Seven game flex pack on sale for mens hoops.

BERKELEY – Beginning Thursday, Oct. 8, at 9 a.m., Cal fans can purchase specially-priced ticket packs for the 2009-10 men’s basketball season before single-game tickets become available to the general public. Fans can choose between a 7-Game Flex Pack for $161, which allows you to pick three nonconference and four conference games of your choice, or the Cal Fan 4-Pack for $110, which includes UCLA, Stanford, Arizona and one nonconference game of your choice.

Other 7-Game Flex Pack and Cal Fan 4-Pack benefits include flexibility and savings over single-ticket prices.

Rugby, Olympics to reunite in 2016


Not an ole tackle.

COPENHAGEN – After a 92-year absence, the sport of rugby will return to the Summer Olympics at the 2016 Games in Rio De Janeiro following a ratifying vote Friday by the International Olympic Committee.

Needing a straight majority from the IOC for its return, rugby was approved by an 81-8 vote with one abstention. Golf was also approved for Olympic inclusion in 2016 with a 63-27 vote with two abstentions.

Golden Bears helped to bring home gold medals for the United States the last two Games in which rugby participated – 1920 and 1924 – and the return of rugby in a seven-a-side format for 2016 signals a new opportunity for California ruggers to represent their country on the world stage.

“People will need to excuse our rugby pride for a few days. A return to Olympic status is something we’ve worked on for many years,” said Bears head coach Jack Clark. “It is truly a great day in the long history of our sport.”

Cal’s Charlie Tilden, Matt Hazeltine, Red Meigan, George Dixon, C. “Babe” Slater and future Bears coach Ed “Mush” Graff were among the Americans who stunned their European opponents and audiences with their “aggressive tackling and superb punting” according to a French newspaper covering the ’24 Games in Paris.

In the interim, Cal players have made 485 international appearances for the U.S. men’s national team. With the 2016 Olympics preceded by the 2011 and ‘14 Pan Am Games, which has also added rugby, and the 2011 and ’14 Rugby World Cup, itself the third-most-watched sporting event in the world, today’s current and recent Bears have unprecedented opportunities to play for their country at the highest levels of international competition.

Cal kicks of its 2010 season in January.

Dahan and Zerbini Continue Undefeated Run at All-American

California men’s tennis juniors Pedro Zerbini and Jonathan Dahan won their fourth-consecutive match together to advance to the doubles main draw round of 16 at the 2009 D’Novo/ITA All-American Championship Thursday (Oct. 8) at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center on the campus of host Tulsa University. The Golden Bears defeated the fourth-seeded No. 7-ranked Florida State team of Jean-Yves Aubone and Vahid Mirzadeh, 8-6, in the round of 32. In the singles main draw,

No. 42-ranked Zerbini was turned away by No. 23 Alex Lacroix of Florida, 6-2, 6-4. Zerbini fell behind, 5-0, in the first set before earning a break in the sixth game; but it wasn’t enough to hold of Lacroix, who held serve to finish things off, 6-2. The two players each held their first serves in the second set but Zerbini surrendered the first break of the set and fell behind, 3-1. Zerbini earned a break of his own in the sixth game but allowed Lacroix to break back before the two played out the set to a 6-4 Florida victory.

Dahan and Zerbini look for a fifth straight doubles victory on Friday (Oct. 9) as they face Houston Barrick and Michael Shabaz of Virginia. Zerbini will take part in the singles main draw consolation round of 32. For complete schedules, results, draws and up-to-date scores, please visit www.itatennis.com

Cossou and Juricova Move On at All-American Championship

The California women’s tennis team sent two players into the round of 16 as No. 4-ranked sophomore Jana Juricova and No. 18-ranked junior Marina Cossou each won first-round singles matches at the 2009 Riviera/ITA All-American Championship Thursday, Oct. 8. Neither of the Golden Bears dropped a set to advance and are scheduled for 11 a.m. matches at the Riviera Tennis Club on Friday, Oct. 9.

