I had a long conversation with an Aussie girl (I'm telling you, Aussies are all over Whistler!) while my laundry was drying the other day. I learned that Australians call dinner "tea", so when they say that they're going to "take tea" they're not sipping flavored hot water with biscuits, but rather are consuming a substantial meal. When I pressed the girl about it she shrugged and said "If we can shorten something to three letters, we do". Interesting, eh?
Tonight I got a call on the helpdesk from a German man who wanted to borrow a vacuum overnight. I ended up having to turn the call over to Scott (who, fortunately, was sitting right there) because I wasn't sure if we had protocol on something like that. In the end Scott told him to come on down and pick it up. He arrived not long after and Scott handed the vacuum to the German. "This is, very cool one...is like, Ghost Busters?" he marveled, clearly in awe of the vacuum that straps onto one's back. "Ghost Busters!" he exclaimed, picking up the contraption with a big grin. I think we just made his night.
Currently on our wall we have a list of "Most interesting thing found on-site". My personal favorites are:
Found by Item Location
#3. Scott/Culley Dead, possibly sleeping, raccoon* OBS Compound
#11 Ina 1 cent :) very rich now! Middle section
#13 Culley Jono's personality Lot 9**
*There is a blue sticky note on the list that reads: "Do you mean to say you may have thrown out a SLEEPING raccoon??!??"
**Scott wrote in today "found in a big pile of bear shit".
It's fair to say that I have fun at work.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Go Lemonade
Obviously it was impossible to imagine before arriving in Whistler what this experience would make me feel. That being said, I am still surprised at one thing I don't feel, which is a strong national pride for being American. Let me explain.
Freshman year I went with Professor Drohan, my fellow Cleanevent Intern Colleen, and my Providence roommate Laura to a panel discussion at Brown University in which human rights and sport were discussed in relation to one another. One of the presenters spoke about the Olympics, and his position was that the focus of the Games on representing one's country was detrimental to the original spirit of the Games. He contended that the Games began as a laying down of arms between nations and a peaceful, neutral convocation of athletes to compete as individuals. At the time that I heard this, my mind was not open to this concept. Especially after Salt Lake City in 2002, the first Games I remember watching, I couldn't imagine removing patriotism from the fabric of the Olympics. To me, that was exactly what the Games were about.
Now that I'm here, however, I finally understand what he meant and I agree with his position. I am not ashamed of being American, and I root for our athletes and am proud of our ranking in the medals count - all to an extent. I cheer loudest for Canadian athletes. Not as a sheep being led blindly with the crowd, but out of appreciation for what these Games mean to Canada. Their excitement is contagious, and I recognize how much it means to their athletes to compete on home soil.
Not only am I happy for Canada, I have the deepest respect for every single athlete from every part of the globe. One of the main slogans here, that's found on posters and signs, in shop windows and on the buses, is "Go Canada Go!". The slogan of Visa, however, is "Go World" (in French it's Go Le Monde, which looks like Go Lemonade if you glance at it quickly). I love that. That's how I feel. I root for every single competitor who steps up, puts their health and safety on the line, and gives every molecule of their heart, energy, strength, and passion into challenging the limits of their sport. Nationality has nothing to do with that. Nothing.
I covered a shift for someone in the Camp Cleanevent office on Wednesday night and from there I watched the Men's Halfpipe snowboarding competition. An Australian girl in the office was badmouthing Shaun White and criticizing her friend on the phone for rooting for him since he was American. I was not offended by this because I, too, am American but because he deserves respect for the dominance he has earned in snowboarding. He puts in the work, the time, the effort. He develops new tricks, advancing his sport. He has his fair share of falls and crashes (Winter X-Games practice, for example). And he excels. He does what no one else can do. How can anyone fault him based on where he was born?
Everyone is going to have their favorite athletes. National pride will never be removed from the modern Olympic Games. The host country will always have full bragging rights. But please remember, as we enter the final week of Vancouver/Whistler's Games, that even a 15th place finisher from Latvia is capable of doing something you or I could never imagine achieving, and that deserves our utmost respect and admiration.
