I watch Alabama football. Sometimes ill watch other SEC games while I'm waiting for Alabama to play.

That's it.

Roll Tide!

Track and field, all wintersports and the Olympics.

Chloebud, Pete has been great for Seattle. But we constantly make the playoffs, then that's it. Something needs to change but I'm not sure what. Perhaps a whole new offensive coordinator. I'm glad Russell spoke up. It generated some change.

Lars, you wouldn't like me. When I get home from a Seahawk game sometimes I'm hoarse 😉. For away games I watch with friends (not this past season though) and yell at the TV along with my friends. I'd really annoy you 🤭

sephia, I once went up to Seattle (when the field was called Century Link or some such) to see the men's US soccer team play a match. The atmosphere outside the stadium was cool, lots of excited people, but I was astonished that everyone stood up when the match started. I politely asked the people in front of me to be seated and was told - "when the game is being played, we remain standing".

Why bother having seats? It turned a experience we'd looked forward to into a miserable one. Is that still the practice?

"we're in SoCal and big Rams and USC fans (DH's alma mater). Never did quite get over it when Pete Carroll left us"

I missed this.

chloebud, there's another university in LA and that's my alma mater. Both schools and supporters benefit from the competitiveness and long standing rivalry.

Don't forget that when Pete Carroll left USC, there was a dark cloud over its coaches and the athletic department in general having to do with NCAA violations and anticipated sanctions. Despite some who tried to color the story differently, it seemed he jumped off a sinking ship and got out when the getting was good. I don't know if any violations were brought against him or not.

Elmer, people in the lower seats at CenturyLink field, now called Lumen Field, or the less expensive seats, tend to stand up a lot during Seahawk games. Not the entire game though. The lower seats are "flatter," so to see what's going on people tend to stand up and sit down a lot. That stadium has had several names since it was built between 2000-2002. It was originally called the Seahawks Stadium, then changed to Qwest Field, then CenturyLink Field, and now Lumen Field, with the CenturyLink rebrand to Lumen Technologies.

Paul Allen is our local hometown hero. Besides being a cofounder of Microsoft, he saved the Seahawks from being moved to CA. He had a hand in the design of the stadium, thus the crowd noise is so loud. Opposing teams say they don't like to play in our stadium because of the crowd noise level that result in off-side calls. We can twice claim the Guinness World Record for having the loudest crowd roar at an outdoor stadium. In 2013 we measured 136.6 decibels, and 137.6 decibels in 2014.

For perspective, a jet engine at 100 feet is 140 decibels.

Did I mention I love football? 😂

"Don't forget that when Pete Carroll left USC, there was a dark cloud over its coaches and the athletic department in general having to do with NCAA violations and anticipated sanctions."

Nope, didn't forget at all. It was the reason I mentioned the sanctions and Pete getting out of Dodge to sephia. There's another university in LA??? :-)

"Did I mention I love football? 😂"

sephia, I think you and I could have some fun!

Sorry, chloebud, I read it through too quickly.

Yes indeed, another university in the LA area. And, of course, I'm not thinking of Cal State Univ Long Beach.

One part of me regrets what a great job USC has done in the past 40 years to up its game. The other part of me looks at it more fairly, ready to admire and congratulate how it's worked so hard to improve itself so substantially. It's a terrific university, special in so many ways, highly ranked schools and departments nationally. Lots of hard work and respect well deserved.

It was a lot easier to look at them with contempt in the rivalry in the 50s-70s when they were much more middling and inferior to my school. No more the case. As to "no more the case", please don't tell any of my fellow alums I said that>

When I lived in Dallas, and worked at a hotel, I was talking with a financial executive (okay he owned a bank) about an upcoming Cowboys game. This was back when the Cowboys were ”America’s Team”. We were booking the executive’s guests for his stadium suite, and I asked where he’d be sitting. He said, “oh,, “I” don’t watch the game from the suite, that’s no fun. They are all about being there. I like to watch from the stands with people who care about the game!” And again from a business perspective, our GM hoped the local college team (my alma mater!) lost, because the winning visitors’ fans would be too drunk from partying after the game to drive home, and would stay over. With breakfast. it’s all about the big bucks.

bpath, I can vouch for that being true.

Before I retired I gave my Seahawks tickets to friends for a Cowboys game in 2018 because I had to escort some airline customers to the game. We were going to sit in my company's suite (Boeing), where it would be all catered. While I still had fun, sitting in my seats is way more fun. Sitting in the suite isn't as fun because you're distracted with the catering, and people chitchat about other things and really don't watch the game. The same people sit in the seats by mine - unless they've given them away to other people for a particular game, but generally it's always the same people.

Boeing is a corporate sponsor of the Seahawks so it's a really nice suite. But I'd rather sit in my own seats.

