Your Scrumhalf Connection - Women's Rugby Blog

Wednesday's training was rough! It was hot, humid...sticky and beautiful outside. I decided to do the loop at auditorium shores again with Jake. The first 1.5 mile was easy enough, and then we took a break as we always do to let Jake swim and chase dogs and get his exercise on!

The way back was rough, I had spent too long staying still at the dog park and my muscles had clenched up and got all tight. So I hooked myself up to Jake and let him drag me along...we made it, but it wasn't pretty!

Then he still had TONS of energy so we went for a swim...very cute, he doesn't need to hold onto me anymore! He actually swims around me...and tries to get me to chase him. I love it.

So we swam and laid in the grass and soaked in some sun. I love how my body feels after I make it do something it doesn't want to! My shirt was soaked, my camel back was empty and I had my best friend at my side. Life couldn't get better.

Good luck with your training this week!

Work was crazy again so I made it upstairs and did a few sprint work-outs between customer and clients. I did 2 minutes of warm-up on the elliptical and then did 10 minutes as fast as I could. During commercials I tried to speed it up even more, because commercials really are the devil.

I only got to do that once...and that could be a good thing because seeing a crazed rugby player giving it to the elliptical should not be seen more than once in a day. Throughout the day I tried to get into the kickboxing room to do random pushups, pullups, some small weight lifting and plyos.

You would think that since I work in a gym it would be SO easy to work out here...but since I work at the gym almost everyday, I don't really want to work out here. I go upstairs in workout clothes, head phones on...and still clients want to ask my questions about their accounts, when this machine is getting replace etc. Its frustrating.

So tonight I am trying to decide if I want to do sprints or get another long distance run in. I feel like my long distance is pretty good and I should be working on my speed. I know I need to keep doing pushups and every sprint will have an up-down in front of it. I need all the upper body strength I can get!

Be safe all. Keep training!

This is a great video...its a little slow at the beginning with all the soccer, but then it picks up. Thanks to Emilie who found this! It can also be found at Ifilm.com.

Enjoy!

Also I updated the link for the Baton Rouge Women's Rugby team on the sidebar. Congratulations as they got 2nd last weekend at the Ruckfest Tournament in Denton, TX.

2006 High Desert Classic

I love this tournament so I wanted to do a little spotlight on it...

This was my first tournament in my rugby career. I will never forget it. We didn't score one single point and we didn't win a game. We were mainly a team of rookies with 4 or 5 veterans that actually knew what was going on. We drove all day and late into the night to get to New Mexico. A few of the our girls had never left Oklahoma and were excited to see a few new states on the way.

The picture on the right over there is one of the sights that you will pass on the way to New Mexico...the biggest cross in Texas...or so they claim. We joked about stopping the cars and forming a scrum or a ruck against the base...this thing is HUGE! You can see it for miles on the road before you realize what it is.

This picture on the left is of the 72 oz. steak found in Amarillo, TX. This restaurant has billboards as far as 150 miles away advertising their FREE 72 oz steak. That is if you can eat it ALL (including a baked potato, vegetables and bread)...otherwise you foot the bill and the tummy ache. No one I know has ever attempted to eat the steak, but we did enjoy the gift shop where they sell cowboy trinkets and you can shoot some fun BB guns too!

So here's to anyone that has ever played at this tournament and here's to everyone that hasn't...you totally should! This picture is of the Oklahoma Roses...we played our asses off and didn't win a single game that first year. But we sure as hell WON the party! We got a really cool trophy too! Miss you gals.

The teams that are attending the 2006 High Desert Classic are below....

Air Force Academy
Colorado University
Wyoming
Oklahoma Roses
Texas A&M Women's Rugby
Scottsdale Lady Blues
Denver Black Ice
Tucson Lightning
Boulder Babes
Arkansas Iron Maidens
UNM Women's
Timberdoodles (NAU)
Texas Tech Women
Olde Girls of Glendale
NMSU Lady Chilies
Atomic Sisters

I wish I could attend ladies, but I will be preparing for Round of 16 the next weekend. Hit a bitch for me and drink a tall one for me as well. Be safe.

