The sliding center is a really cool venue, stashed away between Whislter and Blackcomb. It was my first time attending an Olympic event off-duty, so it was really cool to be able to switch off and unwind, and enjoy the crowd, the competition, and the refreshments.
The track itself is about 1500m long, and winds its way up the side of the hill. There is a walking path the length of the track, with grandstands at the start and finish areas, and a huge open area in the middle of Thunderbird Turn (the arcing 180 degree uphill turn just before the end). Tickets are general admission, and you can walk the length of the track, and watch from anywhere you like. In places, you can get close enough to touch the track, and when you're that close, a bobsleigh moving at 150 km/h is but a blur. I tried to take a picture from close distance, but after each sleigh blurred past, my camera only had a picture of an empty track. After 4 consecutive pictures of the ice, Weasel stepped up and managed to snap a shot for me.
Colorado-Craig had a big foam USA cowboy hat, foam #1 finger, and his American flag, and managed to get on TV. His friends from back home were calling him for the remainder of the evening. I just spent the whole evening with a huge shit-eating grin, watching the sleighs rocket past. I am tempted to check out the 4 man if I have the time.
I was right there when Canada 1 rocketed past upside down, and have a video of it that I'm not allowed to post on the internet.
Today was the Men's Super Combined, which is a test of the best all-round skier. The problem with the event, is that you only get one slalom run, which means that if you snag, or miss a gate, you're done. This is what happened to Lindsey Vonn the other day, and what happened to Aksel Svindal (who's arguably a better skier than Bode Miller) today. The good news is, that despite placing 26th, he had the fourth fastest slalom run of the day, and is a medal contender for the men's slalom coming up.
Today was Calgary-Rhianon's last shift (of chugging video fame), and she requested that our medical team have a dance-off in her honour. We had a hoot, but at the end of the day, we lost a good teammate back to the 9-5 lifestyle.
Tomorrow, most of the team has the day off, but I'm stuck at the venue because labour laws require first-aiders present while course workers are doing their thing. I'll probably spend the day relaxing in the clinic, watching the games on our flatscreen. Tough life.
I'm faced with a huge dilema in the upcoming days, namely what to do with the morning of the 25th. I'm working the medal ceremony that evening, but during the day, I'm either going to check out the Nordic Combined, to see some ski jumping that I've never seen before, or rip up some powder at Whistler, as this is my last opportunity to ski Whistler until next year. I'm sure the snowclouds will roll in before then and give me my answer.
Postcards have been sent.
Spec3 out.
No comments:
Post a Comment