Local biker mags: Thunder Roads Iowa

One of the neat things going on in the motorcycle world in Iowa right now is that there are several magazines of interest specifically to Iowa bikers. I?ve been fortunate to write for a couple of them, and wanted to introduce them to you in case you haven?t discovered them yet! First up is the [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BikerChickNews/~3/UdMmnEuBDMI/

Billy Grossi Davide Guarneri Thomas Hahn

GENERAL TENNIS PSYCHOLOGY

Tennis psychology is nothing more than understanding the workings of your opponent\'s mind, and gauging the effect of your own game on his mental viewpoint, and understanding the mental effects resulting from the various external causes on your own mind. You cannot be a successful psychologist of others without first understanding your own mental processes, you must study the effect on yourself of the same happening under different circumstances. You react differently in different moods and under different conditions. You must realize the effect on your game of the resulting irritation, pleasure, confusion, or whatever form your reaction takes. Does it increase your efficiency? If so, strive for it, but never give it to your opponent. Does it deprive you of concentration? If so, either remove the cause, or if that is not possible strive to ignore it. Once you have judged accurately your own reaction to conditions, study your opponents, to decide their temperaments. Like temperaments react similarly, and you may judge men of your own type by yourself. Opposite temperaments you must seek to compare with people whose reactions you know. A person who can control his own mental processes stands an excellent chance of reading those of another, for the human mind works along definite lines of thought, and can be studied. One can only control one\'s, mental processes after carefully studying them. A steady phlegmatic baseline player is seldom a keen thinker. If he was he would not adhere to the baseline. The physical appearance of a man is usually a pretty clear index to his type of mind. The stolid, easy-going man, who usually advocates the baseline game, does so because he hates to stir up his torpid mind to think out a safe method of reaching the net. There is the other type of baseline player, who prefers to remain on the back of the court while directing an attack intended to break up your game. He is a very dangerous player, and a deep, keen thinking antagonist. He achieves his results by mixing up his length and direction, and worrying you with the variety of his game. He is a good psychologist. The first type of player mentioned merely hits the ball with little idea of what he is doing, while the latter always has a definite plan and adheres to it. The hard-hitting, erratic, net-rushing player is a creature of impulse. There is no real system to his attack, no understanding of your game. He will make brilliant coups on the spur of the moment, largely by instinct; but there is no, mental power of consistent thinking. It is an interesting, fascinating type. The dangerous man is the player who mixes his style from back to fore court at the direction of an ever-alert mind. This is the man to study and learn from. He is a player with a definite purpose. A player who has an answer to every query you propound him in your game. He is the most subtle antagonist in the world. He is of the school of Brookes. Second only to him is the man of dogged determination that sets his mind on one plan and adheres to it, bitterly, fiercely fighting to the end, with never a thought of change. He is the man whose psychology is easy to understand, but whose mental viewpoint is hard to upset, for he never allows himself to think of anything except the business at hand. This man is your Johnston or your Wilding. I respect the mental capacity of Brookes more, but I admire the tenacity of purpose of Johnston. Pick out your type from your own mental processes, and then work out your game along the lines best suited to you. When two men are, in the same class, as regards stroke equipment, the determining factor in any given match is the mental viewpoint. Luck, so-called, is often grasping the psychological value of a break in the game, and turning it to your own account. We hear a great deal about the \"shots we have made.\" Few realize the importance of the \"shots we have missed.\" The science of missing shots is as important as that of making them, and at times a miss by an inch is of more value than a, return that is killed by your opponent. Let me explain. A player drives you far out of court with an angle-shot. You run hard to it, and reaching, drive it hard and fast down the side-line, missing it by an inch. Your opponent is surprised and shaken, realizing that your shot might as well have gone in as out. He will expect you to try it again, and will not take the risk next time. He will try to play the ball, and may fall into error. You have thus taken some of your opponent\'s confidence, and increased his chance of error, all by a miss. If you had merely popped back that return, and it had been killed, your opponent would have felt increasingly confident of your inability to get the ball out of his reach, while you would merely have been winded without result. Let us suppose you made the shot down the sideline. It was a seemingly impossible get. First it amounts to TWO points in that it took one away from your opponent that should have been his and gave you one you ought never to have had. It also worries your opponent, as he feels he has thrown away a big chance. The psychology of a tennis match is very interesting, but easily understandable. Both men start with equal chances. Once one man establishes a real lead, his confidence goes up, while his opponent worries, and his mental viewpoint becomes poor. The sole object of the first man is to hold his lead, thus holding his confidence. If the second player pulls even or draws ahead, the inevitable reaction occurs with even a greater contrast in psychology. There is the natural confidence of the leader now with the second man as well as that great stimulus of having turned seeming defeat into probable victory. The reverse in the case of the first player is apt to hopelessly destroy his game, and collapse follows.

R4TC: 2010 Ride for the Cure at Cahuilla Motocross Park

I haven't hit the track much in 2010, but knowing that the 4th Annual Motocross Ride for the Cure Event was coming, I dusted off the KTM, dropped it off at Malcolm Motorsports for some fine tuning, hit Milestone Motocross Track for a handful of warm ups and I was ready to enjoy the funnest event of the year hosted by motocross enthusiast herself, Laurie Carey, who is constantly raising the bar for fundraising, support, education and interaction for Breast Cancer Awareness!

The morning started off amazing, perfect day to moto! The sky's were bright blue and littered with dark fluffy rain clouds! Dropping rain in perfect track watering patterns, the day was in full swing and the pits were packed! Tons of Factory support lined up for the event, they even had a never ending Freestyle show in the works! Mike Metzger, the God Father of FMX was doing his thing and dozens of other talented riders busting out tricks for the fans.

I pretty much settled into a pack rat of MXGirls, WMA Pro Rider Elizabeth Bash, Race Techs Michelle Marshall, and Mission Motorsports Brooklyn McClendon. We had a blast mixing it up on the main and vet tracks, sporting our decorated "Ride for the Cure" Bra's and having a blast spinning laps, saving boobies!

In the end I was amazed at the growth this event has accumulated over the years, by far the most impressive outcome I've seen. I'm looking forward to next year's event, but more importantly, it's touching to see all the work Laurie Carey puts into the Support and Awareness of Breast Cancer.

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Source: http://www.supercross.com/mxgirls-blog/r4tc-2010-ride-for-the-cure-at-cahuilla-motocross-park

Vic Eastwood Daryl Ecklund Erik Eggens

Women's AMA Motocross National Championship numbers for 2011 season

Beginning last season, MX Sports Pro Racing implemented a new numbering system for the Women's AMA National Motocross championship. In years past, riders selected their numbers based on availability and order of selection was determined by where a rider finished in the standings the previous season. While the champion was designated to wear the number one plate, all other competitors were permitted to select any number that was available.

The 2010 campaign marked the debut of a new numbering system that determines a rider's number by where she finished the previous season. As a result, one's finishing position in the championship would serve as her number for the following season.

While Women's MX Champion Jessica Patterson will enter 2011 with the #1 plate on her bike, jersey and helmet, below is a list of the remaining numbers for next season's MotorcycleUSA Women's Motocross Championship in accordance to each woman's position in the final standings for 2010:

Source: http://www.supercross.com/mxgirls-news/womens-ama-motocross-national-championship-numbers-for-2011-season

Christian Beggi Mike Bell John van den Berk