Originally Posted by
Campag4life
Well said...pro riders are in another strastosphere as is the case when comparing an amateur in almost any sport to that of a pro. What is perhaps even more surprising is how badly pros suck at alternative athletic endeavors...many times talent is very specific to a particular sport...sometimes even specialties within a sport...long distance swimming and running versus short race sprints etc. The greatest basketball player of all time with unfathomable hand to eye coordination and power has a hard time breaking 80 at golf even though he plays every day....now that is surprising but true.
Yeah, great athletes can suck at other sports...then again:
- Wilt Chamberlain was the NCAA champion high jumper. He was also an excellent racketball and volleyball player.
- John Elway played pro baseball before he played pro football, though he couldn't hit a curveball. He's also a scratch golfer, even without knee cartilage.
- Said basketball player also played minor league baseball
- Todd Helton started at quarterback for Tennessee, and is now a perennial all star in baseball.
- Tony Gonzalez started as a basketball player at Cal. Antonio Gates played basketball in college, not football.
I used to play softball with a couple of guys who were pro basketball players (strange but true). They were really good. A lot of guys who are pros at one sport are way better at other sports than most, and many could achieve elite levels in a number of them.