A New Decade of Volleyball: 2010

I never did get to write a reflective post on last year's season.  I was glad to recover enough from my abdominal tear to be able to start playing in April.  No travel, though.  Loric moved to Santa Barbara with his family where they are all very happily working and living near a real beach, where, I am happy to say, he can play real beach volleyball!  Last season was very disappointing.  Physically, the previous year of inactivity manifested itself in the physical weakness I displayed on the court.  Worse, the sand volleyball scene in the state seemed to head into a tailspin.  While we were excited for GAV to come into the state, some poorly run and canceled tournaments along with poor efforts to engage players and an explosion in the grass scene created a very weak season.  Still, somehow, I wound up finishing 3rd in the GAV west coast bonus pool and Matt took 4th, bringing bonus checks to each of us.  Not really a fair proposition given the level of play and number of teams in this state compared to those in California.

This year, I have returned to good physical condition following extensive off season training with Russian Kettlebell programs.  While I have a torn meniscus in my knee, the pain has subsided greatly over last year and my leg strength is back to full, equating to having some old explosiveness and vertical jumping ability back.  No travel plans this year, however, and my season will be a short one as I am happy to say that my wife and I are expecting our first child in mid-July!

There has been an effort by local players to revive the sand scene here, and it has led to the formation of the New Mexico Volleyball Underground.  The group aims to create about two well run sand tournaments in the state per month.  With the first event coming up this weekend, there has been a great response with more than 20 teams signed up between the men and women.  If you haven't checked it out already, here is the site:
http://vbunderground.blogspot.com/

The Sandia Mountain Classic will be another great event this year.  It's now a 3 day event May 7-9 and will be held at Sneakerz, with lower divisions in the grass at Montgomery park.  That new website is:
http://www.smvclassic.com

Well, I just got back from a week's vacation in sunny San Diego where I managed to get some games and practice in and am now definitely ready for a new season!  Let the games begin!

9/12: Best Theme Volleyball Tourney Ever this Year!

The NM sand volleyball scene has struggled this summer, with canceled events, low turnouts, broken promises, unhappy players, and, well, you know. Here is a chance to show you still care and want to save the sand volley scene this weekend with a choose your theme event, guaranteed to be the most fun sand event EVER this month! You can come as a pirate (hijack the volley scene), a superhero or lifeguard (rescue the scene), a retro volleyballer (bring back the good old days) or just an ordinary player looking for a good time. What else makes this a fun event?

• All entry fees will be paid out, that day!
• If we get at least ten teams in any gender (m/w/ co-ed?) we will pay out for a lower division as well!
• Everybody is guaranteed lots of play, and the tournament won't drag on needlessly!
• We (Adam & Matt) will buy the first round for ALL PLAYERS - during the event, not next month!
• Got another idea, lets hear it!

Summer is fading away, lets take advantage one more time and show why we want the sand scene to continue on! Here are the details:
What: Mens/ Womens Doubles
When: Saturday, 9/12; 8:30AM check-in, 9:00 start
Where: Sneakerz - the best supporter of sand doubles in the area, with 3 great courts that will have freshly tilled sand for extra comfort.
How Much: $15/ player
Who to contact: Adam Rubel - nmsvbteam@gmail.com
Who is playing: Entries and details listed at: http://desertsandvb.blogspot.com/
Note: If there is a lot of interest, we can run co-ed, or reverse co-ed on Sunday.

Spread the word and tell volleyballer you know to be there!
So gather your gear and get ready for a sick good time!

We need at least 6 teams in a division to run Sat. We will run co-ed on Sunday based on some other teams that are expected.

