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Lindsey Jacobellis flew into the frigid Italian atmosphere as a celebrated and admired snowboarding superstar but, after an adrenalin-fueled grab at her board in mid-flight, she returned to earth in a meteoric flameout destined to make her a lock for membership in the Bonehead Hall of Shame. But her gaffe also represents a watershed moment for a sport once typified by such actions.

Snowboarding is a serious sport populated by serious athletes. Participants in competitions throughout the world work and train and sacrifice to race and win and be recognized as the best in their sport. But the ascension of snowboarding from a wild, rebellious and carefree winter activity to a corporately-sponsored, mainstream, Olympic-level competition has resulted in attitudes and expectations that are radically divergent from the once-radical personality that dominated the sport.

Lindsey Jacobellis began snowboarding in rural Roxbury, CT when she was 10-years old. Coached by her older brother, Ben, Lindsey was forced to compete against boys since there was no girls division for the sport. This co-ed racing helped her develop a highly competitive spirit. Leading up to the Olympics she trained with the American men since she is the only U.S. woman competing in snowboard cross. She is, quite simply, the best womens snowboard cross racer in the world. But, as a result of her fall in the Italian Alps, she will not be an Olympic champion in 2006.

What Lindsey Jacobellis will be, to many, is a showboating hot dog. She will be derided for being cocky, over-confidant and foolish. One television reporter stated that Lindsey had left a blemish on the sport of snowboarding. Another said that the nations hope for a gold medal in this event rested solely on her shoulders. Her agent is probably on suicide watch after seeing his dreams of gold medal endorsement deals get swept away in an avalanche of shattered dreams.

And how does Lindsey feel about all of this? "I went for the jump because I was having fun," she said. "Snowboarding is fun, and I wanted to share that with the crowd. ... I was caught up in the moment and forgot that I had to race.

Poor Lindsey. Doesnt she realize that competing at this level is not supposed to be fun? That getting caught up in the moment was a reckless, selfish and careless demonstration of nave exuberance? How could Lindsey have been so irresponsible that she would have allowed the thrill of flying down a frosty hill, free, fast and in first-place by a snowboarding mile, to be manifested in a flamboyant maneuver for which snowboarders used to be hailed?

Used to be That is the operative phrase at the moment. Snowboarding has come of age. Millions are watching world-class athletes compete for gold, silver and bronze. Fame and fortune await the winners. Only memories of a temporary place on the world stage await the rest. But Lindsey Jacobellis will forever straddle the chasm between Olympic winners and Olympic losers. She now carries the weight of Olympic silver around her neck and the stigma of Olympic failure on her competitive resume.

By her self-inflicted disaster, Lindsey Jacobellis has elevated snowboarding to a premier winter sport. No longer will the freewheeling, high-flying, hey dude, watch this, X Game-style mentality apply to competitive snowboarding. Its about winning and money and national honor and endorsements. Getting ramped up and having fun are no longer permissible attitudes for the sport.

Dude, this is serious!

One of the most challenging things about first starting a website and creating your first e-book is figuring out what exactly to write about. I am going to give you a few tips and ways to research your ideas to make sure you have a solid market to work with.

To get some ideas flowing on what to write about, just pay attention to whats going on around you. What are peoples common concerns, what are people interested in, what are you interested in? Its also good to look for ideas by finding out who's already become successful and what they are writing about. A good website to find this out at is www.clickbank.com. Companies can sign up there to get affiliates to advertise their products for a percentage of the profits. Clickbank has them all in categories by market and you can look at the top 10 or 20 and really get a feel for whats selling best in that market. Go browse through a few and you may just get an idea or two! You can also watch infomercials, look through magazines, read direct mail, and browse through groups.

So you think you found an idea ? Lets check it out and see what the market will be like for your e-book. You can go to www.overture.com and check out how many people searched for your key words for your e-book last month. For example if you were making an e book about cooking, you would want to look up cooking, and you might want to look up the key words recipes baking, or cooking tips.

