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.

Out for the Year

Well, it's been the worse year personally for trying to play volleyball that I have ever had. First a knee injury at the start of the season, then some abdominal problems since April. Turns out to be a significant enough injury that is only going to heal with rest and time away from intensive physical activity. So, looks like I'm out of everything - playing, training, yardwork - for about six months, which means hopefully things will heal up so I can start working back into some kind of shape around February. As I'm going to be out of the loop and my future in New Mexico is uncertain, this site is going on hiatus and will not serve as an updated resource for volleyball information, at least for now. Mike McKracken will be taking over the email list, and I am sure will do a great job at keeping the 400+ volleyballers on it informed of all that is happening related to the sport in the state. Bryan Klein will be taking over the sand tourneys. His info is: vballnm@gmail.com and he has a blog, kinda like this that he is maintaining tourney info on at: vballnewmexico.blogspot.com

Thank you all for the good times and for helping to grow the sport in New Mexico!

July 12th Sneakerz Tourney

Lemme know if you wanna sign up. If we don't get a full list of teams, maybe we should switch over to some other KoB or draw type of format??? Anyhow, same deal as last time, see below. Here's teams so far:
1) Bryan Klein/ Adam Rubel
2) Matt the Rex Valencia/ Adam Cabbage
3) Larry Cornwell/ Desi Vigil
4) Bryan Atwood / Derrick Robinson
5) Cameron Vigil/Harris Zeyaee
6) Paul Sanchez/ Ray Garcia

Sneakerz Tournament June 28th

Next Sand Doubles tourney is at Sneakerz, June 28th. Looks like we will have some out of town players. Drop me an email for this one if you want to sign up. Here's the teams so far:
1) Loric Box/ Adam Rubel
2) Chris Roosild/ Brian Post
3) Drew Winterstein / Jeff Dumbrell
4) Matt Valencia/ Adam Cabbage
5) Rob Pierce / Jorge Alarcon
6) Harris Zeyaee/ Asa Warren
7) Fred Ader/ BenWallis
8) Bryan Klein/ TBD
9) Mike McKracken/ TBD
10) Paul Sanchez/ Ray Garcia
11) Ed Lucero/ TBD
12) Jeff Poole/ Larry Cornwell
13) Josh Coffing/ Jim Coffing
14) Amy Wong / Sarah Kwasigroch
15) Kameron Cheney/ TBA

New Mexico Games - June 21st @ Charlie's

The New Mexico Games for 2x2 Beach Volleyball will be held at Charlie's Sandbox on June 21st. I believe entry is $35/ team with shirts for participants and medals for top finishers. To register, contact Adam Cabbage: acabbage@unm.edu
Here's the teams so far, additional updates should come in the comments as I will be unavailable most of this week:
1) Loric Box/ Matt Valencia

Looking for a partner:
1) Josh Rodgers

Back in the Swing!

Well, I'm hoping my knee has recovered enough that I can get back into playing full tilt. It still hurts, but I think I am starting to show signs of being able to jump again. I just finished an intense 4 week period in the gym, working on building up my max strength. Time to coast now and get focused on upcoming events. We'll get back to practicing this weekend. We have a few weeks to get ready for the Sandia Mountain Volleyball Classic, which is going to bring fierce national competition to our backyard once again. Should be a great time, and we are looking forward to avenging our narrow losses from last year. While I've been able to get out and get some touches in Santa Fe, it will be great for Loric and I to get back together and get in sync before the tourney. After that, next big one is a trip up to Vail. Hopefully we'll keep the fire to push ourselves for more strong finishes!

4/12 Charlie's Tourney

Same as usual, 8:30 check-in, 9:00 start, email me to register. Maybe we can run 2 divisions or split if there are enough teams and interest. Here's who is in so far:
1) Chris Roosild/ Adam Cabbage; 2) Matt Valencia/ Desi Vigil; 3) Bryan Klein/ Dave Girts; 4) Jeff Poole/ Larry Cornwell; ...

