The Winter Olympics

[swerb]

Off to an ominous start. Anyone see that luger that flew out of the chute and died this morning? Crazy ...

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Off to an ominous start. Anyone see that luger that flew out of the chute and died this morning? Crazy ...

Yeah they showed the video on the news, his helmet exploded.

[skatingtripods]

Off to an ominous start. Anyone see that luger that flew out of the chute and died this morning? Crazy ...

Seen some really disturbing images. Haven't shaken one of them from my mind yet.

Apparently, the Whistler Sliding Centre track is the fastest, and most dangerous, in the world. I read somewhere where the top US luger said "When I first went on that track, I thought to myself, 'Someone's going to kill themselves'". It happened.

[swerb]

Vancouver is a beautiful city ...

[jack_tors]

Off to an ominous start. Anyone see that luger that flew out of the chute and died this morning? Crazy ...

Seen some really disturbing images. Haven't shaken one of them from my mind yet.

Apparently, the Whistler Sliding Centre track is the fastest, and most dangerous, in the world. I read somewhere where the top US luger said "When I first went on that track, I thought to myself, 'Someone's going to kill themselves'". It happened.

No kidding, the images on the Huffington Post are just horrible. That guy never had a chance. Hopefully the event improves... and they get snow.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

That track is just too fast, it's not worth a life.

[swerb]

Holy Lindsey Vonn Batman

[Bayou Tribe]

Obviously none of the traditional winter olympic sports are popular down here, so I have probably have less than 2 hours worth of winter games watching experience in my life. But all of the talk between you guys here have me wanting to check it out now, so I'm going to give it a shot this year.

One thing is for sure, it's going to be hard to top the pageantry of Beijing, especially with the opening ceremonies.

Vancouver is a beautiful city ...

Rack that, the shots from Whistler weren't too shabby either.

[motherscratcher]

Holy Lindsey Vonn Batman

I want to go to there.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Vancouver is a beautiful city ...

I spent a week there in 2005 and it's amazing. A world class city. Just becareful if you go to Vancouver Island, it has the largest number of Moutain Lion attacks in North America.

[motherscratcher]

Am I allowed to say that the new "We Are The World" (while a very worthy cause) sucks balls? Because if it's considered bad form I'll just keep it to myself.

[jordan kramer]

the original "we are the world" is a lock for top 10 lamest things in the history of history. i bet this one will squeak into the top 5

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Am I allowed to say that the new "We Are The World" (while a very worthy cause) sucks balls? Because if it's considered bad form I'll just keep it to myself.

What the hell are you talking about?

[motherscratcher]

Am I allowed to say that the new "We Are The World" (while a very worthy cause) sucks balls? Because if it's considered bad form I'll just keep it to myself.

What the hell are you talking about?

They just showed a video of a redone "We Are The World" to raise money for Haiti. I bet you can get it on iTunes. Jennifer Hudson was prominently involved. I'm pretty sure I saw Vince Vaughn too.

It's actually probably right up your alley CDT.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Am I allowed to say that the new "We Are The World" (while a very worthy cause) sucks balls? Because if it's considered bad form I'll just keep it to myself.

What the hell are you talking about?

They just showed a video of a redone "We Are The World" to raise money for Haiti. I bet you can get it on iTunes. Jennifer Hudson was prominently involved. I'm pretty sure I saw Vince Vaughn too.

It's actually probably right up your alley CDT.

Was it Thrash Black Metal from the depths of frozen Norway?

[swerb]

Aerial shots of Vancouver are stunning. Big fan of islands loaded with big buildings, with Manhattan being the obvious standard bearer.

[FUDU]

Hall & no Oates, hilarious. The Boss getting all over dramatic. SNL skit was epic, Prince, LMAO.

Original:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne7fPpxAnuM

[motherscratcher]

Am I allowed to say that the new "We Are The World" (while a very worthy cause) sucks balls? Because if it's considered bad form I'll just keep it to myself.

What the hell are you talking about?

They just showed a video of a redone "We Are The World" to raise money for Haiti. I bet you can get it on iTunes. Jennifer Hudson was prominently involved. I'm pretty sure I saw Vince Vaughn too.

It's actually probably right up your alley CDT.

Was it Thrash Black Metal from the depths of frozen Norway?

I think it was actually produced by the surviving members of Mayhem.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Am I allowed to say that the new "We Are The World" (while a very worthy cause) sucks balls? Because if it's considered bad form I'll just keep it to myself.

What the hell are you talking about?

