Tag: athletes

San Diego’s pro ultimate team brings excitement!

Did you know San Diego has a professional ultimate frisbee team? They’re called the Growlers! And they play fast-paced, super exciting games that will have you stomping your feet and cheering!

This evening the Growlers played at their home stadium–Mission Bay High School’s football field. I simply had to go check it out. I’d never been to an ultimate game before.

Ultimate is played with a frisbee and has elements of both soccer and football. Speedy athletes run about the field, trying to pass a frisbee between team members without it dropping or being intercepted. Catch in the end zone, win a point!

The games, played in four quarters, are easy to follow and wildly exciting. Huge breakaway throws into the end zone are like soaring Hail Mary passes! One scoring catch was made with 1.3 seconds left in the first quarter!

Most of the team members are college age and come from local schools like SDSU and UCSD. The game involves constant running, twisting and diving. You’ll see amazing athleticism.

I loved how kids in the stands were having a blast, banging their thunder sticks and having fun with Growler the mascot. Growler would stomp his feet on the metal floor of the stands when our team was on defense. Fans would join in. Boom, boom, boom!

During halftime, kids were invited onto the field to attempt long, running catches!

It was also cool to see how, during a meeting of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA), Growler was awarded best team mascot! I snapped that last photo as he was presented with a trophy!

Interested in going to a game? Check out the Growlers website here! This is their eleventh year in San Diego.

Most of these photos were taken before nightfall and before the game started. The stands would eventually fill up with a large number of cheering fans!

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Plaque memorializes three SDSU rowers.

A plaque memorializes three San Diego State University rowers who perished in a tragic car crash in 1986.

Derek Guelker, Jim O’Hara and Mark Skinner were in a van with other college athletes returning to San Diego from a rowing club competition in Sacramento when the terrible crash occurred. Here’s an article explaining what happened.

I stumbled upon this plaque when walking past the Mission Bay Aquatic Center, a water sports equipment rental service that is located on Santa Clara Point. The aquatic center, owned and operated by Associated Students of San Diego State University and UCSD Recreation, is open to the general public.

If you’d like to see the plaque yourself, you’ll find it by a walking path that approaches the H Del Beekley Rowing Center.

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Watching the 2026 San Diego Crew Classic!

Late this morning I spent some time watching the final day of the 53rd San Diego Crew Classic on Mission Bay. I was walking near Ski Beach when I saw the rowers, so I crossed over to Crown Point and looked on from afar with other members of the public who hadn’t purchased a ticket.

With my fuzzy zoom photos you can see the extreme effort of the competing rowers. They were really putting their backs and arms into it! The San Diego Crew Classic in 2026 featured over 100 teams from across the country, including premier collegiate, junior and masters rowing programs. The Crew Classic is one of the nation’s most prominent competitions of its kind.

The college teams, including Texas, Washington, Cal, UCLA, and San Diego State, are among the best of the best!

Even though the racing was held at some distance from where we watched, the excitement was very real!

If you want to learn more about the big event and view the results, check out the Crew Classic website here.

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Padres banners appear for 2026 season!

The 2026 Major League Baseball season is about to begin! The Home Opener for the San Diego Padres is next Thursday!

I noticed, while walking near Petco Park today, that the latest set of Padres player banners have been put up on street lamps in East Village.

This year there’s a huge addition: Mason Miller! He’s arguably the best closer in all of baseball. Did you watch him pitching for Team USA during the World Baseball Classic? He’s got a flamethrower arm. Wow!

Go Pads! Let’s make the playoffs again this year, and go all the way!

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San Diego Wave FC Season Kick-Off Rally!

San Diego Wave FC held their 2026 Season kick-off rally this evening in Balboa Park! A bunch of fans came together at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion to root for the team and make great memories!

Activations around the pavilion included unique giveaways, a merchandise station, kids activity station, and numerous photo ops. The San Diego Sirens independent supporters group was present. So was Forever Balboa Park. Upbeat music gave the event a fun, festival vibe.