Saturday - Canceled. Sorry, we tried, just not enough interest


UPDATE: This was a fun tourney, good times.  Thanks for everybody that showed up to play!
Co-ed:
1) Adam Rubel/ Alex Tennison
2) Daniel Pimental/ Kristina Pimental
3) Maddy Novak/ Javier Rodriguez

4) Josh Rodgers/ Anna

Sneakerz Series Final 8/29

Sneakerz has been a long time supporter and major player in the growth of outdoor NM volleyball, especially for sand doubles. This Saturday is the series final for men's doubles. If you haven't been there lately, they have recently erected an awesome court in front of the bar. The sand is hard and fast, great for those players looking for something between grass and beach. While the last few sand tournaments have had a poor turnout, hopefully we can get more teams out this weekend. If you're worried about not getting enough playing in, don't be. All teams are guaranteed both pool play and access to the double elimination tournament, usually with at least one guaranteed match play and consolation bracket games to 25. There is a usually a wide range of competition and the series final is usually a good time for all. Don't pout in the winter because you missed one of the last events of the summer! Drop me an email & sign up for this weekend! $15 or $20 player entry/ 8:30 check-in; 9:00 start. Also, forget 4's, 2's is way more fun!
UPDATE:
It was a rough tournament as the sand at Sneakerz hadn't been turned and was super hard packed. It was hard on players bodies and there were some torn feet and sore joints to show for it. All in all, a good turnout and fun time though. Nice job by Scott and Desi, playing strong all the way through the final. We'll make sure the sand is turned for next time:
1) Desi Vigil/ Scott
2) Adam Rubel/ Matt Valencia
3) Jeff Poole/ Harris Zayee
4) Jimmy/ Bryan Klein
5) Dave Lujan/ Kevin
5) Stanley/Behr
5) Sonny Marquez/ Steve Plante

July 25th Sand Tourney

UPDATE:
It was a fun, albeit hot tournament. There were some last minute partner changes due to injuries. Matt V had to drop out due to a turned ankle (ice hockey in the summer) and Loric's knee was giving him problems from a few weekends on the grass. I wound up teaming up with Matt's partner Ruskin and things went very well. It was unfortunate that Loric and I didn't get to play one final event before he moves to Santa Barbara. We had 7 1/2 teams, until late in the day a surprise player arrived. Jimmy had shown up without a partner and was rotating players throughout the day, when Loric was asked to go out and fill in during our second round playoff match against him. Miraculously Loric had Board Shorts in waiting and decided to give it a go. His knee held up quite well and we had a real fun match, going three games. They went on to ride through the loser bracket to a third place finish. I give props to Jimmy for stepping up his game and playing solid for the tournament. Also, great job by Ruskin who handled a lot of serves and played strong the entire day. Jeff had another amzing finish with Larry, which gives me hope that I also might be able to play for another 40 years. Good times. There is one event left to wrap up the Sneakerz sand series for the year. Here are the results:
1) Ruskin Blankenship/ Adam Rubel
2) Jeff Poole/ Larry Cornwell
3) Jimmy/ Loric Box
4) Desi Vigil/ Harris Zeyaee
5) Bryan Klein/ Cameron Vigil
5) Tyson/ Stuart
7) Aaron Box/ Paul Sanchez
7) Kevin/ Stanley
***
This Saturday is doubles sand tourney, with guys at Sneakerz (8:30 check-in, 9:00 start; $15/ player), where I understand there is a new third court and new sand on all the courts. Women are playing GAV over at Lucky's 66. Well, back to the old ways. Last tourney was canceled, unfortunately, due to poor coordination and a simultaneous grass tourney. I'll go back to listing teams entering for a tourney on this volleyblog. Please let people know to contact me if they would like to be on the list prior to sand events. Seeing who will be turning out usually helps to draw bigger attendance at tourneys.
Summer's going to wind down fast, so let's play 'em while we got 'em!

Summertime Update

Well, it's been a long time since updating this site, sorry for those that have been following. My goal has been to keep up with Bryan's maintaining his website, and I think this post brings us to about even. But thanks, Bryan, I know how hard it can be rounding up volleyball players and running tourneys.

So, Loric and I played the Sandia. It was a fun event, and we won our first match against a good CO team, in windy conditions. Not pretty, but it earned us a spot in the feature match against the top seed. It was a night match at Sneakerz and was lots of fun. I stunk, but I think we were somewhat respectable. Next morning, lost a couple of close games to Paige & Ryan from CO, solid team that we match up with real well and always have fun battles. I had to remind myself to be patient, in that it had only been one month since picking up a ball again prior to that event, and I had only played a few local tourneys for practice.

