What a great adventure: Ann was all support; Frank’s initiative made it possible; I supplied encouragement. Neither of us could have done it without the other. Frank and I make a surprisingly compatible odd couple. He has an incisive wit; an explosive disdain for “those idiots” who usually turn out to be authorities, politicians, or drivers of cars in his vicinity; and a charming ability to chat up strangers, developing instant rapport because of his obviously sincere interest in them. As an inventor, his mind is constantly in quest of the better – no matter what the object of his attention.
This probably ends my Olympic quests: I’ve been very lucky: three winter games – Innsbruck ’76, Calgary ’88, Vancouver ’10; two summers -- Montreal 76, Los Angeles ’84 -- and peripheral involvement in Moscow ’80 (as unexpected advisor to Vneshtorgbank on marketing Russian Olympic coins.) I’m sure I won’t be going to Sochi, but wouldn’t it be fun?
The games have changed so. When I fell in love with Winter Olympics, in ’76, stars were made by the games, not for the games. Yes, there were corporate sponsors and broadcasting contracts, but ordinary joe fans drove most of the action. Security was not intrusive until post 9/11– despite the tragedy of Munich in ’72. The venues were small and intimate and manageable w/o daunting transportation challenges. Hell, at Innsbruck, I climbed up the mountain with a guy I met on site, and then, when the guards weren’t looking, we clambered into and out of the bobsled run to make our way to the downhill course (and by dumb luck we hit it at the corner where Klammer went airborne.) Calgary, though larger, still felt intimate. The Summers have always been too large – Rome, Sydney, Los Angeles, Montreal, Tokyo, Beijing and all, but Winters until now have been tight and close. Sochi may return to that pattern.
This is not to say Vancouver was disappointing. Yes, it was too big – three venues at Whistler and six in Vancouver. Yes, it’ll be a flop financially and yes, VanOC m
ade some bonehead moves – scaring away fans, fencing off the flame, creating a unused reversible lane highway ... the IOC didn’t help by bestowing a ticket monopoly on a highly suspect tour packager…. But Vancouverites made up for all that with their delight, their welcomes, their smiles and courtesy. As for sour grapes about how intent they were on podium positions? They’re no worse than any other host people who are proud and determined to show the world what they’ve got. And the beauty of 
the setting – a natural advantage winter games have over summers for, after all, you do need snow covered mountains – Vancouver is hard to beat. Neither Calgary nor Albertville nor Lillehammer had the Pacific Ocean as their front yard.
Despite the kleptocratic and sometimes ridiculous IOC (the delegate from Oman awarding cross-country ski medals!), the millions spent, and whatever the venue, all who attend a winter games -- corporate host or guest or ordinary joe or local resident -- all share a single focus and one enthusiasm – the games. In that way, the Olympics truly do bring the world together for a brief moment -- and that is precious, indeed.
This probably ends my Olympic quests: I’ve been very lucky: three winter games – Innsbruck ’76, Calgary ’88, Vancouver ’10; two summers -- Montreal 76, Los Angeles ’84 -- and peripheral involvement in Moscow ’80 (as unexpected advisor to Vneshtorgbank on marketing Russian Olympic coins.) I’m sure I won’t be going to Sochi, but wouldn’t it be fun?
The games have changed so. When I fell in love with Winter Olympics, in ’76, stars were made by the games, not for the games. Yes, there were corporate sponsors and broadcasting contracts, but ordinary joe fans drove most of the action. Security was not intrusive until post 9/11– despite the tragedy of Munich in ’72. The venues were small and intimate and manageable w/o daunting transportation challenges. Hell, at Innsbruck, I climbed up the mountain with a guy I met on site, and then, when the guards weren’t looking, we clambered into and out of the bobsled run to make our way to the downhill course (and by dumb luck we hit it at the corner where Klammer went airborne.) Calgary, though larger, still felt intimate. The Summers have always been too large – Rome, Sydney, Los Angeles, Montreal, Tokyo, Beijing and all, but Winters until now have been tight and close. Sochi may return to that pattern.
This is not to say Vancouver was disappointing. Yes, it was too big – three venues at Whistler and six in Vancouver. Yes, it’ll be a flop financially and yes, VanOC m
ade some bonehead moves – scaring away fans, fencing off the flame, creating a unused reversible lane highway ... the IOC didn’t help by bestowing a ticket monopoly on a highly suspect tour packager…. But Vancouverites made up for all that with their delight, their welcomes, their smiles and courtesy. As for sour grapes about how intent they were on podium positions? They’re no worse than any other host people who are proud and determined to show the world what they’ve got. And the beauty of 
the setting – a natural advantage winter games have over summers for, after all, you do need snow covered mountains – Vancouver is hard to beat. Neither Calgary nor Albertville nor Lillehammer had the Pacific Ocean as their front yard.Despite the kleptocratic and sometimes ridiculous IOC (the delegate from Oman awarding cross-country ski medals!), the millions spent, and whatever the venue, all who attend a winter games -- corporate host or guest or ordinary joe or local resident -- all share a single focus and one enthusiasm – the games. In that way, the Olympics truly do bring the world together for a brief moment -- and that is precious, indeed.
Thanks for being there. Wow, what a wonderful shot of the heron and skyline!
ReplyDelete