Hello all,

 The View Tube blog is back on the air…errr…print…errr…electronic display after a brief hiatus.  Sorry for any inconvenience.

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It’s hard to believe but we’re moving into week three of the OC16 Sports TV schedule.  So far the response has been very favorable for the HD broadcasts.  If you have an HD set and box…all of OC16 including the games are on channel 1016.  Our tech guys are still “tweaking” the HD encoders, decoders, and what not…but so far it’s coming along nicely.

The availability of satellite gear is really allowing us to be in more places as well.  Last Friday we did our first TV game from Roosevelt’s beautiful new field.  The artificial surface is awesome!  It feels even more like grass than Aloha Stadium.  Plus no mud!

This week’s TV game:  Castle vs Farrington - 7:30pm - from Castle High School.

 Available on HD OC16 channel 1016, Digital 96, and good ol’ analog cable 16.

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In UH football news…  One of our crew members knows a lot about Inoke Funaki and it confirms what most of us think.  He’s humble, team first, and deserving of a shot at starter.  Inoke has been knocked for not being a practice quarterback, you know, doesn’t look as sharp as others in practices.  But the word is…and it seems backed up by action…that Inoke is a “gamer” and when the lights come on at the stadium, he makes things happen. 

As for his team first and unselfish attitude…  That may have hurt his starting chances earlier.  My friend tells me that Inoke is not one to really lobby for his own position.  Too humble.  He’s much more comfortable trying to make his teammates better and have them gain the spotlight.  I’d like to see this become a story of the good guy finishing first.

It’s that attitude that makes me a fan of Inoke.  Good luck to him and the Warriors!

Don’t forget…available on pay per view channel 255….smile.

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Like the fine writeup in Wes Nakama’s prep blog…  Everyone here offers deepest sympathies and condolences to the family and friends of Ken Yamase.  The BIIF executive director passed away recently while diving.  He loved how athletics made Hawaii’s young people better.  He’ll be missed for sure.

I’ve gotten a few comments plus some direct emails about the Goodwill Volleyball Classic we’re whipping up for November.  So instead of answering some questions in comments, here’s a new posting.

Again, the idea of the volleyball classic is to promote sportsmanship and goodwill between different leagues.  I’m talking about students playing with people they may never otherwise share the same court with.  True a lot of these vballers play on club teams that face each other but still I think it will be a bit different here.

Besides mixing up the players, putting different coaches together should further the exchange of ideas as well as break down cliques.

On to the questions…

BlueFyre:
August 20th, 2008 at 11:45 am   edit

Are there going to be any kind of criteria for the selectees of the Classic, or is it simply open to the best player of every team? I think it would be pretty cool if the state champ could have maybe two players instead of one, possibly as an incentive to the teams to step up their game a notch or two??? Jus my two cents.

BlueFyre: Thanks for the interest!  The criteria will be each school will be offered one spot - this covers both D1 and D2 schools.  The leagues, coaches and school athletic directors will be in charge of selecting the players.  It will be seniors only and the player should be both a good player and a good person.  To sum it up, somebody you would want to represent your school and community.  If a school cannot provide a player, the spot will be given to another school.  But we really hope to see all schools represented.

We’re anticipating about 10 girls per team.  Players will be assigned via a blind draw.  In one hat, it’s the ILH pool and the other, the OIA.  Pick from one hat then the other until done.  The coaching staffs will be divied up this way too.  It will allow for some truly mixed teams and it’s kind of fun too.  We also want to avoid any politics in making up the teams.

kkth:
August 20th, 2008 at 12:11 pm   edit

what about the neighbor island teams/players? oahu games are always playing on OC16, how about the other islands? i am pretty sure families and communities would love to watch their homegrown players play on OC16. there is definitely some talent out there….in the DII state division…2 of the final 4 teams were from maui & molokai. i am sure that the MIL, KIF & BIIF have players worth playing in your classic and exciting to see on television. be fair man! we are paying oceanic customers too!

kkth:  OC16 loves and supports schools and players from all islands.  No slight is intended.  But please remember this is the first year for this classic.  I mean there has never been a game featuring such a mix.  In an ideal world, we would have a huge budget for this and be able to make it statewide.  You know, fly in neighbor island kids for multiple practices, house them, and fly them back home and then back again for the two nights of competition.

It’s not a question of talent because there are stellar players from Hilo to Hanalei.  But it is about finding enough money to pay for everything.

If this event should prove successful and popular, we will indeed look at making it statewide or at least expanding it more.

I’m always open to suggestions so please, let me know.  And…thanks for being an Oceanic Time Warner subscriber!  It’s not lost on any us that we don’t exist without our customers.

Again the Goodwill Volleyball Classic is set for two nights - November 19 and 20 - live on OC16.

As we get giddy about starting our 20th year of local sports on August 22 with football, let’s remember volleyball shares the same time frame.

Volleyball was the third sport added after the initial launch of OC16 Sports with just football.

The game and the network have certainly grown up over the last two decades.

So much so, OC16 is proud to announce the creation of “OC16 Goodwill Volleyball Classic” in order to recognize and reward the fine young student athletes of this sport.

This first year teams will be a mix of OIA and ILH schools.  Coaching staffs will also be mixed from the leagues.  Each school will be offered a spot to select one of their players to represent that school.  Schools and leagues will be doing the picking.  OC16 is just happy to provide the games and TV coverage.

I personally think this will be awesome to watch as the skill level will be very high.  But it should also promote sportsmanship in action as the young ladies mix from different schools and leagues.

Put down November 19 and 20 as the dates for the classic.  We can’t wait to see first serve in this!

Before I jet off to some meetings at Aloha Stadium…I wanted to share with you a unique game that we’ve just added to our broadcast schedule.

On September 12, 2008 - OC16 Sports will present Anuenue vs Aiea- live 7:30 pm from Mililani High School.

In short Anuenue is a Hawaiian language immersion school that plays football using the Hawaiian language!  It is wonderful to hear and their football skill is strong too.  So the combo of getting to see some pigskin action done in true Hawaiian Style, well that should be fun for all.

Their opponent, Aiea will give them all they want as Na Ali’i has something to prove after being dropped down to the White Division from the OIA Red.

All in all, this is one of those games to mark on your schedule.

Ok…gotta go!  Feel free to let me know your thoughts on this!  Aloha!

I’ve gotten some really nice emails and comments about Mililani uber softball pitcher Makani Duhaylonsod so I thought I would “bump” it higher with this updated offering.

 Multiple sources say she has indeed qualified for a D1 school.

Lucky for Hawaii softball fans, Hawaii is where her heart beats the strongest.  So barring some dramatic change UH will indeed be getting a quality pitcher and young person. 

No doubt her large extended family here is happy to be able to watch and support her at the next level.  Although her cousin, who plays for Chaminade, may have been even happier if Makani hopped over another hill to the Silverswords’ campus…smile. 

 For me, I think it will be fun to see how the next chapters in her life and softball career play out.  Certainly she is athletically gifted with a strong support system of family members. 

Just think Bob Coolen could possibly throw the OIA’s top two pitchers from the past few years.  (The other being Moanalua grad Sarah Robinson.)  Which gives idea to a future blog - how former high school rivals become teammates - but that’s for another day.

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Special kudos to Been There, Cane, and Kakarochie for their timely offerings.