Back in the autumn of 1985, a seven-year-old child stood by a bridge waiting. There were no large crowds around him and, for early October, the south of England was beautifully warmer than anyone expected. This was a much simpler time. A time when sports stars had to make their way through some of the public areas to get to speak to the awaiting media, but they were able to do so without being mobbed. Each year, the winner of the pole position for the Grand Prix, on the Saturday, was required to make the journey behind the public grandstands on the front straight. In a few years, more and more professional autograph hunters would put a stop to such a simple passage and not much long after the entire complex was seen as being way below par to host a Grand Prix. But on this day, October 5, 1985, Brands Hatch circuit was the centre of the Formula One universe. The next day Alain Prost would become World Champion for the first time but today was all about that gorgeous black Lotus-Renault that popped and demanded your attention thanks to the yellow helmet belonging to a star in the making, 25-year-old driver, Ayrton Senna. Already it was plain to see that the young Brazilian was remarkable on a fast qualifying lap and an hour or so earlier he had taken his sixth pole position of the season. The boy waited to see if he could get a glimpse. And then he appeared, in his civvies, and just like that he was gone. In between he had taken a second to write his autograph in the book held tightly by the young fan. The next day the boy and his father stood on the final turn of Brands Hatch and watched with their very eyes as Senna, leading the race, collided with the Williams car of Keke Rosberg while battling for the lead. The crash, which for an added bonus knocked the easily unlikeable Nelson Piquet out of the race, forced Rosberg into the pits. When he returned he did so right in front of Senna and the charging Englishman Nigel Mansell. It was the kind of plot a moviemaker would think up, yet this was really developing in front of the eyes of stunned seven-year-old. An incensed Rosberg held Senna up, Mansell saw his moment and overtook the Brazilian. The crowd erupted immediately, like a football stadium reacting to a late goal. Mansell would go on to win his first-ever Grand Prix, joined by Senna and Rosberg on the podium. The boy was hooked. These days it will take you less than five seconds on Google to find an article preaching to its readers to not make a sports star your hero. One of the biggest issues surrounding this notion is that it is being told to you by an adult who has grown to know no one is perfect and feels the need to protect people from being let down. Children dont have much of a voice when it comes to adults but they certainly can teach us a thing or two about the innocent beauty of admiring a sports star for what he/she does in their chosen field, regardless of what they are like otherwise. That day, back in 1985, the seven-year-old boy who cried when the race was over, and spent the five-hour car ride home with his mind full of race cars driven by gladiatorial figures, didnt have a platform to write about what those drivers meant to him. Today, he does. I still have that autograph, now proudly placed in a frame beneath a painting of Sennas first win in Portugal, achieved in that gorgeous black Lotus. When I glance at it, I am reminded of that weekend in 1985. As we made the journey north towards home I didnt do it as an Ayrton Senna fan, after all, an Englishman had captured the hearts of thousands, completing a rags-to-riches story by winning his first ever Grand Prix. I was a Nigel Mansell fan. However, the beauty of youth and the sport, meant I could be much more than just that. This was not like football where you were taught to love one and despise all others. Grand Prix racers, with the exception of Mansells nemesis in Piquet, were to be admired and as the years went on, even during epic Senna-Mansell rivalry seasons, I feasted on the epic greatness from both. Id witness Mansell winning the British Grand Prix in 1986 and 1987 and in 1991 I was on the track when he drove by with Senna, hanging on his car as a passenger after retiring late in the race. By then I was old enough to know Senna was better than Mansell and that was what made his victories even sweeter; knowing he had beaten the ultimate standard set by the greatest racing driver I had ever seen. Id watched from my couch, in the middle of the night, Sennas titanic tussles with Prost in Japan when the pair clashed for the 1989 and 1990 World Championships. The drama was incredible and the plots main character, Senna, was an enormous figure in my life. I never missed a race and the sport back then gave me memories to last a lifetime. The way my dad talked about Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier to me is how I can talk about Senna-Prost to my children. Id eventually hear the Brazilian anthem played for Senna at a Grand Prix