Freshman year I went with Professor Drohan, my fellow Cleanevent Intern Colleen, and my Providence roommate Laura to a panel discussion at Brown University in which human rights and sport were discussed in relation to one another. One of the presenters spoke about the Olympics, and his position was that the focus of the Games on representing one's country was detrimental to the original spirit of the Games. He contended that the Games began as a laying down of arms between nations and a peaceful, neutral convocation of athletes to compete as individuals. At the time that I heard this, my mind was not open to this concept. Especially after Salt Lake City in 2002, the first Games I remember watching, I couldn't imagine removing patriotism from the fabric of the Olympics. To me, that was exactly what the Games were about.
Now that I'm here, however, I finally understand what he meant and I agree with his position. I am not ashamed of being American, and I root for our athletes and am proud of our ranking in the medals count - all to an extent. I cheer loudest for Canadian athletes. Not as a sheep being led blindly with the crowd, but out of appreciation for what these Games mean to Canada. Their excitement is contagious, and I recognize how much it means to their athletes to compete on home soil.
Not only am I happy for Canada, I have the deepest respect for every single athlete from every part of the globe. One of the main slogans here, that's found on posters and signs, in shop windows and on the buses, is "Go Canada Go!". The slogan of Visa, however, is "Go World" (in French it's Go Le Monde, which looks like Go Lemonade if you glance at it quickly). I love that. That's how I feel. I root for every single competitor who steps up, puts their health and safety on the line, and gives every molecule of their heart, energy, strength, and passion into challenging the limits of their sport. Nationality has nothing to do with that. Nothing.
I covered a shift for someone in the Camp Cleanevent office on Wednesday night and from there I watched the Men's Halfpipe snowboarding competition. An Australian girl in the office was badmouthing Shaun White and criticizing her friend on the phone for rooting for him since he was American. I was not offended by this because I, too, am American but because he deserves respect for the dominance he has earned in snowboarding. He puts in the work, the time, the effort. He develops new tricks, advancing his sport. He has his fair share of falls and crashes (Winter X-Games practice, for example). And he excels. He does what no one else can do. How can anyone fault him based on where he was born?
Everyone is going to have their favorite athletes. National pride will never be removed from the modern Olympic Games. The host country will always have full bragging rights. But please remember, as we enter the final week of Vancouver/Whistler's Games, that even a 15th place finisher from Latvia is capable of doing something you or I could never imagine achieving, and that deserves our utmost respect and admiration.
The bags from the Official Olympic Store. Each has an English and a French side.
Go Lemonade!
Fires, Time, and Athletes
When we got home the other night, someone told us that one of the bathrooms had caught fire. I saw a maintenance guy in the closet by the small women's washroom and I asked him about it. He explained that it was just a small fire in the closet of the large women's washroom. They think the broom got too close to the water heater. A couple of girls who went to the bathroom at about 1:30AM found it burning, and it's a good thing they did because it would have spread to the whole trailor! Here's a photo of the scorched patch of floor.
On Monday evening the girls and I went to see the movie Valentine's Day in a local cinema. When we emerged from the theater and into the Whistler evening, Charlotte Sarah asked if anyone else had forgotten where they were for a minute. "Yes!!!" I agreed, because it was so true. Being here is truly like being in another world. Days on the calendar don't have the same significance as they do back home - there are no Monday Relay For Life meetings, no Tuesday CHS meetings, no Grey's Anatomy on Thursdays. It's as if time and space are frozen here. I'm not looking ahead more than a day at a time because each day holds enough excitement to capture my attention. I'm trying to remind myself every moment that this is an extraordinary experience, and not to let it feel commonplace just because I've nestled into some semblance of a routine here. Each day is to be savored.
This morning we toured Creekside, host of the alpine skiing events. We weren't able to see too much of the venue since we could only go up as far as the base of run, but competition was going on during the tour. We got up to the finish line just as Lindsey Vonn finished her downhill run of the Super Combined event (unfortunately she fell during the Slalom portion and didn't medal). Our 2nd Part Passes didn't get us into the main spectator area because we weren't in uniform, so I couldn't get close enough to get any good pictures of the skiers crossing the finish line, but I could see fairly well. Here are some photos:
After that delicious lunch we had some time to kill before our class and didn't want to go back to camp just yet, so we called Sydney and she brought us 2nd Part Passes to the Athlete's Village (I still think it's so cool that we can do stuff like that!). Our mission: accumulate pins! I hadn't been asking people for pins because I didn't have any from Dalton or Mass or USA and I thought the idea behind it was an exchange, but apparently it's acceptable just to ask people for pins. Some people have had good luck from the police officers or other employees at various places. We, however, wanted athletes.
