Florida Sports

Posts Tagged ‘Avoid’

Football is an extremely popular hobby – it is more watched than any other sport in the world and it is easy to see why. The game is fast paced, exciting and full of surprises. Although the obsession with football can drive some people mad, it is a way of life for loyal fans. People from all walks of life come together to share their love for the great game perhaps to the annoyance of their spouses! It can sometimes be hard for those who aren’t big football fans to find great football gifts. Football fans tend to already own the latest kit and already own a lot of football memorabilia, including everything from signed footballs to pencil cases. However, you can avoid scoring an own goal and find really unique football gifts for the fan who seems to have everything.

Although it may be tempting to search the team’s gift shop many fans already have most items and your football gifts can seem unoriginal and lacking in thought. They can also seem very overpriced especially if you are a little strapped for cash. Instead, be brave and search for a really unique gift. You can find a range of personal one off football gifts that any football fan would be proud to own for fantastic prices. If you want to spend little but still find a great football gift look at buying a small personalised football present. You can buy football mugs with the name of the recipient on the back of a football shirt or a personalised football calendar to take pride of place in their bedroom all for less than a tenner!

For a really unique gift you can give your partner, friend or family member their own football stadium! If they are a big Arsenal fan for example, you can grow your own Arsenal football stadium with the exact same seeds that are used on the Arsenal pitch. This is a great gift for dedicated fans. Some football gifts on the internet may seem genuine but real football fans will be able to spot the difference between real and fake. This gift comes with a certificate of authenticity from the football club so the recipient can see your gift is the real deal! Always remember to take care and only shop with reputable sites as no one wants a knock off or fake! Have a look at reviews to check the site to see whether they seem legitimate.

If they like to think they are the next upcoming hot player treat them to a football experience day to expand their skills. Some online sites offer a fantastic Brazilian skills experience day. Here top coaches will show the recipient skills and techniques to improve their game. Many experience days are for two people so he can take his mate along to join in the fun. This is a present that will not hit the goalposts! For another great day out treat them to a football tour day experience. In this tour you receive a knowledgeable guide who can fill you in on all the facts of the club and the secrets you never knew. You can even walk through the tunnel taking the steps many football greats have taken to that big game and have a picture taken to show off to their friends! It is often possible to visit the players’ dressing room, the setting of some tense moments! This is a must for any loyal fan.

You can also buy presents for extra special occasions. There are a range of quality football items ideal for momentous birthdays, gifts for celebrating a new job or even a wedding. You can buy beautiful business card holders in silver chrome, gorgeous cuff links and tankards all complete with his favourite football team’s logo. For a gift that will most definitely be a winner, buy a football book complete with newspaper cuttings and articles on all the magnificent moments in his football team’s history. This can be personalised with his name on the front, making a great gift for any football lover.

All football gifts are a welcome present for any football fan, however it is important to take some care so you don’t score an own goal! Always check sites are legitimate to avoid fakes and knock off goods. Try to steer clear of gift shops with the same old merchandise they have received many times over. Instead look online for a really unique gift. Try personalised football gifts or experience days for gifts that will hit the back of the net!

Running is one of the most heavily participated sports and recreational activities in the world. However, from a young age we are told to go out on the streets and run until we are tired. This may be alright for a while but further on down the road you will be likely to sustain an overuse injury that takes away your passion for running.

In order to make running a lifetime activity you need to be aware of some of the contributing factors that lead to common running injuries. Once you acknowledge these injury causing factors then you can develop the right plan for you. This applies to both the recreational runner as well as the competitive runner.

To ensure that you gain the most out of your training sessions while also reducing the risk of sustaining an injury be sure to take note of the following mistakes made by many athletes and coaches.

Excessive hill running that can often lead to excessive demands placed on the calf muscles (possible shin splints). Shin splints are an absolute nightmare for a runner. This type of injury can put you out of running for months.

Excessive down hill running can lead to increased stress on the quadriceps muscle. Most athletes say that running down hill is easier, however, it is just as tough on your body as running up hill.

Running in one direction all the time (if doing track work or running around the tennis court, football field etc.) can cause excessive pronation on the inside leg. Once again this can be easily fixed by alternating directions in which you run.