The fourth-seeded Juricova defeated No. 17 Maria Sanchez of USC, 7-5, 6-3, and will draw No. 19 Ellah Nze of Duke in the next round. Cossou faced No. 53 Alison Ramos of USC in her first-round match. Ramos earned a berth in the championship by winning three matches at the qualifying tournament, but was knocked out of play quickly, 6-0, 6-2. Cossou will play the third seed, No. 3-ranked Marrit Boonstra of Florida in the round of 16. Quarterfinal matches are set for 2:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9.

Junior Mari Andersson and Juricova teamed up to hold the top seed in the doubles main draw, but the No. 2-ranked doubles team fell, 8-6, to No. 11 Irina Falconi and Amanda McDowell of Georgia Tech in the first round. Andersson and Juricova will have a chance to win the back draw with three more victories and begin with a 9 a.m. match on Friday, Oct. 9, against No. 12 Micaela Hein and Kelcy McKenna of Arizona State.

For complete schedules, results and draws, please visit www.itatennis.com

Surely Twist is going to make an appearance this weekend at the 2009 Honk! Festival, though I am perturbed by the 2009 Honk! Committee not including a certain Twistian Nathaniel Hook.

Across the country and around the world, a new type of street band is emerging. Acoustic and mobile, borrowing repertoire and inspiration from a diverse set of folk music traditions – New Orleans second line brass bands, European Klezmer, Balkan and Romani music, Brazilian Afro Bloc and Frevo traditions, as well as the passion and spirit of Mardi Gras and Carnival– these "honkers" all share a commitment to several core principles. Metaphorically speaking, they honk their horns for the same reasons motorists honk theirs: to arouse fellow travelers, to warn of danger, to celebrate milestones, and to just plain have fun.

First and foremost, they honk their horns – or beat their drums, or wave their flags – to enliven and embolden their audience. Members vary widely in age, class, ethnicity and background, and although they often wear some kind of uniform, there is also always an emphasis on individuality and a "DIY" (do-it-yourself) sensibility to their instrumentation and attire. These bands play music that is by, for, and of "the people." The distinction between performer and audience, just like the distinctions between different musical genres, is just one more arbitrary social boundary they aspire to overcome. Spectators often think "Hey, I could do that!" and, indeed, these bands often recruit new members right off the street.

Just as important, they honk their horns because it’s the best way they know to protest a world of violence and oppression. Many of these bands are less than a decade old, and many were born in reaction to the fatalism and indifference that has gripped the advanced industrialized democracies. In response, honkers have been providing a heartfelt musical antidote, a soundtrack for anti-war rallies, political mobilizations, pride parades and joyous reclamations of public space. Every one of these bands has a unique sense of humor to complement their sound, as they mock and discredit the roots of hatred and injustice through the whimsical act of making music together. The result is a spectacle that is radical and subversive without being militant or sanctimonious.

Men’s Golf Hosts 2009 Alister MacKenzie Invitational

BERKELEY – BEARS HOST 2009 MacKENZIE INVITATIONAL: After a one-year hiatus, during which California hosted the Pac-10 Championship on the same course, the Alister MacKenzie Invitational is back at the Meadow Club with 15 teams competing over 54 holes with two rounds on Monday, Oct. 12, followed by a final round on Tuesday, Oct. 13.

THE EVENT: The Alister MacKenzie Invitational, hosted by the University of California, takes at the Meadow Club in Fairfax, Calif. Two rounds on Monday and a final-round Tuesday will be preceded by a College-Am tournament on Sunday. The Bears are paired with Oregon and Colorado State to begin play on Monday. The course, at par-71 and 6,686 yards, was designed by Dr. Alister MacKenzie. Current weather forecasts call for a 40 percent chance of showers on Monday and Tuesday. Live scoring will be available at Golfstat.com with recaps each evening at CalBears.com.

