Just dropping by - this place sees a lot of action, aye?

[daves336]

hey, i posted here before, you may remember me as the sports fan that wasn't a massive dick.

Anyway, I noticed the forum hasn't had much activity of late so I have decided to post

I also noticed some people are confused about what is classes as sport or "jock" team sports. Well, working out in a gym, running, swimming and riding horses are all technically classed as sports. Although you may be doing them for leisure or to keep fit, you are still "playing" them. They aren't competitive sports in the same way football, rugby ect are.., but they are sports.

And the whole stereotype that any sport played as part of a team makes it "jock" is rubbish to me. I play football every week with my friends and none of them could be described as "jocks" nor were they the "popular" kids at school. Without putting them down, they could easily be described as geeks (they wouldn't mind, Im more or less the same). The point is, a few of them have excelled in football and rugby, but aren't jock types at all.

In fact, of all the people I know who are on the county running teams and in the best football teams are jock-types in that they hold the alpha persona and were popular but none of them have been known to bully or make fun of others. Maybe this is just me, in my school the geeks and the jocks got on better than you'd think.

As someone who has been a part of both the "popular" and "secluded geek" groups in the space of five years (on and off) I can say sports plays no part in the bullying of others.

When people laugh at others failing, it is because of their personality. Yes, sports can encourage it, but although some fans are morons and some players are dicks, it shouldn't have any bearing on the basics: sports is played for fitness and fun! If you didn't have the best time in PE with the jocks, try it with your friends, ya know?

As a football fanatic, who used to hate sports, I can say I love the game; playing it, watching it, talking about it, writing about it - you name it, and although it upsets me that bullying happens I blame the people not the sport.

I play sports regularly, and I can say I have never made fun of someone. You guys should try and focus on the sports themselves- imagine them as an active real-life board game? The controversies that surround sports have no bearing on the games themselves. Football - players getting payed millions, having affairs, car crashes - yes true- but you could say the same of film stars and tv stars.

I hate it when people say "how can you respect John Terry after he cheats on his wife?" I say "I respect him as an athlete, a leader and a footballer- not for what he does outside of the sport".

If bullying and fan behavior are the primary reasons for your hatred of sport, then you need to view Sports on a wider spectrum, no?

proof it's only certain people that bully- I attended training at a football team for the first time yesterday- i arrived with my un-short hair and torn tracksuits bottoms, didn't play all that well but after my first mistake (which no one cared about - I got a "chin-up" call") I got on with it, grew in confidence and was asked to return. Just get on with it, guys.

Anyway, it's getting late and the rugby world cup is on tomorrow morning! Sorry for rambling.

[recovering_fan]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for dropping by. Things have been very slow recently.

And the whole stereotype that any sport played as part of a team makes it "jock" is rubbish to me.

At my high school, team sports (as opposed to cross-country) definitely led to a more arrogant culture. The reason was, other students enjoyed watching the team sports, whereas no one attended cross-country meets. The fact that soccer players at my school had fans made those soccer players far more conceited about their sport's importance, relative to cross-country runners who competed mainly for their own sense of accomplishment, rather than for popularity.

I think that if track had been the most popular spectator sport, then track stars could have been the ones to become conceited. However, at my school, that wasn't the case. Popular kids played soccer, while running mainly attracted outsider-individualist types.

[daves336]

Hello.

In my school it was never a case of popular kids did this and other guys did that. We all played sport - the "nerds" played Cricket more I guess, everyone played football and rounders and if someone didn't want to partake, the PE teachers accepted that in the end.

I loved sports but hated PE. So rather than skive or get a note I just said "I dont want to take part". They couldn't punish me because missing PE didn't count as work avoidance because I attended. I remember once, one of the teachers was so tired of me not doing anything she said "Dont give him a detention, I dont even want to see him again, let him go".

That was in 2008. I remember it well because I found it so hilarious.

[HugeFanOfBadReligion]

Hello daves336, something I've noticed a lot on this site is that people's experiences differ based on when and where they are from. At the schools that some people on this site attended, there may be a lot of bullies who are part of their school's sports teams, and sometimes abusive gym teachers (some notable examples of this are some of Fat Man's gym teachers). At other schools that other members on this site have attended, the athletes and the nerds get along just fine. The difference between these two experiences that the members faced at school is often a major factor in the person's opinion on this site. However I can say for certain that sports often played an important role in some bad experiences that I've either faced myself or witnessed. I don't blame sports entirely on them, and I don't wish for sports to be abolished; I don't hate sports. But I do believe that the bullying that is sometimes involved in sports needs to be recognized by the athletic community in order for the bullying to decrease.

I'm quite tired right now, and spent an entire day doing homework, so my ability to make coherent posts has likely been decreased greatly, so don't be surprised if my post didn't make that much sense. I'll likely look back at this post tomorrow when I'm more awake and regret writing it, but I'll post it anyway because I felt the need to post in this thread.

[Earl]

No sweat (pun not intended), HugeFan. Your post is excellent.