in Belgium in 1991, the day Michael Schumacher made his first career start, but nothing came close to what I saw in 1993. This time the weather was far from nice. It was absolutely awful, in fact. We were no longer in the south either. My familys love for the sport had taken us to Donington Park, in Derbyshire, in early April. Remarkably, the crowd was very low, with the nation suffering an F1 hangover from Mansell packing his bags for Indycar. Those lucky enough to get absolutely drenched that day witnessed true greatness. Senna would win 41 Grand Prix races but his best happened that day as his McLaren danced in unison with the rain at the European Grand Prix. It is hard to put into words what he did, just watch his opening lap on Youtube and see for yourself. The rain master obliterated the field that day giving the fans and his rivals a lesson in perfection, every single lap. It was what all sports fans crave. Its one thing to witness a group of sports stars doing something we could never dream of, but it is quite something else to see someone take that standard to another level. To this day when I think of Senna I think of Donington Park for two reasons. I was there the day he won that race and I was there on May 1, 1994 when we lost him for good. That day he was in Italy for the San Marino Grand Prix, where ten years earlier I had been to see a race, the only one in Sennas career he failed to qualify for. A decade on he had different troubles. Troubles with his new Williams car and troubles with the sports safety after witnessing brutal, violent accidents on the Friday and Saturday of that race weekend. Young Rubens Barrichello survived his on Friday, Roland Ratzenberger wasnt so fortunate on Saturday afternoon, becoming the first F1 driver to be killed at a Grand Prix in 12 years. Id heard of his death on Saturday night on the new BBC Radio Five Live station and remember to this day how they teased it with Formula One loses its first driver since 1982, coming up well tell you who. I sat alone terrified, waiting for the answer. I was sixteen now but had been fortunate enough to watch these incredible men drive these amazing machines without ever getting the news that all motorsport fans fear. They were immortals, to me, true heroes inside their helmets guiding rocketships on wheels and leaving you with the most wonderful sound as they blasted by. I was part of the lucky generation. My dad, who had gotten me into the sport, had watched many of his favourites perish in years gone by but, for kids like me, we never faced such heartache. Until that weekend in 1994. That night I did what many teenagers in England did on Sundays - I listened to the Top 40 charts. Each song that came on provided background music to the career of Ayrton Senna da Silva that played out on my mind. I was overwhelmed by many different feelings, sadness being one of the main ones, of course, but, to this day, I remember the strongest emotion of all was pure disbelief. I kept wondering in mind, over and over, what it was going to be like to go to a Grand Prix without him being there. Twenty years on, the answer I got that night remains the same. The truth was it was never, ever the same. I had watched true greatness at a time when I was allowed heroes. After that, nothing could come close. Cheap Shoes From China . The 26-year-old slider from Calgary posted a time of 50.464 seconds, 0.573 seconds back of leader Natalie Geisenberger. The German led the overall World Cup womens standings this season and continued her dominance by putting down a track record time of 49. China Shoes Cheap .A. Happ is coming off his first start of the year, a win at Philadelphia Monday. The former Phillie allowed three hits in five scoreless frames of a 3-0 triumph. https://www.chinashoesshop.com/.com) - Former FBI director Robert Mueller said his investigation found no evidence that the NFL saw the elevator video of Ray Rice striking his then-fiancee before the tape was released in September. China Shoes Nike . Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. Fake China Shoes .com) - Nicolas Colsaerts fired an 11-under 60 on Thursday and grabbed a 3-stroke lead with the opening round of the Portugal Masters suspended by rain.On The NBA 2014-2015 season’s eve, the incredible two man team of TSN 1050 Radio’s #1On1 with Will Strickland and Duane Watson get you ready for hoops in Canada! Over the next three days, the guys will give you the news, views and truths on all things NBA and Canada basketball, including insights on the Toronto Raptors and their chances to go deep into the playoffs this season. The #1On1 with Will & Duane NBA Season Preview first looks at the Western Conference, where the unbreakable triumvirate of the great Timothy Theodore Duncan, Emanuel David Ginobili and William Anthony Parker, Jr. has time and time again, year after year, continued to defy the odds and the naysayers when it comes their age and ability. Though the sun sets in the