The Athletes Of GTPlanet

[Fastcarguy]

Ive been in my high schools ski team and sailing team for 3 years.

 

[APIOQM]

I'm an avid cyclist in the following disciplines:

Downhill Mountain Biking
Cross Country Mountain Biking
Road Biking
BMX/Street

If there are other cyclists on GTP maybe we could discuss our bikes and where we ride?

 

[Turbo_snail]

@APIOQM I can ride a bit of mountain bike but nothing free ride level

 

[Johnnypenso]

My hockey games are on Tuesday evenings. Last night was a really late game for whatever reason, starting around 10pm. My current job has me going in at 5am on Tuesday mornings to unload the truck with food, and it was a busy day so I didn't get a chance to nap before the game. For some reason, our team all seemed to be really tired and we spent extended periods of time down in our end of the ice, which of course made us more tired because we had to keep starting and stopping. About half way through, despite not keeping score, we were loosing by a large margin. Because we couldn't keep up in a straight line, and were tired, some of our team's larger players and myself started playing a more physical game. If there was a player in front of our net, we would be shoving them out of the way, if they were turning and had the puck we would be leaning on them. Basically anything to make them tired to the same point we were. My biggest contribution came a shift after I was knocked to the ice by a hit, I found that player right as I got back on them and right as they touched the puck, I drove them into the boards. It wasn't a huge hit, but itstarted a push back from our team, as we started finding ways to get goals capitalizing on our grittiness and willingness to play physically. We would drive to the net and shield the shot so the goalie couldn't see. If they gave up a reabound, there was someone there who could take several whacks at it and force it into the net. I got an assist by firing at the net and another player deflecting it in, then almost scored by whacking at the puck.

I enjoy those physical battles, despite not being the biggest player on the ice as you can make up for lack of size with pure grit and willingness to give up your body to block shots and get passes away. In the professional game, the top/1st line(forewars and defense both) is the scorers line, the knes who try to stay out of the physical stuff as much as possible. I play in a way that would put me on the 4th foreword/3rd Defense line, playing the physical way and not quite having that scoring touch. Our job is nasty and tough, but it's also the most fun (imo) because we can be that catalyst for the top line to get out and score.

Anyway, my dreams for hockey. It probably won't happen but I'd love to play in the National Woman's Hockey League or the New Zealand Woman's Ice Hockey League.

Anyway, rambling. Sorry

Games: 10
Goals:1
Assists: 8
Hits:12
Blocked shots: 32

They have ice hockey in New Zealand..for women?

 

[Valkyr1313]

They have ice hockey in New Zealand..for women?

Yeah, there is a league. It's pretty small right now, just like 6 teams I think but they also have a national woman's team

 

[Bo]

I'd like to talk about dealing with pressure.

I'm not sure how many people have pressure from sponsors to do well, or are expected to represent a certain manufacturer/brand/product in competition, but that's what I'm dealing with for my first ever race as a sponsored driver tomorrow.

I'm lucky, in that having bad days won't cost me my deal - that isn't what my contract with Serpent states. However, being sponsored and having others aware of it forces me to put myself under pressure to do well, simply because everyone else expects me to perform to a certain standard. I haven't raced in 15 months, so I'm already at a disadvantage.

Can anybody offer any tips on how to alleviate stress in competition? Obviously everyone copes differently, but I feel as though most of my bad performances in the past have been down to me not being in the right mindset. I was also a lot younger than I am now, so I probably wasn't able to handle the stress as well as I could do now. I've already ensured that I've prepared everything to the best of my ability to give me very little to do between now and Sunday, but are there any ways I can change my frame of mind?

 

[Akmuq]

Put in the work, and develop an ego. Self-belief is a very good thing to have.

 

[Stavingo]

Well used to play Oztag (Variation of Rugby League without tackling) in which I used to play out on the wing for my school and in some local men and mixed gender competitions but can't find a team to play in

But my main sport now is Golf since I can't find a team and am not as fit as I used to be (although probably for the better) which I played during my school years and now as well. Repped my local golf club in some competitions as well.

