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Real name:
Jim Cary
Location:
Longview, TX
Division:
Men's 65
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| Nov. 8, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: To sue or not to sue You intentionally put slanderous words on this public site with intent to harm my business. I also have private emails that were clearly blackmail threats against me and my business. That type of internet activity is criminal as well as civil. Thank you to SS USA for doing their best to wipe it out but it is easily found through google and other internet search engines. You have made it a public record. |
| Oct. 30, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Make the Most of Life, By Carl Gustafson Read carefully guys, Carl actually DIED on the softball field just like he foreshadowed in his SS USA column. However, Paramedics brought him back and he is still with us. He was totally gone for a minute or two. |
| Oct. 29, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Balls in general We all want good bats and good balls. We just have a different opinion on what those are. ASA and USSSA both have MAJOR bat problems, we in senior ball have MINOR bat problems. In ASA "If you dont cheat you will get beat". In USSSA you have to "cheat to compete". In senior softball you have to be the best to win and cheating doesnt get you there. We use the best bats, why would any sane person try to doctor their bat to hit it maybe one foot farther and risk law suits and banishment. We in senior ball have the bat issue pretty much solved. The .52 Cor 275 pound ball is more about solving the bat issue, not the ball issue. The 52 plays the same hot as cold and there is only about a 3% difference in hitting a wood bat verses a senior bat. The ball almost solves the bat problem, does solve the temperature problem and the major players (By the way, Joe, you ain't one of the major players) actually voted almost unanimously that they preferred the .52 over the 44 375 ball. In the Canada VS USA game on ESPN BOTH teams voted that they wanted to use the .52 and not the 44 375. Joe, you are right we want good balls and good bats. The rest of what you have to say is showing your IGNORANCE. If you'd just smile, show up and play and SHUT UP you might even be appreciated. |
| Oct. 29, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Make the Most of Life, By Carl Gustafson The last issue of Senior Sotball News had the most Prophetic article ever written in the world of softball. Its such an incredible coincidence that it cannot be JUST coincidence. If you have a copy of the paper you need to get it right now and read on page 13 Carls Corner. I am going to plagerize and rewrite the first paragraph here, I am sure Carl won't protest. "He crossed home plate, turned to his teammates with a grin, and dropped over dead. It wasn't the first time this happened in a tournament game nor will it be the last. This incident happened in August to a player who was quite sure he'd be in Phoenix in October". This was written just before the paper's deadline in August. On Friday October 23 Carl crossed home plate with full steam in a senior game in San Diego and collapsed. Much happened in the ensuing few minutes that certainly changed Carl's life forever and, its up to us all, can be a huge change in our lives too. Carl thought he was preaching to all of us when in reality he was foretelling his own story. Carl screamed at a teammate who was calling 911 and was adamantly denying there was a problem. Over severe objections the 911 call was made and when paramedics arrived Carl was barely alive and before they could help him he died, right there in front of teammates and paramedics, he stopped breathing and his heart stopped. At that very moment Carl knew he was dying. A man who is invincible, or so he thought,a man who did all the right things with his body and had almost no body fat, died right there denying anything was wrong. This isn't the end of the story, its just the beginning. The 911 call was successful and the paramedics brought Carl back to life. Had teammates done what Carl tried his best to get them to do, I would have lost a "Best Friend", a beautiful wife would be a widow and we as senior softball players would have lost the opportunity to learn an incredible lesson, the lesson Carl was trying to share in the summer edition of Senior Softball News. There is so much more to this story and much will be written in coming days and months. This is an opportunity right now for all of us to take note and get our lives in proper focus. Every day is a gift and could be our last. Carl isn't out of the woods yet but he has changed and I guarantee he will make the most of each day to make a difference. The doctors in the emergency room fought with Carl and over his protests and surgically put in a stint that has given him new life. He is among the most intelligent guys I have ever known. He is a gifted athlete, music composer, journalist, engineer and a very well known Blues singer and band leader. He has learned he isn't invincible and he will be using every day to make a difference. There is more to come on this story but before its all written I want to encourage all of us to examine our own lives as Carl has encouraged us to do. Are you in the right place, right now to meet your maker? |
