By Joe Sixpack
Posted on February 10, 2010 on Joe Sixpack

IN 1852, the British government dispatched Royal Navy Cmdr. Edward Belcher and a fleet of five ships to the Canadian Arctic to search for the lost expedition of Sir John Franklin. They came up empty, and four of Belcher's ships - including the H.M.S. Resolute - were abandoned in the ice.

Years later, the Resolute was discovered adrift, salvaged, returned to Britain and disassembled. Its timbers were used to craft a pair of matching desks for the queen of England and the president of the United States.

If the story sounds familiar, that's because you may have seen it in the Nicolas Cage movie "National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets."

What you almost certainly have never heard, however, is the story of the ship's beer.

A Bethlehem, Pa., homebrewer with a thirst for history has unearthed that story and will attempt to re-create the beer this summer during his own Arctic expedition.

"I want to tell the world this great story," said Christopher Bowen, "because it really hasn't been told the way it should've been told."

The beer was Allsopp's Arctic Ale, a bottled barleywine brewed in Burton, England. Made with just under 12 percent alcohol so as to survive the frigid temperatures of the north, it was described by Belcher as "a valuable antiscorbutic" for its ability to fight scurvy.

With all that alcohol, it aged especially well.

In 1895, a British admiral who had carried bottles to the north during a separate expedition two decades earlier marveled at its staying power.

"The special qualities which rendered this ale so valuable for the purposes of the expedition were its strength and nutritive qualities," wrote Adm. A.H. Markham. "Its color is a rich brown and its flavor is suggestive of old Madeira. It is today as sound as on the day of its birth 20 years ago."

By Joe Toone for the extended Toone family.

Clown, Seminarian, Musician, Carnie, Hot Dog Vendor, Cop and Taxi Driver. Mike Toone dipped his toes in all these pools for years before settling in to the role that fit him best, family guy. (No, not the Peter Griffin type of Family Guy though both did share highly developed interests in sports and beer.)

Mike’s family was all-important to him - teens, babies, and everything in between. He loved them all and thoroughly enjoyed them hanging around the house. Long Sunday drives on twisty mountain roads were as much about the vistas as the talks that developed in the close confines. And as those who drove with Mike knew, being a taxi driver didn’t enhance Mike’s driving skills one bit!

Mike liked sports, but he was also a good sport. He attended toddler dance recitals and high school musicals with the same aplomb and genuine interest as he did St. Pat’s at the Hibernian Society.

Mike was even-keeled, literally and figuratively. He enjoyed renting a fishing boat on Brigantine Island and spending the day on the high seas though he had no experience with maritime matters and didn’t eat seafood. On land, Mike rolled with the punches be they physical (ah, those younger years with 3 brothers), emotional or financial and seamlessly tried alternatives to lessen his payload and bolster his family’s sea-worthiness.

Then there was Jersey Mike. Not the yummy sandwich shop Mike liked, but moving to New Jersey itself. After years of Pennsylvania living Mike decided to start anew in New Jersey and he loved it. He knew the history and trivia of the area as well as the present day bars and diners. Plus, he picked up the unique vocal cadence of the area in no time.

Most of all Mike liked people and chatting with them. Whether putting up the Big Top in a new town or meeting new neighbors, Mike truly enjoyed being around others and chatting about any topic available. All of this contributed to his enjoyment of Sports Lore so much. As Mike became more ill, the internet was a great place to chat with folks and Sports Lore provided topics all could enjoy.

Thanks Sports Lore for bringing so much enjoyment and fun to my brother’s life, particularly when he needed it the most.

By: NamSing Then

Archery – The skill of shooting an Arrow using a Bow was in the bygone ages a military weapon and also a hunting method before the invention of gunpowder. It is mainly confined now as a competitive sport used for target shooting.

A bow is a weapon that shoots arrows using the elasticity of the bow. The bow is made of a strip of flexible material with a cord linking the two ends of the strip to provide tension from which is propelled the arrow which is a straight shaft with a sharp point on one end or have flints and usually with feathers attached to the other end.

The modern day 'Target Archery' involves shooting arrows at a target from a pre-set distance. A Recurve bow is the only type of bow allowed to be used. Archery competitions may be held indoors or outdoors. Indoor distances are 18 m and 25 m. Outdoor distances range from 30 m to 90m depending on the seniority and 70 m is being used in the Olympic Games. Competition is divided into ends where an archer shoots either 3 or 6 arrows per end, depending on the type of round. There are 20 ends of 3 arrows in a round for indoor competition, but outdoor rounds generally involve more arrows per round. At the end, the competitors walk upto the target to score and retrieve their arrows.