When the players filed into the pavilion around 5:30, everyone cheered! The players would then pose for photos with fans at the different stations, and even autograph posters and clothing before photos were taken.

I saw many families. Young ladies were particularly excited to see their sports idols.

San Diego Wave FC is celebrating their fifth year. They’ll have their Home Opener in several days at Snapdragon Stadium.

The club made the National Women’s Soccer League playoffs last year. Hopefully in 2026 they’ll have even more success!

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Padres bobblehead collection at San Diego library!

A new exhibit was recently introduced to the Sullivan Family Baseball Research Center on the 8th floor of San Diego’s Central Library. Filling two display cases are a bunch of Padres player bobbleheads!

How cool is this?

There are Padres past and present, including Ted Williams, Tony Gwynn, Ozzie Smith, Rickey Henderson, Manny Machado, Juan Soto, Jackson Merrill and many more. The one exception I noticed is a bobblehead of Hamilton (Ham) Porter from the classic baseball movie The Sandlot.

The figures on display, I was told by a librarian, are only a small part of the extensive bobblehead collection owned by Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) member Oscar Murrieta.

Head up to the 8th floor of the Central Library for a better look!

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Mural honors San Diego player Kyra Carusa.

I discovered this mural yesterday while heading down University Avenue in North Park. It honors past San Diego Wave FC player Kyra Carusa. The artwork is painted on the side of The Original 40 Brewing Company building.

The mural was created by Ground Floor Murals (@groundfloormurals). Their work is always awesome!

Honoring KYRA CARUSA for her community leadership and contributions to women’s soccer – 2025

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SDSU Aztecs Rugby Club plays UC Davis.

During my walk yesterday through SDSU Mission Valley River Park, I was surprised to see members of San Diego State Aztecs Rugby Club getting ready for a game. They would be playing UC Davis out on a wide swath of the park’s grass. It was the second game of their 2026 season.

I remained at the sidelines for a while to watch the beginning of play. Other fans would gradually gather with their lawn chairs and umbrellas.

SDSU Aztecs Rugby Club competes in Division 1-A in the California Conference. Founded in 1958, the team has a long and proud history. They won the 1987 National Collegiate Rugby Championship.

The action I observed was fast and exciting! I don’t know too much about rugby, but perhaps I’ll have to become a fan! The Aztecs would go on to win 31-38.

If you’d like to watch this victory on YouTube, click here.

To go to a future game, you can follow SDSU Aztec Rugby at this website.

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Padres mural behind Point Loma bar!

Check out this super cool Padres mural painted last year behind Harbor Town Pub in Point Loma!

The artist is Jack Stricker (@jackstrickerart). The artwork depicts Padres baseball heroes Trevor Hoffman, Tony Gwynn and Ken Caminiti holding baseballs, bat and glove while dressed in long brown robes like friars!

I noticed this mural while walking near a bus stop waiting for my ride to Cabrillo National Monument.

I spoke to a friendly guy opening the bar, and he said Harbor Town Pub is the place you want to be watching Padres games. He also said it would be really cool if Trevor Hoffman came down to see the mural himself!

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Mural celebrates Manny Machado’s 2000th hit!

This mural was painted in National City last year after Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres recorded his 2000th Major League Baseball hit!

It reads: El Ministro 2000! Manny got the name “El Ministro de la Defensa” (Minister of Defense) for his defensive prowess when he played for the Dominican Republic in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

His absolutely amazing plays at third base are so smooth and routine they appear almost effortless. If you’re an opposing hitter running to first base, you’d better hurry, because Manny’s laser throw will probably arrive before you do!

The artwork was spray painted in 2025 by the Padres-loving artists of Ground Floor Murals (@groundfloormurals).

If you’d like to see this cool mural firsthand, head over the intersection of 8th Street and B Avenue in downtown National City. It decorates the east side of the Andrade’s Thrift Store building.

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