Blaire is determined to get a USA pin, so we stood in WVL near where the athletes go to the dining tent, since it was around lunch time. We spotted some guys in USA jackets right away, and stood awkwardly near them so that we could pounce as soon as they finished their conversation. Soon enough two of them walked toward us a few moments later. "Hi! Where in the US are you from?" Blaire asked. "Actually, we're foreign" a heavily-accented man said. "Oh, well do you happen to have any pins?" she continued. "No, but that guy usually does. You should chase him down," he told us. Glad to have permission to stalk someone, we hurried off after the man our foreign friend had been chatting with. After a few "excuse me!"s he turned around, as did the young guy he was with. We opened again by asking where in the US he was from (Lake Placid, NY) and then I asked the kid he was with "what's your sport?" (which feels a lot like asking "what's your sign?"). He was a luger! We talked to him for a little bit, and he handed Blaire one USA Luge pin - which I want! She said I could have it if she got another USA pin. Let's pray that she does! I had forgotten to look at his accreditation to get his name, but I checked on the Vancouver 2010 website and found out his name is Chris Mazdzer. I'm going to keep my eye out for him at the Sliding Center, because he said he was going to be around for the rest of the Games!
It still smelt like burning.
On Monday evening the girls and I went to see the movie Valentine's Day in a local cinema. When we emerged from the theater and into the Whistler evening, Charlotte Sarah asked if anyone else had forgotten where they were for a minute. "Yes!!!" I agreed, because it was so true. Being here is truly like being in another world. Days on the calendar don't have the same significance as they do back home - there are no Monday Relay For Life meetings, no Tuesday CHS meetings, no Grey's Anatomy on Thursdays. It's as if time and space are frozen here. I'm not looking ahead more than a day at a time because each day holds enough excitement to capture my attention. I'm trying to remind myself every moment that this is an extraordinary experience, and not to let it feel commonplace just because I've nestled into some semblance of a routine here. Each day is to be savored.
This morning we toured Creekside, host of the alpine skiing events. We weren't able to see too much of the venue since we could only go up as far as the base of run, but competition was going on during the tour. We got up to the finish line just as Lindsey Vonn finished her downhill run of the Super Combined event (unfortunately she fell during the Slalom portion and didn't medal). Our 2nd Part Passes didn't get us into the main spectator area because we weren't in uniform, so I couldn't get close enough to get any good pictures of the skiers crossing the finish line, but I could see fairly well. Here are some photos:
We watched from up where those people are at the bottom of the photo
There was a great sushi place just outside Creekside - Blaire and I were so happy!
Blaire is determined to get a USA pin, so we stood in WVL near where the athletes go to the dining tent, since it was around lunch time. We spotted some guys in USA jackets right away, and stood awkwardly near them so that we could pounce as soon as they finished their conversation. Soon enough two of them walked toward us a few moments later. "Hi! Where in the US are you from?" Blaire asked. "Actually, we're foreign" a heavily-accented man said. "Oh, well do you happen to have any pins?" she continued. "No, but that guy usually does. You should chase him down," he told us. Glad to have permission to stalk someone, we hurried off after the man our foreign friend had been chatting with. After a few "excuse me!"s he turned around, as did the young guy he was with. We opened again by asking where in the US he was from (Lake Placid, NY) and then I asked the kid he was with "what's your sport?" (which feels a lot like asking "what's your sign?"). He was a luger! We talked to him for a little bit, and he handed Blaire one USA Luge pin - which I want! She said I could have it if she got another USA pin. Let's pray that she does! I had forgotten to look at his accreditation to get his name, but I checked on the Vancouver 2010 website and found out his name is Chris Mazdzer. I'm going to keep my eye out for him at the Sliding Center, because he said he was going to be around for the rest of the Games!
Chris Mazdzer's official photo for the Games
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
You're Such a Luger
While I was waiting for the accredited shuttle to go up the hill this afternoon, I noticed a bunch of Sochi guys standing around by the security tent. I asked the driver if he knew what they were doing here, and he said "they're trying to decide if they want Thai or Indian food". I didn't quite know what to make of his joke, and then he clarified "I don't know". "Do you know if they're coming or going?" I pressed him, just because I was curious and wanted to know whatever information he could tell me. "They're leaving - because Whistler doesn't have any Thai food". Not only was this really not very funny, I had a Thai Chicken Wrap for lunch in the Workforce Break Tent today.
