konrad's story. For an untrained swimmer to go nine miles in rough, choppy
50-degrees waters in the middle of the night, would fall into the 'superhuman' category.

However, we do know this about the former fullback out of Syracuse and the last player to
wear the famed number 44 at the place where Jim Brown, Floyd Little and Ernie Davis
wore it: the guy is tough, determined, resilient, and smart. Is it possible that he could've
survived nearly 10 hours in shark-infested waters with no food, water, and more than a
touch of hypothermia? Yes.



First accounts of breaking news are often filled with misinformation and exaggerations of the
truth. It happens. Remember all the incorrect facts that came out of Newtown and 9/11? I prefer
to hear from Konrad and get all the facts before rushing to judgment.

Konrad is a clean-cut, intelligent, all-American type who doesn't appear to be the kind of
guy who would make up a story like this. Unless, he is gunning for a reality show and flat-out
misses the limelight he captured at Syracuse and with the Miami Dolphins, I will give him the
benefit of the doubt, I think.

I just find it strange that he would be fishing by himself  when nightfall is just around the
corner. Athletes and former athletes tend to do things with friends or in groups. I mean,
if you caught a huge fish, you'd probably want someone to be there to see it. Maybe I'm
wrong because in this day of selfie-obsession, all it takes is one click of your iPhone and
you have a great story to last a lifetime.




Then there is the distance, nine miles. That is a long, long way for someone who didn't
train for it. I finished a five-mile open water swim in a river after training and there
were people in kayaks with water if you needed it. The swim was a bear. Now, think
about doubling that distance in real cold salt water, with no food or water, at night, with
no compass, and without much training. IT...WOULD...BE...NEXT...TO...IMPOSSIBLE.

Nine miles.

However, we have learned that the mind is a powerful thing, especially from the book
and movie, "Unbroken". Louie Zamperini survived 47 days on a raft with very little
food or water, then was battered and beaten for two years in a prisoner of war camp.


The one thing Zamperini and Kornad have in common is they were elite athletes for
much of their lives. Konrad flourished and survived in the most mentally and physically
demanding sport: football. He had an iron will and the mental toughness to play
in the NFL. He endured physical punishment and trained him mind to overcome
obstacles.

There is a good chance this story is NOT too good to be true and Konrad refused to
be 'unbroken.'  But then again....

Sunday, January 4, 2015

THE LESSONS OF STUART SCOTT



Whether you liked Stuart Scott as a sportscaster is irrelevant. We live in a world where people
judge and make snap decisions about others based on how they look, dress, talk, and act even
though they don't take two minutes to find out for themselves what a person is really like.

It's sad, but that's just how most people in our society operate.

Not everybody liked Scott or his schtick on ESPN. Some people like to get their sports
without the "boo-yeahs", "bams", and pillows that are always cooler on the other side.
There isn't a person who walked this earth or worked in television that's universally adored.
Not even Stuart Scott. Using his own words, he had "his haters".


However, nearly everyone should admire Scott for the path he blazed, the doors he opened,
his passion for his job, love for his daughters, but most of all, we should respect and remember
Scott because he never gave up and refused to quit living as cancer was ravaging his body.

As Tim Robbins' character, Andy Dufrane,  said in Shawshank Redemption, "you can either
get busy living or get busy dying."

That quote came to mind when I saw video of Scott doing mixed martials arts and working
out hard just hours after going through brutal chemotherapy treatments. It would've been
so easy for him to say, "I'm going home to lay on the couch all day", but he didn't.



Instead, Scott put on his workout gear and pounded heavy bags and a sparring partner until
he squeezed every ounce of energy he had in his cancer-ravaged body. He wanted to live as
he was clearly dying. Like Jimmy Valvano before him, Scott never gave up. He never, ever
gave up.

I met Stuart Scott when we were at UNC majoring in Radio, Television, and Movie
Production taking a few of the same courses in 1985. As my friends can tell you, I never
forget a face and I never forgot Scott. He was a different kind of cat. I got into the sports
television industry like Scott and ran into him covering events along the way. Scott always
made like he remembered me even though he probably didn't.


Scott dared to dream and dared to be different. He went against the grain and his style didn't
always sit well with the white-establishment in television. But Scott was a man of conviction
and he believed in himself and his style. Nobody at ESPN will ever forget him.

Life was short before Stuart Scott passed at the age of 49, but for all those who fall in the
same age range, it got a whole lot shorter today. You can be young, on top of your profession,
and living the dream like Scott was, and then boom. Your life begins to fall apart.

Tomorrow is not promised. The death of Scott today really made that hit home. But Scott
showed us that even when you're struggling or worse yet, battling cancer and facing death,
we should keep up the fight and keep living every single day.