| Oct. 24, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Avis in Phoenix I arrived in Phoenix on thursday via ticket I bought on Priceline thru Frontier Airlines. Frontier confiscated my toothpaste and a few other products in my baggage and charged me $20 for the one checked bag. I was a little upset but tried to not let it bother me. I also rented a car on the same itinierary thru priceline with Avis. I rent cars maybe 15 times a year, I'm not a rookie. Priceline charged my card ahead of time, which is not the norm. Most travel companies dont charge the card until you get to the car rental counter. I rented a car for 4 days and paid ahead of time $256.65, a high amount but Phoenix was short of cars, so they said and I paid it. When I got to the counter they refused to give me a car, they had cars and gave me a lame excuse about the amount of the payment. That day at the airport they were getting almost $200 a day for cars and they didnt honor my reservation. They wouldnt give me any paper work to prove I didnt get a car and litterally told me to go away or they would call the police at the facility. I went to Hertz, the 3rd desk I went to and they gave me a car for $566 3 days, highway robbery but with a shortage of cars I was relieved to get out of the airport. I returned the car the next day to Scottsdale Hertz and had the car for about 16 hours. Hertz still hasnt refunded the over charge and Avis never told Priceline that they refused to give me a car. I had to place a dispute with paypal as its my business payment method and I have to hope Hertz and Avis will fess up to what they both did. I called Priceline and they wouldnt help, they still have my money and I may never get it back. I went thru quite and experience, had a compact car for 16 hours and priceline/avis and Hertz have a total of $813 of my dollars and I have to fight to get some of it back and the burden of proof is on me. Customer service in this country is almost non existent and we are a service based country. Going to a softball tournament when you have to fly is not a lot of fun. |
| Oct. 23, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Tournaments Discussion: Phoenix 60's Major Plus The Pro, Kevin is exactly right. I didnt mean that LVSSA or YOU did anything wrong. Those balls were made and circulated long before LVSSA used them. We play "hit your own ball" in Texas and those balls were being used all over the state because teams wanted to win and didnt care if they were using balls that were mis stamped. My hat is actually off to LVSSA because when I go to their association, I know ahead of time that they will use the best balls they can get regardless of price. I very much enjoyed this years LVSSA event with the MCT balls. Sorry I hijacked this thread. Its supposed to be about SS-USA and GSF |
| Oct. 22, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Tournaments Discussion: Phoenix 60's Major Plus Now a small Hi Jack in this thread, the ball. I will try my best to explain a bit about the balls mentioned previously in this thread. The balls used in Las Vegas and the balls used in Phoenix were both 44 375 and both are made by TRUMP. Why was their such a difference in the way the ball performed? I will try my best to explain. 44 COR is basically a measure of bounce and the 375 is a measure of hardness. After the manufacturing process is finished, both balls have the same bounce (Co efficient of restitution) and hardness (375 pounds of pressure to squeeze them by 1/4 of an inch). This where the likeness of the balls ends. The Las Vegas ball has a layer of insulation wrapped around it under the cover. The substance is like the substance used on the space shuttle to insulate it from external heat. The Las Vegas ball also has a winding around the polycore to keep out all moisture. Because of the thickness of the insulation and moisture barrier, the polycore obviously has to be smaller in diameter in order for the final product to be the same size. The polycore also has to have slightly different mixture in order for the final product to have identical bounce and hardness. The Phoenix ball has no insulation and no moisture barrier but still has the same bounce and hardness. Since the Las Vegas ball will not react to heat and moisture, it will stay cool in the center and outperform the Phoexix ball in any heated atmosphere. Phoenix was way hotter than Las Vegas and therefore there was a substantial difference in the way the ball flew. Here's another interesting fact. If the temperature was 40 degrees, the Vegas ball would stay warmer and softer and the Phoenix ball would be harder and fly off of composites better. Now lets talk cost. Obviously the ball with the insulation, moisture barrier and leather cover will cost more to produce than the synthetic non insulated and non moisture proof ball. However, they have the same bounce and same hardness as a final