 

[Manasseh257NSX]

I'd like to talk about dealing with pressure.

I'm not sure how many people have pressure from sponsors to do well, or are expected to represent a certain manufacturer/brand/product in competition, but that's what I'm dealing with for my first ever race as a sponsored driver tomorrow.

I'm lucky, in that having bad days won't cost me my deal - that isn't what my contract with Serpent states. However, being sponsored and having others aware of it forces me to put myself under pressure to do well, simply because everyone else expects me to perform to a certain standard. I haven't raced in 15 months, so I'm already at a disadvantage.

Can anybody offer any tips on how to alleviate stress in competition? Obviously everyone copes differently, but I feel as though most of my bad performances in the past have been down to me not being in the right mindset. I was also a lot younger than I am now, so I probably wasn't able to handle the stress as well as I could do now. I've already ensured that I've prepared everything to the best of my ability to give me very little to do between now and Sunday, but are there any ways I can change my frame of mind?

The biggest thing that most athletes and competitors do when dealing with pressure or anxiousness in competition/events is that they start overthinking and start trying to push or overdue their performance causing them to do worse than they intended and get frustrated. The main thing you want to do is just race how you always race. Don't try to do anything fancy and don't try to overthink anything. You gotta go out there and have fun. Enjoy doing what you do.

If you start thinking too much about the sponsors, pressure, and your performance you'll start to over-analyze everything and make mistakes that you might not usually make. That was and still is to this day, one of my biggest issues that I still face and work on.

My main advice through all of this is, go out there and have fun! Don't let sponsors or anything deter your performance. They chose to sponsor you out of Lord knows how many people, so you already proved yourself worthy. If you want to have an empty mind and clear thoughts, race like you still don't have any sponsors.

 

[Com Fox]

Well used to play Oztag (Variation of Rugby League without tackling) in which I used to play out on the wing for my school and in some local men and mixed gender competitions but can't find a team to play in

But my main sport now is Golf since I can't find a team and am not as fit as I used to be (although probably for the better) which I played during my school years and now as well. Repped my local golf club in some competitions as well.

At my School when I was in 9th Grade we had to do an OzTag competition for PE. I was the only male on my team and we were called the "Liam's Angels"

@Bo Think about it. Why did you get the sponsors in the first place? They wanted to sponsor you because of what you do, if you keep on doing what you do, you'll have no issues with most sponsors.

 

[Dotini]

delete. please.

 

[Michelin]

Well, I have played soccer (or football) all my life because guess what the national sport of Brazil is?

Always played at a forward (striker) position, because I'm not skillful, I can only kick the ball pretty hard. Also, I'm usually luck, so I kick it in one direction, the ball deflects in someone and goes the other way, etc. Back in high school I was part of the team, and we made it thru semi finals of some championships, but never won anything.

In University and we made a Engineering team to participate on a Uni-intern championship. We never even got to the quarter finals.

Usually I play with my friends twice per month. Now that's summer holiday time around here, I already got invited to play (and pay, since we gotta rent somewhere to play ) on Friday and Saturday. I can't see myself getting out of the bed on Sunday.

EDIT: I use way too much on my posts...

 

[AlvaroF]

I played football/soccer until last year. Until I completly busted my knee 2 years ago I played in the national juvenial championships in Portugal. I was a right or left back depending on the game profile because I was the fastest in my team, so I had to keep up with the fastest wing. I was pretty skilled putting the ball where I wanted with the plus of being a ambidextrous. But I was pretty much worthless in any other domain After I busted my knee (ACL, meniscus, bone, cartilage) I made a short comeback as a central back in my regional championships, but I only made half season because of an inflamation in the bone. I also ran for a while, my personal record was 10k in 44min.

