Winter Olympics

[Bub]

Have many of you plan on watching the winter Olympics?

If you were born after the advent of cable this won't mean anything, but for us older gents, remember the days of 3 network channel TV when the Olympics were on? Everyone, I mean everyone watched the Olympics-summer and winter. I remember watching Jean Claude Keily kick ass in the S, GS & DH in 68. He was the man. Spider Sabitch and his murderin bitch of a wife Claude Longet(?). Damn she was good lookin though.

[bobcatfan06]

I'll watch the speed skating (those guys are nuts and have balls bigger than my head) and the sled sports (bobsledding, skeleton, luge, etc.), because those guys have even bigger balls than the speed skaters.

[Grizo406]

I'm gettin' kind of a balls thing going on here, and I feel compelled to say that my "Twins" always looks bigger in spandex, despite the temperature. But they've never looked bigger than my head, irregardless of my hugeness... although some fairly hot females would disagree.

Although it's not a winter sport, give the Grizo Women's Volleyball any day.

[nlwwln]

olympics blow

[catamount man]

I'm gettin' kind of a balls thing going on here, and I feel compelled to say that my "Twins" always looks bigger in spandex, despite the temperature. But they've never looked bigger than my head, irregardless of my hugeness... although some fairly hot females would disagree.

Although it's not a winter sport, give the Grizo Women's Volleyball any day.

TMI!!! TMI!!! HA!!! I'll watch some of the Olympics as I dig the winter Olympics a whole lot more than the summer games. GO CATAMOUNTS!!!

[colgate13]

The winter olympics are so much better than the summer. I'll be watching the whole thing, every night! Hockey, speed skating, skiing, etc... I even love watching curling and biathlon! BRING IT ON!

[AppGuy04]

olympics blow

the summer ones do

the winter ones are great!

[Ivytalk]

I'll pick my spots, like ice hockey and speed skating. But I draw the line at curling and snowboarding! ;)

[Bub]

Summer Olympics blow? What kinda of trip are you guys on? Summer Olympics rock. Maybe it's because I like track & field, but I really look forward to the t&f events.

[jstate83]

I'll pass.............................. : smh :

Heck................I don't even know what place the olympic's are being held.

Too boring. : smh :

[buckp]

Enjoy watching the either of the Olympics! It must be very rewarding to meet athletes from around the world that value a sport as much as you. Those kids are great.... :bow:

[faxjusfax]

Downhill is a definite, and hockey, of course.

I also got hooked on curling 4 years ago. Everyone who I talked to that gave it at least a 5 minute watch, got hooked. It looked funny, but I honestly got hooked. Wonder if my interest level will be there this time around?

[Ivytalk]

Downhill is a definite, and hockey, of course.

I also got hooked on curling 4 years ago. Everyone who I talked to that gave it at least a 5 minute watch, got hooked. It looked funny, but I honestly got hooked. Wonder if my interest level will be there this time around?

If you are "hooked on curling," I can send you a video of me sweeping out our garage! ;)

[faxjusfax]

Hy yuk, Ivy.

Another thing about curling, I remember seeing a contestant in the late rounds munching on a banana discussing her next shot! Whoa, competing in an Olympic event and eating your lunch at the same time.

That's it, Im going into training right now for the 2010 games!
:rotateh:

[Marcus Garvey]

Olympics (Summer or Winter) = 2+ weeks of not giving a ***** for me.

It looks like I'll have to spend my nights reading because my PC is acting up and I can't get the sound to work on GTA: San Andreas! Oh well, I have a stack of books I want to get through anyway! :read:

[Bronco]

Bub
Thanks for reminding me about Claudine. She was probably responsible for my first pup tent.


http://www.birgir.com/myndir/Claudine_Longet.jpg

[Tod]

I love the Olympics, absolutely love 'em. I love to watch the opening ceremony. The last commercial is over, the screen goes black for a moment, then the drums start, boom booma boom boom, boom booma boom boom, then the horns kick in, duh, DUUUH, da dant dant dant da...gives me chills!