THE COURSE: Designed in 1927 by Dr. Alister MacKenzie, a Scottish surgeon and world-renowned course architect, the Meadow Club is located in the North Bay’s Marin County, high above the town of Fairfax, near the Pacific Ocean. It has hosted 19 satellite fundraising events for Cal Men’s Golf beginning in 1989. Meadow Club has also hosted the 2008 Pac-10 Men’s Golf Championship (hosted by Cal), the 2001 US Open qualifying, the 1997 NorCal PGA Section Championship and the 1990 NCGA Junior Championship. Meadow Club is the oldest of the seven MacKenzie courses in the U.S. – the others are Cypress Point (1928), Valley Club (1928), Pasatiempo (1929), Green Hills (1929), Claremont (1929) and Crystal Downs (1933), the last being the only U.S. course he designed outside of California (Michigan).

DES SAYS: “Good teams play their home course well and great teams have a tendency to run away from the pack,” said head coach Steve Desimone about the advantage of hosting the MacKenzie at Meadow Club, with its well-bunkered approaches and undulating greens. The challenge for coach Desimone and the Bears, with a first-, fourth- and 12th-place finish to open the fall season, is to play consistently up to their potential. “With seven new players, I knew early on that we were going to go through some growing pains,” Desimone said. “We’re going through that now but I think this is going to become a very good golf team. Our qualifying rounds have been among the best we’ve ever had at the Meadow Club. It’s a competitive field with teams from all over, with proud traditions. We’re going to see some great golf.”

Link

Yesterday, Emily Gillette filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Burlington, Vermont, setting the stage for a legal battle, according to the Burlington Free Press.

Three years ago, Gillette, her husband, Brad, and their then 22-month-old daughter, River, were ordered to leave a plane at Vermont’s Burlington International Airport. It was a New York-bound Delta Connections flight operated by Freedom Airlines.

Gillette was nursing River when a flight attendant asked her to cover up. Gillette refused. The flight attendant asked again, offering a blanket. The then 27-year-old mother continued to refuse. The flight attendant “pointed to the exit and demanded: ‘Just get off the plane,’” the court documents read.

Gillette didn’t “engage in any loud or unsafe action that could be viewed as a threat to air safety,” according to the documents.

Gillette told USA Today that she wasn’t exposing herself. She purposely sat in a window seat and she was holding down her shirt while nursing.

Isn’t the baby getting a little old for that?

So, uh, that is all well and good carp, but, um, Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize:

OSLO — The Nobel Committee announced Friday that the annual peace prize was awarded to Barack Obama, just nine months into his presidency, "for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."

The award cited in particular Mr. Obama’s effort to reduce the world’s nuclear arsenal. "He has created a new international climate," the committee said.

Do you <3 fake snow? Good…because Boreal’s open!

One of California’s most spectacular wildlife scenes – a dusk flyover of sandhill cranes with their dramatic wingspans up to 7 feet – can be observed through winter as part of a guided wildlife adventure.

Chron article on your Golden Bears

After being outscored 72-6 in two straight losses and falling from No. 6 to unnoticed in the AP rankings, the Bears are seemingly unified in their message.

But reality showed Thursday at Memorial Stadium, when Cal made a sweeping change from its usual bye-week pattern.

Instead of using the session as a scrimmage for inexperienced players, the Bears had a full-on practice for the veterans. Words say Cal is OK with the way the rest of the season will take shape. Actions say they’re making the necessary changes to ensure the current trend won’t continue.

“We felt like our 1’s needed work and we wanted to utilize the whole week,” Tedford said. “We also wanted to get a jump on the game plan.”

DBD 10.90.09 – The Day carp jr got Dad up at 5:13 AM

Damn, this is a long month. Not enough sleep?

This makes me think Wilner’s saying this only so he can rip Cal later on. He has WAY too much confidence in this team:

If Cal beats UCLA, the Bears will be in position for an 8-4/9-3 season (the schedule is favorable in the second half).

If they get beat, then we’re quite possibly looking at a repeat of ‘07, with some serious questions about the way Jeff Tedford runs his program.

(The guess here is that Cal stabilizes and ends up with a very solid season.)

UCLA barely beats Oregon as Oregon’s receivers get a case of the dropsies, and UCLA’s special teams play outstanding.

Washington St takes advantage of an uninspired Arizona St team, and multiple turnovers.

Oregon St. outworks Stanford as quizz proves he’s better than Toby

Washington soundly beats Arizona

No editorial, just mentioning it.