Also you'll want to make sure that your product can appeal to a large group of people. Think about the kind of people who would want to read your book. Is it a wide range of people who have things in common, or just a select few. The advantage of having a wide range market is that you can create a whole different course or e book and you can still market to the same group of people. It gives you the advantage of branching off into different markets within the same general market. Also a good thing to look for is something you are genuinely interested in. What are you passionate about? What would make you excited to write about ? If your passions aren't really that marketable, you may want to find an aspect of a larger market that interests you. I hope this gets some ideas flowing!

Best wishes!

MarandaMann

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Soccer cleats are athletic shoes that are specially designed for soccer players. Soccer shoes have large studs or cleats on the bottom that assist players in gripping the surface. These studs help players to be easily moved in the desired position.

Generally the cleats are made up of molded plastic because metal cleats are illegal as they cause danger to other players. Plastic studs are round in shape that offers excellent grip on the hard mud of the basepath. Soccer shoes or football shoes can have both plastic as well as metal cleats on the sole whereas golf shoes have metal cleats.

Replaceable cleats are the best option for soccer or football players. Cleats of soccer shoes can be removed and replaced with another kind. Players can choose cleats as per their requirements. These studs or cleats are designed to provide exact traction or grip but these studs should not be so long because extra long suds can pose a risk for the player like knee injury.

Different manufacturers provide soccer cleats of great quality so the players should buy the best fit. Players should keep certain points in mind at the time of buying soccer cleats. They should find a soccer specialty store near their home. Players must know the exact shoe size so that they can play comfortably. They can also get information from the supplier about current and upcoming sales on soccer shoes.

Athletes should use soccer cleats for two or three months before finals. They can easily get all about their shoes with regular practice. They can talk, to salesperson or the coach, about which type of soccer cleats suits them. They must choose few pairs for trail basis and then select the best out of them. Whenever youre going to try the shoes on, dont forget to wear socks. You should check whether your heels are comfortable or not.

If you dream of being the best basketball player in your league, or at the gym you play at then listen up! To be the best you have to train hard, practice with perfection, and play strong.

Basketball skills like shooting, ball handling, rebounding, stealing the ball, setting picks and screens, defense, keeping the post or boxing out, passing, blocking shots, moving without the ball, and foot-work are going to be your foundation especially a good jump shot.

Now if you want to get to the next level of competition you must perfect your basketball skills and practice drills like you were playing in a game. Dont ever get sloppy in your training or practice; its better to have quality practice time than slopping quantity practice.

Here are some great practice tips to make you the best you can be:

1.One-Spot Shooting Shot continuously from one spot on the court until you hit 90% of your shots, then move to a new spot and repeat. Eventually you will be able to hit shots at incredible accuracy from anywhere on the court. Practice jump shots, lay-ups, hook shots, fad away jumpers, and standing shots with each hand. Practice dribbling before the shot, fake before the shot, basically shot as if you had a defender in your face.

2.One-hand Dribbling use one hand to dribble with, go through your legs, around and behind your back, over your shoulder, back and forth, side-to-side, high powerful bounces and low fast bounces. Do this with one hand at a time.

3.Plyometrics You must be able to jump. You will most likely get a lot of jumping practice while playing, but to really unleash you full potential do some plyometrics. Try repetitive jumping from one spot bend down to your jumping angle and explode back up as high as you can, stay on the ground for only enough time for you to gather enough energy to jump as high as you can.

4.Squats and Leg Presses You need major strength in your legs if you want to jump higher, hold the post, set better picks and screens. So you will need to be able to lift 2-3 times your body weight for squats and at least double that for your leg press. This will be painful, but you will gain tremendous strength, which will elevate your game quickly.

5.Upper Body Press and Pulls Dont forget about your upper-body. Fast hands means better dribbling, more steals and blocked shots, and a quick release shot. To increase your hand speed do push-ups, chin-ups are excellent for hand speed, shoulder presses, handstands, and shadow boxing. Now go out there and grab the rock!

6.Sprints The best way to Increase HGH (Human Growth Hormone) is by running 5-10 second sprints. Sprints or any intense exercise will increase your HGH by as much as 300% for a few hours. What this means is that you will get faster, stronger, bigger muscles to take your basketball skills to the next level.

Now go practice your skills with perfection and build you speed, and strength. You are well on your way to dominating in your league or local gym, Good Job!