:) :nod: :) :nod: :)

Sorry if my spelling of the notes is poor. I don't do it often. :D

[blukeys]

Bub
Thanks for reminding me about Claudine. She was probably responsible for my first pup tent.


http://www.birgir.com/myndir/Claudine_Longet.jpg

Claudine was definitely not the right girl to get on the wrong side of. And whatever you do don't leave any guns laying around the house when Claudine is pissed!!!! :eek:

[ngineer]

I used to love the Olympics, and I'll still watch some of it, but it's lost the allure. Too much "up close and personal bs and talking heads". I want to see the events and the competition. The political overtones also bother me. Too much jingoism as well as the professionals. It should be individual athletes competing to be the best in the atmosphere of goodwill. Yes, that's what the Olympic model entails, but it's just lipservice. It's all become a huge corporate conglomerate. I'm just a little cynical .... :rolleyes:

[faxjusfax]

Claudine was definitely not the right girl to get on the wrong side of. And whatever you do don't leave any guns laying around the house when Claudine is pissed!!!! :eek:

....... and to think she was married to Andy Williams!

Can't forget that Saturday Night Live clip, where they showed skiers taking flops, and you hear gunshots in the background., and the voice over saying ... "well, Claudine Longet bagged another one!"

Hillarious:D

[FightinBluHen51]

I love the Olympics, absolutely love 'em. I love to watch the opening ceremony. The last commercial is over, the screen goes black for a moment, then the drums start, boom booma boom boom, boom booma boom boom, then the horns kick in, duh, DUUUH, da dant dant dant da...gives me chills!

:) :nod: :) :nod: :)

Sorry if my spelling of the notes is poor. I don't do it often. :D
I used to like that song, until the WCUPA band plays it CONSTANTLY!


"Do you believe in maricles!?!?"

I will definately be watching hockey, skeleton, 2 and 4man bob, luge is ok, but I prefer the other sleds. Speed skating is good too. I could give a rats arse about figure skating (what is this crap?) Downhill is usually entertaining, but you've just gotta love curling. I got hooked on that too 4 years ago.

[Pard4Life]

I'll watch as much as I can, although I find figure skating kind of lame. The first Olympics I remember was '94, when Tanya clubbed Nancy. After that, I had trouble getting into figure skating.. no more drama!

Hockey is the best one, although I am pretty P.O.ed that Marty Broduer is Canada's starting goalie. He already plays 80 games a year, so this just adds to the burden. USA hockey never seems to pull it out.. 1980 was the last time... and this is not Salt Lake, so no home ice.. remember 1998? the team trashed the hotel rooms after missing the cut.

After the USA, I'm pulling for Finland and Sweden... and maybe we will see Belarus pull off a shocker again.

[Tod]

I used to like that song, until the WCUPA band plays it CONSTANTLY!


"Do you believe in maricles!?!?"

I will definately be watching hockey, skeleton, 2 and 4man bob, luge is ok, but I prefer the other sleds. Speed skating is good too. I could give a rats arse about figure skating (what is this crap?) Downhill is usually entertaining, but you've just gotta love curling. I got hooked on that too 4 years ago.

Is "Do you believe in miracles" the title of that? I didn't know that. :o

I don't really watch figure skating, but you have to admire what they do. It's pretty damn amazing. Especially watching those women bend the way they do. Man!! :D

What I can't figure out is the biathlon (sp?). Cross country skiing and shooting a damn rifle. What's up with that? Did they just need to make up another sport?

I prefer sports that people compete in on a relatively large scale in many countries. Other than people training for the Olympics, who the hell competes in biathlon?

Same goes for luge, bobsledding, etc. Who has a college bobsled team? Or even a somewhat large-scale national bobsled competition?

:confused: :confused:

[Tod]

After the USA, I'm pulling for Finland and Sweden... and maybe we will see Belarus pull off a shocker again.

I pull for Canada and Norway. I'm 50% Norwegian.