Running on unforgiving surfaces such as street running (high impact). Asphalt is not an appropriate running surface. This is one of the major causes of knee and hip injuries for runners. Roads are made for cars and not for runners! If you must run on asphalt then add in some runs on a grass surface.

Lack of variety in your training sessions can lead to overuse injuries as well as mental boredom. Select different workouts each week. Do you always run the same route in the same direction each time? If so vary where you run, the distance you run as well as the intensity of the run.

Running on an uneven surface such as a grass field. Often athletes try to avoid the hard surface of the streets so they decide to run on uneven fields which can lead to injuries of the feet. I love running on ovals as they are more friendly on my body but I choose not to run on a football ground as I know that the surface is likely to be uneven and full of holes. Most recreational parks are better.

Increasing training volume too quickly (allow for individual progression). This is a tough one for highly driven individuals who thrive on pushing themselves. Have a plan and follow it. Even if you feel that you can push yourself and run that extra mile hold back!

Increasing the pace or speed at which you run too quickly (can be achieved slowly through Fartlek training). Try to stick to your plan and run at a similar speed before you get into your next phase. As we improve we often want to run faster. Increasing both the speed and distance of your run at the same time can lead to injury.

It is important to wear the proper footwear when you run. Encourage your athletes to change from their normal sports shoes (eg. tennis shoes, basketball shoes) to running shoes prior to starting their run. Wearing tennis or basketball shoes while running long distances will lead to injuries. They don’t provide the required support for the feet.

Recognize that each individual will have their own pace and level of endurance so set individual goals for each athlete. When running in a group at a set pace, that pace may be comfortable for some runners, but too fast for others. Divide your athletes into two even groups. This is often a big flaw for many coaches of sports teams. We have all been guilty for doing this in the past but you must allow for individual abilities of athletes.

Running long distances in extreme weather conditions such as freezing temperatures, hot and humid conditions or even when there has been a high pollution alert level given by the weather bureau. My tennis coach in college would often make our tennis team run at 7:00 am in the morning in the middle of a winter in North Carolina. As you could imagine we would often suffer from bronchitis and other common respiratory ailments. Unfortunately mine developed into pneumonia so make sure that the environmental conditions are appropriate for running.

Be smart when you run and your body will thank you for it!

Most runners whether recreational or professional will agree with me that they have been forced out of running one or more times by running related injuries. Whereas it is a fact that running injuries happen, preventing them is worth all the effort and when they happen, knowing how to deal with them is crucial. Recreational running is a fun sport and anybody who is physically able can pursue it regardless of age. It is one of the most effective ways to lose extra body weight and keep it under control. Recreational running has also become a great social activity in our society today. Everyone who has incorporated it in their lifestyle knows the health benefits associated with it. Due to the increased number of people currently engaging in fun running, there are now more cases of running related injuries than there were few years back. I get asked all the time how one can deal with these injuries and since every case is different we are going to look at general ways to avoid or manage running related injuries.

Build your mileage gradually: It is human nature to try and accomplish as much as possible in life within a short time. For running unfortunately, doing too much too soon will only hurt you and discourage you from pursuing your favorite sport. This mainly applies to beginners more than advanced runners. It is important to remember that your body has to adjust to accommodate the any increased physical stress and it can only do so gradually. An increment of around 10 percent of your weekly mileage is enough after every 3 – 6 weeks. In other words, if you are doing 15 miles per week and you want to increase your mileage, you do not need to go past 16.5 miles per week. Bear in mind that your body will need up to 4 weeks to accommodate the increase comfortably.

Avoid running on hard surfaces: Most injuries associated with running are as a result of running on hard surfaces. I am sure there are trails or parks almost every location and making good use of them is paramount. If you like running along paved surfaces, at least make an effort to run on grass or dirt roads or trails once or twice every week. A good time is when you are doing one of your longer runs; it is refreshing to your legs. It is also important to avoid uneven surfaces as these may mess up the alignment of your body especially your legs and back.

