sports

Hermes Debuts High-Tech Talaris Saddle

Filed under: Sports

Famed French luxury goods house Hermès may be best known for pricey fashion accessories these days, but the business began as a purveyor of equestrian items to the nobility back in 1837. The company has gone back to its roots while embracing modern technology with its latest offering, the Talaris saddle. Hermès unveiled the luxe item in conjunction with the Saut Hermès international show-jumping event it recently held at the Grand Palais in Paris. The $9,000 high-tech modular saddle features a tree made of carbon fiber and injected thermoplastic in place of the usual wood and steel, covered in the finest saddle leather. Master saddler Laurent Goblet came up with the design, aimed at taking the strain off the horse and the rider's backs. "This is at the heart of the essence of Hermès, which is about marrying tradition and innovation," the house's artistic director Pierre-Alexis Dumas told WWD.

Gallery: Hermes Talaris Saddle

Tags: carbon fiber, equestrian, Hermès, Hermes, horses, leather, luxury goods, Paris, saddle, sports

Playing Polo On Top of the World in Himalayan India

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Events, Sports

Polo isn't just for the cushy confines of Palm Beach and the Hamptons. In far-northern India they've been playing a more rough-and-tumble version of the sport, called "the ancestors' game", for hundreds of years. In September the annual Ladakh Festival Polo Cup will take place in the mountainous town of Leh, 11,500 feet above sea level. Against the majestic backdrop of the Himalayas, local civilian and Army teams "battle it out in a haphazard, no-rules display of sportsmanship," the Christian Science Monitor notes. Grueling games last for an hour, with one 10-minute break at halftime, and the condition of the players' horses often determines the outcome. The championship is sponsored by the State Tourism Office of the Indian government, and hundreds of villagers, city dwellers, and foreign tourists turn out to watch "at their own risk".

Tags: Asia, equestrian, Himalayas, horses, India, Polo, sports

The Classicist: London's Williams Evans & the "Affordable" Bespoke Shotgun

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports, Men's Style, The Classicist

Bespoke shotguns have been part of the wealthy British gentleman's essential sporting kit since the turn of the last century. They're as much a part of the English country house persona as tweeds, wellington boots and Range Rovers. Such guns are often passed down from father to son and are cared for like the precious objects they most certainly are. All these things they have long been, but up until now they have never been what one would call "affordable". Now William Evans (above), a top-drawer London gunmaker since 1883, is aiming to change all that with a new line of lower-priced bespoke shotguns that still deliver the quality one expects from a well-established London gunsmith.

William Evans first learnt his craft by working for famed gunsmiths James Purdey & Son and Holland & Holland. In 1883 he founded his own gunmaking business near Buckingham Palace and by 1888 his reputation had grown enough for him to move to more prestigious premises in Pall Mall, opposite St. James's Palace. By this time the core of William Evans' client list was firmly established, notably with military officers in the Guards Regiments who ordered sporting guns and rifles before being posted to various parts of the Empire. The move to St. James's, the heart of London's gentlemen's club district, further strengthened his client list and the company attracted the patronage of members of several prestigious clubs such as White's, Boodles and Brooks.

Gallery: William Evans Gunsmith

Tags: bespoke, bespoke+guns, bespokeguns, British style, guns, hunting, London, men, mens style, Range Rover, shotgun, sporting, sports, UK, William Evans, william+evans+london, williamevanslondon

Continue reading “The Classicist: London's Williams Evans & the "Affordable" Bespoke Shotgun”

Prince Charles Presides at Cartier International Polo

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events, Sports

HRH Prince Charles presided over the Royal Box at the 26th annual Cartier International Polo Day at the UK's Guards Polo Club in Great Windsor Park the other day. The celebrated event, previewed in The Classicist's column on the English summer social season, is the sport's most prestigious. The bands of the Welsh and Irish Guards and the Light Cavalry of the Honourable Artillery Company performed prior to the contest. The Prince, who arrived in his vintage Aston Martin, was joined by the likes of Tommy Lee Jones and Sir Ben Kingsley to watch as England triumphed over New Zealand to capture the coveted Coronation Cup. VIP guests were served a luncheon by chef Anton Mosimann of champagne, Scottish lobster and Chateaubriand followed by Grand Marnier parfait with raspberry coulis. James Beim, captain of the New Zealand team, was awarded the trophy for Most Valuable Player.