Just before the shuttle pulled away, a VANOC "smurf" (they have all-blue uniforms and there are thousands of them, so they've been nicknamed "smurfs") and two Ukranian athletes climbed aboard. "Athletes?!" the bus driver exclaimed. "I get to drive athletes?!" he carried on, fist pounding the two men as they got on. Not getting much reaction from us, he said "You can tell they're bobsled guys because they sat right behind each other". "No, they're lugers," the smurf said, "they compete tomorrow" (which means they're doubles lugers - a team of two people per sled). "Hey, my sister used to always tell me that I was a luger too!" the bus driver cracked, which is so old and obvious that it just wasn't funny. The Ukranians didn't laugh. I got off at the second stop, and wished them luck before I scooted out of there.
In other important news, Jono labled all the nipple grabbers (or "nipple crushers" as he calls them) in Sharpie with nicknames for each worker. Ina's says "The Germinator" because she's German, Steph's is "De Groot The Mad Root" because her last name is De Groot. Culley's says "Ivan Milat", who Jono explained was a crazed serial killer in Australia (Jono and Culley are both Aussies), and Jono's says "Optimus Prime". After lunch, however, Ina's and Steph's were missing and in looking for them I found Libor's which is named "Ice Cold Baby". On another side "Be Aware I Bite" is written, and on yet another side it says "Steal me and I'll crush your nipple". Needless to say, I didn't let either of the girls take that to replace their missing ones.
While I was writing this, another strange thing happened. Erin, who works for VANOC in SCW (snow, cleaning, waste) came into my office and asked if she could take off her longjohns. "I can't do it in my office or the door would come flying open" she explained. Awkward! Fortunately she did it quickly and I had my blog to distract me!
Just before the shuttle pulled away, a VANOC "smurf" (they have all-blue uniforms and there are thousands of them, so they've been nicknamed "smurfs") and two Ukranian athletes climbed aboard. "Athletes?!" the bus driver exclaimed. "I get to drive athletes?!" he carried on, fist pounding the two men as they got on. Not getting much reaction from us, he said "You can tell they're bobsled guys because they sat right behind each other". "No, they're lugers," the smurf said, "they compete tomorrow" (which means they're doubles lugers - a team of two people per sled). "Hey, my sister used to always tell me that I was a luger too!" the bus driver cracked, which is so old and obvious that it just wasn't funny. The Ukranians didn't laugh. I got off at the second stop, and wished them luck before I scooted out of there.
In other important news, Jono labled all the nipple grabbers (or "nipple crushers" as he calls them) in Sharpie with nicknames for each worker. Ina's says "The Germinator" because she's German, Steph's is "De Groot The Mad Root" because her last name is De Groot. Culley's says "Ivan Milat", who Jono explained was a crazed serial killer in Australia (Jono and Culley are both Aussies), and Jono's says "Optimus Prime". After lunch, however, Ina's and Steph's were missing and in looking for them I found Libor's which is named "Ice Cold Baby". On another side "Be Aware I Bite" is written, and on yet another side it says "Steal me and I'll crush your nipple". Needless to say, I didn't let either of the girls take that to replace their missing ones.
While I was writing this, another strange thing happened. Erin, who works for VANOC in SCW (snow, cleaning, waste) came into my office and asked if she could take off her longjohns. "I can't do it in my office or the door would come flying open" she explained. Awkward! Fortunately she did it quickly and I had my blog to distract me!
Fun Facts About the WSC
Sorry folks, no creative title for this one. It's pretty slow in the office today, despite the inch or two of wet snow that fell from early this morning until about 9:45AM. While Scott was using the computer I poked around the office a bit (after my coffee break, during which I watched some curling. The Norwegians have awesome diamond-checkered pants!) and pulled out the binder of the Opertations Manual for the Sliding Center. To go along with my unoriginal title, I will now quote the Overview information about the WSC; I don't have the motivation to paraphrase it, especially since it's mostly quick bullets anyway. Anything I add will be in [brackets].
