Venue Specific training and credentialing today!!
Saturday January 30th

The sky hung low over the bay this morning. I woke up to the sound of waves lapping away outside my window at Birch Bay. Looking out the window from my bed, it was difficult to distinguish between sky and water with the exception of a lone loon carving a small wake into the water since the sky and water were so gray.

My aunt’s home is on the water that was built from 2 motel units that were removed when I-5 was being constructed in 1960. My uncle put the two single units together back then, and then remodeled later so that the water side of the house is all windows out towards the bay.

I like mornings like this. Warm and cozy in the house, looking out over the water as I sip a cup of coffee listening to the sounds of the house beginning to arouse. It is an exiting day. I didn’t sleep as well as I would have liked because my mind was going over the list of things that had to happen today. It’s okay that I didn’t get as much sleep because the coffee and my adrenaline would keep me going today.

My aunt Jeanette, Rod, my cousin Mitzi and her husband, Al and I all gathered around the living space this morning and exchanged stories as we were waking up, slowly. It’s a good day already…we are going to Whistler. Today is uniform and credentialing and venue specific training at the Whistler Sliding Centre. We gathered all of our things once sufficiently caffeinated and said our good byes for the time being.

This was the first morning we used our Nexus passes to go over the Canadian border. It’s was a Saturday morning, and there was virtually no traffic. When you go through the Nexus crossing, you open your window and scan your cards before coming to the Canadian customs official. Rod and I stopped at the booth after scanning our cards.

Rod asked “Did we do it right? This is our first time through with this”.

The dark haired pleasant inspector smiled and told us we did it right, she asked us where we were going and we were on our way. Simple.

The Sea to Sky Highway

The Sea to Sky Highway has changed. The first time we ventured up to Whistler it was the early 1970s. The last few miles of “Garibaldi’s Whistler Mountain” was a dirt road. The road was carved very near shear cliffs and there were the remains of cars at the bottom of these cliffs as a reminder to not drink and drive. During those days, I don’t remember guard rails around those corners. Well, times have changed. The Sea to Sky Highway is now a 4 lane highway with some 2 lane areas that couldn’t be expanded due to mother nature.

If you travel the Sea to Sky Highway (Highway 99) during the Olympics, you will find additional changes. In areas where only 2 lanes exist, they are making 3. The lanes will be reversible so that 2 lanes will be moving north in the morning, and south in the afternoon to keep the flow of traffic moving as much as possible. The lanes are divided by 3 foot high road delineators which I assume are made out of rubber or other softer materials since they will be hit occasionally. There are reflectors on the delineators so you can see the curves of the road as you go. They are evenly space so that it will be impossible to change lanes unless you are traveling 10 mph or less. Even with this system, it is estimated that the day of opening ceremonies, it may take 12-14 hours to commute from Vancouver to Whistler. It normally takes about 2 to 2 ½ hours. We are rethinking trying to pull the trailer up on opening day.

There will be a checkpoint at Squamish which is about 40 minutes south of Whistler. No one will be allowed to pass unless they show a Sea to Sky Highway Pass. These passes have been given only to residents of Whistler and those on official business. We have one, but we will have 2 cars traveling. We are going to have to figure this out.

Logistics

Today was the day to figure out where everything is located so that when I get up to Whistler, I will know where my resources are. We found out where we will park the trailer. We met up with Jon, who owns the home where the RV pad exists. There is electric and water. The only thing I will have to remember is to not have the heater on and the microwave running at the same time because that could knock out power not only to the trailer but short circuit something in the house next to me. I will try to avoid this.

How am I going to communicate with Rod, my family and friends while up in Whistler? T-Mobile is 49 cents per minute up there. We went to Telus, Rogers Wireless and Bell to see if there was a less expensive plan. There really isn’t. Texting looks like the best route. We will likely open a Skype account as well since I will be in the trailer by myself most of the time at night and will want to stay in close communication.

When traveling with a trailer, it is nice to know where to obtain parts if something breaks. We went to the Riverside RV Park to find out what resources are available. There are limited resources so we will have to make due, or hope that Napa has car parts that can be converted to trailer parts. We were also able to figure out other ‘trailer” maintenance such as dumping stations and garbage. If you go to the Olympics, be prepared to separate any garbage into 3 separate containers. There will be pictures on each receptacle to guide you. It is a bit different from what we have in the states currently, so just be careful to look.

Uniform and Credentialing

Today was the day that I received my credentials. The Credentialing centre is at the Whistler Racquet Club. Rod and I walked in and were warmly greeted by 2 young people who directed us to the first station. They must have taken the same class I took about smiling and greeting people when you are a volunteer. The games are very organized. It reminds me of a pull through system utilized in Japan at the Toyota factory. They can move people through rapidly and efficiently with very clear direction. If there are problems, there are checkpoints along the way to not obstruct the flow of people.

Rod is not volunteering, but he was able to accompany me throughout the process. I walked up to the first station and another friendly face asked me for my picture ID. She handed me a slip of paper, and told me to follow the green line which wrapped around the corner to the photography area.