[FightinBluHen51]

Is "Do you believe in miracles" the title of that? I didn't know that. :o

I don't really watch figure skating, but you have to admire what they do. It's pretty damn amazing. Especially watching those women bend the way they do. Man!! :D

What I can't figure out is the biathlon (sp?). Cross country skiing and shooting a damn rifle. What's up with that? Did they just need to make up another sport?

I prefer sports that people compete in on a relatively large scale in many countries. Other than people training for the Olympics, who the hell competes in biathlon?

Same goes for luge, bobsledding, etc. Who has a college bobsled team? Or even a somewhat large-scale national bobsled competition?

:confused: :confused:
True, but I watch FIBT bobsledding on Speed Channel all the time.

[foghorn]

:cool: The 'ski jump' gets it for me. Oh, the agony of defeat! :bawling:
At one site, at the bottom of the hill, right after the landing area, there was a cemetery! Can you imagine seeing that in front of you speeding down that ramp? Super Ballz, or insanity ! xidiotx

[AmsterBison]

I can only watch the Olympics with the sound turned off.

I'm more of a Summer Olympics (aka the Real Olympics) but I pretty much dislike anything that is judged. It's "Faster, Higher, Stronger" not "More Precise, More Artistic, More Charming." Hehe, the populist side of me really objects to the whole Olympic scene too - it's all another excuse for bigwigs to throw their weight around. Bah!

100 meters. 200 meters. 400 meters. 800 meters. 1600 meters. Shot put. Javelin. Discus. That's the Olympics to me. No BS and no homer refs and no super high tech gear.

[grizband]

I like the Winter Olympics for the crazy sports like short track speed skating, bobsled, luge, and skeleton. No way in hell you could get me going 80+ miles an hour, two inches off the ground, on a sheet of ice.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

What I can't figure out is the biathlon (sp?). Cross country skiing and shooting a damn rifle. What's up with that? Did they just need to make up another sport?

I prefer sports that people compete in on a relatively large scale in many countries. Other than people training for the Olympics, who the hell competes in biathlon?

:confused: :confused:

Tod, did I read that your heritage is 50% Norweigan? You're going to be upset!!


The biathlon, which combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting, originated in Norway as a training exercise for soldiers. The first known competition took place in 1767 between companies of guards who patrolled the border with Sweden. Late in the 19th century, local rifle and ski clubs in Norway and other Scandinavian countries practiced the sport to keep their members prepared for combat.

An early form of the biathlon, called "military ski patrol," was a demonstration sport at the first Winter Olympics in 1924, and it was a medal sport in 1928, 1936, and 1948.

Biathlon History (http://www.hickoksports.com/history/biathlon.shtml)

I know I've seen a Biathlon Range at the Bretton Woods (NH) Touring Center and I believe that they've opened Biathlon facilities near Fort Kent, ME where Qlympic trial type events are conducted.

[Tod]

Tod, did I read that your heritage is 50% Norweigan? You're going to be upset!!

Actually, I may have read that once, years ago, it sure sounds familiar. But if I did, I forgot about it completely. :o :o :o

[melloAggiesousa]

One of our snare drummers was a second alternate for the cross-country Olympic team in 1988. I offered to teach him how to shoot...

I figured, you ski a little...the guy in front of you presents a target...you aim, squeeze, and...now, you're in first place! Wouldn't that make Biathlon interesting?

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

Forgot to answer the question, yes I'll be watching the Winter Olympics. You attend a Snow Belt school like UNH and you gain exposure to the winter sports. Had a roommate one year who was a jumper on the varsity Ski Team. Played a little hockey (very little -- first time my tall, skinny arse got hip checked by one of them fire plug hockey guys I got right back over to the hoop court where I belonged! :nod: xlolx xlolx ). After graduation I started cross country skiing which to this day is a primary hobby. Not that I've ever done 50K, I think I can appreciate what it takes!!

Usually the ice hockey is the best played because of the bigger rink and the nationalism. The US Women's team has at least one UNHer to the best of my knowledge.