Choose the right running shoe: I cannot stress this enough, but the condition of your running shoe greatly determines the number, type and frequency of running related injuries in your running pursuits. In other words, if you choose the wrong shoe type for your feet, the chances are that you be hurt even if the shoes are new. Sometimes you may have the right type of running shoe, but you have exceeded the mileage requirement for the shoe. If you are a beginner and you are not sure what type of running shoe to buy, get advice from running shoe expert or your trainer or more experienced runners. Avoid buying cheap shoe simply because of the price, it may cost you a fortune to treat injuries or even worse case stop you from running altogether.

Supplement recreational running with other activities: Our bodies need a break from running especially when we are tired. Since taking a break has its place in our running schedules, I recommend doing other activities that will yield similar benefits as running, but put less stress in our bodies. Swimming and biking are the two most common and effective supplements to running. Both of these activities lift the pressure away from your legs and in the process allow them to recover without you really taking time off from working out. If swimming is not enough, try running in the pool, this will surely give you a great workout. Swimming and biking are also great for rehabilitation after sustaining an injury.

Take time off from running: As mentioned earlier in this article, our bodies need time to accommodate the physical stress that we are inducing through running. The principle behind training in any sport is to improve performance. This happens through recovery and adaptation. The simple explanation of this fact is when you run you are stressing your muscles and other body systems and they can only be stressed to a certain level. Once that level is reached, fatigue sets in and if you do not stop, your body will break down. The best way to avoid breaking down due to fatigue is to take one or two days off every week from running. If you neglect taking time off, you are calling for trouble, you will get burnout or injured and you may not have a choice but to quit running.

Eat healthy and hydrate well: Most people use recreational running to lose extra weight or control their body weight. Due to bad advice, I have seen people running and still eating wrong foods and drinking highly dehydrating drinks. If the whole idea of running is to be healthy, then it does not make sense to counter that effect with bad eating habits. There is no right or wrong, I believe moderation is the key. Eating a desert once in a while is great and fun, eating it after every meal – well, you can answer that for yourself. It is a fact that carbonated drinks when taken excessively only help to dehydrate your body. Drinking water and non-carbonated sports drinks are highly recommended. Supplements and vitamins also go along way in keeping you away from injuries. So remember always to eat enough to supply just enough energy to meet your daily demands, but not excess that will be stored as fats. Extra body weight makes your body more susceptible to injuries.

Get body massage and bone adjustment: Body massage and bone adjustment are necessary components of recreation running. When you workout, there is wear and tear of the muscles and tissue in your body resulting in waste products such as lactic acid. When these waste products build up in your body, they make your muscles and tissues stiff and as result vulnerable to injuries. Getting a full body massage often will help to get rid of this stiffness. The alignment of the bones may also become bad due to bad running surfaces. Visiting a chiropractor once in a while is a great idea in avoiding bone alignment related injuries.

The injury prevention ways suggested here will only help if you follow them. However it is not an exhaustive list. These are just suggestions that have been proven to work for both professional and recreational runners alike. The best advice when pursuing any sport is to be proactive in avoiding injuries, they are very expensive! Recreational running is fun.

