Gapers Block published from April 22, 2003 to Jan. 1, 2016. The site will remain up in archive form. Please visit Third Coast Review, a new site by several GB alumni.
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Monday, October 14
Stand out moments so far: hockey not free-to-air...
Shocked by how much I've watched and how much it has interested me.
Standout moments:
Shaun White. Crazy good, and about 2-3 standard deviations ahead of the rest of the field.
Men's figure skating: I've become a supporter of both Johnny Weir and Evan Lysachek (sp?). I know that's like rooting for both the Yankees and the Red Sox, but whateva.
Curling: I'm with Andrew; curing is much more interesting than I thought, and very suspenseful. HARD! HARD!
Bobsledding: the wipeouts are utterly terrifying.
Oh yes,
I love Nordic and Alpine skiing the most, but watch it all with giddy childlike glee!
I won't go into how bad the coverage is but what can you do?
nope. poker's more of a sport than some of that stuff.
I admit it, I'm an Olympic nerd. I cry all the time during the games.
Evan winning the gold was super exciting. The Australian skier winning the gold last night when it was supposed to be a Chinese sweep was also exciting.
What I've noticed this time more than any though (or maybe I don't remember) is all the wipeouts. Skiing; bobsledding; luge. So.many.wipeouts.
Yeah, I'm watching far too much of it, too. Hurray for Evan Lysacek, and boo that his achievement has been maligned by that one-trick Russian!
Anyone else notice how a lot of the men figure skaters fell down during their routines but not so with the women?
Speedskating is exciting, I like cheering on Apolo Ono, Shani Davis and J.R. Celski!
If I watch downhill skiing, luge, etc. it's with the morbid hope that someone wipes out (without getting killed or seriously injured). I have a hard time staying interested in single runs where success is measured in tenths or hundredths of a second.
I think it's called ski-cross.
And I find it so hilarious and delightful because they do something I've never seen at the Winter Olympics, and in fact haven't seen since I was about eight.
The "snow plow" or "pizza pie" stance to slow down. I remember that from the bunny hill back in the day.
I'm an Olympics junkie. My stand out moments so far:
* Apolo Ohno stumbling, falling back to 5th place, and recovering for a bronze and medal #7.
* USA v. Canada hockey, 3rd period of the first (but hopefully not only) game.
* The pants of the Norwegian Men's curling team.
* The first and only woman figure skater from Turkey
The hit that Ovechkin placed on Jagr.
The downhill skiing that Vonn won while everyone else wiped out.
The USA V CAN Prelim hockey game.
No. It's boring.
Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette's situation breaks my heart. Her short program was by far the standout moment.
After that I will remember the adorable Johnny Weir's performances and his crown of roses.
***The look in Joannie Rochette's father after she completed her short program. Crushing.
***Shaun White's utter domination over the half pipe competition - a man amongst boys.
***Womens figure skating Kim Yu-Na doing her James Bond routine - the shoulder dip/wink - amazing.
***Mens Hockey - USA vs Can preliminary game - diving empty net goal by Ryan Kessler.
***The sheer number of hours logged on the couch watching the Olympics.
I really tried, but as usual, I absolutely HATE the over-the-top bellowing of sports announcers. They're braying in a voice that should be leftover doing car commercials. The Europeans are far more mellow.
Curling. Some of those women are really hot. Sexist? Possibly. But so what.
USA-Canada hockey game #1.
Skating too, but hearing Scott Hamilton screaming like he has to pee
grates on my last nerve
It's all about the hockey.
THe Nordic Combined...where I believe it was a Norweign who was in 4th place, 37 sec. behind the lead and on the last lap ( 6 miles I think it was ) came within a couple of ski lengths of finishing in first.
IF you are bored even the slightest bit with the Olympics try actually listening to the commentary on the heart breaking stories of how some of the athletes worked through their challenges, never stopped believing and stayed focused on their goals. We can all learn from their pains and healings even if you didn't watch a single event to completion. 'There
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Andrew Huff / February 25, 2010 12:25 PM
I've ended up watching more than I expected to. I've been surprised how interesting curling has turned out to be. Who knew?