West, apparently no one told the defending world champion San Antonio Spurs. As they hoist their fifth title banner and collect their jewel and adoration on NBA opening night this Tuesday vs the Dallas Mavericks, ask yourself if you’re willing to bet against them again. Does a team with an ailing, but reigning MVP in Kevin Durant get back to the Finals and find redemption? Or maybe a newcomer to the throne like the Blake Griffin/Chris Paul-led Los Angeles Clippers will ascend the highest of heights in the West? Duane Watson and Will Strickland give their predictions and you tell them if they are on point or way out of bounds! Stephen John Nash Will Retire. Strickland: When? Now? Didn’t he retire three years ago in Phoenix? Despite listing Toronto, where Nash is Executive Director of Canada Basketball, and New York, where he resided in the offseason, as potential free agency destinations for him, Steve Nash didn’t retire when he hurt his back recently picking up a bag and likely ending one of the most unlikely NBA careers ever. Steve Nash retired for many the moment he swore he’d never play for his enemy, the Los Angeles Lakers, and then promptly signed there. Watson: As soon as Nash left the confines of the magical rehabilitation pixie dust of the Phoenix Suns, his body’s deterioration seemingly accelerated. Nash will have only played in 65 games over the past three seasons for in Los Angeles. As the oldest player in the NBA, like everyone else, he wasn’t able to elude father time. Nash will retire, but only after he gets the $9 million that the Lakers owe him. The Los Angeles Lakers Will Be The Worst Team In The Western Conference. Strickland: No team that possesses the maniacally competitive and highly polarizing Kobe Bean Bryant will ever be last at anything, especially when the Western Conference has the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Sacramento Kings for that. Bryant will soothe his wounds by surpassing his boyhood idol Michael Jeffrey Jordan for third place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list this season. Watson: Kobe Bryant, despite his talents, does not bring the best out of people. He will be coming back from an Achilles injury and the other two best players on the roster, (Steve Nash & Nick Young) are out with injuries. That leaves a bunch of young players and a new head coach in Byron Scott, who will grate on them quickly, as he’s a strong believer in tough love. All in all, a recipe for disaster born by regret for signing Kobe to a (legacy) extension and crippling the ball club. Anthony Davis Will Be League MVP. Strickland: Yes… just not this season. The Brow is the future of the NBA: long, athletic, skilled and able to dominate the game in multiple aspects, whether he’s scoring or not. Be afraid… be very, very afraid! Anthony Davis is rated next and will live up to the billing. Watson: After a coming out party as an anchor on the gold–medal USA Men’s basketball team, Davis is putting together all of the elements that made him a #1 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. His inside and outside game, coupled with defensive ability make him a match-up nightmare and as long as the Pelicans are performing, he will start his ascent as one of the new faces of the league. Flip Saunders Will Be The First Coach Relieved Of His Duties This Season. Strickland: Yes… and rightfully so, even if he is the one who does the firing as Saunders serves as both head coach, President of Basketball Operations and part-owner. Let this prediction also serve as a ringing endorsement of former Toronto Raptors’ bench boss and 2006-2007 NBA Coach of The Year to lead the young wolf pack of Canadians Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett, high flyer Zach Levine, vet Thaddeus Young and new face of the franchise (for now), Ricky Rubio. Watson: There’s a bit of a caveat as he is also the team’s GM, but he won’t want to be on the sideline enduring the losses. It will be his first time in a dual role, and he will want to focus on building a better team and leave the coaching in the hands of his initial lead candidate, former Raptors head coach Sam Mitchell. DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins Will Be An All-Star. Strickland: No question. Cousins’ abilities were on full display in the Gold Medal game as his tenacity and work off the boards awakened his US Men’s’ National Team and spurred them to victory. More impressive however were his displays of teamwork, maturity and leadership in Spain as he had opportunities to become the “Ugly American” with a poor attitude and one short circuited punch attempt to the back of Raptors & Lithuanian star centre Jonas Valanciunas’ melon.ddddddddddddBoogie brings these experiences to a poor Sacramento team that he’ll have to carry even more this season. Watson: “Boogie,” early in his career, developed a reputation as a player with an attitude and bad temperament, despite his stellar play. While his on court performance