Rubber turf, state-of-the-art helmets and pads, and high-tech water machines on the field! What ever happened to grass, mud, leather helmets, and the good ole fashioned garden hose for water breaks?

It's only the first half of the soccer game and your child is cramping up. They just downed both water bottles you sent with them, and are trying to massage their locked muscles.

It's too late. The key to surviving the summer heat on the athletic fields is to hydrate properly and follow a few common sense tips.

1) Hydrate the night before the game, not at the last minute. Drink plenty of fluids sooner to let the body absorb them for when you need it. If you send the sports drinks with them to the game, make sure they have water as well. That short-lasting sugar spike from the sports drinks is followed by a lack of energy. Stick with water and you won't go wrong. It's cheaper too!

2) Have your kids eat fruit during their meal before the event. Fruit has nature sugars and is processed by your body slower, so you get energy longer from them. Bananas help keep the muscle cramps away.

3) Eat a good meal the night before with all the food groups. They'll feel healthier the next day.

4) Bring a cooler to the game or practice, filled with water to drink, as well as wet wash clothes on ice to wrap around their necks during breaks. We used them a couple weeks ago during a hot tournament in St. Louis. I've also considered putting their hat in the cooler during breaks.

5) Keep the players in the shade until they are ready to warm up. They're no point to overheating them early.

6) They are expensive, but the pump water misters are an interesting way to keep the players cool when off the field.

7) Encourage the players to take off their hats or helmets when not playing. Their head is the chimney of their body. Let the heat out.

8) Consider purchasing a pop of sports tent. It's great for parents to take refuge under during the games, and a place for the players to find shade before and after their events.

9) Fill your cooler with popsicles and frozen treats. If the kids don't eat them, you can!

10) Keep the kids in the A/C before their games. They'll need all the energy they can get out in the heat.

Good luck. Stay cool!

-Bob Hammerstrom

Today was the final day of baseball for us in the AAYBA World Series at St. Louis. The NH Grizzlies placed 8th out of more than 30 teams from around the country. They lost both Friday's game, and today's. The game today went into three extra innings.

Brandon Hammerstrom of Auburn, pitched the first three innings, relieved by Curtis Lonergan of Derry, and Louis Tarantino of Nashua.

This was the first year a Grizzlies team has made it into the platinum bracket of this tournament. Below are a few photos of the boys during the awards presentation.

Congratulations Grizzlies!

The NH Grizzlies 14U team from Litchfield dropped their baseball game today 9-1 against the Blues from Kansas City. Tim Sullivan pitched for the Grizzlies, and was relieved by Robbie McCormick.

When we left the field, I heard one of their parents bragging that this was their third year in a row making it to the final four.

They are a good team, with heavy hitters and sharp fielding. They ran out to their positions, and were very disciplined. They are now 5-0 in the AAYBA tournament.

The Grizzlies are 3-2 overall in the tourney. The best they can do now is 5th out of 34 teams, and if they drop their last two games they will be in 8th. Hopefully they will win and take 5th. That's very good, considering the talent playing in this tournament.

The humidity dropped a bit, but the temps. are hovering around 90. They will be heading to the pool soon.

-Bob Hammerstrom 

The NH Grizzlies 14U team beat the Redhawks 7-2 in six innings tonight, moving themselves up in the brackets with a 3-1 overall record in the AAYBA World Series baseball tournament in St. Louis.

Under the pitching of Matt Lipkind, and heavy hitting of the Grizzlies, the Redhawks were kept to only a pair of runs. Before the game, the Grizzlies were seeded 11th out of more than 30 teams, and the Redhawks were 6th. New ranking are not out yet.

The Litchfield, NH, team will play again Thursday at noon. The tournament finishes up Saturday with the championship games.

-Bob Hammerstrom 

After a night of thunder and rain storms, the NH Grizzlies' game against the Redhawks of St. Louis is delayed until 5 p.m. Both are top teams in the tournament, so this should be a very good game. Both teams will have their #34's back for the game. The Redhawks #34, and our #34 (my son, Brandon) were ejected from pool games for mowing down catchers on plays at the plate. What I find unique, is that they both blasted the same catcher, in two different games against the School of Hard Knocks from Indiana. Brandon didn't do it intentionally, but the rule says you must slide, and he didn't. So he sat for the remainder of that game, as well as the second. Check out the tournament schedule here.

Yesterday we explored the St. Louis arch and the Anheuser-Busch Brewery with the Gray family. Check out the photos below.

My family under the arch: Nancy, Brandon and Bob Hammerstrom

After winning their first baseball game Sunday, the NH Grizzlies boys stopped by a Hooters restaurant in St. Louis to celebrate Addison Hanscom's 15th birthday. After dinner, the Hooters girls posed for photographs with the team and signed autographs for them. Addison is in the front.

Addison Hanscom of Nashua shows his moves to the Hooters girls with a Hoola hoop Sunday night. Grizzlies catcher Ethan Hurley is also celebrating a birthday this week, but was unable to make it to the tournament because of a leg injury.  Miss ya "E."

-Bob Hammerstrom 

The NH Grizzlies 14U baseball team began play in the AAYBA Open World Series in St. Louis, Mo., Sunday afternoon, July 6, 2008. The team played three pool games through today, taking two of the three. They have Tuesday off, and will be seeded into brackets for the rest of the tournament. 

Saturday was spent watching the Cardinals take on the Cubs. The Grizzlies took a lap around the warning track before the game with many other tournament participants. 

The NH Grizzlies AAU 14U baseball team from Litchfield, N.H., is on their way to the AAYBA World Series in St. Louis. I will be with them, and will be blogging throughout the week-long tournament, which begins Saturday. Check back often for updates and photos of the team.