Gallery: Cartier International Polo 2010

Tags: Aston Martin, Cartier, equestrian, New Zealand, Polo, Prince Charles, royalty, sporting, sports, Tommy Lee Jones, UK

Luxist Takes a Tour of the Nike Golf Oven

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports

Nike advertising has a way - one of the biggest, best ways, actually - of seizing your attention. That is only in small part due to the ubiquity of the company's ads. It is more substantially due to: Nike ads don't sell products; Nike ads sell you on the idea of being everything you can be, perhaps better than you ever thought you could be. Take the World Cup: Nike didn't sponsor the tournament; Adidas did. But which company do you remember? Can you even remember an Adidas commercial? Or does your bell toll for "Write Your Future"?

The company was founded on a single idea, and it has continued to let its ideas grab the attention, with the products playing... accessory, as it were, to the achievement of those ideas. When Luxist was invited to the Nike Golf Oven in Ft. Worth, Texas, we met the men behind Nike's idea of golf, and to see how those ideas were made material. You wouldn't guess this would be the place for a Skunkworks devoted to fairways and greens, but then again, there are a lot of things we'd have never guessed about Nike. This is just another one.

Gallery: The Nike Golf Oven

Source

Tags: ft. worth, golf, nike, nike golf, nike golf oven, sports, texas

Continue reading “Luxist Takes a Tour of the Nike Golf Oven”

German Football Coach Orders Tod's Bracelets for World Cup

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports, Men's Style

Germany's national football team got an extra boost of team spirit and patriotism at the World Cup this year thanks to Italian luxury goods firm Tod's. Oliver Berhoff, the German National Team Manager, was shopping in one of Germany's Tod's boutiques a short while back when he spotted the brand's new My Colours braided leather bracelets in the country's national hues of black, red and gold (above). He purchased them for all the players and management as a symbol of team spirit and togetherness; the soccer stars were seen wearing them off the field while head coach Joachim Löw sported his on the sidelines of the games in South Africa. Currently available at Tod's boutiques worldwide, the bracelets retail for about $225 apiece and come in various national colors with steel clasps.

Tags: bracelet, football, Germany, leather, soccer, sports, Tods, World Cup, World Cup 2010

Ltd. Edition Piaget Presented to Veuve Clicquot Polo Champs

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches, Events, Sports

As you no doubt recall from my colleague Jeffrey Slonim's RSVIP column the other day, luxury Swiss watchmaker Piaget was the official timekeeper of the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic in New York City last weekend where Prince Harry joined the sport. In celebration of this year's event, Piaget created a limited edition version of its Piaget Polo FortyFive Chronograph to be awarded as the prize for the winning team. Inspired by the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic, the specially designed timepiece features the iconic "Clicquot Yellow" on its signature sub-dials and is designated "New York." Only 10 examples have been produced.

While Piaget ambassador and captain of Prince Harry's team, Nick Roldan, debuted the new watch to press at the event, the prize ultimately went to Team Blackwatch who won in a 6–5 victory. Team captain Nacho Figueras graciously accepted the award (above) and then promised to auction it off to raise money for American Friends of Sentebale, Prince Harry's charity. "Piaget has a long history with polo, so we are proud to commemorate our partnership with the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic by creating this very special timepiece," noted Larry Boland, President of Piaget North America. "It's certain to become a collector's item."