Oh yeah, lots of reasons to watch these Olympics!!

[ASU Kep]

To me the summer Olympics are much more interesting on the whole, but I definitely plan on watching a lot of the winter as well. Snowboarding is what I'm most interested in, but theres just something about winning an OLYMPIC medal in any sport that is thrilling to watch, IMHO. With probably one exception (the Super Bowl...and of course, the I-AA National Championship :D) winning an Olympic medal has to be stunning...there's just so damn much history there. Though the modern ones are only a tad bit over 100 years old, in sports like wrestling Olympic championships were won over a thousand years ago. I dunno, I just think thats pretty damn cool.

[SeattleGriz]

....... and to think she was married to Andy Williams!

Can't forget that Saturday Night Live clip, where they showed skiers taking flops, and you hear gunshots in the background., and the voice over saying ... "well, Claudine Longet bagged another one!"

Hillarious:D

I loved the SNL when the Olympics were being held in Salt Lake, and the Mormon missionaries where skiing up along side the downhill skiing competitors proselytizing as they ski'ed.

Who can say speed skating isn't cool? As someome who raced bicycles, it is unreal to see these guys on skates travel just as fast (30 mph).

I can't wait unit 2010 for the Vancouver Oympics.

By the way, if you are an Olympic athlete, it is one big sexfest.

[gokats85]

I'll watch the downhill and hockey but I'll keep an eye on speed skating and see if Chad Hedrick (from Spring, TX) can win 5 gold medals. Just say "no" to curling (if you happen to like curling, no offense intended).

[AppGuy04]

I'll watch whatever is on NBC during the day, cause I'll be watching it at work :hyped:

[FightinBluHen51]

By the way, if you are an Olympic athlete, it is one big sexfest.


WHAT?!?! why that wouldn't surprise me, is this a joke, or you being serious? I've never paid THAT much attention to the olympics.

[Blue Hen Nation]

The great thing about this round of the Olympics is that NBC will be broadcasting in H-Def for the first time. Go USA! :hurray:

[FightinBluHen51]

The great thing about this round of the Olympics is that NBC will be broadcasting in H-Def for the first time. Go USA! :hurray:
The winter games that is. They did that for the summer games last time around.


BTW, is there a TV schedule out?

[Ivytalk]

That "trash sport" accounts for 4 of the Americans' 6 medals so far! Speed skating provided the other two.

[ASU Kep]

I pull for Canada and Norway. I'm 50% Norwegian.

I too root for my ancient homeland. I hear the Irish bobsled team is pretty good this year. They'll probably make a movie out of it, something along the lines of "Drunk Runnings".

[Ivytalk]

Ted Ligety is da Man! Gold medal in the men's combined skiing event! :bow: :bow: :bow: :hyped: :hyped: :hyped:

[ASU Kep]

...AND...BODE DIDN'T GET ****!!! What a great day.

[Pard4Life]

Ted Ligety is da Man! Gold medal in the men's combined skiing event! :bow: :bow: :bow: :hyped: :hyped: :hyped:

That was awesome... great to see that comeback. I agree with Ligety, it would have been cool to see him beat Reich straight-up. But heck, as Bode said.. DQing in that event is not uncommon and happens to the best. Regardless of what people say, I was disappointed to see him lose.

Now that American figure skater (Weir)... yikes! :eek:

[blur2005]

That was awesome... great to see that comeback. I agree with Ligety, it would have been cool to see him beat Reich straight-up. But heck, as Bode said.. DQing in that event is not uncommon and happens to the best. Regardless of what people say, I was disappointed to see him lose.

Now that American figure skater (Weir)... yikes! :eek:
Johnny Weir cracked me up with a comment during the NBC bullcrap storyline things that "Republican-type people won't understand me" or something like that. Plus, he was impressive in the short program, but Plushenko is much too good for everyone else, so Weir should be happy to have a good shot at the silver.