Patriceny, thank you for the kind compliment :-) Right back at you! My husband and I used to live around the corner from the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, so you know what we grew up watching. I dreamt of being a ball girl at the tournament one day, but alas, that never came to pass.

Elmer, no doubt about it, there is zero romance in today's competitive sailing. My husband grew up racing ravens, j class boats, lasers, et al. In high school he sailed from Newport, RI, to the Caribbean on a 54' yawl (a southern circuit ocean racer) during an entire semester. I totally get the romance you miss.

If 'they' were to take all team sports off TV, I'd probably never notice, I'm not a team sports fan, at all. When my boys were growing up and participating in local Little League and school sports, I did support and encourage them. I attended and enjoyed watching all their games. But when they all outgrew it, that was it for me.

I do enjoy a few of the Winter Olympics events, though. And occasionally watch American Ninja Warrior, is that considered a sport?

Rusty

Wow, J Boats are behemoths. We never saw much of those on the West Coast, though from poking around I see Tom Siebel recently had one built, Svea. The 12 Meter class replaced the J class in the America's Cup - they're quite a bit smaller but still large.

Sounds like your husband had a pretty intensive sailing experience. I'm envious.

I'm in a real minority here in the USA; I love to watch professional cycling - road (and cyclocross in winter). Bicycles, not motorbikes. Ten years ago it was easy to watch races on networks like Outdoor Life and then Versus, but now I have to pay for a subscription for streaming to NBC - just got a notice that even with a paid subscription to the service, after June 8 I would also have to pay for Peacock Premium - and the number of major races that they show is ever-reducing also. Most of the top racing and teams are in Europe as well - I think the USA has only one major race left (Tour of Utah) since the Tour of California ceased last year.

For me it is quite like being at a ball game - it is a team sport (and I do have a favorite team and some favorite riders) so I can watch for tactics in between major moves, I enjoy the beautiful scenery of multiple European countries, I don't have to pay close attention for the entire race...relaxing. And I ride distances so I sorta kinda relate to the endurance aspect.

I never enjoyed watching skiing until I learn it myself - now I do. I enjoy several other Olympic competitions also, but don't watch those sports regularly after the games.

I guess I am more wired to live experience than to watching sports on TV. I do enjoy watching the Winter Olympics. Never been a fan of any particular team sport. I am more into the performance of the moment in time. I will watch bits of a sport if the competition is intense, like a few plays of football. I will watch hockey but not set time aside for it unless I go to a live game.

In my tweens/teens I was an "Any Sunday" girl. Always at the race track for the motorcycle scrambles. Used to love going to hill climbing events too. Also spent a lot of time at drag strip. Mid life it was sprint cars and other auto racing. did one year where I ran my own car in demolition derby.

Now it's horses. I enjoy horse racing and dressage, but my interest lies mostly in endurance riding. I do go to the track a few times a year. But most of my friends want to sit in the Turf Club and nosh and watch it from inside or on the little tabletop tv. I prefer to be down in the paddock. I can only so much of sitting around. So I eat, stay long enough to be polite and leave. Starting to want to dabble in reining now that I have switched to western. Hopefully I can start volunteering at some now that things are opening up. Don't know if I will be able to participate this late in the game but shortly I will be riding a mule for the first time so who knows what life will bring?

who knows what life will bring

Barrel racing, lots of fun and you will use your reining skills. I've never seen a mule at a barrel race but that could be interesting.

"I guess I am more wired to live experience than to watching sports on TV."

Is that maybe just a way of saying you don't much like popular sports and/or watching TV? Fair enough, that's true of many.

There are many sports people know and enjoy that they can't themselves play so a live experience isn't possible. Both baseball and football have many female fans but neither sport is available for females to play at any age. Most of the fans of those sports beyond youth age, if they played them as kids, can no longer do so. Having developed the interest, they can follow them as in person fans or on TV.

Arguably, for many sports, watching on TV may limit the ambiance of the in person viewing experience but it provides a superior view and it's a whole lot cheaper. Since all in-town teams play half their games away from home, why miss half the season?

Sometimes watch the Olympics but that's about it. I used to like race car driving when I was younger. I liked watching my brothers play baseball when they were kids but the one time I saw a real game in person it was pretty boring and too far away to really see much.

Lucille Mules can barrel race. I had no idea. But I don't think barrel racing is in my future. At least not unless they have a newbie esquire septuagenarian division. LOL

Nonsense. Don't say 'I can't' because that alone will stop you. You can do it. You might luck into a perfect racer when the owner goes off to college or some such. who knows what life will bring

Mules can definitely barrel race! They’re good at team roping and jumping as well.

I used to take my donkey to Tees, Alberta Long Ears Days, and enter her into driving and obstacle competitions. There were always a lot of jacks, jennets, mules and hinnies there. The mule events were always a highlight.