Introduction:
The Whistler Sliding Center will be operated under the direction of the Whistler Legacies Society, supported by an endowment trust that was established by the federal and provincial governments as part of their 2010 Winter Games venues investment. The Whistler Sliding Center will showcase sliding sports by hosting international competitions and developing sliding sports opportunities in the local communities. Its location, near several of the resort's world-class hotels, will attract many tourists, providing a sustainable revenue stream towards the center's long-term opperations.
VANOC Investment
The Whistler Sliding Center was built at a cost of $104.6 million, funded jointly by the governments of Canada and British Columbia
Sustainable Attributes
The venue features a new 1,450-meter competition-length concrete sliding track, refridgeration facilities, support buildings and access road. The Whistler Sliding Center will host Sport Events for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton. Over the 13 days of sliding competition, athletes will compete for a total of 8 Olympic medals [Men's/Women's Single Luge, Men's Double Luge, Men's/Women's Skeleton, Men's 2-Man Bobsleigh, Men's/Women's 4-Person Bobsleigh].
I think really think the Sliding Center is pretty cool, and I when I visit other venues I'll look for their manual and try to pull out some fun facts for those venues too!
Introduction:
- The Whistler Sliding Center is one of only 16 international competition sliding tracks in the world
- It has the highest vertical drop from top to low point of any track in the world - 152 meters
- Track G-force is expected to reach 5.02Gs (men's luge) [This will actually be lower since Men's Start was moved down to Women's Start, and the women will start from Novice/Junior Start]
- A thin, two to five centimeter ice surface is produced and maintained by hand
- Construction began in June 2005, with the track being operationally complete in winter 2007-2008. The formal public opening took place in fall 2008
- Part of the official competition program since the first Olympic Winter games in Chamonix in 1924
- Women's bobsleigh was introduced at the Salt Lake City 2002 Olypmic Winter Games
- The five-man bobsleigh was contested for the first and last time at the St. Moritz 1928 Olympic Winter Games
- Following a sprint start, the bobsled travels down the track on four higly polished steel runners. Sleds are equipped with breaks
- Luge made its Olympic debut in 1964 in Innsbruck
- Luge athletes start in a seated position, gripping start handles to propel themselves down a steep start ramp. They use gloves with small spikes on the fingertips to push themselves along the ice before laying feet first, on their backs
- Luge athletes steer with their legs and shoulders by applying pressure to the sled runners
- Skeleton first appeared at the 1928 Olympic Winter Games and then again in 1948, both times in St. Moritz. The sport returned to the Olympic Winter Game program in 2002 in Salt Lake City.
- Skeleton athletes [lay on their stomaches, going head first, and] steer with their shoulders and knees by applying pressure to the sled.
- There are no brakes on a skeleton sled
The Whistler Sliding Center will be operated under the direction of the Whistler Legacies Society, supported by an endowment trust that was established by the federal and provincial governments as part of their 2010 Winter Games venues investment. The Whistler Sliding Center will showcase sliding sports by hosting international competitions and developing sliding sports opportunities in the local communities. Its location, near several of the resort's world-class hotels, will attract many tourists, providing a sustainable revenue stream towards the center's long-term opperations.
VANOC Investment
The Whistler Sliding Center was built at a cost of $104.6 million, funded jointly by the governments of Canada and British Columbia
Sustainable Attributes
- Smart site selection - adjacent to previously developed areas within a major ski area (such as ski trails, parking lots)
- Site designed to minimize required vegetation clearing and to reduce the facility footprint (such as soft edging and tree islands)
- Long-term operations and revenue generation opportunities through athlete training facility and visitor use
- First construction contract (2005) awarded to local Whistler business
- Energy efficiency initiatives to minimize refridgeration plant energy include
- Ammonia refridgeration system. Ammonia is one of the most energy-efficient refridgerants producing no chloroflourocarbons (which contribute to ozone-layer depletion and global climate change)
- Track shading and weather protection system
- Tree retention to cast shade
- Track painted white to minimize heat absorbtion
- Capture and reuse of waste heat from refidgeration plant
The venue features a new 1,450-meter competition-length concrete sliding track, refridgeration facilities, support buildings and access road. The Whistler Sliding Center will host Sport Events for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton. Over the 13 days of sliding competition, athletes will compete for a total of 8 Olympic medals [Men's/Women's Single Luge, Men's Double Luge, Men's/Women's Skeleton, Men's 2-Man Bobsleigh, Men's/Women's 4-Person Bobsleigh].