 

[Michelin]

I played football/soccer until last year. Until I completly busted my knee 2 years ago I played in the national juvenial championships in Portugal. I was a right or left back depending on the game profile because I was the fastest in my team, so I had to keep up with the fastest wing. I was pretty skilled putting the ball where I wanted with the plus of being a ambidextrous. But I was pretty much worthless in any other domain After I busted my knee (ACL, meniscus, bone, cartilage) I made a short comeback as a central back in my regional championships, but I only made half season because of an inflamation in the bone. I also ran for a while, my personal record was 10k in 44min.

Damn, that sucks. You still play for fun or not even that?

 

[Bo]

After 3 indoor rounds for the winter 2wd season, I sit an encouraging 20th out of 68 drivers:

Going into 2016 I'll be equipped with a new motor and ESC manufacturer. I've used Dualsky since my first race in 2013, but I'm really keen to have some fresh equipment to work with in the form of Vampire - hopefully it'll lead to even better results, as will the use of some brand new top-spec radio gear. I don't like the thought of spending my way to success - I have a lot of admiration for the people who turn up and get commendable results with sub-par equipment - but there comes a point where I need to up my budget to match my team driver status.

It's a hard thing to jump back into a hobby after a long break, and have such big aspirations in a short space of time. What others count as some weekend fun, I have to view as a serious sport. I have to think of my relations with other drivers and anyone else who may be attending an event, because I have no idea what teams and manufacturers are on the lookout for potential new drivers. I'm aiming to make a living out of my racing one day, and I've come to think that the only way of getting to that point is by taking control of everything I do.

Over the Christmas break, I'll be conducting a little bit of outdoor private testing to get some more data and keep building my knowledge of my 2wd. My team boss is testing our new 2wd prototype, one of only a handful currently in existence, which should be in my hands early next year. These are the only pics I can share:

 

[AlvaroF]

Damn, that sucks. You still play for fun or not even that?

Yes I do actually, but my knee has to be minimally protected, and I have to build a decent amount of muscle to support violent moves without serious consequences. After an injury that serious you won't do the same things, which sucks, even in pro level we see that, imagine the impact on a 16 year old at the time. Despite being a physical challenge, it's also a psychological one because I had to rebuild the confidence and re-lose the fear.

 

[Michelin]

Yes I do actually, but my knee has to be minimally protected, and I have to build a decent amount of muscle to support violent moves without serious consequences. After an injury that serious you won't do the same things, which sucks, even in pro level we see that, imagine the impact on a 16 year old at the time. Despite being a physical challenge, it's also a psychological one because I had to rebuild the confidence and re-lose the fear.

Yeah, I can only imagine what you've been through..

 

[kolio]

The purple (YoYoFactory Genesis) yoyo is my 5A throw and the red one is my 2A throw. (YoYoFactory Supernova)



EDIT: APPOLOGIZE FOR TERRIBLE PICTURES.

 

[FoRiZon]

I wish every GTP atheletes come together and do this:

 

[kolio]

I wish every GTP atheletes come together and do this:

Lets do it, I'll be the camera man.

 

[kikie]

I'm also an athlete in "socialising" when working out. This is a very important aspect of working out in a fitness.
The owner of the fitness and a very good friend, said to me several times, that I would have been very big and muscular if I would work out as much as I talk to others.

That, .... is the definition of being an athlete.

 

[Akmuq]

If you have fun in the gym it's a very good thing. Socialising is important I also believe, and it will only help you get motivated to be fit.👍

 

[Michael88]

If you have fun in the gym it's a very good thing. Socialising is important I also believe, and it will only help you get motivated to be fit.👍

Its pretty much the opposite with me. I work out at home, I have all the equipment here and I can only do my heaviest lifts if no one breaks my concentration or if I'm in a hurry because someone is waiting for the machine/weights etc.
I have all the time I need and all the equipment at my disposal at any time, that feels really good and has definitely a positive impact on my weight lifting regime.