[AppGuy04]

USA Men's Hockey 1st game today vs Irbe and Latvia. I won't be able to watch, does anyone know if there is a radio feed or live stats for this?

[ASU Kep]

I'm sure NBCOlympics.com and prolly ESPN.com willat least have live stats, they've been pretty great so far, and hockey I'd say is the flagship event of the Winter O's.

[AppGuy04]

I'm sure NBCOlympics.com and prolly ESPN.com willat least have live stats, they've been pretty great so far, and hockey I'd say is the flagship event of the Winter O's.

yeah, I'm getting updates, check out the olympic hockey thread

[Ivytalk]

...AND...BODE DIDN'T GET ****!!! What a great day.

He didn't get it today, either. Neither did Rahlves. What a joke.

By the way, my theory is that The Voice Of The Ski Shack ("Grab it, baby! It's all yours!!") is Cap'n Cat!!

[AppGuy04]

all of our failures and we are still tied for 2nd in the medal count

[AppGuy04]

warning...spoiler


























check out the results for the men's 1500m speed skating, very interesting

[Ivytalk]

Not a bad day for the USA: two speed skating medals, a silver in women's bobsled, and a good start for women's figure skating.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

Not a bad day for the USA: two speed skating medals, a silver in women's bobsled, and a good start for women's figure skating.

I do believe that I heard that in terms of metal totals, this is the 2nd best Winter Olympics ever for the USA and the best not held on American soil! :hurray: :hyped:

[AppGuy04]

I do believe that I heard that in terms of metal totals, this is the 2nd best Winter Olympics ever for the USA and the best not held on American soil! :hurray: :hyped:

and we should have atleast one more coming in women's figure skating, short track speedskating, and 10,000m speed skating

[bobcatfan06]

Shoulda had another gold in Womens SnowCross, but NOOOOOOO....someone had to show off a lil bit.

[Gil Dobie]

Canada up 2-1 in curling after 2 ends.

[AppGuy04]

Canada up 2-1 in curling after 2 ends.

2-2 after 3 baby!

[Gil Dobie]

Canada 4-2 after 4 :(

[Gil Dobie]

4-3 Canada after 5, 1 for us, 2 for them, 1 for us, 2 for them : smh :

[Gil Dobie]

6-5 after 8, Canada still up.

[Gil Dobie]

5 in the 9th by Canada, 11-5 winners over the USA.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

In addition to learning more about Curling during these Olympics, the other learning experience has been with the Biathalon! Many thanks to Tod for asking a question that got me to research the sport a little as well as watch it.

Actually found it very interesting and can't imagine shooting a rifle after skiing a distance. The race had stretches of skiing then shooting over a 7+ mile course. I've skied 7 miles, but you could measure the "speed" with an hourglass, and I still would have been more dangerous than Cheney if anyone gave me a rifle during that ski!!

Each round of shooting (two while prone and two while standing) had five targets. For each target missed, the skier had to add a 150 meter penalty lap. And oh yeah, you skied with the rifle on your back. All in all it was very exciting.

[ASU Kep]

No big surprise, but NBCOlympics.com has surpassed the Athens Olympics in traffic with five days left in the Games. So far the site has racked up 261 million page views and 6.4 million video streams. The most popular video clips? Shaun White's winning halfpipe run followed by Lindsay Jacobellis' snowboardcross screw up. Lots of good stats in the NBC press release below...

PRESS RELEASE --- NBCOlympics.com, NBC's online home of the Torino Olympics, has set its all time record for page views with 261.1 million, surpassing the 251.4 million for the Athens Olympics, with five days remaining in the Torino Games. NBCOlympics.com recorded 145 million page views for the 2002 Salt Lake Games. Yesterday, with more than 29 million page views, NBCOlympics.com totaled its second most-trafficked day in history to move past the Athens Games. All of the top five page view days in the 10-year history of NBCOlympics.com have occurred during the Torino Games.

The website has served over 6.4 million video streams, which equates to more than 72,000 hours of video watched on NBCOlympics.com through Tuesday and doubles the number of streams served over the entire Athens Games.