I think really think the Sliding Center is pretty cool, and I when I visit other venues I'll look for their manual and try to pull out some fun facts for those venues too!
Monday, February 15, 2010
1st Canadian Gold!
I know people think of Canadians are quiet and laid-back, and they're right. But let me tell you, when one of their countrymen is competing, especially on home soil, they exhibit as much passion and pride as New Orleans fans at the Super Bowl.
Tonight at Cypress Mountain Alexandre Bilodeau took the gold in Men's Mogul Freestyle Skiing. Holly and I were eating dinner in the Workforce Break Tent at the Sliding Center during the final dozen runs, and I couldn't help but grin as the entire tent erupted into cheers as each Canadian took his run. I cheered quietly for Bryon Wilson, the American who won the bronze, and received a few glances from those around me. When the Canadians landed impressive jumps and flew across the finish line, however, it was as if there were no other competitors in the running. I know I've said this before, but I can't stress enough that there's some unwritten rule that at the Olympics everyone is free to express their joy, share their excitement, and relish in the glorious moments that they are a part of simply by being present. It truly is a beautiful and inspiring thing.
Also today were the final two runs of the Men's Luge. In between runs 3 and 4, I gave a tour of the lower portions of the track to Maxim, a Russian representative of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics who is staying with Cleanevent to learn more about snow, cleaning, and waste at an event of these proportions. As we trekked around through the pouring rain, I explained everything I knew about the Sliding Center and Cleanevent's role in keeping it clean and clear for both the athletes and spectators. One of the things I asked him about was if he had connections with other parts of the Games, besides Cleanevent, and he made a good point that if he talked to VANOC they would only tell him the positive things, whereas we are much more likely to tell the truth as we see it.
One of the other things I was interested to learn from Maxim is that Russia doesn't have the luge specialists that VANOC currently has to successfully maintain the ice of the track. The track staff work hard to make sure the conditions are just right, whether it be scraping off ice or watering the track down. It looks like finding that kind of experts may be a challenge for Sochi, but their track isn't even built yet and they have four years to find a solution.
Our period of miserable rain soon ended, and the sun shone for the final runs of the luge. I was able to head up the hill a bit to watch the final five runs on the big screen from behind the track. I stood on the access road by the Track Lodge surrounded by five men, four of whom had countries names displayed proudly on their jackets - the Swiss and Norwegian chatted amicably, the Latvian stood quietly to my left, and the Kiwi showed up just in time to see the final run. While no one cheered during the runs of the final athletes - the world's best lugers (the final five runs each placed in the top five) - I knew that each one of us appreciated the feat we had just witnessed.
During the course of writing this blog post, I chatted extensively with the kid next to me at the Blenz Cafe window counter, overlooking the Whistler Medals Plaza. I saw some flags raised and some athletes receive their medals on the big screen, culminating in a fireworks display. There really is never a dull moment here, as long as I keep my eyes and ears open.
Tonight at Cypress Mountain Alexandre Bilodeau took the gold in Men's Mogul Freestyle Skiing. Holly and I were eating dinner in the Workforce Break Tent at the Sliding Center during the final dozen runs, and I couldn't help but grin as the entire tent erupted into cheers as each Canadian took his run. I cheered quietly for Bryon Wilson, the American who won the bronze, and received a few glances from those around me. When the Canadians landed impressive jumps and flew across the finish line, however, it was as if there were no other competitors in the running. I know I've said this before, but I can't stress enough that there's some unwritten rule that at the Olympics everyone is free to express their joy, share their excitement, and relish in the glorious moments that they are a part of simply by being present. It truly is a beautiful and inspiring thing.
Also today were the final two runs of the Men's Luge. In between runs 3 and 4, I gave a tour of the lower portions of the track to Maxim, a Russian representative of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics who is staying with Cleanevent to learn more about snow, cleaning, and waste at an event of these proportions. As we trekked around through the pouring rain, I explained everything I knew about the Sliding Center and Cleanevent's role in keeping it clean and clear for both the athletes and spectators. One of the things I asked him about was if he had connections with other parts of the Games, besides Cleanevent, and he made a good point that if he talked to VANOC they would only tell him the positive things, whereas we are much more likely to tell the truth as we see it.