Then again I've never understood people who need other people around to reach personal goals. What has trying to reach personal goals in (non-team-) sports to do with other people?

 

[Bo]

Then again I've never understood people who need other people around to reach personal goals. What has trying to reach personal goals in (non-team-) sports to do with other people?

When I'm racing, I like having people who I'm friendly with around me - be it actually on the rostrum next to me, or even just pitting with them. There are a few select people I do not get along with at all. I'm not out to get them, but their presence can throw me off during a race.

Serpent aren't supported as much as some other manufacturers in the UK, so I only have one or maybe two teammates per meeting in a best case scenario, but even friends who aren't sponsored or drive for another manufacturer can help to settle me and make me perform better. When I have a clear track and I'm with someone who I can trust, I drive at my peak performance.

I'm not sure if that fits your idea of "personal goals", but I feel that every competitor who's around you will either make you perform at your best or your worst. Personalities, even from first impressions, can play some truly nasty mind games with you.

 

[kolio]

I'm also an athlete in "socialising" when working out. This is a very important aspect of working out in a fitness.
The owner of the fitness and a very good friend, said to me several times, that I would have been very big and muscular if I would work out as much as I talk to others.

That, .... is the definition of being an athlete.

Why don't we just call you @ChattyCathy?

PS: Can you let me know if it gave you a notification for mentioning you in a post?

 

[Akmuq]

Its pretty much the opposite with me. I work out at home, I have all the equipment here and I can only do my heaviest lifts if no one breaks my concentration or if I'm in a hurry because someone is waiting for the machine/weights etc.
I have all the time I need and all the equipment at my disposal at any time, that feels really good and has definitely a positive impact on my weight lifting regime.

Then again I've never understood people who need other people around to reach personal goals. What has trying to reach personal goals in (non-team-) sports to do with other people?

I understand that, but you're trying to set PB's moving the heaviest weights you can. Kikie is (I assume) going to maintain a decent level of fitness, it's different.

 

[kikie]

Why don't we just call you @ChattyCathy?

PS: Can you let me know if it gave you a notification for mentioning you in a post?

Yes, it did. I got an alert.

ChattyChathy it is.

 

[Bo]

My first outdoor 2WD test is done at SRCC! Not as originally planned though, since it is still 2015, so I have to wait 2 more days before I have all my Vampire stuff.

We've had some severe flooding in the UK recently, so the astro wasn't too good. Some sections of the track, particularly the left hand side of the circuit, suffer from recurring drainage issues, which means the surface is constantly sinking into the softened compacted sand beneath. Not only is the grip random, but there are giant ruts that are nigh-on invisible, so I avoided it as much as I could. The rest of the track dried up throughout the day but was still treacherous, as you can probably see in the video from the amount of times I got the back end out coming down off the tabletop. Running wide was the only way to generate some traction. Apart from that, considering I was running my indoor setup, it felt fantastic.

We had Tony Parr running a brand new XRAY XB2 too, and the MM appeared much more composed - comparing it to my old Schumacher Cougar SV2 in the wet, it felt light years ahead. Certainly a much better car in the wet than the dry.

Here are a few of my laps from my second run:



I really did enjoy getting some track time in. My new Sanwa radio gear was exceptional, and any bit of track time I can get will help me to improve my driving.

 

[JTB10000]

I bowl on the weekends in an unfortunately dying league I've been with since I was 8 (I'm 17 now). I average around 180 and my highest score is a 256. Honestly not very good for someone who's been consistently doing it for so long. I might try to go pro but I'm not sure I'm into it enough.

 

[ThrasherDBS]

I was on the Cross-Country team in high school. An injury prevented me from competing during my freshman year, was on the Varsity team and lettered my Sophomore year, and was on JV for my Junior year. I was also on the Track team during my Freshman year.

Nowadays, I just run for fun. Couldn't really get into the competition aspect of it.