Running is one of the most heavily participated sports and recreational activities in the world. However, from a young age we are told to go out on the streets and run until we are tired. This may be alright for a while but further on down the road you will be likely to sustain an overuse injury that takes away your passion for running.
In order to make running a lifetime activity you need to be aware of some of the contributing factors that lead to common running injuries. Once you acknowledge these injury causing factors then you can develop the right plan for you. This applies to both the recreational runner as well as the competitive runner.
To ensure that you gain the most out of your training sessions while also reducing the risk of sustaining an injury be sure to take note of the following mistakes made by many athletes and coaches.
Excessive hill running that can often lead to excessive demands placed on the calf muscles (possible shin splints). Shin splints are an absolute nightmare for a runner. This type of injury can put you out of running for months.
Excessive down hill running can lead to increased stress on the quadriceps muscle. Most athletes say that running down hill is easier, however, it is just as tough on your body as running up hill.
Running in one direction all the time (if doing track work or running around the tennis court, football field etc.) can cause excessive pronation on the inside leg. Once again this can be easily fixed by alternating directions in which you run.
Running on unforgiving surfaces such as street running (high impact). Asphalt is not an appropriate running surface. This is one of the major causes of knee and hip injuries for runners. Roads are made for cars and not for runners! If you must run on asphalt then add in some runs on a grass surface.
Lack of variety in your training sessions can lead to overuse injuries as well as mental boredom. Select different workouts each week. Do you always run the same route in the same direction each time? If so vary where you run, the distance you run as well as the intensity of the run.
Running on an uneven surface such as a grass field. Often athletes try to avoid the hard surface of the streets so they decide to run on uneven fields which can lead to injuries of the feet. I love running on ovals as they are more friendly on my body but I choose not to run on a football ground as I know that the surface is likely to be uneven and full of holes. Most recreational parks are better.
Increasing training volume too quickly (allow for individual progression). This is a tough one for highly driven individuals who thrive on pushing themselves. Have a plan and follow it. Even if you feel that you can push yourself and run that extra mile hold back!
Increasing the pace or speed at which you run too quickly (can be achieved slowly through Fartlek training). Try to stick to your plan and run at a similar speed before you get into your next phase. As we improve we often want to run faster. Increasing both the speed and distance of your run at the same time can lead to injury.
It is important to wear the proper footwear when you run. Encourage your athletes to change from their normal sports shoes (eg. tennis shoes, basketball shoes) to running shoes prior to starting their run. Wearing tennis or basketball shoes while running long distances will lead to injuries. They don’t provide the required support for the feet.
Recognize that each individual will have their own pace and level of endurance so set individual goals for each athlete. When running in a group at a set pace, that pace may be comfortable for some runners, but too fast for others. Divide your athletes into two even groups. This is often a big flaw for many coaches of sports teams. We have all been guilty for doing this in the past but you must allow for individual abilities of athletes.
Running long distances in extreme weather conditions such as freezing temperatures, hot and humid conditions or even when there has been a high pollution alert level given by the weather bureau. My tennis coach in college would often make our tennis team run at 7:00 am in the morning in the middle of a winter in North Carolina. As you could imagine we would often suffer from bronchitis and other common respiratory ailments. Unfortunately mine developed into pneumonia so make sure that the environmental conditions are appropriate for running.
Be smart when you run and your body will thank you for it!

Most runners whether recreational or professional will agree with me that they have been forced out of running one or more times by running related injuries. Whereas it is a fact that running injuries happen, preventing them is worth all the effort and when they happen, knowing how to deal with them is crucial. Recreational running is a fun sport and anybody who is physically able can pursue it regardless of age. It is one of the most effective ways to lose extra body weight and keep it under control. Recreational running has also become a great social activity in our society today. Everyone who has incorporated it in their lifestyle knows the health benefits associated with it. Due to the increased number of people currently engaging in fun running, there are now more cases of running related injuries than there were few years back. I get asked all the time how one can deal with these injuries and since every case is different we are going to look at general ways to avoid or manage running related injuries.

Build your mileage gradually: It is human nature to try and accomplish as much as possible in life within a short time. For running unfortunately, doing too much too soon will only hurt you and discourage you from pursuing your favorite sport. This mainly applies to beginners more than advanced runners. It is important to remember that your body has to adjust to accommodate the any increased physical stress and it can only do so gradually. An increment of around 10 percent of your weekly mileage is enough after every 3 – 6 weeks. In other words, if you are doing 15 miles per week and you want to increase your mileage, you do not need to go past 16.5 miles per week. Bear in mind that your body will need up to 4 weeks to accommodate the increase comfortably.

Avoid running on hard surfaces: Most injuries associated with running are as a result of running on hard surfaces. I am sure there are trails or parks almost every location and making good use of them is paramount. If you like running along paved surfaces, at least make an effort to run on grass or dirt roads or trails once or twice every week. A good time is when you are doing one of your longer runs; it is refreshing to your legs. It is also important to avoid uneven surfaces as these may mess up the alignment of your body especially your legs and back.

Choose the right running shoe: I cannot stress this enough, but the condition of your running shoe greatly determines the number, type and frequency of running related injuries in your running pursuits. In other words, if you choose the wrong shoe type for your feet, the chances are that you be hurt even if the shoes are new. Sometimes you may have the right type of running shoe, but you have exceeded the mileage requirement for the shoe. If you are a beginner and you are not sure what type of running shoe to buy, get advice from running shoe expert or your trainer or more experienced runners. Avoid buying cheap shoe simply because of the price, it may cost you a fortune to treat injuries or even worse case stop you from running altogether.

