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The Sport of Women’s Beach Volleyball.

Written by Ethan D Orman

The sport of women’s beach volleyball is more than just fun in the sun on the sandy beaches of the American coastline. It may have started out that way, but over the last twenty years, the game has grown into a full-blown sport that is now a Summer Olympic sport. A hybrid of indoor volleyball, beach volleyball - especially on a competitive level - is only played with two people instead of a team of six. The rules are little different and they include some interesting hand signals to help the players. Here we will take a look at women’s beach volleyball and how it has grown into such a popular sport.

Santa Monica, California is the home of beach volleyball. It started in the 1920s and quickly spread to Europe. By the 1960s the first professional beach volleyball league was attempted. It failed in the United States, but was a success in France where the first professional tournament was held. In 1960 the first organized American tournament was held on Manhattan Beach in Southern California. It was a huge success, getting touted as the ‘Wimbledon of Beach Volleyball’. Within ten years, professional tournaments in Santa Monica found sponsors in beer and cigarette companies.

Players continued to hone their volleyball skills and the game became extremely popular in the 1980s. International beach volleyball tournaments became more and more commonplace with the United States, Brazil, and Australia becoming the three heavyweight nations of the sports. European countries and China became interested in this summer sport, one that became extremely popular among the women in the world. The 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona exhibited the sport and it became an official sport of the Olympics in 1996. The women’s beach volleyball events have garnered gold medals once for each of the three heavyweight countries since.

The basic volleyball rules that govern women’s beach volleyball are very similar to those used in standard indoor volleyball. The two man team in beach volleyball must score a point by forcing the ball to ground on the opponent’s court. They can also score a point when the opposing team commits a fault - an error or illegal action. The ball can only be touched three times before it must cross the net and the contact must be made consecutively by the two players. The game is played on a sandy surface instead of a hard court that is slightly smaller than an indoor court. There are other minor differences between the two games and the beach volleyball is actually a bit larger and softer than the standard indoor ball. Also, players play in their bare feet.

Volleyball drills are important for players of beach volleyball as some of the minor differences have more to do with how the ball is volleyed across the net. Players of women’s beach also use hand signals behind their backs to help their partner on the court know what type of play they intend to make once the ball is served. These hand signals can be given with one or both hands and when used wisely, they can make all the difference in the world to the outcome of a women’s beach volleyball match.

About the Author:
Ethan D Orman has the information you need about women’s beach volleyball. Access the best information about the history of volleyball at his website: http://historyofvolleyball.net.

Beginner’s Guide to Surfboards.

Written by Robb Bailey

Surfboards are measured by various dimensions: length, width, and thickness. The length of the surfboard will determine how easily you catch the wave. The longer the board is, the easier it will be to catch the wave. The width of the board will help you with balance. The wider it is, the more balance you will have out in the water. Finally, the thickness of the board will provide you with float. The thicker it is, the more buoyant you will be. You will usually find these dimensions measured in inches and written on the underbelly of the board on the stringer by the tail.

Surfboards are usually made of one or a combination of three materials: wood, fiberglass, and epoxy. Wooden boards were the first surfboards ever used to ride waves but have since become expensive to make and therefore relatively obsolete. Most surfers have balsa wood boards hanging on their walls as collector’s items. They are sturdy but heavy.

Fiberglass boards are the typical boards used on the surfing circuit. They are made of foam called a blank with a layer of fiberglass over it. They are the most delicate, but in most cases the most versatile because they can be custom shaped to your liking. The newest surfboard material is epoxy. Epoxy boards are durable but manufactured by machines. They are more expensive and ride the fastest, but they are not custom made, which avid surfers eventually prefer. Beginning surfers might prefer epoxy boards over other materials. Board makers like Bic and South Point have a line of economical epoxy boards that work well for surfers just starting out.

Most recently, there are new boards being made of carbon fiber that are extremely durable but also very expensive. Hollow-core boards are also popular because they provide more float and are extremely lightweight, yet have quick response and high performance.

Most boards also have a stringer and a rocker. The stringer is the wooden line that runs down the center and length of the board. Stringers help to keep the foam and board intact. The rocker is the curve of the board, which prevents the board from catching an edge. The bigger the rocker, the easier it will be for you to turn on your board. Long boards usually have a flatter rocker because they tend to ride on a relatively flat part of the wave . Short boards, on the other hand, tend to have more rocker because they are designed to ride a much more critical part of the wave. Bigger, faster waves require more rocker in shortboards to give the rider ample board control.

Your collection of surfboards is called your quiver. If you stick with the sport long enough, you might eventually have a quiver of 10 to 20 boards! No matter how big your quiver is, it will certainly be a collection of boards with various shapes and sizes to suit different conditions and purposes.

When a board reaches retirement, surfers believe the board “buckles.” In other words, the board has developed some kind of weakness in its core that will no longer allow it to perform as you would like it to. When the board buckles, breaks, or is just overly aged, it means it’s time to retire your board. One way to prevent your board from aging quickly is to store it in a board bag in a cool, dry place. Boards are best stored horizontally because that will cause any water that does seep into the board to distribute more evenly, rather than sending it straight to the tail if you store it vertically. Also keep in mind that dings even bad bumps and bruises are easily fixable, so don’t give up on your board if it has cosmetic issues!

About the Author:
Robb Bailey works for South Coast Surf Shops, San Diego’s premiere surfboard distributor and surf apparel dealer for more than 30 years. He has been inducted as a lifetime honorary member of his college surf club, the Cal Poly Surfer’s Association, and has traveled the world surfing for the past 11 years. Find out more about Robb at SouthCoast.com

USA’s Olympic Baseball Team Earns Right to Play in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Written by Julie Smith

The Americans won the Olympic gold medal in the year 2000, but didn’t succeed to qualify for the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. This year the United States of America’s Olympic Baseball Team earned the right to participate in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing by beating Panama 11 - 5 on Sunday night. Cuba also qualified for the Olympics after winning the game against Mexico 4 - 0. Both qualified teams will play against each other next Tuesday. The U.S. record stands at 5-1 in the tournament, while Cuba is 6-0. Tuesday marks the final game for both teams.

The Americans won the Olympic gold medal in the year 2000, but didn’t succeed to qualify for the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. This year the United States of America’s Olympic Baseball Team earned the right to participate in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing by beating Panama 11 - 5 on Sunday night. Cuba also qualified for the Olympics after winning the game against Mexico 4 - 0. Both qualified teams will play against each other next Tuesday. The U.S. record stands at 5-1 in the tournament, while Cuba is 6-0. Tuesday marks the final game for both teams.

During the U.S. - Panama game, Bobby Hill had three hits with an RBI (Run Batted In) and scored twice for the USA’s team, which fell behind 1-0 in the first inning, but scored 10 runs over the next four frames. Michael Bourn and Billy Butler had two runs each one for the U.S. and two RBIs. Michael Bourn tripled in two runs in the bottom of the second inning letting USA’s score ahead of its opponent’s and then knocked out Panama starter Elpidio Pinto by scoring three times in the third.

Greg Smith allowed one run, struck out five and walked two in 3 1/3 innings for the United States. Nic Ungs tossed the next 3 2/3 frames for the win.

Baseball is the first sport in which Americans have earned a spot in the 2008 Olympics. Baseball game’s inventors and the champions of the 2000 Sydney Olympics missed the 2004 Olympics as they didn’t get to qualify at the Americas Qualifier.

About Author
Julie Smith is one of the most recognized copy writers on Sports and currently writes for http://www.instantactionsports.com.