SOUTH CAROLINA MATCH SCHEDULE:

Game	Day	Time	A		B	Pool	Field #
1	Saturday	10:00	Northeast 2	V	Midwest 3	D	1
2	Saturday	10:30	Pacific 3	V	South 1	D	2
3	Saturday	12:00	West 1	V	MARFU 1	A	1
4	Saturday	12:30	Pacific 1	V	MARFU 3	A	2
5	Sunday	10:00	Loser game 1	V	Loser game 2	D	2
6	Sunday	10:30	Winner game 1	V	Winner game 2	D	1
7	Sunday	12:00	Loser game 3	V	Loser game 4	A	2
8	Sunday	12:30	Winner game 3	V	Winner game 4	A	1

I finished my last midterm today!! I am taking online classes this semester and my last final was in Communications. I had studied some yesterday and a bunch on Friday, so I felt prepared. But finally the teachers have figured out that if you put a time constraint on the tests it is harder for the student. I remember taking online tests when I was a freshman and they would give you two hours...you could look every answer up! (this test was open-book and notes too) So the test today was 50 minutes for 50 questions, I finished with 8 minutes to spare so I looked over my answers. I feel like I did pretty good!

Anyways, to working out...I didn't work out yesterday because I was a bit hung over from a teammate's bachorlette party. The party was sensational with lots of drinking, dancing, a blow-up doll, singing, pictures and more drinking. It was an eventful event to say the least. So I took yesterday off...

So today I decided to get all my homework done (some stuff isn't due till Monday) and then train before Damm! Beaver tonight. I headed over to Garrison Park off Manchaca and Stassney in South Austin. I drove there because I didn't want to have to run back in the rain...but next time I will run because its like a half mile from my house.

The park is super small, but has lots of trees, picnic tables, a basketball court, a pool (not sure if it is community or not...) and charcoal pits. It is a CUTE park!

The picture to the right is two gravestones that are from the 1800's! Very awesome. I did my pushups, pullups and dips right next to them. I also did 5m sprints (trying to work on my speed off the mark...) and worked on kicking. Jake found a little nerf football so of course we played some fetch. And then we played tag...I finally taught Jake how to chase me, and now I can chase him too. Its very fun and has helped immensly with my changing of direction (so I don't get nipped by him!)

So 45 minutes or so of assorted weight lifting (really just using my body weight) and then the clouds rolled in...they are dark and scary, I love it!

Awaiting results from Ruckfest 2006 in Denton, TX this weekend, but here were the pools.

POOL A	POOL B
Denton Whiptails	Texas A&M
HARC/RICE	Oklahoma University
Oklahoma State	Baton Rouge
Kansas State	Texas State
Texas Tech	Motley Team

Leave the scores in the comments, or just email me!

**From usarugby.org

USA Rugby Partners with Rugby Channel to Offer One Free Match per Month

BOULDER , Colo. – Starting October 14, USA Rugby will offer its members free access to watch one match per month on Rugby Channel (www.therugbychannel.com). This partnership is designed to add media access to the growing list of USA Rugby member benefits. Over the next 15 months, USA Rugby members will receive free access to 15 first-class matches, providing members with more than $100 in annual Pay Per View savings.

“Working with Pat Guthrie at the Rugby Channel is great,” USA Rugby’s Vice President of Business Development, David Voth said. “He is a pioneer in the sport of Rugby and we both share a common vision of seeing more rugby on air. I recently approached Pat with an idea of providing something extra for our USA Rugby membership and we came up with an idea of free rugby each month. The Rugby Channel is a great partner and we love providing additional opportunities and benefits to our members.”

An annual membership to USA Rugby costs anywhere from $20-$35. But, with this new Rugby Channel benefit saving USA Rugby members approximately $100 in video streaming alone, the member has already doubled the return on their investment.

“Promoting the development of the game in the United States is a major initiative for Rugby Channel,” said Patrick Guthrie, Director of Rugby at MediaZone. “We are thrilled to be partnering with USA Rugby to make these games available to all members, as we know that watching first-class rugby is one of the best ways to improve skills and bring new enthusiasts to the game.”

Starting October 14, the USA vs. Uruguay Rugby World Cup Qualifier match will be made available to USA Rugby members. This will allow aspiring Eagles of all ages to watch the Men’s National Team in a crucial test, cement their place at the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France next September. The test was played at Stanford University ’s Steuber Rugby Stadium on Oct. 7th.