They just showed a video of a redone "We Are The World" to raise money for Haiti. I bet you can get it on iTunes. Jennifer Hudson was prominently involved. I'm pretty sure I saw Vince Vaughn too.

It's actually probably right up your alley CDT.

Was it Thrash Black Metal from the depths of frozen Norway?

I think it was actually produced by the surviving members of Mayhem.

Oh wow.

+1 For knowing who Mayhem is. I don't like 'em but any band that has 1 member stab another to death is very metal.

[skatingtripods]

I don't like 'em but any band that has 1 member stab another to death is very metal.

There was a Bones episode about that.

[motherscratcher]

I've got to say, the overall hotness of the female athletes far exceeds that of the summer Olympics. At least as far as I can tell so far. There's some real quality there.

[motherscratcher]

I'm no expert, and maybe the esthetics of the whole thing simply eludes me. But 4 giant ice dildos sure seems like an odd choice of centerpieces for the opening ceremonies. I wonder how that passed whatever committee was responsible.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Ice dildos?

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Oh wow the women on Lithuania's team look like female Zydrunas Ilgauskases.

Alright go Mongolia! The only country to vote back Communism.

[motherscratcher]

Ice dildos?

Those big sculptures in the middle of the arena they are walking into. They're giant. I'm pretty sure the're made of ice.

And they look like dildos.

Wait until they pan out a bit with the camera.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Wow..... Those are ice dildos.

Was Team Norway wearing corpse paint?

[swerb]

I gotta agree with Motherscratcher, there is a staggering amount of good looking female athletes being paraded out here.

[jack_tors]

Oh wow the women on Lithuania's team look like female Zydrunas Ilgauskases.

CDT, I swear to all things holy, I thought the same thing. When they came walking out, the first girl smiled and I thought it was Z in drag. If not for the height differences, they could be twins..

Yes, besides that, there are a ton of hot women. Who is that cute girl from the USA with the blond hair dyed red and blue?

[Erie Warrior]

I spent a week there in 2005 and it's amazing. A world class city. Just becareful if you go to Vancouver Island, it has the largest number of Moutain Lion attacks in North America.

You know, of all the things a person can say about the possible dangers of a major city, this is possibly the best one. Mountain lions? I think I need to move to the Pacific NW. World class fishing, beautiful scenery, and the biggest problem of urban living is mountain lions. Then I would get the CC permit. And by the way, Woodford Reserve is not my favorite bourbon.

[Ziner]

I spent a week there in 2005 and it's amazing. A world class city. Just becareful if you go to Vancouver Island, it has the largest number of Moutain Lion attacks in North America.

You know, of all the things a person can say about the possible dangers of a major city, this is possibly the best one. Mountain lions? I think I need to move to the Pacific NW. World class fishing, beautiful scenery, and the biggest problem of urban living is mountain lions. Then I would get the CC permit. And by the way, Woodford Reserve is not my favorite bourbon.

When we hike out here I am always on the lookout for Mountain Lions, I hear they will actually hunt you. Forget bears, the mountain lions scare the crap out of me. I'd like to get a small gun to carry with me to have a fighting chance, but you arent allowed to carry them in the parks. Hope I never run in to one. It is not uncommon for them to talk about their being a mountain lion in Denver or Boulder.

And to stay on topic, Vancouver is an awesome city. Spent some time there when I was in HS, would love to go back. Can't wait for the Curling and Skiing to start. I usually like to watch the luge, but that dude dying kinda took the fun away from it. I sure hope no one else dies, that would be horrendous.

[municipalmutt]

Besides seeing the parade of athletes from around the world, that opening show was about as exciting as watching flies fucking. No wonder they don't usually subject the athletes to that yawnfest. I haven't been that bored since the last time I was in church.

[leadpipe]

Besides seeing the parade of athletes from around the world, that opening show was about as exciting as watching flies fucking. No wonder they don't usually subject the athletes to that yawnfest. I haven't been that bored since the last time I was in church.

Yeah, pretty much.

And if any sporting "event" screams "NO ANNOUNCERS" it's this one. Listening to Costas both A. Try to generate some excitement and B. State the obvious was just horrible. Not to mention him doing it in his familiar "I'm smarter than you" way.

It's people walking thru an arena, followed by some sort of show that we don't need a play by play for.

[British_Pharaoh]

Winter Olympians compete in such dangerous sports I don't think people realise.
I mean downhill skiers have a helmet and Lycra to protect them, bobsleigh teams, the same.