Sunday, December 28, 2014

REMEMBERING NEW CANAAN FRIENDS WHO PASSED AWAY IN 2014

Whether you've lived in New Canaan, CT. for a day, month, year, or fifty of them, you'll always
be part of the now ritzy, but always special town in the southwest part of the state. It's a place
where people know everybody and the degrees of separation is far less than six.

In 2014, a few of those people who touched my life, as well as many others in town, passed away
and left us far too soon.

BOB SPALLER. In November, the 1981 graduate of the high school, Spaller, just 52-years-old
was killed in a single-car accident near his home in Massachusetts. Spaller was a gentle and kind
hearted-soul who marched to the beat of his own drummer. He was a salt-of-the-earth type of
man who didn't have any enemies. We were teammates for the Rams on the gridiron, which
made all of us who wore the red and black, brothers forever. I remember him as a player who squeezed every ounce of talent he had and left it all on the field every single game.



ROGER FULTON Fulton passed away in September at the age of 83. He was a staple of
the sports scene during his time in New Canaan and served as the athletic director on
a volunteer basis at the high school. A regal and classy man, Fulton was also the varsity
baseball coach. I moved to New Canaan as a sophomore and had the privilege of playing
for Fulton and being part of a team that advanced to the FCIAC playoffs. His son, Bob,
was the third base coach and the Fulton & Fulton team made quite an impact on all those
who played for them.


JEFF SMITH Smith never lived in New Canaan but as the owner of the Deli Bake on
Elm Street, he was part of the fabric of the community. He looked like the Marlboro
man and had the strength of a lumberjack. Smith, who died at the age of 70, was a
no-nonsense kind of guy who worked at a frenetic pace and non-stop. Smith
teamed up with his father, who was quite a character in his own right, to run the
popular deli in town. I worked for both of them after my senior year in high school
along with two of my friends, Tommy Towers and Rich Connors. We took the famous
sandwiches on the menu to a whole different level, piling them as high as those seen in
New York City. And with the amount of food we ate, I'm sure profits went down, but
Jeff and his dad didn't seem to mind very much, they actually got a kick out of us.


KELLY KRAUSER. I didn't know Kelly personally, but I was friends with other
members of her beautiful and loving family. A 1987 graduate of New Canaan, Kelly
died in December after a lengthy bout with cancer. She left this world far too soon.
Kelly was just 45-years-old.


CAROL "CHICK" LYTTLE. Talk about a well-educated and rounded man. The longtime
New Canaan resident went to Phillips Exeter, Princeton University, and Columbia Law
School. Lyttle was a member of the Congregational Church where he sang in the choir.
Lyttle was the father-in-law of New Canaan legend Steve Tonra. Whenever Tonra needed
a ringer for his paddle ball tournaments, Chick was always ready and willing to fill in, even
when he was well into his 70's. Lyttle was 85 when he passed away in September.


Thursday, December 18, 2014

PAT DEVLIN, DANGER MAN, SET TO ROCK STAMFORD



Veteran musician Pat Devlin, former lead singer of the world renowned, "Danger men" band, is
scheduled to play Friday in Stamford at the Castle Bar on Summer Street.. Devlin will start
pickin' it at 9:30 p.m.

When reached for his reaction to playing before a packed house under the bright lights of
Stamford, USA,  Devlin said, "It's cool. Totally cool. Hope everybody brings everybody they
know."



Devlin got his start  as a 6-year old , getting lessons at Rye Music. However, his career really
took off when his family moved to Lake Forest, Illinois where he became the king of Waveland
Avenue, playing outdoor concerts for the neighborhood that rivaled the ones at nearby Ravinia.

"Yeah, it was totally awesome out there", Devlin said. "I met these really cool dudes like Matt
Parker, Allan Simmons, Steve Gerlach, LT Swisher, Jon Tunney, we called him Tuna, he was
a big guy back then. And there was Andy  Peterson and Dan Jameson, too. Those guys loved
to jam. We'd jam all day and all night and sometimes drink in between," Devlin said with a hearty
laugh.


After two short but fulfilling years in Lake Forest, Devlin and his family moved back East to
New Canaan, CT. Have guitar, will travel and Devlin who took his electric one everywhere he
went, settled in and played with a variety of bands including "The Anchient New Cat Revival,"
"The Hurting Dog" band and the highly-popular "Uh-Oh" group.


Friday night at the Castle Bar in Stamford, Devlin, who listed Jerry Garcia, Neil Young, and
Jimi Hendrix as his musical inspirations,  returns to the stage for what promises to be
a world-class performance. Tickets are going fast. Only a few left on StubHub.com. Show starts
at 9:30 p.m.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014