Federer has form & pedigree to win in champion’s absence

There was a time – as recently as two years ago to be more precise – when fancying anyone not named Roger Federer for the US Open would be considered a mild form of insanity. Whilst the force of nature that is Rafael Nadal had matched and even surpassed the Swiss legend on the green courts of SW19 by then, Federer remained without peer on the hard courts of Flushing Meadow. That finally changed twelve months ago when the big Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro outmuscled the five-time champion in the final, winning 6-2 in the deciding set.

Unfortunately, Del Potro has experienced a season beset with injury and will not be able to launch a defence of his title. And so the only player to defeat Federer in New York in the last six years is missing which makes arguments against him winning this time somewhat difficult. In addition to this undoubted pedigree, Federer has the form of the field, winning the star-spangled Cincinnati Masters yet again in the traditional final warm-up for all the contenders. Britain’s Andy Murray has eyed the US Open as his best chance of winning a Grand Slam for some time, finishing runner-up two years ago. However, he was clearly outclassed by Federer in that final and, although the 16-time Grand Slam winner is in decline, Murray’s form doesn’t warrant a reversal, particularly over five sets. The Scot beat Federer to win the Toronto Masters the week before Cincinnati but, having also defeated Nadal in the semi, the effort seemed to have got to him and he struggled to beat Ernests Gulbis before bowing out to the in-form Mardy Fish in Ohio. He is again seeded to meet Nadal at the semi-final stage and to beat him and then go on to win the final is a tall order. He may have to wait for Federer to decline further or retire before he seals his Grand Slam. The claims of world number one Rafael Nadal can, of course, not be ignored. His booming ground strokes, lightning court coverage and never-say-die attitude have made him into one of the all-time greats. He has won the last two Grand Slams – the French Open and Wimbledon – with great ease and style. However, he is not quite the same player on the hard courts of America and still awaits his first final appearance at Flushing Meadow. Should they both proceed, the Majorcan’s projected semi with Murray is almost too close to call and could draw the sting from the eventual finalist. 

US Open Tennis Predictions:

Federer (12/5 with Befair) to beat either Murray or Nadal in the final could be the bet.

World number three Novak Djokovic is clearly over-priced at 16.5/1 (Murray is shorter than 4/1) and represents good each-way value despite being drawn in a tricky quarter that includes Fish and former champion Andy Roddick. 

Chris Harcus

28th August 2010 

Karl Elsner’s name has been embedded into the collective consciousness of mankind for his unparalleled discovery in the field of multitasking. The thing in question is the Swiss Army Knife. Yes that slightly heavy pocket tool that comes in an affable shade of maroon (and now other colors) with the Swiss Army logo embedded on to it. An object which can literally save the day, your life or out of any tight spot you might find yourself, that’s the Swiss Army Knife in a nutshell.

Traveling can impact your exercise program, unless you plan in advance and keep your discipline. If you travel quite a bit, maintaining an exercise regime can be difficult.  As a frequent traveler, exercise is important to staying in shape and I use P90X by Beachbody. But, in order to keep your program on schedule it requires commitment and some ingenuity when you are away from home.  

So, I will share some tips on how to stay on track with P90X while travelling and staying in a hotel.  First, for those not familiar with P90X, it is a great exercise program that will definitely give you some tremendous results, but the program demands you put in the effort consistently, day after day.  P90X is based on muscle confusion principles and a program of diverse cross training workouts.  You will be doing muscle building workouts, plyometrics, cardio workouts, Kempo and intense yoga workouts.  These workouts only last for sixty minutes, but exercise routines are constant with minimal rest periods and at the end you’ll be drenched and wasted.  It sounds enticing doesn’t it?  Well, if you can make the trip, the results will be gorgeous.  Trust me, I’ve done it.  Another good thing about P90X is that you don’t need a lot of equipment, usually bands or a few dumbbells will do the trick.  Your work outs are guided by Tony Horton your video host and trainer.  Just plug in the DVD and get going.  There are others out there which also are extreme home work out programs, but whichever you use staying committed and showing up every day is a key to success. Whatever exercise regime or program you follow, all share a basic requirement that you stay on schedule and commit to doing the prescribed workouts.”

Let’s talk about how to adapt when you must travel  First, P90X and other extreme fitness programs are designed for a disciplined regimen.  You should not deviate or take days off.    So, the most important tip is to actively think about and plan on how you will exercise when you out of town at a hotel.  I’ve had to do that, so I’ll share a few tips, because it can be done. 