One of the other things I was interested to learn from Maxim is that Russia doesn't have the luge specialists that VANOC currently has to successfully maintain the ice of the track. The track staff work hard to make sure the conditions are just right, whether it be scraping off ice or watering the track down. It looks like finding that kind of experts may be a challenge for Sochi, but their track isn't even built yet and they have four years to find a solution.
Our period of miserable rain soon ended, and the sun shone for the final runs of the luge. I was able to head up the hill a bit to watch the final five runs on the big screen from behind the track. I stood on the access road by the Track Lodge surrounded by five men, four of whom had countries names displayed proudly on their jackets - the Swiss and Norwegian chatted amicably, the Latvian stood quietly to my left, and the Kiwi showed up just in time to see the final run. While no one cheered during the runs of the final athletes - the world's best lugers (the final five runs each placed in the top five) - I knew that each one of us appreciated the feat we had just witnessed.
During the course of writing this blog post, I chatted extensively with the kid next to me at the Blenz Cafe window counter, overlooking the Whistler Medals Plaza. I saw some flags raised and some athletes receive their medals on the big screen, culminating in a fireworks display. There really is never a dull moment here, as long as I keep my eyes and ears open.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Let The Games Begin
Competition began at the Sliding Center today!
I got to watch some of the practice session this morning, during which I took these photos from inside Turn 16.
The excitement within Turn 16 was almost tangible tonight every time a Canadian luger got set to make his run. Cowbells clanged constantly, the cheering grew deafening, and red mittens warmed most hands. It was an exciting atmosphere to be engulfed in, and I was right in the action at the bend of Turn 16.
I got to watch some of the practice session this morning, during which I took these photos from inside Turn 16.
This last one I did crop in close. It is currently my desktop background
I was also able to watch some of the actual competition after I got off work. I saw some of the men's second run of the night. They will have two more runs tomorrow.
Don't Wiggle!
It has become quickly apparent here in Whistler that one of the best times to strike up conversation with anyone is during transportation. For some reason, riding the same bus is a sufficient excuse to approach strangers and ask them where they're from and what they're doing here. Perhaps it's because, often times, we are sharing a very tight space other passengers and the reasoning is that if your bodies are going to be pressed against each other for 5-10 minutes, small talk is in order to quell the awkwardness. Or maybe it comes from the "there's nothing else to do on this bus ride" mentality, since chatting is a good way to pass an otherwise boring amount of time. For me, it comes from an uncontainable excitement and insatiable curiosity about everything - and everyone - around me.
Last night we watched the Opening Ceremonies in the Village Square (story on that later) and then went to the Athlete's Village to wait for the Cleanevent shuttle back to camp at 10:15. In addition to myself and three friends, four Denver interns were also escaping the rain under the tent well before 10pm. We knew that the Village workforce had a shift getting off at 10pm, so there was quite a frenzy when the van arrived. After all the interns and some of the workforce had climbed aboard, we waited to fill the shuttle.
Fill it we did.
Although there was another shuttle coming everyone was anxious to get back to camp, so one of the Denver interns sat on the floor between the driver and shotgun seat, and Holly climbed across my and Sydney's lap to make more room, encouraging others to hurry up and climb in so we could leave. An Aussie guy sat next to me and ended up with an Asian kid half on his lap. All in all, we counted 21 people crammed into the 14 passenger van. (Rumor has it, they have fit 22 before).
One of things that had been called out when we were inviting more and more people onto the shuttle was "make some new friends!" so we got to know the guy next to us a little bit. The first thing I learned about him was that he really had to pee. He learned that I have a strong aversion to elbows, since I had to ask him to remove his from jabbing into my arm. See what I mean? Something about being in close quarters has the ability to eliminate any hint of shyness from people.
Partway through the ride, I slightly moved the fingers on my left hand, which were holding onto a "Go Canada Go!" banner I received while watching the Opening Ceremonies. My left arm and hand, however, were sandwiched between Sydney and Holly, who both wailed at my unexpected movement. "Don't wiggle your fingers!" they told me. We all had a good laugh about that, and I tried to suck it up and bear it but towards the end I requested to move them, reasoning that this time they would know it was coming. "Don't wiggle!" they insisted, which made the Aussie continue to laugh and long for the loo.
