The Front Row with Mark Nelke October 14, 2012

There's enough things in the world that can make a person mad.

Like DirecTV not (yet?) agreeing to carry the Pac-12 Networks, and taking away KAYU so we have to find other ways to watch the NL Championship Series and the World Series.

Coming up with a list of things like that is too easy.

So the other day, while shoveling up stuff in the back yard, I tried to think of some things I like in the sporting world.

- The drive to Lewiston: Now, to quote The Cars, you might think I'm crazy. But I made that drive a couple of weeks ago for the Lake City-Lewiston football game, and it went by surprisingly smooth and fast.

Now, if I had to make that drive as often as parents and other fans do, following their teams, I probably would have a different opinion of the trip.

But, since they straightened out the first part of the trip and made it four-lane, eliminating the winding, "Over the river and through the woods, to Moscow or Lewiston we go" stretch, the drive has become a lot more bearable.

Of course, you still have to watch out for deer on the drive home.

Or potholes. I think the last flat tire I got came on a drive home from Lewiston. It was 1995, and I was coming home from watching Sandpoint's girls basketball drop a regional tournament loser-out game to Lewiston that Bulldog players and supporters are still shaking their heads over.

Anyway, it was a great trip other than that - mild weather for late January, the Eagles' "Hell Freezes Over" tape blasting in the car, when ... just as I crossed the Long Bridge, ready to make the bend into Sandpoint, and WHAM!

As I remember, there were not a lot of tire repair options in Sandpoint at 2 a.m., so I limped on home and had the tire fixed the next day.

- Defense in volleyball: Sitting in the bleachers at a Lake City-Coeur d'Alene match the other night, I was reminded that I have seen way more volleyball matches than I could ever count over the past 30 years.

Everybody notices the outside hitter who can crank the ball down the line, or the middle blocker who can swat a quick set to the floor, before the defense has a chance to react.

But one subtle thing sticks out when I watch a match that separates the good from the not-so-good teams - a team that, almost effortlessly, is right in position when the other team tries to tip, or hit an off-speed roll shot, or tries to send the ball deep into a corner to counter the other team marching closer to the net as the rally goes on.

Some teams look like their legs are stuck in quicksand when a tip or a dump comes over, and the ball falls harmlessly to the middle of the court. A team playing well merely transitions - whoever is supposed to pick up the tip or dump moves up and passes the ball, and the really good teams turn that attempt at deception into a nice set and a kill.

When I played rec volleyball, I swear our minds knew when a tip or a dump was coming, but sometimes our bodies just wouldn't let us move to make the play.

But we had an excuse - we were old.

- Kneeling during injuries: I think it was at a Timberlake football game a few years ago when I first saw this.

Some player got shaken up, and while he was being attended to on the field, players on both teams - on the field, and on the sidelines - took a knee.

I swear the people in the crowd took a knee as well, but it was dark so I can't be sure.

Anyway, I didn't know what was going on. I thought perhaps a religious experience had broken out, and I needed to kneel down and join in.

As it turns out, it's done as a sign of respect for the injured. And it's not just an Intermountain League thing - I've seen the same thing at other games at other levels.

Which is definitely not a bad thing at all.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter at CdAPressSports.