Tags: champagne, Chronograph, Nacho Figueras, New York, Piaget, Piaget Polo, Polo, Prince Harry, Sentebale, sports, Veuve Clicquot, Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic

Ralph Lauren Launches Interactive Tennis Clinic

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Sports

Ralph Lauren, official outfitter of Wimbledon, is launching an interactive Legends Clinic for tennis fans online via his marquee Polo Ralph Lauren brand. Designed to celebrate both the Wimbledon and American Open Tennis championships, the clinic will launch on June 17. The main feature will be live interviews with three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker, who will be answering questions and demonstrating some key techniques from a tennis court near Wimbledon. "Wherever you are - in Korea, Los Angeles or on 57th Street and Madison Avenue - you can ask Boris Becker questions, and he will answer them in real time," a Polo rep explains. "The mission for us is to change the way we create content and also make sure the customer sees the authenticity in our relationship with Wimbledon."

Source

Tags: Boris Becker, Ralph Lauren, sports, tennis, Wimbledon

Hotel Commonwealth's $755/night Red Sox Suite

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Boston's Hotel Commonwealth has created a Red Sox suite for those Fenway Fans – or Fenway taunters – more comfortable with the yellow seats down by the field. For $755 overnight you can lock yourself in a suite well stocked with Red Sox relics: Ruth, Agglanis and Conigliaro baseball cards, photos of Jackie Robinson and Ted Williams, and balls autographed by Johnny Pesky, Carlton Fisk and Jim Rice.

At the end of memory lane, suite guests can pass the hours around game time at either of the two plasmas – one in the living room, one in the bedroom – and watch the 2004 and 2007 runs to the World Series trophy and Ken Burns' "Baseball" series. The hotel fitness center is where they can work off the gift basket with Baby Ruth candy bars and baseball cookies, and it's probably best for everyone involved that the Commonwealth omitted the beer guy and his plastic cups. If you're nice, you might be able to get the 24-hour room service attendant to throw you a Haagen-Dazs ice cream bar...

Gallery: Hotel Commonwealth's Baseball Suite

Source

Tags: baseball, boston, Boston Red Sox, fenway, hotel commonwealth, Red Sox, sports, suite

The Five Sacred Rules of All Private Golf Clubs

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports

Whether you're playing in Maine or New Mexico some things remain the same: the five sacred principles of how to behave at a private golf club. Each club has its own set of etiquette standards but these 5 rules apply everywhere.

Never throw a golf club in anger. Ever.
Don't change your shoes in the parking lot. It's tacky. Head to the locker room, that's what they're there for.
No blue jeans. Not even really nice, expensive ones.
Take your hat off when indoors or sitting down to eat.
Turn off your cell phone when on the course or in the clubhouse.

These are the basics that can be applied no matter where you go in the country, but if you're new to a particular course it is best to find out before you play what the particular etiquette standards are at that club. Some clubs are much stricter than the above list (i.e. no cell phones anywhere on the property, no swearing, women must wear skirts, etc) and you don't want to assume and embarrass yourself by inadvertently making a major social blunder.

Source

Tags: etiquette, golf, golfing, outdoor-entertainment-pedia, outdoorentertainment, sports, summer-travel, summer-travel-pedia, summertravel-pedia

Go Snowboarding on Chanel

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports

For you brand loyalists out there here's a way to indulge your Chanel addiction that's especially appropriate for this time of year: snowboarding. Simple, clean cut, and uber-stylish. And also perfectly coordinated for the slopes in natural woodgrain and crisp white.

This snowboard is my personal fav (if only I knew how to snowboard) but if it's not striking your 'gotta have it' chord take a look at some of Chanel's other winter sports offerings, like boards and skis in darker shades of woodgrain, black instead of white, and coordinating poles and goggles.