Spruce Meadows also has mule competitions.

Good luck, wildchild. I think you will have a lot of fun.

To answer the OP, I like to watch golf on TV. I like to play golf even more, though. ⛳️

I was thinking about sports and this oldie but goodie came to mind:

I'd rather poke my eye out with a stick than watch any sports.

No boys or men in my household growing up, but DH is a Cubs and Bears fan and follows Northwestern football. Our DS played Little League and DH coached. DS also coached our DGS, but neither of our 'boys' continued in HS. DGS loves water polo; was so disappointed not to be able to play on his HS team during the pandemic.

The recent Baez run down escape was reminiscent of many a Little League game!

I prefer college sportsg over pro-anything, which is more 'business' than sport. (And business for the gambling industry as well.) I'll watch tennis on TV. Not golf.

My experience is that women with no interest in sports in their adult years often had little or no involvement in playing sports themselves during their childhood years. Or, indeed, during their adult years - a woman friend of ours just hung up her soccer playing cleats in her early 60s. She played on women's teams in age-stratified leagues all her adult life. And, she's an enthusiastic sports spectator, almost anything on TV and going to local team games interest her. My wife is the same with other sports played (competitive tennis) during her adult years.

"I prefer college sportsg over pro-anything, which is more 'business' than sport. (And business for the gambling industry as well."

I think if you scratch the surface a bit, you'll find that while the money received currently by elite players is less while in college, the major sports teams, the schools themselves and the leagues are focused on the money and the amounts are large. The goal of most college athletes is to parlay their college performances into pro contracts, which is why so many leave school before graduating.

The betting scene for major college sports events is no less active than for pro games. When you hear in the media that "Ohio State is favored by 6 1/2 points over Michigan State for Saturday's game", what you're hearing is the betting line from a sports book, not a reporter's assessment.

"My experience is that women with no interest in sports in their adult years often had little or no involvement in playing sports themselves during their childhood years. Or, indeed, during their adult years" (said Elmer).

Your experience in what? I know lots of women who played in

some kind of sport or several, but there are still certain sports that they aren't interested in

watching. I also know a lot of "wannabes" who love to watch sports, but never played any

in their younger years. What would you say about them? (in your experience, of course).

I'm not sure what brought on the needlessly edgy response but your question is answered with the first words of mine that you quoted but perhaps didn't read. To quote myself:

"My experience is that women with no interest in sports in their adult years......"

Of course not everyone is interested in all sports, we all have our favorites. I was talking about those I know with NO interest that I've encountered.

I don't watch a lot of sports.

I'd rather poke my eye out with a stick than watch any sports.

As you can see from the first quote, mine, this thread is in no way critical of the sports watching choices anyone makes for themselves including which sport they watch or if they care to watch sports at all. There are all sorts of entertainments available in the world.

I am open to change though for myself. I was pretty entertained by the barrel racing mule video posted.

Elmer, I get what you're saying. I started out playing various sports when I was in 5th grade playing on a girl's softball team for a league in my area. I played in several sports all through school, and continued as I got older. The sports transitioned to different activities and I've always been athletic in some way. Of course I've never played competitive football yet I love watching it. I'm not understanding Uptown Gal's snarky comments to you either - you were speaking in generalities. Most women I know who were involved in sports in some way when they were younger or are athletic tend to be interested in watching a sporting event today. Of course not all athletic women are interested - interests change over time. Same with women who weren't athletic - perhaps their interests developed because of a relationship, like a boyfriend or spouse's interest where they came to enjoy the sport.

Yes, I know a lot of college athletes aspire to become wealthy pros, but that's not common at colleges like Northwestern, where there are often players with 4.0 averages aspiring to be neurosurgeons. These people parlayed their HS sports abilities to get the education they need to 'perform' in wider arenas. No 'Basketweaving 101' for them, as at schools that value sports above education -- or at least as a means to extract funds from alums.

Although, right now there is a scandal at NU because members of the cheerleading squad were expected to 'mingle' with some pretty 'handsy' alum donors! There's been one faculty resignation, but only after a lot of denial by the school.

"Mansplaining women's experiences in women playing......."

This is not the first time you've used gender-tinged phrases to insult me. Whatever personal experiences you've had that have brought you to your feelings of misandry are your problem to deal with, they don't justify insulting me or any other male you disagree with.

Several women have expressed agreement with what I said - what insulting terms will you be using for them?

Sure chisue, but you know it's not all of them and athletes at schools like the Ivies and Northwestern and a small handful of others are a very small minority. As far as the schools themselves are concerned, you can be sure that the Athletic Departments at Northwestern and the others operate like the big businesses they are. TV and conference money, gate proceeds and money for bowl appearances earned by their football teams usually fully fund the entire departments' operations. Paying for the expenses of all other sports, both for men and for women, including scholarships.