Supplement recreational running with other activities: Our bodies need a break from running especially when we are tired. Since taking a break has its place in our running schedules, I recommend doing other activities that will yield similar benefits as running, but put less stress in our bodies. Swimming and biking are the two most common and effective supplements to running. Both of these activities lift the pressure away from your legs and in the process allow them to recover without you really taking time off from working out. If swimming is not enough, try running in the pool, this will surely give you a great workout. Swimming and biking are also great for rehabilitation after sustaining an injury.

Take time off from running: As mentioned earlier in this article, our bodies need time to accommodate the physical stress that we are inducing through running. The principle behind training in any sport is to improve performance. This happens through recovery and adaptation. The simple explanation of this fact is when you run you are stressing your muscles and other body systems and they can only be stressed to a certain level. Once that level is reached, fatigue sets in and if you do not stop, your body will break down. The best way to avoid breaking down due to fatigue is to take one or two days off every week from running. If you neglect taking time off, you are calling for trouble, you will get burnout or injured and you may not have a choice but to quit running.

Eat healthy and hydrate well: Most people use recreational running to lose extra weight or control their body weight. Due to bad advice, I have seen people running and still eating wrong foods and drinking highly dehydrating drinks. If the whole idea of running is to be healthy, then it does not make sense to counter that effect with bad eating habits. There is no right or wrong, I believe moderation is the key. Eating a desert once in a while is great and fun, eating it after every meal – well, you can answer that for yourself. It is a fact that carbonated drinks when taken excessively only help to dehydrate your body. Drinking water and non-carbonated sports drinks are highly recommended. Supplements and vitamins also go along way in keeping you away from injuries. So remember always to eat enough to supply just enough energy to meet your daily demands, but not excess that will be stored as fats. Extra body weight makes your body more susceptible to injuries.

Get body massage and bone adjustment: Body massage and bone adjustment are necessary components of recreation running. When you workout, there is wear and tear of the muscles and tissue in your body resulting in waste products such as lactic acid. When these waste products build up in your body, they make your muscles and tissues stiff and as result vulnerable to injuries. Getting a full body massage often will help to get rid of this stiffness. The alignment of the bones may also become bad due to bad running surfaces. Visiting a chiropractor once in a while is a great idea in avoiding bone alignment related injuries.

The injury prevention ways suggested here will only help if you follow them. However it is not an exhaustive list. These are just suggestions that have been proven to work for both professional and recreational runners alike. The best advice when pursuing any sport is to be proactive in avoiding injuries, they are very expensive! Recreational running is fun.