This death is tragic, and at 21 it's such a waste

[hebner20]

I really don’t have a favorite event but I enjoy the bobsled, luge, the skiing events – downhill, cross country as well as the ski jumping. I also enjoy the various speed skating events but I’m not a fan of the figure skating or ice dancing competitions.

I also occasionally watch the hockey but it seems as though I get more interested the more frequently I watch. I am not a fan of the NHL but will take a look at the outdoor game they televise annually on New Year’s Day. I think I do that mostly due to the novelty of seeing a game played outdoors at a historic venue such as Wrigley Field or Fenway Park.

The men’s gold medal hockey game will be played on February 28th – the last day of the Olympics. I will probably watch some of it no matter who is playing. My first real interest in Olympic hockey was etched in stone almost 30 years ago – February 22, 1980. That was the “Miracle on Ice” game in which the USA team beat the Soviets 4-3 to advance to the Gold medal round against Finland. I still get chills when I think about what that victory meant at that time in history. It was the rag tag bunch of amateurs and college kids versus the best professionals that the Soviets could field. This Soviet team routinely trounced NHL all star teams of that era. It is no wonder that the story was made into a TV movie in 1981 and a Feature Film in 2004. The only thing that surprises me is that it took that long to hit the silver screen. If you have not seen it I would recommend it – perhaps watch it this week.

Here are some interesting facts to note about that game. It was not televised live in the afternoon (except on Canadian TV) but on tape delay in primetime. It was not the gold medal game. As I stated above they had to beat Finland to get the gold. It is the most watched hockey game in USA television history. In 2008, the International Ice Hockey Federation picked the “Miracle on Ice” as the number-one international hockey story of the century. Sports Illustrated voted it as the greatest sports moment of the 20th century. The picture of the American team celebrating the win on the Sports Illustrated cover the following week is the only cover in its history without a caption or headline. The team was named the Associated Presses athlete of the year.

That hockey win was probably my most memorable Olympic sporting event.

The '72 Munich Summer games and the terrorist attacks rank as #1 in shock value. The '96 summer games were also marred by a terrorist attack. 2 killed over 100 injured. I almost forgot about that. Saddened to see the luger get killed this year.

[Cease]

A. Was at the new Panini's at Kamm's yesterday when channel 3 ran the video of the dude dying on his luge. Personally, I hate seeing footage a man actually dying- I'd rather they stop the tape and spare me the visual. Never a "Faces of Death" guy- but at least that requires some work to obtain and view. On the news-at least give me a warning (which they probably did and I couldn't hear) and air the clip just once. My thought is let the man rest in peace.

The reactions in the bar were fascinating. They showed the clip on Ch.3 6PM sports in a loop 3 times, on all of the big screens around the bar. Probably 50-60 people watching for the first time together. Some people were shocked, some a little queasy, some nervous parents with kids trying to figure out how to explain what just happend, and some dudes were standing up, raging "Ohhhh, He's dead! Ohhhh, f'n sh*t. He's so dead! Pretty interesting experience for me.

B. The new "We are the World" doesn't approach the original. Good cause either way, but not on par with talent or potency.

C. Parade of nations turned into a history and geography lesson for my wife. Bless her heart, she's got no idea where these places are in relation to anything, or why Korea has two teams.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I spent a week there in 2005 and it's amazing. A world class city. Just becareful if you go to Vancouver Island, it has the largest number of Moutain Lion attacks in North America.

You know, of all the things a person can say about the possible dangers of a major city, this is possibly the best one. Mountain lions? I think I need to move to the Pacific NW. World class fishing, beautiful scenery, and the biggest problem of urban living is mountain lions. Then I would get the CC permit. And by the way, Woodford Reserve is not my favorite bourbon.

When we hike out here I am always on the lookout for Mountain Lions, I hear they will actually hunt you. Forget bears, the mountain lions scare the crap out of me. I'd like to get a small gun to carry with me to have a fighting chance, but you arent allowed to carry them in the parks. Hope I never run in to one. It is not uncommon for them to talk about their being a mountain lion in Denver or Boulder.

And to stay on topic, Vancouver is an awesome city. Spent some time there when I was in HS, would love to go back. Can't wait for the Curling and Skiing to start. I usually like to watch the luge, but that dude dying kinda took the fun away from it. I sure hope no one else dies, that would be horrendous.

Yep moutain lions do hunt people, they usually go for children and people on moutain bikes. The problem, like with most predatory cats is that you don't know they're stalking you untill it's too late.

Bears usually attack for different reasons (protecting cubs or being startled by humans), but if they're actually hunting you for food, you're pretty much dead. You're not going to know they're there, and they'll attack you when you're at your weakest.