The late, much respected sports journalist, Frank Deford, who worked for NPR among other institutions spoke at length about the business of college sports. I prefer a clean and open financial transaction to one which is gussied up to appear virtuous, depriving the players of their just due, while enriching everyone else at the table.

Several women have expressed agreement with what I said - what insulting terms will you be using for them?

Amen. I'm not a man and I understand what you're saying.

I hate the term "mansplaining." It implies women (or the person who is complaining about it) is overly fragile and emotional. Women interrupt and over explain to other women as well. What's that called?

Lucille, thank you for starting so many open ended threads that lead to remarkably fruitful conversations.

I watch cycling mostly and live for July when le Tour de France is shown on tv for 21 straight days. I was actually near one of stages one year, but way too many people for us to even try to see anything. We have to watch other races like the Paris-Roubaix, Giro d'Italia, Paris-Nice on the computer. Not quite the same as on a large tv. Last year, le Tour took place in September, but we are back to normal this year, I think. Yay. It is, imo and that of many others, the most difficult of all sports competitions and it is really quite exciting to watch most days. If not, well, enjoy the views of the French countryside and villages.

map of 2021 Tour de France

Other than casual softball at school or on the weekends, I didn't play any sports as a girl or woman, other than what was required in PE class. But I grew up loving sports because my family did. I learned all about baseball listening to Giants games on the kitchen radio with my mom, who learned to love baseball from her dad. When the Giants first moved to SF from NY, my mom used to drive my middle school girlfriends and me up to night games at Candlestick Park. BTW, over 60 years later, they're still my friends and they still love baseball.

I grew up in a small town and Friday nights were high school sports nights, and everybody went. I learned a lot more about football from my late husband. So much is happening on the field, it can be hard to follow all the action.

When I lived in England I followed their football because it was all there was. I loved it at the time, but I prefer American football.

I am quite fond of sports that involve official desserts. The Tour de France's Paris-Brest is one of my favorite pastries ever :-)

I played on the basketball and volleyball teams in jr high and high school. I am not interested in sports now. Not even in barrel racing mules, although I used to always attend the mule show at the Houston Livestock Show.

Zalco, there could be a whole nother thread about sports and food! When I lived in Dallas, supposedly people drank hot Dr Pepper at football games. I never tried it hot myself, but I do like Dr Pepper (Diet).

I hate the term "mansplaining." It implies women (or the person who is complaining about it) is overly fragile and emotional.

Hmm, that's not how I understand it. The term began as a way to describe, to take the most famous example, a man refuting a woman's point by citing a book he had read...when the woman in question had written the book. She was an expert in the subject, he was not, and he was attempting to explain it to her. She wasn't overly emotional, she just knew more than he did.

That said, I do think the term has gotten more generalized and is often misused. Not every effort of a man to explain something to a woman is mansplaining, but it certainly happens.

Yes, bookwoman, I'm familiar with the example you provided. I think my comment about being "overly fragile and emotional" pertains to what you wrote about it being more generalized and misused. It seems like the term "mansplaining" is used more frequently. I agree, not every effort of a man explaining something to a woman is mansplaining. My comment was intended to provoke thought into WHY women think they're being talked down to. Why do some women immediately think a man is being condescending.

No reason to analyze the term, it's been said to me by that person a dozen times as an intended insult. I consider the source and ignore it other than to point out the recurring impolite practice.

Howdy! I've been quiet for a long time but sepphia-wa made me smile so much! We are hard-core Seahawk fans. (My dad was even one of a group of folks who came up with the Seahawks name in a contest when the team was brand new!) We also watch (and play) tennis and watch the major golf tournaments and all Olympics. So, yup, watch a lot of sports. Keeps us young, I think.

I've been off GW for a long time. Mamapinky's passing hit me hard. But I realized that I really missed the community here. So I'm back! 😊

Oh bbnny, I think we could be BFF's! I always say I don't want to wish away my summer, but darn it, football season - get here already! I definitely fall into the "hard core" description. And how cool that your dad was one of the people who gave the team their name! Back in the Kingdome days!

Sephia, not only that but I have a soft spot in my heart for Boeing. I grew up here during the time when Seattle was really a company town. And Boeing was a c!ient of mine.

I'm not really a team sport fan, and along with Lars I really detest loud yelling and screaming over sporting events. I think the Olympics come out about the right time apart from the previous Olympics that I don't mind watching some of it, especially individual events. (Or paired things like some of the skating.) Winter would be skating, skiing, and the bobsled thing. Summer is gymnastics, high jumps, and diving. I wish they'd show archery, because that's something I want to take up.

I dislike football and baseball. Yawn. NASCAR is just loud cars. I didn't mind an ice hockey game I once attended, because I simply watched them skate - I didn't care where that puck went!