You’ve heard about the skiing at Lake Tahoe or Mammoth, but one of the best ski or snowboard experiences you’ll ever have awaits you at Bear Valley, where the crowds are few, but the thrills are many.
While not on a par with Squaw Valley or Heavenly or other major California ski resorts, the Bear Valley ski area is still a prime candidate for a weekend or even an extended skiing vacation. As we discovered in early February, Bear Valley offers a surprisingly complete ski vacation experience – no frills, to be sure, but still rewarding and well worth the trip deep into the Sierra Nevada range.
If designer clothing stores, zillion-dollar condos, and Hollywood-style glitz are part of your criteria for a ski vacation, this ski area might not be the best choice. If wide-open ski runs, no lift lines and plenty of groomed snow are more important to you, then by all means give Bear Valley a try.
Coming originally from the Pacific Northwest, we could not help but compare Bear Valley to one of our favorite ski areas in Washington state – a place called Mission Ridge in a town named Wenatchee. The population in that part of the state is sparse compared with the big ski areas near Seattle, so Mission Ridge is able to offer wide-open skiing runs most days of the week.
Similarly, Bear Valley is less accessible than the many larger ski areas in the Lake Tahoe area. Bay area and Sacramento residents can drive Interstate 80 to the Tahoe area and find a selection of ski resorts a short distance off the interstate. To reach this ski area, you have to drive two-lane roads through the foothills and mountains for close to 100 miles.
But when you get there, most skiers and snowboarders will find it’s worth it. Our mid-week skiing was some of the best we’ve experienced – plenty of wide-open, groomed terrain perfect for intermediates and serviced by a number of lifts where there seemed to never be lines. It was ski down the run, get right on the chair and do it all again and again until just a few hours into our day we were growing exhausted. We probably skied in four hours what it would take us a full day to do at a resort with moderate lift lines.
There are no gondolas or high-speed quad chairlifts at Bear Valley, although there are 10 lifts altogether, mostly doubles and triples. About 1280 acres are available for skiing and snowboarding; some 100 acres are in an area where they can make snow – although at 7,750 feet, it’s likely Mother Nature will supply all the snow you need.
We mentioned the intermediate skiing because that’s our favorite – but rest assured this ski area has many black diamond or expert ski runs for those looking for more of a challenge. The day lodge is situated mid-mountain with lifts going both up the mountain to 8495 feet, and coming to the lodge from the lower part of the mountain. Most of the expert runs are located on the lower mountain.
The area’s day lodge also was wide open and easy to navigate. Instead of masses of people waiting in line to get their food and find a place to sit, we stepped right up and got our cooked-to-order Philly cheesesteak sandwiches in just a few minutes. And there was no shortage of menu options – lots of different types of food from sandwiches to Asian cuisine, from soups and salads to major meals.
But the Bear Valley experience is much more than a daytrip – or at least it should be given the time it takes to get to the ski area. For our trip we booked lodging at the Bear Valley Lodge, one of just a few hotel-type facilities near the mountain. Located about three miles from the mountain, the Bear Valley Lodge seems to be the hub of activity in the area and proved to be a good choice for accommodations. While showing some of its age – it was built in the 60′s – the lodge proved to be a comfortable, convenient base of operations. A ski shuttle bus will take you to the mountain, and you can even ski all the way back to the lodge.
When we say comfortable, we are not comparing the lodge to the high-end condos you find at most major ski resorts. The rooms at Bear Valley Lodge are more like a motel unit with two double beds a bath area and a TV/entertainment area that included HBO. But small touches – such as the bay window looking out onto the snowy landscape or the pine furniture – helped to make this feel much cozier than a motel room.
The four floors of rooms at the Bear Valley Lodge look out onto the Cathedral Lounge, a large open space in the middle of the lodge that offers guests a place to sit and read and enjoy the fire in the massive stone fireplace. Photos are mounted along the walls depicting the history of the lodge and Bear Valley ski area. Celebrities such as Spider Savich, Claudine Longet, Merv Griffin and several others are shown skiing or otherwise enjoying Bear Valley.
Adjacent to the lounge are several shops including an old-fashioned general store – with a deli to get quick sandwiches and soups – and a surprisingly complete ski shop with all of the latest ski equipment, clothing and accessories. But keep in mind this is not the type of resort where you can spend hours shopping when you’re not on the slopes; your down time here most likely will be spent in front of the fire reading a good book.
During our brief stay we dined in the lodge’s Grizzly Lounge – mainly because the other lodge restaurant, the Creekside Dining Room, was closed Mondays and Tuesdays. The lounge food was good and included a few menu items from the Creekside. We did learn that the Creekside has recently employed a well-educated and accomplished chef that has proven both creative and popular with guests – so we were disappointed we didn’t get a chance to sample the Creekside cuisine.
We also enjoyed a meal down at BaseCamp, a lodge that is just a short walk from the Bear Valley Lodge and the only other hotel-style lodging this close to the ski area. We enjoyed our meal at BaseCamp where we got to know an English waitress who had come to Bear Valley simply because the skiing is so good. The BaseCamp, incidentally, offers the lowest cost rooms in the area with “bathroom down the hall.”
There are also condo and cabin rentals available in the Bear Valley area, as well as the Tamarack Lodge further west on Highway 4. Prices in general will be less at BaseCamp, moderate at the Bear Valley Lodge and Tamarack, and more when you rent an entire vacation home.
While in the area, there are several small towns and attractions that are worth a stop if you have the time. To reach Bear Valley in winter, you’ll be traveling through the historical town of Angel’s Camp and then a similar but smaller Gold Rush town called Murphys.
But our suggestion would be to allow plenty of time for skiing. You’ll want to ski or board Bear Valley just as long as the weather – and your legs – will hold out.
AT A GLANCE
WHERE: Bear Valley Ski Resort is on Highway 4, about 52 miles from the foothills town of Angel’s Camp, and 130 miles from Sacramento.
WHAT: Bear Valley is a throwback to skiing in the ’60′s and ’70′s – no high-speed quads or gondolas but lots of wide open groomed terrain in a gorgeous setting.
WHEN: Winter always means where is lots of snow for skiing as well as many other snow sports; the area also is a popular summer recreation area with numerous lakes, hiking trails and a pristine forest.
WHY: It’s refreshing to ski where there are no lift lines and little pretense – most of the “beautiful people” went to Colorado; the home-growns stayed here. Economically, this ski vacation is quite affordable.
HOW: For more information on Bear Valley Ski Resort, phone (209) 753-2301 or visit www.bearvalley.com. For more information on Bear Valley Lodge, phone (209) 753-2325 or visit www.bearvalleylodge.com.