"The American public has a tremendous appetite for the Olympics, and the website, rich in multimedia content and behind-the-scenes access to the Torino Games, allows users to get closer to the Olympics than ever before," said Gary Zenkel, President, NBC Olympics. "The success of NBCOlympics.com validates our strategy to utilize the site not only to promote and compliment our network and cable coverage but as a standalone entertainment platform."

NBCOlympics.com's rich multimedia offerings include extensive video highlights, featuring complete runs and routines for U.S. competitors and top finishers, slideshows and unique content such as interviews not seen on the broadcast coverage. Also, for the first time, NBCOlympics.com's "Rewind" section offers coverage of complete events, including snowboard cross and alpine skiing.

OVERALL PAGE VIEWS 2006 Torino -- 261.1 million (through Feb. 21)
2004 Athens -- 251.4 million
2002 Salt Lake City -- 145 million


TOP 5 PAGE VIEW DAYS IN HISTORY OF NBCOLYMPICS.COM
1. 29.2 million, 2-13-06, Torino Games
2. 29.0 million, 2-21-06, Torino Games
3. 22.1 million, 2-14-06, Torino Games
4. 21.4 million, 2-16-06, Torino Games
5. 20.9 million, 2-15-06, Torino Games


VIDEO STREAMS
2006 Torino -- 6.4 million
2004 Athens -- 3.2 million
2002 Salt Lake City -- No Video


TUESDAY, DAY 11, PAGE VIEW COMPARISON SLC VS. TORINO (LADIES FIGURE SKATING SHORT PROGRAM)
SLC -- 11.2 million
Torino -- 29.0 million, +159 percent


MOST TRAFFICKED ATHLETES
1. Sasha Cohen, Figure Skating
2. Shaun White, Snowboarding
3. Tanith Belbin, Figure Skating
4. Apolo Anton Ohno, Short Track Speedskating
5. Gretchen Bleiler, Snowboarding


MOST VIEWED VIDEO CLIPS
1. Shaun White Wins Gold in Halfpipe
2. Lindsay Jacobellis SBX race
3. Ice Dancing spills and thrills
4. Sasha Cohen practice session
5. Michelle Kwan press conference

[ASU Kep]

Suck it, summer O fans. :D

[*****]

Has to be all the Kraftwerk songs they are playing! :D

[AppGuy04]

Men's curling Bronze medal game going on right now, US vs Great Britain

US up 6-5 after 7 ends, GB just scored 3 points in the 7th to make it close

[AppGuy04]

10,000m speed skating just started as well, Hedrick is in the last of 8 heats(2 guys at a time)

[AppGuy04]

US is 3 medals behind Germany as of now, and the Curling team is up, Hedrick should get one in the 10,000m and Apollo still has 2 events I believe

[AppGuy04]

update:

Men's curling up 7-5 after 8 ends, 2 more to go

[AppGuy04]

US wins the Bronze in Men's Curling, 8-6

[Gil Dobie]

US wins the Bronze in Men's Curling, 8-6

Congrats to the Curlers. My co-worker is from Bemidji, and Pete Fenson taught his curling class at Bemdji State. Also frequents his Pizza place.

[Gil Dobie]

Julia Mancuso wins gold in the giant slalom.

[AppGuy04]

Hedrick gets the Silver in the 10,000m. 3.83 seconds behind the winner, which is close in an almost 13 minute race

[Griz Grunt]

Winter/Summer Olympics...


OK Gil, if ya say so! ;)

[Gil Dobie]

Hey Grunt, shouldn't that be in the lounge with the political stuff? :)

[AppGuy04]

23 medals now, only 1 behind the Germans

[Gil Dobie]

23 medals now, only 1 behind the Germans

What's the record for the USA?

[Griz Grunt]

test

[*****]

That Italian Anthem has a bit of FIGHT SONG in it!

[*****]

YMCA???? Performed by clowns??? Are those dancing Sheiks???

[TxSt02]

the golden palace guy was great!