Good afternoon, beach volleyball fans,
I thought I loved fall. I really did. But nobody, and I mean nobody, loves the fall as much as USA Volleyball does. In the fall of 2022, Andy Benesh and Miles Partain won the first major gold in what felt like forever when they crashed the Dubai Challenge out of the qualifier. Last week, Evan Cory made his statement when he and Cody Caldwell did the same in China. Now, in India, Hailey Harward and Kylie DeBerg took silver and Molly Shaw and Toni Rodriguez took bronze, their second consecutive medal — they won silver in China — out of the qualifier. Maddie Anderson and Brook Bauer also took a career-high fifth.
Yes, yes, we know: The fields are light. But they’re light for everyone. And the U.S. takes more advantage of that than any other nation, save perhaps Sweden, whose next round of confoundingly talented teenagers took gold in India.
Fun times in the world of volleyball.
And fun times, as always, on the podcast, with Mpu Dinani in studio.
The week in SANDCAST Studios
This week’s podcast featured Mpu Dinani, the most beloved photographer on the AVP Tour. He is an absolute gem of a human, and a hell of a photographer, and this episode is one of my favorites, even though, since he’s not a player, it won’t get huge numbers. You all will enjoy this one, I promise:
Bukovec and Bansley Mic’d up!
As part of our growing collaboration with Beach Volleyball World, we have a ton of fun things coming down the pipe. Fantasy beach volleyball? Happened last week at the Rio Elite16. International podcasts? More of them coming. Mic’d up content? You know it!
We put some mics on Sophie Bukovec and Heather Bansley during the Joao Pessoa Elite16, and Sophie, as ever, delivers. Next Monday: Terese Cannon and Megan Kraft!
Watch Sophie and Heather mic’d up!
FUN NEWS! SANDCAST and Volleyball TV are partnering up. By the end of the year, the Road to Paris will feature highlights and clips from Volleyball TV to complement the coverage. Better yet: You can get 20 percent off your VBTV subscription if you use the code SANDCAST20.
News Around the Beach
- Hello More Bello! Two weeks after Javier and Joquin Bello shocked the world with a gold medal at the Rio Elite16, they received a wild card into next week’s Beach Pro Tour Finals in Doha. We’re scheduling a podcast with the boys, worry not.
- Taylor Sander goes back to indoor. He announced this week on social media that he’s signed with a pro indoor team, with the terms rumored to be between January and April and a sum of money that would be impossible to turn down — and he didn’t. After the season, he’s expected to play beach. Dude’s livin’.
- Final Challenge of the season this weekend in Nuvali. The neverending season will alas come to a regular season close in Nuvali this weekend for a Challenge. Will the USA’s fall dominance continue? We shall see. Men’s entry list is here. Women’s is here.
- SANDCAST memberships are live. We’ve opened up memberships for anyone who wants to watch full podcast episodes on YouTube a day or two early.
- Coming up on Wednesday we have Kyle Friend, the newest coach, commentator, podcaster of the beach volleyball world. Awesome one with one of my favorite people in the world.
Much Love to the sponsors
We’re officially partnered with Better at Beach! Don’t know how this took so long, seeing the massive overlap between our audiences. So if you want to get Better at Beach, use our code SANDCAST for 10 percent off all of their products, from online classes to in-person camps and more.
We’ve been with Wilson Volleyball since day one, and we love the products they make — the best ball on the market, hands down, no questions asked. With season coming up, if you’re looking to get some new equipment, use our discount code: SANDCAST63 for 20 PERCENT OFF.
Introducing Balltime, the AI platform making breaking down film and statistics EASY (FINALLY!). Use our link for a discount and give it a try!
Need to get hydrated? Waiakea has all kinds of fantastic deals online, and good news for you (and us), you can get 20 PERCENT OFF using our discount code, Sandcast, at checkout. Aloha, y’all.
SANDCAST is fueled by a lovely mix of three main ingredients: We LOVE to do it, people enjoy listening to it, and sponsors fund our ability to do so. We only partner with sponsors we love, and we are so fired up to have Athletic Greens join the show! And they’re hooking up our listeners with a full year of Vitamin D for FREE, as well as five totally FREE travel packs!
Appreciate y’all for listening, reading, and loving the beach like we do.
Have a great week!
SHOOTS!
Tri and Travis (and Savvy)