Targets are painted with 10 evenly spaced concentric rings, which have score values from 1 through 10 assigned to them. Targets are colored as follows:

Outermost 1 ring & 2 ring - white
3 ring & 4 ring - black
5 ring & 6 ring - blue
7 ring & 8 ring - red
Innermost 9 rings & 10 ring - gold
There is an innermost ring, sometimes called the 10X ring or the Bull’s-eye.

The score for each arrow depends upon where it hits on the target. The highest score, a ten, is awarded by shooting an arrow into the two inner most circles. The bull’s-eye ring is typically as a tiebreaker with most X’s winning. Missing the rings on the target results in a zero score and in case of Line breaker where an arrow just touches a boundary line will be awarded the higher score. Scores are tallied at the end of each round or volley of arrows by summing the scores for their arrows which are recorded on a score sheet.

Archers have a set time limit in which to shoot their arrows. For indoor competition is 2 minutes for 3 arrows. Signaling devices such as lights and flags prompt the archers when it’s time to shoot.

Article Source: http://www.sportsarticlelibrary.com

NamSing Then is a regular article contributor on many topics. Be sure to visit his other websites Archery, Scuba Diving and One Stop Information

By Joe Sixpack
Posted on October 9, 2009 on Joe Sixpack

WHAT'S OLD is brew again.
From heather to pomegranate, unusual ingredients that were common in beer 1,000 years ago are making their way back into the modern brew kettle, thanks to a quirky new wave of experimentation by small brewers.

Through academic research and consultation of dusty texts, these brewers are producing a stunning variety of unusually flavored ales that were - until recently - virtually extinct.

The oddest, undoubtedly, is Dogfish Head Chicha, brewed this summer with purple maize that founder Sam Calagione and his staff chewed into mush, spit out and dried. The chewing is an essential step in the brewing process, allowing natural ptyalin enzymes in saliva to break down the corn's sugar and convert it into fermentable sugar.

Yes it sounds disgusting, but there's no health hazard because the mush is thoroughly boiled. Hundreds of people lined up at last month's Great American Beer Festival for a taste.

The ancient Peruvian brewing method is still practiced in some South American villages, but it's believed Dogfish Head's is the first commercially brewed chicha in the New World.

Dogfish Head is not the only one dabbling with long-forgotten recipes.

Craigmill Brewing in Scotland specializes in gruit, an old ale style that was prevalent in Europe before the use of hops became universal in the 16th century. Its beers are flavored with pine, blackberries and even seaweed.

At Cambridge Brewing in Massachusetts, brewer Will Meyers makes a Scottish ale flavored with heather flowers; it's a strong drink that Pict warriors might have fortified themselves with 4,000 years ago.

Fossil Fuels Brewing in California reaches back even further with a beer made from yeast extracted from a chunk of 45-million-year-old Burmese amber.

By Joe Sixpack
Posted on August 21, 2009 on Joe Sixpack

YOU KNOW the local beer scene is exploding when even the wine-sippers at the Inquirer make space on the front page for the Everyman's beverage of choice.

The money quote in last Sunday's exhaustive report by Rick Nichols is from Sly Fox Brewery & Eatery owner Pete Giannopoulos, who said, "We can't grow fast enough."

I can't drink it fast enough, either, but you don't hear me complaining. Instead, I'll devote this week's column to catching up.

Worth the trip

Mention the town of Emmaus to beer freaks, and they immediately think of Shangy's, the mega-distributor with more than 2,000 brands, including hard-to-find imports. That's fine for beer to go, but where do you go for a cold one after a grueling afternoon of shopping?

The Tap & Table Gastropub (4226 Chestnut St., Emmaus) is a good bet.

Located just down the road from the distributor, TnT pours from six draft lines and three hand-pumped casks. The menu ranges from oysters and mussels to steaks and chops.

Next weekend offers the perfect excuse to make the trek up the Northeast Extension: A minisaison fest featuring the spicy Belgian farmhouse style pouring from all taps. The event, which includes live music, runs Aug. 28-30, starting at 3 p.m. each day.

Roll out the barrel

Oppressive heat notwithstanding, fall is right around the corner, and that means it's Oktoberfest season.

Mark your calendars for the second annual Philly Oktoberfest on Sept. 19 at the 23rd Street Armory in Center City. The festival features oompah music, a German biergarten and samples of malty Oktoberfestbier and spicy pumpkin beers.