Gallery: Chanel Winter Sports Accessories

Source

Tags: chanel, skiing, skis, snowboard, snowboarding, sports, winter sports, WinterSports

Lenny Dykstra's Patek Philippe and More at Auction

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches, Auctions, Celebrity Shopping, Sports, Wealth

My colleague Deirdre Woollard has been entertainingly chronicling former baseball star Lenny Dykstra's travails in bankruptcy court. Now it seems the hard-charging athlete-turned-entrepreneur is trying to raise a little ready money by selling off some of his prized possessions. Among the lots at Patrizzi & Co.'s Dec. 14th Exceptional Watchmaking Masterpieces auction in NYC is Dykstra's 18K white gold Patek Philippe (above) made in 2004. The fine and rare annual calendar timepiece shows the phases of the moon and has a power reserve indication. Estimated at $28,000 - $ 35,000, it comes accompanied by a photograph of Dykstra playing with the New York Mets. Also included in the sale are two major pieces of Dykstra sporting memorabilia: a 1986 New York Mets World Series trophy and plaque, estimated at $18,000 - $25,000; and a Silver Slugger Award from 1993 with a Louisville Slugger bat and National League Player of the Week 1990 plaque, estimated at $12,000 - $16,000.

UPDATE: Dykstra's Patek sold for $28,000, on the low end of the estimate.

Tags: athlete, bankruptcy, baseball, Lenny Dykstra, LennyDykstra, Patek Philippe, PatekPhilippe, sports

Former College Football Player Loses Trophy In Bankruptcy Filing

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Sports

It seems like everywhere I look these days there is a former sports star in trouble. The AP reported on the court-ordered auction of former Nebraska football player Aaron Taylor. The former center and guard's seven championship rings and his Outland trophy brought in $28,500 today. Bids were taken in person and online and the bronze statue sold for $6,800. The auction was forced by the closure of the Huskers-themed Scarlet and Cream Letter Club restaurant and Taylor's bankruptcy. The former college player who went on to be drafted by the Indianapolis Colts started the restaurant in Omaha with other former Nebraska players.

The AP reports says that some Nebraska fans donated money to help Taylor try and save some of his memorabilia. Taylor was one of seven Nebraska players who won the Outland Trophy and was awarded All-American honors at two different positions (offensive center and guard).

In his bankruptcy filing earlier this year Taylor said he owed at least $109,543 and had assets worth $5,300 (excluding the value of the rings and trophy). The restaurant owed state and federal taxes including $69,000 owed to the IRS. He had tried to have his memorabilia excluded from the bankruptcy liquidation but under the terms of Chapter 7 he was forced to surrender them.

Source

Tags: aaron taylor, AaronTaylor, championship bling, ChampionshipBling, nebraska cornhuskers, NebraskaCornhuskers, sports

World Series Tickets Already Available

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports

After last night's game the New York Yankees are hopeful that their World Series dreams are about to come true. And their fans are hopeful too, jumping on the first round of World Series tickets which went on sale this morning. Prices range from $51 to $1,706. Tickets in the Legends area run from $731 to $1706 and offer a close-up view of the action. In order to accommodate more fans the Yankees will make 59 Café seats per game on the Field Level concourse available for $156 per ticket and approximately 220 standing room tickets per game for dedicated standing locations on the Field and Main Levels available for $104 and $93, respectively, per ticket.

Source

Tags: baseball, mlb, sports, tickets, world series, WorldSeries, yankees

Rare Cassius Clay Letters Up For Auction

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Sports

Most memorabilia related to Muhammad Ali isn't quite as personal as the letters going up for auction at Heritage Auctions in Dallas, Texas and online, October 1 and 2 (the same auction where Lenny Dykstra's memorabilia will be auctioned off). The three early 1960s handwritten letters to his sparring partner written by Ali when he was still known as Cassius Clay are the earliest known Clay letters. The letters were written immediately before and soon after his light heavyweight gold medal victory at the 1960 Olympics. Chris Ivy, Heritage Auctions Director of Sports Auctions says that the letters are "early insights into the mind of one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century as he makes the transition from Louisville, Kentucky amateur to international professional boxer." Each letter is expected to sell for $10,000 or more.

Tags: boxing, cassius clay, CassiusClay, muhammad ali, MuhammadAli, sports, sports memorabilia, SportsMemorabilia

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