A Life In Sport

A blog by Ian Hyde-Lay

About

ABOUT

Ian Hyde-Lay is a teacher who lives and works in Victoria, BC. He has been heavily involved in sport his entire life, as a player, coach, referee and administrator.

All Posts

Man of Steel

Mid March. Late on a Thursday afternoon. Outside, it is damp and grey. Low, scudding clouds threaten rain. The wind swirls. However, for...

hydesollie

Mar 27, 20244 min read

The Ins and Outs of Love

“To play is good, to win is better, but to love the game is the best.” Early March, 2024. Langley, British Columbia. The city readies to...

hydesollie

Mar 15, 20245 min read

Flashback

The coffee shop hums with conversation. Cups and saucers clink invitingly, the latte machine whirrs. A delightful aroma wafts through the...

Ian Hyde-Lay

Nov 30, 20234 min read

Tough Mothers

It looms on the horizon. Just over two weeks to go. Basketball junkies get twitchy. “It” is the 2023 FIBA Men’s World Cup. 32 nations...

Aug 8, 20233 min read

The Shadow

Together, we watch. An old friend, wise beyond his years, does not say much. Yet, when he speaks, I listen. “Pressure is just the shadow...

Mar 28, 20234 min read

The Kingfisher

A restless, sleepless night. A coach tosses and turns, his mind swirling. Processing information. “What ifs,” intangibles, game planning,...

Mar 3, 20232 min read

A Cautionary Tale

2023. An early January evening in Salt Lake City. A professional basketball savant puts on a dazzling display, the capacity crowd’s...

Feb 7, 20233 min read

Mistaken Identity

Summer, 1977. Up early each morning, I am at work on the municipal watering crew by 6am. All done eight hours later. On my bike, home as...

Aug 27, 20223 min read

Icon

Our family sits around the kitchen table. Dinner reaches a conclusion. It is 1969, a lazy summer evening at the lake. The sun slides...

Aug 5, 20224 min read

The Companion

A one-year Covid induced absence, for better or worse, is now just a memory. Indeed, despite some bumps in the road, the 2021-22...

Mar 28, 20225 min read

Not the Lone Ranger

Victoria. March 1976. An impressionable 18-year old, I sit mesmerized, high up in the bleachers. Down below, on the floor of the McKinnon...

Oct 20, 20215 min read

Those Moments

March 15, 1980. Calgary, Alberta. But this is no regular Saturday. The clock strikes 9pm. Outside The Refinery, a popular nightclub, the...

Apr 26, 20213 min read

"A" Private Affair

March 1975. The sports section in British Columbia’s main daily newspaper highlights an upcoming basketball game. Stags, Knights meet in...

Apr 6, 20214 min read

Like The Gipper

For me, as a young boy growing up, he is the stuff of legends, his story one that stands the test of time. An American gridiron star, he...

Feb 23, 20214 min read

Vindication

For those who enjoy travel and love hoops, there are worse ways to spend a summer. It is late August 2013. I journey to Puerto Rico and...

Feb 9, 20216 min read

The White Moment

With his team’s NFL season teetering on the precipice, the Dallas coach has a novel idea. In advance of a recent game vs Minnesota, he...

Nov 30, 20204 min read

Hoops 'N Hearts

The phrase "spend a lot of time together" is music to my ears. Six simple words...

Oct 14, 20203 min read

The Hawk

Suddenly, he makes his way over. He looks fit and wiry, with sharp features. He introduces himself, then moves along to the next group.

Sep 18, 20202 min read

"Run!!"

And so I make my decision. “Sorry, this mess is on you” I reply. “RUN!!”

Sep 5, 20203 min read

Plus Ca Change

It’s all part and parcel of BC high school hoops. Which, over 75 years, at its very core has stayed the same.

Aug 26, 20202 min read