Another friendly gray haired lady greeted me and requested that I stand on the grey line to have my picture taken.

“Please, no smiling. This is to be like a passport photo” she says as she prepares the computer. “Well, you can smile a little bit, but you can’t show your teeth”

I practice smiling without opening my mouth. “Is this okay?” She smiles and laughs a little.

“Okay, ready? Three, two, one” and she clicks the camera.

The computer starts to freeze up. This reminds me of Friday when I was trying to chart at work and the computer stops functioning in the middle of a long thought out note. Another volunteer comes around to help. I’m standing there with my passport smile and no teeth in case they get the computer running again. I can see Rod looking at me from across the room with a quizzical expression on his face.

“Okay, let’s take your picture again”. She says without looking up from her screen. You can see she is not enjoying this. My brothers used to tease me that taking my picture would break their cameras. This thought goes through my head. I practice my passport smile again, no teeth, and she snaps the picture again.

It isn’t going through again. Now there are two people with frowns on their faces trying to figure out what has happened. Rod’s expression is more quizzical.. I mouthed the words, “I broke the camera”. I can see his shoulders move up and down as his quietly snickers at the situation. It is hard now for me not to show my teeth because his chuckling makes me laugh.

Finally the picture goes through, and I am directed to follow the blue line to the printer where my ID will be laminated and given to me. I am given a credential badge with a Vancouver 2010 Lanyard. It’s kind of pretty (not the picture).

Next, is uniform fitting. I take a number “59” and am called immediately by a very slender woman who is to help fit me into the clothing I will wear for two weeks. I want to tell her that my thighs are large because I ski race, not because I really like crème brulee. But, I don’t think she is going to believe me. So, I just suck it up and go to the rack and start trying on sizes.

The uniforms are very attractive and look nice with most any complexion or body style. They are a beautiful blue with a hint of Aqua. My friend, Merilyn, would be able to pin it down to the exact color of the coat and give it a name. I wish I could give you that detail, and may be able to at some point if Merilyn gets a chance to see the color prior to my departure on Feb. 11.

As a volunteer, we are issued a coat, a polar fleece vest, 2 long sleeved t-shirts, pants (in my case they are like ski pants because I am at an outdoor venue) and a tuque (Canadian for beanie hat). If we work all of our assigned shifts, we can keep the uniform. If not, we need to relinquish it.

The fitting is over, and I take the form with the sizes on it to the next station, following the orange line, until 2 more friendly people greet us to hand out the uniform that will be my fashion statement for 2 weeks.

It’s going to be fun volunteering. I ask the man behind the counter about the pins fastened to his lanyard. He is a roughly 70 years old and launches into a story about his favorite pin he was given from parking cars near the ski jumping venue. We listen as the other volunteer goes into the back room to find the right size, and comes out with the wrong size. While the first volunteer embellishes his story a bit more, the right sizes finally come out. This is what I am looking forward to. The stories behind people. I’m really excited to be able to write it down so years from now, I’ll be able to look back, when my memory has faded and experience it all over again.

Venue Specific Training

Here it is!! I finally get to see where I will be living for 2 weeks. The Whistler Sliding Centre can be accessed by taking the Excaliber gondola up from the main village. Rod drives me to the base because at this time, there is car access. During the games, there will not be access. We meet in a large tent that holds nearly 500 people. There are coffee and cookie stations at the back of the tent where people are gathered. It is clear that many people already know each other. There are conversations and laughter heard throughout the room. These are the people I will get to know soon, and I look forward to it.

The presentation starts.

For those of you who don’t know much about the Sliding Sports, (which I am one) I thought it would be fun to take you through what I learned. It is really quite fascinating. I’m hoping that I can provide you information about the sliding sports so that you can understand more about a sport that most of us only see once every 4 years. I’m learning as I go, so if there are things that don’t seem exact, just know that I am on the learning curve.

The Whistler Sliding Centre holds three different sports. Bobsleigh (I’ve called it Bobsled until now), Luge and Skeleton. The Bobsleigh runs the track with either 4 men or 4 women. A bobsleigh athlete is big, strong and powerful who can sprint hard and fast and quick. The men are often CFL football players. The goal is to start at the top as fast as possible. Shaving one tenth of a second off at the top can translate to much faster times at the bottom since speed is amplified. Usually, there are three burly people and a driver. The next step of Bobleigh is the jump into the sleigh BEFORE it runs down the track . Imagine trying to stuff 4 football players in a Smart Car at high speed and in an organized fashion without tangling limbs. This is the ballet portion of this event.

On a luge, the slider goes down feet first, laying on their backs. They do not lift their heads so essentially are running blind. There are races with 1 or 2 people on one luge. There were a lot of funny comments about the double luge since one man lays on top of another feet first at roughly 85 mph. I was able to see a luge sled at the venue, and have to say there isn’t much to it. (A luge athlete would likely disagree with this statement). What I mean is that if I am going 85 mph down a track, I want more around me than a little frame.