Bring your P90X DVDs with You.  If you don’t take your DVDs, chances are you’re not exercising.  By taking them you are one step closer to staying on schedule.

Bring Your Laptop Computer.  Many hotel rooms have in-room TVs with DVD players, but many don’t.  So, bring your PC so you can play your DVD on your laptop.

Bring Exercise Bands or Dumbbells.  Bring your exercise bands.  Exercise bands are light and easy to pack in your luggage.  They may not give you the exact same workout you are accustomed to if you use dumbbells, but they will do the trick.  Of course, your first best option just might be the hotel’s fitness room, if it is decently set up with dumbbells and a pull-up bar or lat machine.

Take Your Roll-up Exercise Mat.  Remember to bring your workout mat, if you have one.

Use Your Hotel Room as Your Gym.  Usually there is more than enough room to do your work in the confines of your hotel room.  You might have to move a chair or two out of the way but you can clear enough space to exercise.  With P90X you only need about 8 feet by 5 feet to do most anything.  But, if there is a Hotel exercise facility, you might want to work out there, especially if there is a pull-up bar or other device you can use to hang room exercise bands from.

The infamous Hotel Room Floor.  Hotel room floor rugs are notoriously dirty.  T doesn’t matter how much they vacuum, there is a lot of people coming in and out of the rooms, and there are plenty of germs nestled in those rugs.  Since you will be working out close to floor, and breathing heavy, so will want to put down a clean bathroom towel or your exercise mat if you brought it.  How important is this?   On the last day of an extended trip, I forgot to put down a towel and within 24 hours of doing a routine in a European hotel room, I was deadly sick with a chest cold.  There is no doubt is came from the floor.

Solving the P90X Pull-up Problem in the Hotel.   Again, the best option is to use the hotel’s fitness room if they have one.  If the hotel has a pull-up bar or other piece of equipment you can use to hang from, then cart  your laptop and exercise DVD down to the fitness room and exercise there.  Don’t worry about others.  Just do your thing.  Chances are they will be blown away and impressed by the P90X workout.  If there is no hotel exercise facility, then I have a great way to solve this problem.  Use the hotel room bathroom door with exercise bands.  Simply open the door so you can wedge your band between the door and the casing so the band rests in the crack on top of the top door hinge.  The bands with be draping each side of the door and hanging on the door hinge.  Next, grab the handles and move back away from the door and get down on your knees.  Lean forward as far as you can from waist so that your arms and back are straight and when extended they are extended they are in the same plane as the bands from the top of the hinge.  This will give a decent pull-up effect.

Discipline & Planning Ahead.  Let’s face it, when you are on the road doing business there is a good chance you will be eating dinner out and possibly enjoying a few drinks with business associates.  It is best to try and schedule a late dinner so you can squeeze your workout in before dinner.  Or, if you are an early riser, get your workout done in the early morning.  But, overall, moderation is the key.  Don’t put yourself in a situation where you can’t get your workout done.  When you are on the road, there are plenty of distractions, including evening dinners and a few social drinks with business partners and potential customers. So, it is important to intelligently plan your workouts.  If you can do them in the morning, it is a great way to avoid conflicts and get your workout done before other events compete for your time.  If you are a night owl and prefer a nighttime workout, then it is best to try and get a workout in before dinner and late night activities interfere.  Simply schedule a late night dinner.  It’s easy enough to make the excuse you’ll need an hour or two to check back with the office and take care of few things.” 

As a final thought, don’t stress if you don’t have everything you need or have less than ideal workout space.  As Tony Horton says in P90X, do your best and forget the rest.” Simply adapt and substitute exercises and work as hard as possible to achieve that great burn. Any effort is better than none and your body will thank you.  

About the Author.  The author is a Senior Editor for RoomRate Hotels, a leader in providing consumer friendly hotel booking services on the web.  RoomRate provides hotel deals direct from hotels with no booking fees, and does not charge its own cancellation fees and penalties like many other travel web sites. RoomRate offers great hotel deals direct from tens of thousands of hotels in the United States for all cities, including New York Hotels, Atlanta Hotels and Boston Hotels, to name a few. 

Publishing:  This article may be freely redistributed and republished without royalty or cost provided it is reprinted in its entirety and proper Author attribution with links are included.  Parties republishing this article agree to hold the harmless and indemnify the author for any claims by other parties.