Greetings, daves336. I apologize for posting so late. Two days ago I attempted to compose an introductory post for you; but either my wife's PC wasn't working, or (more likely) the programming for this forum kicked me out of the website. This happened several times, and then I ran out of time.

hey, i posted here before, you may remember me as the sports fan that wasn't a massive dick.

I deeply appreciate your civility.

Anyway, I noticed the forum hasn't had much activity of late so I have decided to post

I get bored doing nothing in this forum aside from banning spammers and deleting their spam. So, I thank you in advance for your contribution.

Before I say anything else, I'd like to clear up a possible misunderstanding. None of us here (well, at least most of us) would even dream of robbing you or anyone else of their legitimate enjoyment of one or more of the sports, either as a spectator or as a participant. We're just a few guys (well, a few guys and at least one gal from time to time) chatting online who don't pose a threat to anyone. The logo "DEDICATED TO THE ERADICATION OF SPORTS" is just hype. That's all it is. There is no conspiracy here. There's no mass movement. There's only a few people who have been alienated by the sports culture.

I'm not going to make a complete response in a single post. There's just not enough time for me in a single sitting. Also, I worry about being kicked out of the website again. I will submit more than one post as I read through your own posted comments. So, bear with me.

First of all, I'd like to express a particular point of view. I believe there is a culture associated with each sport that is not intrinsic to the sport -- which means that, like other cultures, it can be changed (although such change can be expected to take a long time to occur). There's a particular reason why this point of view is so appealing to me: I'm convinced that both sports fans and sports "haters" make a big mistake by not distinguishing between the game and the culture that is associated with it. For example, whenever they get upset over any criticism of the culture or the misconduct of an individual athlete of the sport in question, fans of that particular sport seem to feel that the game is being attacked by the sports critic when that is not true at all. Most critics of the sports culture realize that a ball game or any other sort of athletic contest is morally neutral. Particular aspects of the culture, on the other hand, definitely are not morally neutral.

I also noticed some people are confused about what is classes as sport or "jock" team sports. Well, working out in a gym, running, swimming and riding horses are all technically classed as sports. Although you may be doing them for leisure or to keep fit, you are still "playing" them. They aren't competitive sports in the same way football, rugby ect are.., but they are sports.

I disagree here. I define a sport as being a physical activity involving competition between two teams or individuals. I don't define working out in a gym as a "sport." Incidentally, I myself happen to work out at a gym. Several years ago as a middle-aged man, I joined a local health club and hired a personal trainer to instruct me in bodybuilding. I've made a permanent commitment to pursue bodybuilding until I attain a level of muscular development that will give me satisfaction; and, of course, once I've reached that point (Lord willing), I will continue to work out for the purpose of maintaining my attained level of muscular development as long as my health permits. I already have muscular development that I've never enjoyed before. (To think that I didn't have hard chest muscles until I was 61 years old! )

I define an exercise program as being a physical activity in which the participant is not competing against other guys, but is improving himself. As far as I'm concerned, bodybuilding is an exercise program, not a sport. (As far as posing contests are concerned, even if I developed my physique to such a degree, I wouldn't participate in any of those because of my religious scruples; but that's beside the point. Simply building up one's physique for the sake of his health or to feel better about himself or both does not involve any competition with another guy or guys; so, therefore, it's not a sport.)

I'm building up my physique to feel better about myself. I'm now gaining self-confidence I never had before. Someone should have introduced me to bodybuilding when I was a teenager. It would have made a great difference in my life. I'm not on some kind of stupid "macho" trip. I couldn't care less what other guys do or don't do with their bodies because that's their own business, not mine. Furthermore, I don't go around casting aspersions upon scrawny guys or fat guys, questioning their manhood or doing something similar that is equally stupid. Even if I become as strong as a bull, I will continue to remember that there are guys who are physically weaker than I, but are more courageous than I or more intelligent than I or more spiritual than I. In other words, I will maintain an attitude of humility, which I often see lacking in competitive team sports.

Okay. That's more than enough for now. Look at it this way: I give you a lot to read so you'll have something to occupy your time. You can also flatter yourself knowing that I'm willing to devote this much time writing to you, which means that I've only just begun to say what's on my mind. (Oh, no!) We care enough about you so that we won't just throw you a few sentences and then say no more. I'll have more to say in another post ...

So, in the meantime, I say adieu (until my next post, that is). Have a good day and all that jazz.

[Ex fan]

Hi, there is nothing wrong with riding a horse, running, working out, doing a martial art, and most people on here would accept these solo pastimes are good for you, but what hacks a lot of us off is the culture of team sports, where winning is everything and the unathletic kid who is forced to play them like I was is constantly berated for being no good. Also the greed, corruption and sheep like attitude of the fans hacks a lot of us off. I have no problem with an individual pursuit where often there is little financial gain, which is why I enjoy the olympics so much, but some huge corporate sponsored football match where the players make hundreds of thousands a week and the fans think these guys are gods make me sick.