Tix are $40, with two sessions at 1 and 6 p.m. VIP entry includes food and early entry. Info: www.phillybeerfests.com.

by: Malcolm Snook

After World War Two a skydiving club was established at Thruxton airfield near Andover in Hampshire, southern England. The British skydiving Club used old (even then) Jackaroo biplanes, ex military parachutes and the club members were pioneers who would go on to found other skydiving clubs, become National Coaches and so on.

Today we're quite familiar with square parachutes that glide and perform like a hang glider, indeed it's possible to strap an engine to someone's back with a propeller in a cage, attach a modern square parachute to their shoulders and hey presto they can fly. We're also accustomed to the idea of buddy jumps where a would-be skydiver, or someone who just wants a one off experience can be attached to the front of an experienced jumper and do a minute's free-fall from twelve thousand feet on their first jump, often their only jump for the 'I've done that' box ticking character.

The buddy jump is only possible because these days reserve parachutes are worn on the back as well as the main parachute, which has traditionally been worn there, this in turn is a result of parachutes getting smaller and lighter, making it possible for two to be worn mounted one above the other in a tandem rig as they were originally called. No need to differentiate today, all kit is like that.

Not so long ago all parachutes were round, heavy and bulky and reserve parachutes were worn on the front of the body. Strangely parachuting as a sport may even have peaked in the nineteen seventies, when this was still largely the case. In the early nineteen seventies the Parafoil square parachute became available and even triangular parachutes based on the Rogallo wing were experimented with, whilst other companies developed the high performance round with an inverted apex, extended high pressure area and a myriad of slits, holes and control lines.

None of these designs was a hundred percent certain to open without malfunction, so skydivers used a plain round reserve that was more than ninety nine percent reliable! The first commercially successful square parachute was the Strato Star, later followed by a larger version, the Strato Cloud. Early 'Stars' had a reefing system using lines and rings around the periphery to control the potentially back breaking opening shock. This was also a complexity that could lead to a malfunction and it was ordinary sport jumpers who pioneered the use of a slider which slid down the rigging lines as the parachute opened to control the opening sequence.

The slider itself could cause a problem if too large or too small and sliders with holes in and various designs were experimented with until reliability was achieved. Today, sport jumpers use square reserves and are happy to wear them on their backs, where they cannot see them, nor reach them with their hands, so reliable has the equipment become.

By Joe Sixpack
Posted on January 29, 2010 on Joe Sixpack

THE BEER in front of me was dark and strong . . . and totally illegal in America.

It was an ice bock, an old style that - thanks to one of those puzzling quirks in alcohol law - cannot be brewed in America and sold as beer.

I won't mention the brewer who made it because he could face criminal prosecution. This stems from some basic facts of physical science:

The freezing temperature of water, as any kid will tell you, is 0 degrees Celsius. The freezing temperature of pure ethanol, as Wikipedia told me, is -114 Celsius.

If you submit a batch of, say, double bock to subzero temperatures, the beer's water will freeze before its alcohol does. If you scoop away the ice, you'll be left with a denser liquid of concentrated alcohol and malt.

That's ice bock, and that's illegal, because the process is actually a form of distillation, not conventional brewing. In other words, the final product - in the eyes of the law - is not beer, it's hard liquor.

This hairsplitting is an offshoot of post-Prohibition laws that require distilleries to be separately licensed and their products taxed at a higher rate than beer. Even home brewers are forbidden to make ice bock, lest Uncle Sam's revenuers string 'em up like moonshiners.

You're scratching your head, I know.

What about Molson Ice, Bud Ice and all those other ice beers that were popular back in the '90s?

The feds created a loophole for them, reasoning that only a tiny (or, in bureaucratese, de minimis) amount of water is removed in the final product to produce a beer with about 5 percent alcohol.

By contrast, classic ice bocks lose as much as 50 percent of the water through freeze distillation to reach double-digit alcohol content.

So, what about those famously strong German imports, like Kulmbacher Eisbock and Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock?

They're legit because these arcane distillation regs apply only to domestic beer.

Do you have something to buy , sell or trade?  Want to get it on the internet for free?  Not only free but with a built-in readership base so somebody will see it.  Sports Lore make no money off of this service.  It is just a way to say Thank-you to our readers.  You can contact either the webmaster or Mike Toone through Sports Lore to advertise.