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The Houston Rockets signed big man Brad Miller for $15 million over three-years .  Rockets coach Rick Adelman coached Miller when he was with the Kings and was critical to getting him signed.  Houston player Kevin Martin, who also played with Miller, helped in the recruiting process also .  With a solid backup for Yao, those Rockets Suns ticketsmight be harder to get next year.

Miller gives the Rockets some much needed depth after having to play 6′6″ Chuck Hayes in the middle after Yao was lost early in the season .  There was also talk that Yao’s injury may be worse than just a one year injury , so the Rockets desperately needed a solid backup with some size to fill in for Yao if he has trouble returning from injury.  Looking at Yao’s injury history, there’s a very good chance he’ll get a few starts next season, especially at the end of the year.   Yao hates playing at the end of the year, last year was the 4th year in a row he missed the last game of the season.

Rockets GM Daryl Morey was smart to let all the max deals pass by and find a good role player for a reasonable contract to complete the team.  He was able to re-sign Kyle Lowry and Luis Scola, which he called the team’s #1 priority this offseason but found a way to add a body in the front court .  Chuck Hayes is too small to be a starter in the middle, and David Andersen didn’t play a single minute after March 19th(the Rockets last 15 games). 

The Rockets needed a solid backup who is a “true” Center, which the 7′ Miller will be.  The third year of the contract is only partially guaranteed, so if he is horrible by his third year into the deal (he’ll be 37, so very possible ), the Rockets can get rid of him without severe consequences . 

The Rockets should have an exciting team next year if Yao can return healthy .  If so, those Rockets Heat tickets might sell out.  There’s not one big star on the team, the Rockets explored a sign-and-trade with Chris Bosh to be the big name star , but that didn’t work out .  Longterm, the team may be better without him , assuming the Rockets were going to give Bosh a max deal, it might look like a bad deal after the next CBA is signed.  Maybe Morey didn’t offer Bosh absolute max money , either way, he hasn’t made any glaring contract mistakes so far.  Brad Miller for $15M over 3 years looks like a good contract for a quality backup and some Yao insurance.

In most cases, the type of golf equipment you use will depend on your experience, skill and to a certain extent personal preference. In particular, beginners who will likely have a high handicap or those with a mid-level handicap might look at ways to lower their scores with the tools they have to hand. A good example of this is to use a distance golf ball.

A lot of people that switch to using a distance golf ball find that they are able to drop several shots from their score simply because they are able to get closer to the hole as the ball flies further. Although the way they are made is similar to most over golf balls, they do have some redeeming features that help them to reach longer distances.

Distance golf ball design

Distance balls are usually made with a two piece design although you can get several three piece distance balls that perform just as well. Generally speaking the core is where the magic happens and its job is to keep as much energy from the shot as possible while minimizing spin.

This design isnt just to make it go further though – it also helps to keep the manufacturing costs down.

The coating on a distance ball

With that said, the coating also has a part to play as it helps to protect the ball. Cuts on the ball can affect its flight and distance so the ball will be rendedered almost useless. The coating on these calls are design to be strong and durable to ensure that they can stand up to the impact of being hit with a golf club repeatedly. The most popular coatings are Ionomer, Surlyn and Urethane all of which have had testing done to make sure they can stand up to the impact.

Not only that, but because they are protected so well it means you dont need to being too concerned about having to keep yourself supplied with new ones all the time.

Which distance golf ball

Usually, The compression rating will help you to pick the right ball. When you hit a ball, the side becomes slightly flattened. During its flight the ball will return to its proper shape and at this point the kinetic energy is released, similar to releasing a compressed sping. This propels the ball forward which gives it the extra distance. The flattening is given a compression rating based on how easy it is to flatten.

A low compression rating signifies that it is a softer ball. This are ideal for anyone who has not yet developed a fast swing. You can often get the right ball by getting one that matches your swing speed.

It is worth remembering that most distance golf balls reduce the spin on the ball to aid its flight. If the ball is spinning in the air, it is a sign it has been sliced or slightly mishit. This will cause the ball to curve when it is in the air so you will lack accuracy. Distance balls however counteract the spin so you end up with much straighter – and therefore more accurate – shots. With that said, this can also impact your control and shotmaking abilities. You may find that you have less control as a result of this, though it is a small tradeoff and you should improve your handicap more by hitting the ball further, generally speaking. For this reason, it is also a good idea to look out for some good golf ball reviews.