product when tested at the same temperature. When Trump puts 375 44 COR on a ball, you can be sure it IS 44 375. There are a couple of un named manufacturers who have cheated and confused some of you. In the past some of those balls were used in the Las Vegas SSA program. They were incorrectly labeled on purpose. Interestingly enough, the Microcell Technology ball (used in Vegas) was sent to SS USA players and it was turned down because a few rather uninformed individuals didnt like how it felt soft to the touch. It feels soft to the touch because of the layer of insulation beneath the cover. This surely isnt a total picture of the difference in the balls but I hope its enough info for most of you to understand why one ball outperformed the other for distance. Durability is another subject |
| Oct. 22, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Tournaments Discussion: Phoenix 60's Major Plus I don't want to hi jack this thread and was looking for somewhere to give my opinions on the 60 major plus tournament and this is certainly the place to do it. GSF won the tournament with DEFENSE. I was amazed at the level of defense I witnessed by all of the teams in the final games. Offense was neutralized by heat that was OFFICIALLY 104 degrees. The offensive strategy was substantually changed by the heat on the ball. GSF adjusted and won with what I feel was incredible defensive play. Because the ball wasnt going out, hitters were consistently attacking the middle as its the easiest hit in softball. Wood put Conway in to pitch and to plug the middle. The final 3 outs were all hit to Conway to end the game. GSF adjusted to the conditions and won because of recognizing limitations and enhancing their chances of winning. Many times I have been quoted as saying " managers cannot win games but they sure can lose games". In this case, quote me, "The manager won the game". This tournament proved to me that the Major Plus teams also have the best defensive teams. Defense played that sunday by 60 year olds was the best I have ever witnessed. I have already been quoted previously in this thread and the quote was taken out of context. Our game, as well as almost all business, is about the money. SS-USA cannot run a quality program like they do if they cannot make a profit. I want them to make as big a profit as they can because it will reflect in the quality of the program. They MUST run every financial aspect of their program to the max, touch every base in order to continue to give us the best product they can put on the field. If we do not buy their product, something is wrong. We are buying their program and even in hard times it is expanding. They must be doing most things right. |
| July 6, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: New idea for combining divisions Bob, Its good for us all to try and think of new formats that will work, its certainly progressive. However, there is a flaw in your premise. Double elimination format takes twice as many games as the 2 game pool. A 6 team double elim takes 11 games. A 6 team 2 game pool only takes only 6 games. Your format is a lot more games expensive and also time consuming. If a team were to win both double elim formats they might play a whole lot of games, not 4. |
| July 4, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Bats Discussion: Shaved bats & PPR call me 903 236 3459 |
| July 3, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Bats Discussion: Shaved bats & PPR Mike, Great to hear how well you are healing up. Two weeks ago I played in 3 divisions in Texas Championships. Won the 65 and 60 and 3rd in the 50's. I dont know how many games I played. Last weekend I played with the flat bellies and pitched 7 games on saturday in 100 degree Texas heat. Last year at this time it just hurt too much to play. Now, I bounce right back. Thank you ACAI |
| June 9, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Website comments Discussion: longesthit softball Mike Burbanks shot at Lorenzi Park was over 500 ft. Bruce Meade did hit one measured at 510. However, in 1983 I was one of the principals who put on a national HR hitting contest at San Diego State's old baseball field. Mike Macenko was the hitter and I threw the pitch. The power alley in right center was marked at 385, behind the fece was a section of bleachers about 10 rows deep and behind the bleachers was a walkway about 50 feet wide. It abutted the basketball arena and after Mike had a temper tantrum he picked up a bat he had never swung before and hit one OVER the basketball arena. We dont know how far it went because we couldnt see where it came down and the ball was lost forever. Rich Plante won the event by hitting 10 in a row out of the baseball park. The buzz was the Macenko shot and it was taped by the local TV news crew. I estimate somewhere in the 600 ft range. The ball was a Wilson optima Gold (not a hot ball) and the bat was one of the old solid aluminum Steele bats. Mike's the man. |
