Archive for the ‘Cool Picture’ Category

For the cool price of $975 million — $500 million of which is public money (guuuulp) — the Vikings will play in a shiny new ice palace three years from now. Personally, I think they should have just gone all the way with the straight igloo look, or maybe they could have given a nod to the vintage sugar mountain appeal of the old Metrodome that will be vacated after the 2013 season. Alas, I’m not an architect.

The design of the new yet-to-be named stadium that will be ready in a few years time (the Vikings will temporarily relocate to the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium for two years) was unveiled last night. The new venue seats 65,000, and it comes complete with over 1,200 high definition television screens scattered throughout the concourse, and retractable windows at one end which will open when the climate permits.

Mostly, you’ll notice the glass. Lots and lots of glass…

Pics via Minn Post

There was a notable sporting event held over the weekend which involved many galloping horses. It was the Kentucky Derby, and it’s decadent and depraved.

By now you’ve likely seen the video of Tom Brady’s bro love when he potted a cool $25,000 at the derby after throwing a few sawbucks down on Orb. That’s roughly the equivalent of eight dimes to Brady.

That’s cool and all, and it’s refreshing to see that a man who has his own money printing factory can still be caught up in the jubilance of pony wagering. It makes me feel much less filthy after waking up at the track every morning.

But following the derby, the fine people at NFL.com unearthed a quarterback doing something involving a horse that’s filled with even more awesome. This is Joe Namath, and he’s more man than you…

The caption for this Associated Press image which forever freezes Namath in his manly prime reads as such:

New York Jets football star Joe Namath smokes a cigar, while taking a riding lesson during a break in the shooting of a new film, “The Last Rebel,” a western being shot at Rome’s Cinecitta (Film City) on June 25, 1970.

Namath played “Captain Hollis” in a role that was truly compelling and rich. Since I thought we lived in a world where everything I want can be readily supplied by the Internet, it’s telling that a Youtube search for this classic and presumed masterpiece film produces nothing. Thankfully, some guy on IMDB solves our mystery…

It’s 1865 in Missouri and the Civil War has just ended. Reb soldiers Hollis and Matt flee from Union soldiers that want to imprison them. Hollis then frees a black man named Duncan from a lynching and they become a trio. Later when Holllis wins a lot of money at the pool table and Matt doesn’t get any, the two soldiers become enemies. This leads to a showdown between Hollis and Duncan against Matt and the men he has brought in to get that money.

There are very few things I wouldn’t do to drink alcohol of some kind with Namath.

You may have noticed a bit of a slow down in writing productivity around these parts yesterday afternoon. Oh, on the whole there were still sufficient words to keep you satiated, but a few posts that you’ll see a little later this morning were left in the hopper. Frankly, after the explosions in Boston, I had a hard time caring about football.

We’ll return to your normally scheduled programming today, passing along the regular pre-draft speculation mixed in with the offseason news of April, and how it affects your team, either in reality or fantasy. But yesterday that seemed too trivial after an athletic event was disrupted with a senseless act of violence, and one that received a heroic and immediate response.

There was an NFL connection among those instinctive responders who put themselves in harm’s way by rushing to the scene of chaos.

Joe Andruzzi is a retired offensive lineman who spent seven years in the NFL, playing for the Browns, Patriots, and Packers. He spent the majority of his career in New England, where he spent five seasons, and three of those ended in a championship. He was at the finish line yesterday, which is when this happened…

That’s Andruzzi being one of those complete strangers who helped immediately and instinctively. In a statement, Andruzzi — whose brothers are New York City firefighters — said the reaction was a team effort. No, a community effort…

“Marathon Monday should be about uplifting stories, personal challenges and fundraising milestones, but today’s bombings irrevocably changed that,” the statement said. “While I appreciate the interest in hearing our perspective on today’s horrific events, the spotlight should remain firmly on the countless individuals — first responders, medics, EMTs, runners who crossed the finish line and kept on running straight to give blood, and the countless civilians who did whatever they could to save lives. They were the true heroes. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by this senseless tragedy.”

Jim Harbaugh is currently using the healing power of golf to ease his mind after his Super Bowl loss as he participates in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in a pairing with a San Francisco athlete who didn’t manage to disappoint his city, Giants pitcher Matt Cain. I don’t actually believe in part of the sentence I just wrote, as the perception that golf is a relaxing, soothing game has always baffled me. But that’s maybe because I suck at it so thoroughly, and the days when I could break 80 (no seriously, those days happened) are long in my rear-view.

Somehow I doubt Harbaugh is about to sandbag the field too, because being good at golf requires, you know, golfing, and doing it regularly. The whole business of coaching an NFL team that advanced to the Super Bowl is pretty time consuming.

He’s out there today as the tournament tees off, and he’s having his good walk spoiled by that little devil ball, as Mark Twain once said. But as Will Brinson noted, it seems he only owns one shirt. Or several very similar shirts that are on a strict rotation.

The only difference between the picture on the left below and the one on the right is the presence of a golf club. Oh, and the headset and sharpie on the right.

Whatever, you get it.

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