The double luge can be any combination of gender, but it just hasn’t been anything other than 2 men in the Olympics. There was a request out for anyone interested in riding the first double gender double luge ever performed in the games. Any takers?

On the skeleton, the rider goes down head first laying on their stomach. I sometimes question the sanity of these people, but probably shouldn’t since I ski race. One time in Maine, we skied super G on blue ice that you could see through. I probably shouldn’t be pointing my finger at anyone.

The Whistler Sliding Centre is currently the fastest track in the world. This week in trials, a Canadian Ian Cockerline broke the world record at 153.9 km/hr. It is thought that this Olympics will deliver the fastest times ever seen. In our meeting, it was clear that there is a competitive camaraderie between disciplines. There was much banter about who was really faster, the luge or the bobsleigh. At the moment, the men’s luge is the hold out for the fastest sliders. However, there is a concerted effort of the bobsleigh community to put this statistic to rest. I was glad to hear that the head first skeleton people weren’t vying to be the fastest. Maybe I’m a bit squeamish.

So, what is it like to ride in a bobsleigh or luge? We had the opportunity to watch a video with a play by play by a 3 time Olympian. Going through a course through the eyes of a competitor was fascinating and exhilarating. Maybe I should trade in my skis…..

There are 16 curves to the track. Some of them have names based on experiences during races and training. When a new track is built, curves are named based on a variety of things over time as stories unfold. So when you are watching the Olympics on TV, here is a bit of trivia and discussion of the G forces that impinge on a racer‘s body at any point in time:

Curve number 3 is named Wedge. It is named after Wedge Mountain up near Whistler. It is typical for a curve on any sliding track to be named after a geographical point nearby.

1 G is gravity to keep your feet on the ground at sea level.

At curve 3, there are about 3 Gs pulling on the slider’s body. At this point a slider’s vision goes from color to black and white. With each successive curve, the speed and G-forces rapidly increase. By curve 6, the sliders are feeling about 5 Gs, which gives tunnel vision.

Spectators are asked to not take any flash photography at any time. This is for obvious reasons.

The number 7 curve is called Lueder’s Loop. This is aptly named after a 1998 Olympic champion Pierre Lueder who kept “looping” on curve 7 during his training runs. Looping means that instead of taking a straight direct course through the curve, the sled shimmies from side to side making it more challenging to control sometimes flipping the sleigh. Apparently the story goes that others noticed that Lueder was having difficulty in this section, and somebody put a sticky note on the track as a joke to everyone that Lueder was looping there. The name stuck.

Curve 11 is called “Shiver”. Curve 11 is a huge sweeping corner that comes after downhill grades approaching 20-29 percent, and speed has become a significant factor if not before this point. The G forces are approaching 6 where some people, who are less fit, would lose consciousness. The curve is called shiver because most sliders shiver in fear right before they drop into it.


After coming out of curve 11, there can be a massive acceleration propelling the slider into curve 12. Curve 13 is called 50/50. Having ski raced, and accelerated more than I was expecting, I get this one. Curve 13 is called 50/50 because it is really hard to control what happens when things just come up too fast for you to be able to react in time. For the 50% of the people who can react fast enough, they get to make the curve. For those who are a bit slower to react……don’t. Plain and simple. Curve 13 is named 50/50. It is hoped that at the Olympics, they have to rename it 60/40.

The final curve of the track, number 16, and the one that happens just the end and before the track makes a sweeping turn to go uphill to stop, is called Thunderbird. There is a beautiful cultural story in the naming of this curve. The land that Whistler resides is native. The thunderbird was sacred with the Squamish natives through history, and by naming the final curve Thunderbird, they were able to blend cultural history, spirituality, sport and acoustics, in one beautiful place…..Apparently, the sound of a sleigh going through this final curve sounds like thunder.

If you watch sliding sports this winter, I hope this bit of trivia will make watching a bit more interesting. As it turns out, I may be able to watch more of this event than I originally thought. After checking the workforce in, I will be free to walk and climb all over the venue. It will be much exercise but this is what I like!

At the end of the evening, we did a walking tour of the venue and I met with 4 of the people who I will be working with closely. They are both Canadian from Vancouver, and are about my age. It was fascinating finally see what I had only imagined before. This is going to be a lot of work, but very rewarding.

We said our good byes and wished each other well until we meet again in 2 weeks. I hopped into the Excaliber gondola to go back down to the village. Most people had parked at the venue, and were walking to their cars. I rode down at night and could see the lights of the village twinkling as the gondola quietly dropped to the village. It was peaceful and beautiful and a nice way to end a great evening.

Rod was waiting at the bottom at Dublinn’s Gate, an Irish Pub with excellent food. Rod had a Guinness Burger, and I had Irish Stew. It was grand.

We drove back to my aunt’s place at Birch Bay, on the Sea to Sky Highway with very little traffic since it was past 9:00pm. We pulled into the house at Birch Bay and Mitzi was still up. We showed her the uniform and talked as the water lapped at the beach outside. I was very tired, and it didn't take long to fall into a dead sleep....