| June 1, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Tournaments Discussion: TEXAS HALF CENTURY JR, Once again you open your mouth when you brain isnt quite functioning. My roster was turned in when we arrived on friday and as you were right in the middle of everything that was bitchy you darn well know that our 10th player arrived just at game time and was brought by our 9th player from Houston who thought he was playing in a 60 tournament even though he is 67 and his friend that he brought, I didnt know his name just that I assumed he was a 65 player. We took the field and you so joyously pointed him out as a 60 division player. He arrived 5 minutes after game time and was a complete stranger to me. When you pointed him out ...I halted the game to get a ruling on who he was and his age. He immediately told us his age and he thought this was a 60 division. I told him he couldnt play and we started with 9 players. We were an at large team with no intention of qualifying and didnt care if we lost 6 six in a row. We got a team in at the urging of the tournament officials so as to have enough teams to have a tournament. The real problem was that we beat you pretty soundly with an inferior team. You screamed and hollered at your teammates telling them they were losers and didnt even try. It was just our day an we threw together a legal team that had a bunch of guys who were encouraged and not discouraged and we beat you pretty soundly. If you remember, your team wanted to quit and took a vote whether to play the last game or not. We had a legal team that didnt really care if we won or lost and just picked each other up and had fun. We won. You complained and argued and protested and lost by playing lousy softball. The tournament was one of the best run tournaments with incredible weather problems destroying their hard laid out plans. They regrouped with plan "B" an incredible plan "B" that worked. If you had just inspired your team to play better, you too would be be praising the Texas Half Centuy for a job well done. Well, you wrote the check and you say you have the right to complain. You have quality players and since you write the check you should work a little harder to motivate them instead of denigrating them and then maybe you'll think the tournment was a good one. |
| May 31, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Tournaments Discussion: TEXAS HALF CENTURY Some are going to think that my thoughts are not impartial because of my close relationship with Keith and The Texas Half Century, I understand that but....This tournament was handled incedibly well. There wasnt a rain storm it was two separate storms. One storm could have caused a rainout but the fields were worked hard and we played. Then came the second one on sat evening and the fields were drenched again and again the fields were as playable as POSSIBLE. There were a number of players who went home early thinking there was no way to get it in and thereby leaving teams short players. Care was taken to see that players added were LEGAL. Players from 65 played with 60's and 60's played with 55's and all were looked at to be sure they were legal. Some softball players will complain no matter what but in this tourney...We got to play, we got lots of great softball and lesser people would have just rained it out and cancelled. Keith, Paula and UIC Jim Ormsby stayed and made it as good as possible. How can we complain when such an outstanding effort was made to get it in. |
| May 10, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Is THE ball or... having enough balls. JB, Great idea, I've always felt that if you don't like the service, you don't have to tip. But..if you dont tip, DO NOT return to the restaurant. Joe, Since you dont like this restaurant, dont come back. I like this restaurant and I come here a lot. I think the owners of this business are trying their best to make it as good as it can be. Sometimes that means they make a change to the menu. Some people like chicken N Dumplings and I dont. I dont boycott the best restaurant in town because they have chicken and dumplings. But I can boycott the best restaurant in town if they continue to allow some jerk to come in and rant and rave everyday about the management and the menu. Joe, go somewhere else, you are spoiling my day and I cant believe the owners of this restaurant want your business. |
| May 4, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Demise of Senior Softball I believe this thread could be changed to "The demise of softball" because the young guys game has been hurt by the same rules that are now hurting senior softball. Slowpitch softball grew to its highest numbers because we could dig in and hit the ball as hard as we cold swing. The game grew mainly because of the influence of the USSSA wanting a livelier game than what ASA wanted. If it had been up the ASA our game would never have taken off like it did. The numbers grew to staggering levels and then came the decline. It grew when we had one classification and continued to grow when the second classification was created. Then came "C" and the numbers declined. Then came "D" and "E" and the game declined even more when "over the fence" became an out and an ejection. The best players continued to play but refused to