Own a Piece of Bear Grylls

While I don't exactly have a man-crush on Bear Grylls, I do love his Discovery Channel show Man vs. Wild. And while we have since learned that the show is actually quite heavily staged, I don't think it diminishes in any way the entertainment value of the program or the incredible predicaments Bear illustrates and demonstrates on camera; such as tonight when the first new episode of this season airs at 9pm EDT. In this episode, Bear Grylls suffers heat stroke after consuming a live snake that defacates down his throat as he's eating it. The only issue, diarrhea ensues while he's attempting to climb a cliff and has to hang on with one hand while he tries to undo his pants. This is probably an episode that most ladies will definitely want to tune in for despite the grossness factor, and it should make for some very interesting television to say the least. The guy has no shame and you have to admire him for it.


But while I love watching Bear's exploits on television, I have to tell ya, getting stuck in those situations isn't exactly my cup of tea. But I really dig his clothing. As an outdoors guy, I'm always looking for gear that will hold up in all kinds of unexpected conditions, and I think I've found some that Bear Grylls happens to be wearing. In the photo above, Bear is wearing Craghopper's Nosquito Expedition Trousers. They have reinforced knees, lots of secure pockets including a hidden security pocket, it's coated with mosquito repelling chemicals and antibacterial agents that help keep the bugs from biting and the clothes from stinking. They're lightweight, ergonomic, water repellant and have a lifetime guarantee. And they're a little pricey at 50 pounds or about $100 US. My pair is on the way.


I wanted to try the clothing out for myself before committing so much money to them so I got the Nosquito Shorts, pictured above. The shorts are the best pair of travel/outdoor/hiking/camp shorts I've ever owned. They're super light-weight and comfortable, they fit perfectly, they have 8 very secure pockets, the Nosquito and anti-bacterial treatment, water repellent and they have a lifetime guarantee. They're also rip-resistent. Shortly after putting them on I thought I had snagged them on a sharp exposed tree branch. But after close examination, there's no indication of the encounter. The shorts are awesome and easy to care for, so I'm going to order another pair as well, 35 pounds or about $70.00.


Bear Grylls gets himself into all kinds of situations. Someone like him needs clothing he can absolutely depend on. I know that if the clothing Craghoppers has created for him can hold up to what Bear Grylls encounters in his television show, they will do just fine for my far less intense expeditions into the outdoors here in the United States. And they're most likely good to go for you as well.


Thanks Bear, you rock!
_______________________________________________

And from the world of sports, last night the Detroit Red Wings demolished the Colorado Avalanche 8-2 in the NHL Western Conference Semi-final. Bring on the San Jose Sharks or the Dallas Stars for the Western Conference Championship. Those in attendance in Denver wearing Red Wings sweaters were definitely chanting "Os-good, Os-good," all evening.

But even more significantly, Johan Franzen scored his second hat trick in 3 games versus the Avalanche, and with 9 goals for the series equaled by himself as many goals as the Avalanche scored in all 4 games; and Franzen also eclipsed a legend--scoring 9 goals in a series is a new Red Wings record, eclipsing the old record of 8 goals in a playoff series by none other than Gordie Howe.

Thanks for reading.

Technorati Tags:bear grylls, man vs. wild, craghopper clothing, detroit red wings, nosquito pants, nosquito shorts
Generated By Technorati Tag Generator

Osgood Gets Shut-out in Red Wings Victory!

UPDATE SUNDAY EVENING: The Red Wings beat Nashville 3-0 in Game 6. Chris Osgood started the game and remained perfect in goal. The Cheers have erupted: OS-GOOD! OS-GOOD!

Bring on next either the Calgary Flames or the Colorado Avalanche!

Thanks for reading.

Technorati Tags:chris osgood, detroit red wings, stanley cup championships, hockey, goalies
Generated By Technorati Tag Generator

OS-GOOD, OS-GOOD...and/or The Circle of Life

I've been reluctant to talk about my favorite team in sports: The Detroit Red Wings. As a lifelong fan, I remember going to the old Olympia Stadium as a child with my family, and more often than not, watching the Red Wings lose. That's because the last time the Detroit Red Wings contended for the Stanley Cup Championship was before I was born, in the 1950s.

All that changed when Steve Yzerman joined the team and the Red Wings slowly put the pieces together that led to their all-but dominance of the Hockey World in the 90s, culminating in back-back Stanley Cup Championships. And as the Red Wings got better and better, so did the morale of the City of Detroit and all who loved the Red Wings, and all who loved Hockey.

But all good things come to an end, and so did the career of Steve Yzerman. The thing about sports, if you stick with your team long enough, is that you'll see them when they're down, you'll see them when they're on the way up, you'll see them at the top, and you'll see them decline. So since our heady days at the top, while the Red Wings have never sunk to the depths they were in in the early 80s, they haven't quite reached the pinnacle again. But after last night's overtime 2-1 win over the Nashville Predators, I believe there's hope, and hope's name is Chris Osgood.