While we were in Vancouver there was a guy hunting moutain lions and while targeting one a second jumped out and grabbed him, luckily he fired the gun off and it sent the cat running but he was clawed up pretty bad. It reminded me of the raptor scene from Jurassic Park. "Clever girl".

[motherscratcher]

I love watching short track. It's just so damn tense, especially at the end. Great to see Ohno again. I didn't realize he was competing again. He looked awesome.

[jb]

Off to an ominous start. Anyone see that luger that flew out of the chute and died this morning? Crazy ...

Yeah they showed the video on the news, his helmet exploded.

I didn't see that. I saw most of him hit the beam and just expire. No one surviveds that at 90 MPH. Wearing helmets is sort of a psychological joke, like assuming the crash position when the plane is crashing.

[jb]

Vancouver is a beautiful city ...

Not as beautiful as a nanaimo bar.

[mrburns]

I love watching short track. It's just so damn tense, especially at the end. Great to see Ohno again. I didn't realize he was competing again. He looked awesome.

Me too. Love the mix of strategy with skill and conditioning. It's not Phelps in the pool, but it's not bad.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Have we won any gold yet?

[idoctribefan]

Have we won any gold yet?

Hannah Kearney in women's Mogul skiing. That's it, i think.

[FUDU]

Short track speed skating is awesome, any other fans out there?

So many different angles to strategy and so many different ways to approach the physical aspect of the sport.

[motherscratcher]

Short track speed skating is awesome, any other fans out there?

So many different angles to strategy and so many different ways to approach the physical aspect of the sport.

Yeah, I freakin' love short track. It was great watching Ohno last night.

There's never a dull moment as the skaters can go from last to first in 1 lap. The relays especially are insane. I don't know how they can ever get through a race without half of the teams crashing.

And why the hell is Korea so good?

[peeker643]

I've watched far too much of this already. Entire opening cer with the kids and a lot of the moguls, luge and short track while out and around.

I'm a winter guy. Love watching this stuff up til figure skating takes over (reminds me of a judged NFL receiver competition).

[swerb]

The short track speed skating was awesome last night. Ohno's amazing move with about 3 laps left in the semis, then the 2 Koreans crashing into each other on the last lap (and ruin the Korean clean sweep of the podium) to give Ohno the silver was about as high drama as you get.

Good stuff.

Moguls were fun as well.

[jack_tors]

The short track speed skating was awesome last night. Ohno's amazing move with about 3 laps left in the semis, then the 2 Koreans crashing into each other on the last lap (and ruin the Korean clean sweep of the podium) to give Ohno the silver was about as high drama as you get.

Good stuff.

Moguls were fun as well.

+1

The moguls were really entertaining, much more than I ever remember them being. When that woman from the USA faceplanted half ways down, I was bummed out. Good to see the USA team rally to take gold and bronze. The Canadian who took silver looked very sad about losing.

The luge trials were insane as well. Hard to believe something that starts out so slow leads to 80-90 mph hr.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

lol. The Canadian Womens Hockey team beat Slovakia 18-0.......

[Ziner]

NBC's coverage sucks. ABC/ESPN needs to get the rights to the Olympics. I hate the fact that this morning I woke up trying to find Olympic anything and CNBC has paid programming, NBC has Meet the Press and MSNBC has lockup or something. You paid for it, air the crap out of it. I dont care what event just show me something every time I turn on the TV. You know damn well if ESPN/ABC had it, it would be on at least 2 channels non stop.

[leadpipe]

The short track speed skating was awesome last night. Ohno's amazing move with about 3 laps left in the semis, then the 2 Koreans crashing into each other on the last lap (and ruin the Korean clean sweep of the podium) to give Ohno the silver was about as high drama as you get.

Good stuff.

Moguls were fun as well.

+1

The moguls were really entertaining, much more than I ever remember them being. When that woman from the USA faceplanted half ways down, I was bummed out. Good to see the USA team rally to take gold and bronze. The Canadian who took silver looked very sad about losing.

The luge trials were insane as well. Hard to believe something that starts out so slow leads to 80-90 mph hr.

Gotta get rid of the judge aspect on the moguls there. Lengthen the distance and let- em race. Did you see that judges booth.? Way a the bottom of the friggin' hill, with snow and fog blowin'. You're telling me some 60 year old French lady can see mistakes toward the top of that hill? Favorites get better judged scores than those that don't - just like every other GD judged sport.

Nordic combined, with the staggered start, and than guys just going balls out - now that's racin'.