17 September 2010

Rugby Pictures - BBurg v. Radford

I finally got the pictures uploaded. I was having Internet problems, but I got that resolved. They are in my usual Picasaweb site. If you want to view any of my pictures, go to http://picasaweb.google.com/jpates.

Here is the slideshow of the gallery from the Sept 11th game of Blacksburg Rugby versus Radford University.

13 September 2010

Virginia Tech Football - Am Embarrassment to the ACC (update)

Wow. All I can say is "wow". Today, Virginia Tech lost to James Madison in football... 21 to 16. I wish I had access to see the game, but it wasn't aired. And, I guess that is good for Tech since they would have truly embarrassed themselves nationally. I so hope that Tech is not in the Top 25 for the AP Poll. There is no excuse that a nationally ranked team should ever lose to a non-Div IA team.

Tech needs to get their asses in gear.

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Just as a side note. This was only the 2nd time ever in the NCAA that a nationally ranked team was beaten by a non-Div IA team.

08 September 2010

ACC Football - Week 1 (Updated Estimated Scores)

Well, I actually guessed fairly well on my picks for ACC Football this last week. The only mistake that I had made was assuming that Navy was going to beat Maryland.

When it comes to ranking the top 10, my numbers have been off from the AP Polls. I have been using a variant of the ELO system to rank the Div I teams. My Top 10 for post-Week 1 are as follows:
1. Texas
2. Alabama
3. TCU
4. Boise State
5. Florida
6. Ohio State
7. Cincinnati
8. Brigham Young
9. Oregon
10. Penn State

Using the same system I used to pick last week's results, I will use for Week 2's predictions. For the Div I matches, the estimated score is included. (The score is something experimental and I want to see how accurate it is)

Duke v. Wake Forest - Wake Forest (22-27)
Georgia Tech v. Kansas - Georgia Tech (32-18)
James Madison v. Virginia Tech - Virginia Tech
Florida St v. Oklahoma - Oklahoma (25-33)
Presbyterian v. Clemson - Clemson
Kent St v. Boston College - Boston College (13-31)
Miami (FL) v. Ohio St - Ohio State (19-28)
Morgan St v. Maryland - Maryland
NC State c. UCF - UCF (24-27)
Virginia v. USC - USC (14-33)

01 September 2010

Restaurant Review - Burger King

Over the next couple of weeks, I will be eating at each of the dining locations in the Blacksburg downtown area and providing a review. Some of these may be self-evident since the chain restaurant might be located everywhere and some places will be a local-only pub.

Today, I chose to have Burger King. I got the Smokey Cheddar Steakhouse XT with Medium Onion Rings and Medium Diet Coke. As a simple summary, I would have to say that was a big mistake. I really don't know where to start on this. It is one of the BK Xtra Thick burgers which I found out is 7 ounces of meat. It is served with the traditional lettuce and tomato but also has cheddar cheese, bacon and barbeque sauce.

Pros: None

Cons: Everything else

What I did not like about this burger is something partly due to the fact I do not like Burger King burgers. It never ceases to amaze me that for a burger that is flame broiled on a wire rack, how much grease stays with the burger. The burger continued to ooze the remaining grease every time I took a bite. I could not detect a smoked flavor in the cheddar cheese. In fact, i could barely taste the cheese between the Gulf of Mexico oil slick I had going on in my mouth and the barbeque sauce. I also did not care for the bacon. The bacon was so thin and flat, I almost wondered how they managed to cook it. The slices of bacon literally was as thick as if someone cut 1" x 4" pieces of notebook paper and called it bacon. No crunch. No flavor. Just more grease to the burger. Another side note... with all the grease I took in, it made my stomach a bit queasy too.

As for the sides, they are traditional sides from BK. The onion rings are a pressed onion product formed into the shape of rings coated with breading and deep fried. They are nothing special, but I do like them better than BK's french fries.

As my personal opinion goes, I would avoid this burger at all costs. It is not worth the calories you take in for what little flavor you get.

As a nutritional side note:
Smoky Cheddar Steakhouse XT Burger
Calories: 850 cal
Total Fat: 51g
Dietary Fiber: 3g

Weight Watchers Points: 21

Medium Onion Rings
Calories: 450 cal
Total Fat: 24g
Dietary Fiber: 4g

Weight Watchers Points: 10

Medium Diet Coke
Calories: 0 cal
Total Fat: 0g
Dietary Fiber: 0g

Weight Watchers Points: 0

Meal Total = 31 points.

My allowable daily total for me(37 y/o 6'4# 240# sedentary male) = 37 points

This will never be a repeat meal for me. I consumed close to 67% of my calories for the day and 115% of my fat for the day... all in one sitting.