Chris Osgood was an integral part of that back-back Stanley Cup Championship team, but Chris Osgood's career with the Red Wings has been an up and down affair mirroring their ups and downs as a sports team. After Osgood's rookie season, management felt that the team needed a strong veteran goaltender with Stanley Cup playoff experience. In the summer of 1994, the Red Wings traded popular defenceman Steve Chiasson to the Calgary Flames for goaltender Mike Vernon, who had previously backstopped the Flames to a Stanley Cup title in 1989.

While the 1994-1995 season started late due to a lockout, Osgood found himself backing up Mike Vernon for the season. The Wings reached the 1995 Stanley Cup Finals that season, where they were swept in four games by the underdog New Jersey Devils. Osgood received significantly more playing time for the 1995-1996 season, and he led the NHL with a 2.17 GAA and 39 wins. He also finished third in shutouts (5) and was a Vezina Trophy runner-up to Jim Carey. Osgood and Vernon shared the William M. Jennings Trophy as the goaltending tandem allowing the fewest goals in the league. For his efforts Osgood was selected to the NHL All-Star Game and was also named to the post-season NHL All-Star Second Team. Osgood even added a goal to his fantastic season, becoming the second goaltender in NHL history (Ron Hextall was the first) to shoot the puck into an empty net in a game against the Hartford Whalers. Another premature playoff exit soon followed, as the top-seeded Red Wings lost in the Western Conference Finals to the Colorado Avalanche.

The next season Osgood and Vernon shared starting goaltender duties in the regular season, but when the playoffs started, virtually all the playing time went to Vernon, who ended up winning the Conn Smythe Trophy. In the end, Osgood had his name engraved on the Stanley Cup as the Red Wings swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games to win their first Stanley Cup in 42 years.

After the Cup win in 1997, Vernon was traded to the San Jose Sharks, which made Osgood Detroit's number-one goaltender, with Kevin Hodson and Norm Maracle backing him up for the 1997–1998 season. Again, the Red Wings were able to advance to the Stanley Cup finals and defeat the Washington Capitals (in another four game sweep) to win back-to-back Stanley Cup championships.


Osgood remained the primary goaltender for Detroit until the summer of 2001, working alongside Bill Ranford, Ken Wregget, and Manny Legacé. But in the summer of 2001, the Red Wings acquired goaltender Dominik Hašek, a six-time Vezina Trophy winner, from the Buffalo Sabres. After numerous attempts to trade Osgood, the Red Wings left him unprotected in the waiver draft and he was acquired by the New York Islanders on September 28, 2001.

Hasek, or "the dominator," returned the Red Wings to the Stanley Cup Finals and they won the Championship that year. But ever since, while the Red Wings have been hovering at the top, they haven't recaptured that championship winning form. Perhaps, until now.

Dominik Hasek, one of the greatest goalies of all time, is still the number one goalie in Detroit, but he has struggled in this first-round playoff series against the Nashville Predators. While the Red Wings were up 2-1, they fell apart after Hasek let a couple goals in that resulted in a Nashville win and a 2-2 series tie. Once again, the Red Wings turned to Osgood, who have a successful stint with the St. Louis Blues, came back to the Red Wings in 2005; and after a number of years of injuries, is having one of the best seasons in his career at exactly the right time.

Last night, in one of those "Circle of Life" moments, Osgood hung tough in goal and made possible Detroit's 2-1 overtime win bringing the series to 3-2 in Detroit's favor and keeping the team's hopes of a Stanley Cup Championship alive after winning the President's Trophy as the team with the best record in Hockey in 2007-2008. The irony is, of course, that Osgood is once again the go-to man when seven years ago he was discarded by the Red Wings in favor of Dominik Hasek.

I've been reluctant to talk about the Red Wings and beat my chest with smack talk, until now. Sunday's game against Nashville will be telling, and if Detroit can win it and move on to the next round of the playoffs when the Predators have their backs against the wall, it will be a tastse very sweet: for me, for Red Wings fans, and for Chris Osgood!

I can hear the chanting at Joe Louis Arena now as if it were ten years ago and Detroit was celebrating in the euphoria of it's back-back Stanley Cup Championship: OS-GOOD! OS-GOOD! OS-GOOD!

But we got it all wrong. Osgood isn't just good, he's among the best that ever played in goal.

Thanks for reading.

UPDATE SUNDAY EVENING: The Red Wings are just three minutes away from beating Nashville 2-0 in Game 6. Chris Osgood started the game and remained perfect in goal. The Cheers have begun, and if the shutout holds and the Predators are indeed eliminated, I'm sure the cheers will erupt: OS-GOOD! OS-GOOD!

Technorati Tags:chris osgood, detroit red wings, stanley cup championships, hockey, goalies
Generated By Technorati Tag Generator