March 15th @ Charlie's

The next tourney is 3/15 at Charlie's. 8:00 AM START. Usual stuff, but $15/ player for this tourney as we get into the regular season. Drop me an email to sign up, good list so far just from word of mouth. Update: Great turnout again. If not for a few teams dropping, we would have had 15 teams, wound up with a few less. After a morning indoors, we moved outdoors so the ladies could play their doubles tourney. Weather was good for most of the day, then got pretty gusty towards the end. Here's the results:
1) Adam Rubel/ Loric Box; 2) Chris Roosild/ Adam Cabbage; 3) Matt Valencia/Jeff Poole; 4) Christa Farris/ Jorge Alarcon; 5) Larry Cornwell/ Bryan Klein; 5) Dave/ Le; 7) Akram/ Rene; 7) Aaron/ Kameron; 9) Adam/Javier; 9) Ed Lucero; 9) Randy/ Mike; 9) Harris/ Paul

California (with wounded knee...)

Well, it is almost time again to get full swing into the new volleyball season. In just a couple of weeks, we'll be heading out to the heart of the beach volleyball world and setting up shop in Hermosa Beach for a little over a week. This is the perfect start to a season as not only will we get to be by the ocean and on vacation, but will get to play some top level competition with some great practice time. We're planning on playing a GAV event (which I hear are great events new to CA) and a CBVA, both opens. We're also bringing a couple of younglings so they can learn about beach volleyball on a real life beach!
So, on to the bad news. About a month ago, I started getting sharp pains in my knee on certain movements, which became very noticable during an indoor match and almost unbearable during the next days tournament. I still have full range of motion and didn't really have any swelling, but certain movements with my weight bearing on the joint were quite jolting. After a week of rest and little healing, I called Christy Valdez whom I met at a tourney last fall. She runs Spine & Muscle Rehabilitation and is really using some innovative, non-invasive techniques to diagnose and treat injuries. After checking out my knee with ultrasound, they found a bone spur and a good amount of fluid building up under the knee cap. Treatment involved some manipulations to relase ligaments and the knee cap so there is space for the fluid to drain, followed by using kinesiotape to enhance that space. Two treatments later, and there is definite improvement. I went out this past weekend to play, however, and things weren't too good. I was very cautious and aware of my knee and it was inhibiting my movement. After a few hours, it started getting achy and really didn't respond well - jump wasn't there, quick movements weren't there. So, I'm going to take some time off and continue treatment. I'm hoping to play on the 15th, but we'll see how the healing comes along. I'm going to get another ultrasound next week to see the progress and find out if any additional steps need to happen. Hopefully my aging body can recover fairly quickly, I wasn't expecting to feel like this for at least another ten years...

'08 - Time for a new season!

OK, new season, new focus, new leaf. Last year left kind of a bitter taste in my mouth and was sort of ho-hum. There were a lot of tournaments - a whole lot. Too many, I think. Made it hard to stay enthused about the game and I think it eventually hurt the turnout locally. This season doesn't look like it will be any different with regards to the number of events in NM. I think it makes more sense to personally concentrate on big events and then play some of the local ones for fun. I might see if I can pull myself away from volley on some weekends to do some different things with my wife. We'll see. Big trips on the radar so far include SoCal in March and NorCal in May. Both good vacations, and both good timing to jump start the season and put the rest of the year into perspective. I've been working with Sonny behind the scenes to get the Sandia Mountain Classic together this year. It will be held 5/17-5/18 and should draw some excellent competition as well as be a top notch event. We'll see about how many of the CO tourneys are worth making the trip for. Time on the road gets expensive fast, so it may depend somewhat on how much I am working and how much sponsor support we can real in. BTW, thanks to Wayne Steen for jumping in and supporting us again this year through his State Farm office! I've been in the gym since mid-October or Novermber. I added about 7-8 pounds of lean body mass right away, and it hasn't fallen off yet. I've been going through the program I am studying, as I am working on getting certified as a personal trainer. This involves a phase of joint stabilization followed by strength endurance. Next I will focus on working power into the equation. I have been keying in on increasing core strength and have also been working with tools to improve eye-hand coordination and quickness. I've gotten to play indoor volley, football and now basketball once a week that it is real cold outside, that is doing wonders for my cardio-conditioning. The other piece of the puzzle I think is to develop leg strength in the tendons and ligaments to be able to absorb the force generated by playing on artificial sand surfaces. More than anything, I think the landings were causing fatigue during tournaments. My body is pretty tired on a regular basis from the training, but next comes power development, so that should hopefully add a spring to my step. Good news from Loric that he doesn't appear to have a tear in his knee, just a minor issue with his bone which should heal over time. I think the last pieces of the puzzle are skills development, which will hopefully start this week during indoor sand and mental conditioning to keep focus. I think this could be another breakout year for us!
PS: I have the 2008 NM volleyball schedule and will post it once I have time to figure out how to format it for this site!

