Well, she's at it again. Timmins’ own Carley Blomberg has added another championship to her growing resume. Last week in Czechia, Carley served as an assistant coach for Team Canada at the World U21 Ball Hockey Championship. And the team walked away with the gold medal at the event. She had little time to celebrate as she jumped on a flight back to Canada to take part in the HC High Performance clinic this week. The girl has no concept of taking a rest.
A couple of big events are on tap soon here in Timmins.
Timmins will be the host for the 2023 provincial Minor Little League championship from July 28 to Aug. 4, while Sports for Kids Timmins is hosting a charity golf tournament this weekend.
Both organizations are vital components in providing recreation for our youth and are deserving of all of our support.
For a lot of summers, I remember watching some super exciting and highly adept youth baseball as Timmins finest Little League players faced off against other cities' clubs, especially when played at a true jewel of a facility along the river's edge. The diamond is truly among the best facilities you will find anywhere in Canada. We are lucky to have that facility here through the efforts of a dedicated group of volunteers.
Vlad Guerrero Jr. and company sure put on a show at MLB's home run derby last night.
Maybe his win in the competition will kickstart a strong second half for the likeable slugger. I know Jays fans are excited about that prospect.
Almost as exciting for me is watching the pure joy and effort put in by the kids in the outfield shagging balls that don't sail out of the stadium.
Of all the events in pro sports league's all star festivities, I absolutely love the home run contest. What an awesome display!
One small thing I would like to see added. If it's even possible.
But first a side note.
Back in the ‘90s we at the hockey school bought a puck-shooting machine that held 240 pucks in eight rotating chambers and fired pucks from very low speeds and up to 100 MPH.
It weighed a couple hundred pounds and we shattered more than one piece of glass at the rink. It was far from the tiny 40-puck slower speeds machines you may have seen.
NHL, junior and college teams as well as goalie schools, and training academies all used these machines. Goalie equipment manufacturers used them to test equipment, skates and sticks.
It was an invaluable tool I used with my own teams as well as the school. Now here's the deal. Once I set a speed and location it was exact. If I wanted to send 80 MPH shots a foot off of the ice right at the goal post, it did it exactly the same every time. After I initially set up the machine it was dead-on accurate. Repetitive training in specific areas of the net made it the perfect tool.
So I'm thinking — could the same be done with a pitching machine for the home run contest?
So a batter likes 70mph pitches, high and inside. Would the machine not be able to do that accurately over and over? Would this take away the variance of pitching skill each different batter faces? Yes, I know it removes the human element but does a more level playing field offset that? Just thinkin'.
Oh, ya. They don't make the style of puck machine we had anymore. They were built like tanks and last forever with proper maintenance. You see them on some sites selling used and they are pretty much selling for near full original retail..
If you saw the article this past weekend at TimminsToday (with pictures of ) the 31.25-inch walleye caught in North Bay, and you're a fisherman, you had to be impressed. That's a once in a lifetime catch. Was so glad to see it was quickly returned after a few pictures.
SEE: Northern Ontario angler reels in a wallop of a walleye
Mrs Mulryan caught a 32 inch 10 years ago (also quickly released after pics) and we still talk about it.
So now I wait to hear from my fishing friends about how the always get them kind of hawgs.
Please send all pics and info to the OFAH website. They are waiting to hear from you.
Don't tell me.
I like to be as positive as I can in this column, but this one leaves me shaking my head.
I understand Ultimate Frisbee, World Chase Tag, American Bean Bag, etc., but a quick late-night channel flip brought me this one. World Slap Fighting.
Two guys are face-to-face and each take a turn slapping each other in the face. And they wind up like nobody's business. The challenge ends when someone quits or is incapacitated.
It's an organized sport on the rise and YouTube is rife with it.
Should be in the Olympics the way things are today. Sheesh.
Mully's may not appear on a weekly basis over the summer, as I am involved elsewhere and the local sports scene slows down this time of year. I'm pretty sure most weeks will feature a column, but just a heads up.
You should be seeing some more interviews with locals soon, starting with the overdue Pierre Beaulieu interview from Germany.
Later skater,
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