We’re all winners at the Olympic Games
Well, it is now day 11 of the Winter Olympic Games; day 12 of my time here. I had hoped to blog a little more often than this, but things tend to take on a life of their own sometimes. I have been here long enough that my days here have become somewhat routine (but not necessarily in a bad way).
I am part of the Spectator Care division of Medical Services. We are the first responders for all spectators at Whistler Olympic Park. This covers quite an area, from where they are dropped off via buses, all the way up to and including all of each of the three stadiums (cross country, ski jump, and biathlon). The portions of the venue(s) we cover on a particular day are entirely dependent upon what events are happening when.
Here’s the typical day for me:
I wake up at 4:15 a.m. so I can leave the condo by 5:10 a.m. so I can catch the local bus to the Squamish Transit Exchange, where I catch the 5:40 a.m. shuttle to Whistler Olympic Park in the Callaghan Valley. I generally arrive there in time to process through security, check-in, get my lunch voucher, pick up two bottles of Dasani, and hop the Workforce shuttle over to the day lodge, where we try to be ready to go by 7:00 a.m. I then spend all morning walking back and forth along the pedestrian walkways or around one of the stadiums until it’s time to grab lunch (which generally consists of soup and a roll, a sandwich, a granola bar, a piece of fruit, and a Coca-Cola branded drink of some sort). Lately there has only been time enough to eat the soup and roll, and the rest gets shoved into the pack for later. Then it’s back to walking a different part of the venue, eventually ending up with walking around one of the stadiums. It’s a lot of walking – hours upon hours of it. We generally get to leave around 4:00-4:30 p.m. If I’m lucky, I’m home by 5:30-6:00 p.m. on those days. And I am usually beat.
The nice thing about Spectator Care (as opposed to Athlete Care) is that we pretty much get to see all of the events. That and we aren’t confined to one small area. All of that walking means I’m still able to wear my ski pants without a belt. (Not that they haven’t gotten tighter – my current diet, which seems to be filled with things like poutine, Toblerone, and Aussie burgers, isn’t really doing me any favors.)
That said, that’s all I have the energy for tonight. I’ll try to write again, sooner this time. And maybe I will manage to post at least a few of the more than 600 pictures I’ve somehow managed to take already. In closing, I will just say that this experience has been truly amazing … and I feel like a winner just being in the mix.
Motto
2 Responses to “We’re all winners at the Olympic Games”
Posted by: Marcus - 02/23/2010
Sounds great Kaia — there’s still time to make it down to Wenatchee for the Hog Loppet this weekend. I’m calling it my own personal Nordic Pursuit.
Posted by: thelawgoddess - 02/23/2010
Maybe next year, Marcus. I’m at the Olympics through the weekend!
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