To start downloading this month’s selection – the USA vs. Uruguay WCQ match - a member must first visit USA Rugby’s website at www.usarugby.org and click on the Rugby Channel logo on the bottom of the homepage. Then, in November and continuing throughout 2007, one free match will be made available to USA Rugby members each month. Future matches are yet to be determined, and will include USA tests when available, plus other internationals, inter-provincial and provincial contests.

Rugby Channel is an official sponsor of USA Rugby and was born out of the pent-up demand to watch the world’s best rugby matches. Rugby Channel delivers LIVE and downloadable rugby through broadband internet connections directly to your Windows-enabled PC. Rugby Channel is also available globally with viewers able to access live and downloadable coverage in 169 territories around the world and on an 18-hour delay in 35 more.

Rugby Channel is unique because it allows viewers to either watch live or to download their favorite rugby matches whenever and wherever they want. It also provides weekly video previews and comprehensive highlights packages for all matches, plus shows the most controversial laws incident, best tries, and most amazing play every week and encourages the viewer to participate on its Watch & Comment page.

Just recieved this in my inbox...sounds like fun ladies!!

Mizzou Women's Rugby

Looking for fun and competitive match on October 21st?

If only a few of your ruggers are interested, or your whole team, come to Columbia MO
for a Prom Rugby match!

Whats Prom Rugby? Rugby in dresses, of course. Local Thrift stores are a great place to
find a good dress to play in. It is tradition for our team to hold this match every year
on Mizzou's homecoming. We dont have another team scheduled to come and play us this
season and would really love it if your team (or send some whores!) would like to join in
the fun.

If you are interested in staying in town for the night we could accomodate any number of
girls in our homes, and will provide food, refreshments, and a good time after the
match.

This game usually draws a big crowd of excited fans and will surely be a great time.

If you dont have anything planned for October 21st ask your team if they are interested
and get back to me as soon as possible!
Hope to hear from some of you soon!


Michelle La Fata
Mizzou Women's Rugby Club
Match Secretary
(314)313-8810

Sorry I haven't been blogging lately, been working alot, studyin alot (2 of 3 midterms are finished...), training every day and helping plan various events in life. So here is my training summary for the last two days!

Thursday we had practice and I tried to get upstairs to get a quick lifting session in, but work was nuts and I couldn't get away from the desk for more than 10 minutes. When I made the masterplan of working the mid-shifts every week it was because it was going to be a little slower and I could get away from the desk for a few minutes...WRONG! I've been hiring new employees, calling maintenance to fix shit, dealing with pissy customers, selling gym shit and more...and I STILL LOVE IT!

So at practice we did alot of fitness and alot of thinking drills. I am super pumped about Round of 16 and have dedicated myself to raising the level of intensity at practice for myself and those around me. I'm going to try anyways...

So yesterday my training was awesome again! Austin is having beautiful, beautiful weather...so Jake and I went for a 3.5 to 4 mile run. I clocked it in my car on the way back...so I know it was at least 3.5 if not more. We started the run at the kayak docks on Town Lake...not sure what they are called, but the dock across the street from the HS and the Town Lake Animal Shelter. So we ran to Auditorium shores at a pretty good pace.

I discovered today that if I find myself lagging or not pushing myself all I have to do is hook up to trusty training partner and he makes me run at his pace. Its a great training tool! So I ran at my own pace on the way there...pushing up the hills and sprinting any stairs that came in our way. Then Jake went swimming for a few minutes and we found a tennis ball so of course we had to play! There was a great family there, two small boys and they were so cute...they wanted to throw the ball for jake and loved watching him launch himself into the water. Very cute all around.

So after a quick cool down for Jake we headed back...and I made him wear his leash the whole way so I had to keep a pretty good pace going. As my roommate and I talked about yesterday I don't love long distance...I can do it, but I get bored and I get into a pace that isn't hard at all. So its a struggle for me to keep going at a good pace. I actually really like sprinting...and am just discovering that two years after the ACL surgery I am just getting back to my quick self.

So keep training ladies and I will keep writing and training and living and loving and being. Love ya.