Corey Stringer

A 335 pounder doing full-gear practice in 95 deg weather. This pisses me off.

Even as a busines practic, this is stupid. Why would they risk a valuable asset in this dangerous way? What if Culpepper or Moss had dropped?

What a waste.

-- Lars (larsguy@yahoo.com), August 01, 2001

Answers

Lars

It happened down here last week at the University of Florida. Incoming freshman died of heat stroke after conditioning drills. Body temp was 108.

I'm waiting on one of the Jags to drop. Weather has been downright oppressive down here during 2-a-days. 90 degrees and 90% humidity.......bad combo!

Definitely a trajedy.... Deano

-- Deano (deano@luvthebeach.com), August 01, 2001.

What the heck is a "trajedy"???? I have no idea.......

-- Deano (deano@luvthebeach.com), August 01, 2001.

It wasn't really an out of the ordinary practice, in length or intensity. The heat index here in Minnesota (calculated combo of heat and humidity) can get incredibly high. When it's 95 in Minnesota, you can barely go outside - it would be the equivalent of Phoenix at about 110, depending on relative humidity.

I own 4 Vikings season tickets, so I guess you can say I'm a fan. I bet Dennis Green (and the rest of the NFL) will change practice activities drastically for hot days after this.

It's really sad, he was a class guy, always. Very popular around Minneapolis, and reportedly among his teammates. Made the Pro Bowl last year and came back in even better shape. It looked like he was going to be a dominant lineman for maybe the next decade, and then this.

-- Bemused (and_amazed@you.people), August 01, 2001.

I saw part of a Viking press conference this morning on Fox (that's right, Fox suspended "All day-All Chandra", MSNBC was still harping on Condit). A Vike player (didn't catch his name) was making a tribute to Stringer and totally broke down. He could not continue.

Stringer left a wife and son.

-- Lars (larsguy@yahoo.com), August 01, 2001.

Doesn't heat stroke creep up slowly? I mean, he had to have felt it coming on. Why in the hell didn't he do something for himself before it got to the point of no return? If he was being macho, he certainly paid dearly for his pride.

-- 1 (2@3.com), August 01, 2001.

I'd like to share an excerpt from David Halberstam's October 1964 which may shed some insight on the professional athlete's mindset:

To understand what had happened, he said, you had to be there at the time, to be caught up in the excitement and emotions of that pennant race. In addition, you had to have the mind-set of a high-level athlete, which meant, in situations like this, a belief that he could prevail by sheer will. Athletes, Bunning said, always think they are invincible. "Hindsight dictates that we should have been rested and then pitched. That's obvious to everyone now," he said. "But the emotions of the moment dictated that we try for it, that we go out there and pitch on two days of rest. To say no, to refuse the ball and say that you could not pitch on short rest, was to go against every impulse superior athletes have." On that critical seventh game of the losing streak, Bunning had believed that he was the stopper of the team, that he could end the losing streak, and, moreover, that it was his personal responsibility to his team to end it. He did not feel tired when he went to the mound in those games. He felt rested, and confident, although based on the way the opposing hitters greeted him, he was obviouisly pitching with a good deal more fatigue than he realized.

-- David L (bumpkin@dnet.net), August 01, 2001.

This is stupid. It was no irregular practice. It was not the Vikings fault. It was natures plan.

-- Blondy (Mustangchic@hotmail.com), January 03, 2002.