Lao New Year Results

So we didn't win a single game... but that's no suprise. The tournament for us was more about showing 'em that we want to compete & improve. We managed not to get shut out, in fact our lowest scoring game was 4 & was by far the worst game I've played in awhile. In all of the other games we scored 7+ & a couple games we were 10+, where we actually put a scare on the opposing team. I feel comfortable at the serving position now & I know I can dish out some good sets. The big thing I need to work on is digging the spikes without sending it back over the net. We just need to brush up on our kicks & be more competitive at the next tournament.

Lao New Year Tournament

In March we finally made our move over the Wat Lao Buddharan Temple. The learning curve is steep & it's a humbling experience going up against people who have played for so many years. A few of the newbs have managed to step up to the challenge, yet some have dropped off since we started kicking at the temple. When I started the training sessions back at MTSU in Nov. 2010 we were getting 6-8 white boys to show up & kick, now that number is down to 3-4. I want the takraw scene here to be competitive, so I suppose that it wound up weeding out a few recreational kickers & that's really fine by me. After footbagging all those years, I grew tired of those casual kickers that show up once a month.

This weekend we will be taking the plunge & competing in our first takraw tournament. It's the Lao New Year's Festival. The majority of the teams are local, but I think we've got a couple coming from Louisville, so I believe that makes 7 or 8 teams total. My only goal is to not have our team be shut out in any of the games. I've been playing takraw on/off for 4 years now - thanks to footbag. The other members of my team have only been playing for 3-6 months, so I've got to give it up to them for signing onto a tournament. I'll have plenty of pic. & video for the next post.

Unstoppable Tour: 30 Sports, 30 Days, 30 Cities

A single athlete's journey across the country & attempts to compete in sports he's never even heard of. http://eas.com/unstoppabletour Is Sam Tickle game for this?

This is where we kick now

Wat Lao Buddharan Temple

Takraw Shoes

Some of you may be wondering, where can I purchase takraw shoes? Well look no further than http://www.kickersrock.net/ 3 people in our group have already bought these shoes & love'em. I had a pair of the traditional Nan Yang shoes that I wore last year when I played. After a couple months my ankles began to hurt, but only when I kicked takraw. So I ordered the speciality shoes from kickersrock, they are much more comfortable & give better support. On the downside, the soles of the shoes are less malleable or flexible than Nan Yang, regardless kickersrock feel better & certainly look better. I don't care who you are it's tough to act like a badass when your sporting some shoes that look like Keds.