NFL Game Clips spanning fourty years can be sold or traded.  The cost is $15.00 per tape plus $3.00 for shipping and handling.  Hundreds to choose from.  At present seller is looking for Superbowl 1 Packers vs Chiefs.  Color game film with either CBS or NBC Radio Broadcast.  The AFL Championship complete NBC version or color game film.  Lastly the 1965 NFC Championship Packers vs. Browns.

For more information and a complete list of tapes for sale contact:

Michael Brodie
200 Cushman Street
Durham, NC 27703 or call at (919) 765-5825.

Have we got some books for you!  First time author Ken Knight tells us the "real story of the history of NFL football fan support in New England."  To learn more about Ken and his book click here.

If something can be thrown people will watch it.  If something can be made people will drink it.  Don Russell once again helps guide up through the rich foamy past and present of beer.  For more information  click here.

Well you got to have a little music.  The following is a premier South Jersey Irish Band.  Which means they have day jobs.  Despite that they are all accomplished entertainers with a few CD's to their name.  Thei name is Broken Shillelaghs.  While this has little to do with sports I know all of them, and, well, they are good sports.  For more information click here.

By Joe Sixpack
Posted on September 11, 2009 on Joe Sixpack

IT'S BACK-TO-SCHOOL time, which means it's time for another installment of Joe Sixpack's Freshman Guide to College Beer-Drinking.

I'm going to assume most of you have already completed course work in Intro to Keg-Stands and Basics of ID Forgery. So we'll skip directly to what I hope will become not only a lifelong lesson, but a hip, new term at urbanslang.com: The Stupid Drink.

That's the drink that takes you from a fun night to a night you regret, from being in control to losing it, from drinking to drinking too much.

The Stupid Drink is not my original idea, although Lord knows I've downed my share of idiocy. Instead, it comes from students at the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, who coined the term in their winning entry in this year's National Student Advertising Competition.

Their assignment: Develop a campaign to combat dangerous overconsumption of alcohol by college students.

Overconsumption is a big deal on college campuses these days. Freshmen undergo lengthy, often overwrought orientation about the evils of alcohol that invariably equate beer with alcoholism, crime and death.

What caught my eye about the Stupid Drink is - though it's targeted at underage drinkers - it doesn't preach abstinence.

Professor Edward Russell, the faculty adviser who worked with the students, explained "that's because we know the abstinence message doesn't work . . . It's been tried many times by well-meaning people, and the problem keeps getting bigger."

Moreover, the campaign willfully rejects the B-word: binge.

When the Syracuse advertising team surveyed their campus, fellow students laughed at the term because, under its common definition (five drinks for men, four for women in two hours), virtually everyone they know is a binge drinker.

Yet they all know overdrinking when they see (or feel) it. There's a line that's crossed, they agreed, and it's different for every drinker. It may be a feeling, a situation, an environment, a number or a specific form of alcohol.

That's the Stupid Drink.

By Joe Sixpack
Posted on July 17, 2009 on Joe Sixpack

WHEN TAP lineups at your local pub change every day, challenging taste buds and pushing flavors to the extreme, it's not hard to feel less than excited by the old standbys.

Or worse. It's an unfortunate truth, after all, that familiarity breeds contempt.

So the other day, I sat down with three stalwarts of the craft-beer renaissance with a clean palate and a fresh eye.

Are they as outstanding as they were a generation ago when they were trendsetters? Or have they lost a step as competitors have improved?

All three are top-sellers in the craft-beer market, and they're benchmarks in their respective styles. Yet - perhaps in a sign of their diminished standing among experts - it's been a decade since any won a medal at the Great American Beer Festival.

But forget the experts. Try this exercise yourself. You'll be surprised by either how much your palate has changed or by how damningly easy it is to take excellence for granted.

Anchor Steam

Introduced: 1896.

Last Great American Beer Festival medal: 1992 (bronze).

Claim to fame: When washing-machine heir Fritz Maytag revived the brand in the late '60s, it would set in motion the entire microbrew craze, proving to the world that America could actually brew something other than a pallid yellow lager. By 1977, it would be described as "the Rolls-Royce" of U.S. beer.

Gratuitous diss: It's a training beer for novices.

Tasting notes: The aroma is delicate and enticing. The body is dry, smooth and thoroughly refreshing. First you taste its malt, delicately sweet and almost buttery. Then a tight, almost subtle, bite of hops cleanses the palate and urges you to follow with another quaff. Anchor Steam is a marvel of perfect balance.

My take: Anchor Steam is a wonderful easy-sipper, maybe the ideal ballpark beer. But in a world of hop monsters, malt bombs and high-octane mind-numbers, it's a "safe" beer that may never again get the credit it deserves.