Speaking of local tourneys, they have gone well. Loric and I have won everything we've played, and a couple of weeks ago I played with Matt V. & we won in the heat. Loric & I were supposed to go play in Vail, but Loric's got too much going on with his move to CA, so we had to drop out late.

Loric and I will get a couple of more tourneys in this month, including this weekend at Sneakerz, before he heads out to Santa Barbara. Might take a trip out there late summer/ early fall and we might get an event in. Sure would be great to be back on the beach.

Physically, my abdomen feels 100% solid and isn't a concern for me anymore. Kettlebells has made me quite strong and is getting me in crazy cardio shape, which I normally hate working on. It's actually quite addicting once you get into it. My knee, however, is a punk. Found out last week that I have a moderate tear in the medial meniscus. Crap, definitely been affecting me, but I can play through it. Going to work with Christy & Reform Spine & Muscle to treat it without surgery. She is a wizard and sounds confident that treatment will help.

OK, I'll try and post more soon, so I can pull ahead of Bryan!

Kicking Into Gear...

Well, four weeks into playing and three tournaments later, so far, so good. Loric and I haven't dropped a game, have had pretty good control, and have 3 tourney wins under our belts. For me, the hardest part has been getting my body to not hold back, and to act more explosively. I felt like I had a few moments in last week's tournament that were like that, able to get more than two inches off the ground and able to react somewhat quickly to pick up a few shots. My abdomen is feeling 100% now. I give a lot of credit to the kettlebell training, as it is my only exercise right now. I've been feeling strong throughout the tourneys, and even started with a bit of jump serving. You know, the fun parts of the game...

So, the good/bad news is that my partner will be leaving the end of the summer. The bad news is of course that Loric is leaving the state and we won't be able to play together out here any more. The good news is that he is heading to Santa Barbara with his family where they have great teaching jobs lined up and will be living near the beach, where the sport is meant to be played. I'm sure we'll get periodic reunions, hopefully surfside.

I'm not sure how I feel about all the sand tourneys for men being on Sundays coming up. It seems the schedule got a bit patchworked this year, with grass/sand happening on different days of the same weekend. Also, with the sand being so rough at Sneakerz, I wish there would be more events at 66 for us between now and mid-August.

In a couple of weeks, the Sandia Mountain Classic is coming up, and there are going to be some rediculously good teams from around the country showing up. My original goal was to get healthy enough to play in the event, and it looks like that will happen. Now I want to be competitive, we will see. Guarenteed to be a good time. They tore up the sand court here in Santa Fe, so I'm not getting any other playing time outside of tournaments, but I might make a trip to Abq. next week for a practice day. After Sandia, the next tournament we'll play is King of the Mountain in Vail in mid-June. We'll have to try and improve on our second place finish a couple years back.

We're Back!

Well after a long road of recovery, I've made it back to the sand. Turns out a 6 inch abdominal muscle tear can be quite debilitating. Lots of rest (many months) and many treatments later, including accupuncture and soft tissue massage/ kinesiotape (thanks to Reform Spin & Injury Center, who was the ones to accurately diagnose the injury after a good 11 months), and physical conditioning (I've been training with a Russian Kettlebell instructor, good stuff) and my body is feeling close to normal, at least for my age. Loric had taken time to recover from a ligament tear in his ankle, which seems to be better as well, as long as he stays on soft, sandy surfaces. We played this weekend for the first time since the Sandia (and my first time playing since last June) with good results. Bryan has done a good job in affiliating with Great American Volleyball and had a solid turnout in spite of cold (50 deg, maybe), rainy weather. We went undefeated on the day and pulled out a 7:00 victory under clearing skies. Was lots of fun. We're hoping to get a few more tourneys in before the Sandia in May, which is shaping up to be another strong event. OK, with my resurrection to the sand comes the return of filling this blog, for anybody that is left out there reading. Let me know what you'd like to hear about, though I have been (thnkfully) relieved of my duties in coordinating events.