play anywhere but the in lowest classes. Today there are many states that dont even have one "C" team in the state and most states with no "B" and who plays "A" anywhere. Now senior ball has fallen into the same trap. Too many classifications and a penalty if you hit the ball too hard. We ALL know this is true but once instituted its almost impossible to change it back to the way it should be. Teams will boycott any association that tries to make the game the way its supposed to be played. Its killing our great game and there is NO answer to make it right. If SS-USA went to the way it should be played, no one would show up. Its already been destroyed and I believe there is no way to go back and correct it. We just have to get used to it. ASA has a huge illegal equipment problem and all associations have declining numbers. The associations created it and it isnt going to get better soon. Make over the fence a home run and just watch how many teams will refuse to play. Make AA teams play major teams and just watch how many teams will refuse to play. Making a AA team a national champion is a joke and we all know it, but what can we do. |
| April 26, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Did I break or just tie a record Jack, I agree with all you've said. No way possible to play the tourney, SPA did a great job, couldnt have done better |
| April 26, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Did I break or just tie a record Both Larry's, Injury not serious at all, just a sore finger for a few days and bruises on both legs. If all of the impact was in one place it might have been bad but since it hit me three times I actually slowed it down, it was almost a croquet shot. On Friday the fields were great, a bit windy but the day was pleasant and the format was very good. However, friday night it didnt just rain, it came down in buckets. It rained all night with very active thunder and lightning. I heard that places in the area got as much as 5 inches that night. The water table was already way up because of the rains earlier in the week and there was no way to play on sat or sunday. At least we got 3 games in on friday but the decision to cancel was inevitable. There was no way to get the fields playable. SPA did as well as they could with the conditions and the teams that came in friday night didnt get any games at all. Houston in the spring is always a possible rain out. I cant see where SPA did anything wrong, it was just a big local storm. Too bad because it was going to be a good tournament. |
| April 25, 2009 jim16 | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Did I break or just tie a record On Friday in an SPA qualifier in Baytown Tx I was pitching and was hit by the same batted ball three times. A line drive went off the little finger of my glove, then hit me in the right leg about 2 inches below the groin and then hit my left leg about 4 inches below the groin. I have a ball sized purple bruise on both legs and a sore little finger. It hit me flush on the third hit, fell to the ground and I picked it up and forced a runner at second. Is this some kind of record? I wasnt wearing a cup and it could have been a bulls eye. All injuries are minor but who has been injured three times by the same batted ball? |
| April 23, 2009 jim16 | Topic: Product review Discussion: Acai Info Please I am extremely offended by the statement that I have given misleading information on his board. I HAVE NOT. I am taking a product that works, a product that is the finest in the industry, a product that has the highest certified scores in its class. ORAC value is VERY important in rating these products. ORAC stands for oxygen Radical Absorption capacity. This is a measure of how well the body can use the anti aging anti oxidents. There is only one way to verify our ability to obtain the anti aging qualities and that is through Brunswick labs. To say that is unimportant or to say I've made misleading statements offends me. This product has worked for me and it has done extremely positive things for me and I've hesitated to list what its done for me because it may not do that for someone else. I have had a number of incredible things happen and if anyone wants to hear first hand what its done for ME they can call. I make no medical promises to anyone. # 6 has posted regularly on here because he has had some positive results too. I know him and I vouch for his credibility. There are others who read this board regularly who also have had positive reults and are hesitant to post because they fear they too will be attacked by a member who for one reason or another believe we are selling "snake oil". So be it, bottom line is that there are a number of good products out there and some that are not so good. Our bodies need anti oxidents, that is absolutely scientificly sound. Its how our bodies fight aging and very few of us get enough antioxidents in our system. I am getting enough and its made a difference. I am extremely happy with the product and I reccomend it to others. If anyone wants to hear how its helped me, call me. No sales hype just testimony. Jim 903 236 3459 |