Football is an extremely popular hobby – it is more watched than any other sport in the world and it is easy to see why. The game is fast paced, exciting and full of surprises. Although the obsession with football can drive some people mad, it is a way of life for loyal fans. People from all walks of life come together to share their love for the great game perhaps to the annoyance of their spouses! It can sometimes be hard for those who aren’t big football fans to find great football gifts. Football fans tend to already own the latest kit and already own a lot of football memorabilia, including everything from signed footballs to pencil cases. However, you can avoid scoring an own goal and find really unique football gifts for the fan who seems to have everything. Although it may be tempting to search the team’s gift shop many fans already have most items and your football gifts can seem unoriginal and lacking in thought. They can also seem very overpriced especially if you are a little strapped for cash. Instead, be brave and search for a really unique gift. You can find a range of personal one off football gifts that any football fan would be proud to own for fantastic prices. If you want to spend little but still find a great football gift look at buying a small personalised football present. You can buy football mugs with the name of the recipient on the back of a football shirt or a personalised football calendar to take pride of place in their bedroom all for less than a tenner! For a really unique gift you can give your partner, friend or family member their own football stadium! If they are a big Arsenal fan for example, you can grow your own Arsenal football stadium with the exact same seeds that are used on the Arsenal pitch. This is a great gift for dedicated fans. Some football gifts on the internet may seem genuine but real football fans will be able to spot the difference between real and fake. This gift comes with a certificate of authenticity from the football club so the recipient can see your gift is the real deal! Always remember to take care and only shop with reputable sites as no one wants a knock off or fake! Have a look at reviews to check the site to see whether they seem legitimate. If they like to think they are the next upcoming hot player treat them to a football experience day to expand their skills. Some online sites offer a fantastic Brazilian skills experience day. Here top coaches will show the recipient skills and techniques to improve their game. Many experience days are for two people so he can take his mate along to join in the fun. This is a present that will not hit the goalposts! For another great day out treat them to a football tour day experience. In this tour you receive a knowledgeable guide who can fill you in on all the facts of the club and the secrets you never knew. You can even walk through the tunnel taking the steps many football greats have taken to that big game and have a picture taken to show off to their friends! It is often possible to visit the players’ dressing room, the setting of some tense moments! This is a must for any loyal fan. You can also buy presents for extra special occasions. There are a range of quality football items ideal for momentous birthdays, gifts for celebrating a new job or even a wedding. You can buy beautiful business card holders in silver chrome, gorgeous cuff links and tankards all complete with his favourite football team’s logo. For a gift that will most definitely be a winner, buy a football book complete with newspaper cuttings and articles on all the magnificent moments in his football team’s history. This can be personalised with his name on the front, making a great gift for any football lover. All football gifts are a welcome present for any football fan, however it is important to take some care so you don’t score an own goal! Always check sites are legitimate to avoid fakes and knock off goods. Try to steer clear of gift shops with the same old merchandise they have received many times over. Instead look online for a really unique gift. Try personalised football gifts or experience days for gifts that will hit the back of the net!