Cleanevent shuttles aren't the only rides in which I've talked to strangers. Earlier that night, while I was reading aloud everyone's horoscope from a free weekly magazine I picked up, an athlete on the bus turned to me suddenly as said "This bus goes to the Athlete's Village, right?" I'm not sure why he waited until halfway through the ride to ask me, but I assured him it was. A few minutes later he asked if it was the last stop, and Sydney said that was, and that when we get off, he should get off - which earned her a wink from him. If it hadn't been so close to the end of the ride, I'm quite certain the conversation would have continued.
This morning on my way in on an exceedingly crowded #2 bus, the man sitting next to me seemed concerned when the bus turned off the highway and into the Highlands, and he mumbled something to a girl who I assume was his daughter. "Yeah," I said, "it goes through the residential area which takes a while". I could be wrong, but on a "normal" city bus, the conversation would have ended there. At the Olympics, however, it lead to me finding out that he's from Seattle and has tickets to the luge event at my venue, and me telling him that I'm a student intern with Cleanevent working at the Sliding Center. There are almost as many examples like this as bus rides I've taken.
I absolutely love the human element of the Games - that desire to connect with others, becoming more aware of the people around us than in our normal daily lives. Just as every athlete has a story of how they got to the pinnacle of their sport, the spectators and tourists seem to recognize that each person walking through town or riding on the bus also has a story that brought them here to Whistler.
I'm looking forward to collecting more stories.
Last night we watched the Opening Ceremonies in the Village Square (story on that later) and then went to the Athlete's Village to wait for the Cleanevent shuttle back to camp at 10:15. In addition to myself and three friends, four Denver interns were also escaping the rain under the tent well before 10pm. We knew that the Village workforce had a shift getting off at 10pm, so there was quite a frenzy when the van arrived. After all the interns and some of the workforce had climbed aboard, we waited to fill the shuttle.
Fill it we did.
Although there was another shuttle coming everyone was anxious to get back to camp, so one of the Denver interns sat on the floor between the driver and shotgun seat, and Holly climbed across my and Sydney's lap to make more room, encouraging others to hurry up and climb in so we could leave. An Aussie guy sat next to me and ended up with an Asian kid half on his lap. All in all, we counted 21 people crammed into the 14 passenger van. (Rumor has it, they have fit 22 before).
One of things that had been called out when we were inviting more and more people onto the shuttle was "make some new friends!" so we got to know the guy next to us a little bit. The first thing I learned about him was that he really had to pee. He learned that I have a strong aversion to elbows, since I had to ask him to remove his from jabbing into my arm. See what I mean? Something about being in close quarters has the ability to eliminate any hint of shyness from people.
Partway through the ride, I slightly moved the fingers on my left hand, which were holding onto a "Go Canada Go!" banner I received while watching the Opening Ceremonies. My left arm and hand, however, were sandwiched between Sydney and Holly, who both wailed at my unexpected movement. "Don't wiggle your fingers!" they told me. We all had a good laugh about that, and I tried to suck it up and bear it but towards the end I requested to move them, reasoning that this time they would know it was coming. "Don't wiggle!" they insisted, which made the Aussie continue to laugh and long for the loo.
Cleanevent shuttles aren't the only rides in which I've talked to strangers. Earlier that night, while I was reading aloud everyone's horoscope from a free weekly magazine I picked up, an athlete on the bus turned to me suddenly as said "This bus goes to the Athlete's Village, right?" I'm not sure why he waited until halfway through the ride to ask me, but I assured him it was. A few minutes later he asked if it was the last stop, and Sydney said that was, and that when we get off, he should get off - which earned her a wink from him. If it hadn't been so close to the end of the ride, I'm quite certain the conversation would have continued.
This morning on my way in on an exceedingly crowded #2 bus, the man sitting next to me seemed concerned when the bus turned off the highway and into the Highlands, and he mumbled something to a girl who I assume was his daughter. "Yeah," I said, "it goes through the residential area which takes a while". I could be wrong, but on a "normal" city bus, the conversation would have ended there. At the Olympics, however, it lead to me finding out that he's from Seattle and has tickets to the luge event at my venue, and me telling him that I'm a student intern with Cleanevent working at the Sliding Center. There are almost as many examples like this as bus rides I've taken.
I absolutely love the human element of the Games - that desire to connect with others, becoming more aware of the people around us than in our normal daily lives. Just as every athlete has a story of how they got to the pinnacle of their sport, the spectators and tourists seem to recognize that each person walking through town or riding on the bus also has a story that brought them here to Whistler.
I'm looking forward to collecting more stories.
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