February 9th Indoor Sand Tourney

Back to the old fashioned 2 on 2 format. Time to gear up for beach season (even though it is about 1 degree outside). This should be a good one, we've got some out of town guests coming in. 8:00 check-in, 8:30 start. $20/ team, mini-pool followed by double elim. Let me know by email if you want to register or if you need a partner. Limited space, so sign up fast (well, at least the last KoB tourney sold out). Here's what we got so far:
Update:

We maxed out our capacity with 12 teams AND a waiting list. Good sign for the sport going forward in Abq. Should be a reminder to teams that they need to sign up early. Some warm weather meant we could open up a 3rd court outside during the day, and play besides the snow. Great tourney overall, lots of evenly matched teams and some real battles taking place all over. Congrats to the AZ guys for taking the gold prize! 1) Brian Post /Drew Winterstein; 2) Adam Rubel/ Christa Farris; 3) Chris Roosild/ Jorge Alarcon; 4) Desi Vigil/ Brian Way; 5) Adam Cabbage/ Bryan Klein; 5) Jeff Poole/ Larry Cornwell; 7) Olli Tavarian/ Ruskin Blankenship; 7) Cameron Vigil/ Kameron Cheney; 9) Frank/ Kevin;9) Brad Berry/ Daniel Pimental; 9) Manny Padilla/ Matt Erickson; 9) Richard Zamora/ Rich Zamora

Jan '08 Indoor KoB Results

New Year, new season. Could this be the season of the youngbloods? That remains to be seen, but two fresh faces pulled out strong finishes including a victory in both of their entre's into the world of professional (albeit a $5-$20 profit) sports. Lots of playing during the day, many surprises and upsets and a final pool that saw games to 11 with the final results coming down to the last play in the pool and third place being decided by a playoff game to 3. 15 out of the 16 registered players showed up and it was a good chance for different players to try out some new partners. Congrats to the newbies for breaking in: 1) Bryan Klein 2) Adam Rubel 3) Adam Cabbage 4) Jeff Poole. Beyond that were all the other finishers, results were erased on the dry-erase board.

December 8th Tourney @ Charlie's Sandbox

Looks like this one will definitely be inside, unless some freak weather pattern as a result of global warming comes through. 8:00 AM check-in; 8:30 start, we'll go $15/ player and expect a solid turnout. Since we'll be inside, on 2 courts, we must finish by 4 and must get started on time, no foolin'. Drop me a line if you are interested in playing, pool play followed by double elim.
Results:
1) Adam Rubel/ Loric Box; 2) Matt Valencia/ Matt Jensen; 3) Bryan Klein/ Ricardo Sanchez; 4) Jorge Alarcon/ Krista Farris; 5) Jeff/ Cameron; 5) Olli Tavarian/ Ruskin Blankenship; WC) Jeff Poole

11/10 Tourney @ Charlie's Sandbox

8:00AM Check in; 8:30 start, finish by 4:00. $10 entry. Send me an email if you are interested in signing up. Let me know if you need a partner, we can help match you up!
UPDATE: We had the good fortune of an Indian Summer, with temps warming up quickly enough to get us outside after pool play, around 10:30 or so. Small turnout, hopefully folks will get back into the swing after a few months of summer officially ending. Good time, folks played lots of games. Here's the end results:
1) Loric Box/ Adam Rubel; 2) Larry Cornwell/ Bryan Klein; 3) Jeff Poole; 5) Harris Zaeyee/ Kameron Cheney; 5) Sonny Marquez/ Rick Daraska; 6) Terry Daniels/ Rachel Petroff