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» Home » Who We Are » In the News » Article
Sports gifts always fit true sports fans
By Tom Sorensen tsorensen@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2008
Here's a tip that will simplify your holiday shopping.
No sports fan returns a sports gift.
I buy clothes and I might hear, “Where am I going to wear that?”
I buy the $14.99 Oakland Raiders ornament set at Target and I'm golden. The silver and black might look bad on the field, but the dangling plastic looks good in the dining room or on the tree.
A simple gift is an official NFL football ($89) or official NBA basketball ($99), which you can find at any sporting goods store. If you appreciate the game, you appreciate the feel of the new leather in your hands. You feel as if, with that ball, you can do anything. You can't, but it's a great feeling.
A gift that's tough to resist, but shouldn't be, is a vibrating football game, which I've seen for as little as $49.99 (Radio Shack's Web site).
It's so simple. Create a sophisticated formation with your players up on a green metal board. Attach the little ball to your little running back. Hit a switch. The board begins to vibrate and the players begin to move.
I always envision a squadron of blockers leading my back to the end zone. Instead they veer sideways at crazy angles like unleashed dogs. It's as if they're racing to the miniature concession stands.
Two years ago, I was given a $600 Fuji Tahoe Competition mountain bike (all I expect this year is air for the front tire).
Every time a company loses an employee it adds a rule. That's true no matter where you work. But when I'm riding down a dirt path or an empty road, I'm as free as an adult can be.
Please don't buy online. There are superior cycle shops in Charlotte. Take advantage of their expertise.
If you want to spend a few bucks, buy a Kentucky Derby or Super Bowl package from Quint, an innovative Charlotte-based company.
For some fans, the Derby is on the list of things to do while you still can. The best of Quint's Derby experiences includes three nights at the Galt House, hospitality at Churchill Downs, a gilded shortcut through the crowd and a seat on Millionaire's Row for the Derby and the Kentucky Oaks.
Derby packages range from $10,999 to $1,699. For more information, go to www.derbyexperiences.com or www.quintevents.com.
Stephon Marbury is one of the NBA's most selfish players. But he's an unselfish entrepreneur. Nothing in his Starbury shoe line sells for more than $14.98. To find a store near you, go to Starbury.com.
A regulation Wiffle Ball is $1.15 and a regulation Wiffle Bat $2.40 (Wiffle.com). “The Natural” DVD is $10-$15. For me, bat, ball and movie will always be linked.
Playing wiffleball in the backyard had always been my idea. Then my older son saw “The Natural,” and, no matter how bleak the weather, all he wanted to do was play. I was the pitcher and he was Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was.
As athletes, we weren't the best there ever was. But we thought we were pretty good.
The most underrated of sports gifts is your time.
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