hasn’t slipped, his poise and play with USA Basketball last summer displayed what many knew all along… his passion is as big as his game. Western Conference coaches will see that if he played under Coach K, he will finally get that vote in as a reserve in New York. Eric Gordon & Tyreke Evans Will Cripple The Hornets Playoffs Chances With Injuries. Strickland: Even healthy, oxymoronic when speaking about Evans and Gordon, there’s little doubt they’d help the Pelicans fly into the playoffs. The addition of Omer Asik as well as getting the sharpshooting Ryan Anderson back on the floor and hoping Jrue Holiday can regain his All-Star form if not All-Star status will mean more to the playoff hopes of New Orleans. Watson: While Anthony Davis will have a banner season and the return of Ryan Anderson and addition of Omer Asik will bolster their frontcourt, the Pelicans shooting guards will prove to be the boon of this team. Lacking much offensive firepower in the backcourt, Gordon and Evans chronic injury history and their absence from the line-up will have many posing “what if?” at the end of the season. Damian Lillard Will Be Voted In As An All-Star By The Fans. Strickland: No. With relative shoo-in incumbents Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook and Steph Curry in front of the rapping point gawd MC Dame Lillard, it will be his continued growth as a leader for a talented Portland Trailblazers outfit that will have fans stuffing All-Star ballot boxes to push for his inclusion as one of the top 24 players on the planet for a fun-filled weekend in Gotham. It’s not Dame’s time just yet, but when it is, he won’t relinquish for quite some time. Watson: “Dame” is doing everything right earning a reputation on the court and off of it. The only thing better than an old superstar point guard that hasn’t won it all, is a young superstar point guard that hasn’t won it all. The fans are recognizing, as Lillard’s ability to single handedly win games, is the reason why people are excited about the Trail Blazers. The Los Angeles Clippers Will Win The West. Strickland: No. They have all the talent in the world, an experienced bench, one of the top coaches in The Association in Doc Rivers and a bright owner in Steve Ballmer who has taken the Donald Sterling cloud from over the franchise. Even that will not be enough to overcome the Spurs x Thunders of the NBA world. Whispers of Chris Paul losing a step after a tough close to his playoffs last year will not be offset by a potential MVP-like campaign from Blake Griffin. Watson: The Clippers have all the tools to have the best record in the Western Conference. Blake Griffin is asserting his dominance as one of the top power forwards in the game, head coach Doc Rivers has a roster and a bench that can compete 82 games a season, and there’s Chris Paul. But for all of that, they will continue to realize that the regular season and playoffs are two different seasons and won’t be playing in June. The Utah Jazz Will Sneak Into The Playoffs. Strickland: No! But, going out on the thinnest of limbs here, I truly do believe that a team who won 25 games last year will push for that final playoff spot in the West until the last week of the season. New head coach Quin Snyder has implemented a sharp motion offensive scheme that will highlight the talents of his young stars Gordon Hayward, Trey Burke, Rodney Hood and Dante Exum, as well as allow blossoming big man Derrick Favors and an improving Rudy Gobert, who is coming off of a very solid summer of international play with France’s Bronze medal winning squad at the FIBA World Cup. Watson: Bold considering this team only won 25 games last year, but there is a depth of talent on this Jazz roster and rookie head coach Quinn Snyder has already found ways to maximize it. Even if they don’t make the playoffs, they will be a much-improved squad from the year prior, adding experience to the young core Trey Burke, Dante Exum, Rodney Hood, Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors. The Spurs Will Repeat. Strickland: Hard to bet against them… but I will! Injuries and how you play around them are a variable that is always necessary to consider in pro sports. So is age. Despite exacting their revenge vs the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals last season, the Spurs ability to defeat father time will factor heavily in allowing a new boss in the West to reign. Watson: Likely the least bold of all the predictions, as the depth, the experience, the coaching, and the minutes management should lead them right back to where they left off. It’s the Spurs title to lose and coach Popovich and the veterans on this team only do that once a decade, (see 2013 NBA Finals). You can find Duane Watson(@duanewatson) and Will Strickland(@wallstrizzle1) plying their trade in the Art of Basketball Commentary on #1On1 with Will & Duane every Saturday afternoon at 3pm ET on TSN 1050 Radio. Tune In! Tell A Friend! You’ll Be Glad You Did! ' ' '