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VideoOver a week between posts during the Olympic Games can only mean one thing: They don’t let me bring my laptop into the Vancouver bars or clubs.
But seriously, I began this post with the angle that Canadian athletes performing in Vancouver may ultimately be at a disadvantage because of the enormous pressure that comes with performing in front of the home crowd.
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Even as I write this article at a local Starbucks, I still never tire of looking out the window to see the constant stream of people, mostly Canadians, flocking to get a glimpse and a photo of the Olympic cauldron down at Coal Harbour, just adjacent to the west side of the International Broadcast Centre. You can literally stare at the flame for hours.
Yesterday, I happened to also be in the right place at the right time to watch Montreal’s Alex Bilodeau beat out rival and Vancouver-born Dale Begg-Smith, the defending Olympic champion who races for Australia, to win Canada’s first-ever gold medal on home soil. That was definitely the cherry/icing on top of the cake.
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With the Winter Games comes a little culture. I don’t have a lot of time to write a long post here, but I do have some vids and pics for your viewing pleasure!
I’ll fill in the blanks…
As you can read for the posted link, LunarFest is part of the Cultural Olympiad taking place at several locations in downtown Vancouver. I walked around this one on Granville Street.
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VideoBefore I get into today’s main topic, I thought I’d delve into more detail on a topic brought up in the comments section of my last post dealing with a small incident with a protester after my shift last night.
Just to give a little background, and excuse me if I’m repeating anything from a previous post, but my job over here at the Vancouver Olympic Games is working within the Logistics/Transportation Department until my contract ends in early March.
So just to cut to the chase (and I wish I had filmed this), after completing my shift early this morning and heading to the Burrard Street Skytrain station, an older “gentleman” from Montreal approached myself and a couple coworkers just outside the station’s entrance.
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VideoRight off the bat I want to apologize for going AWOL on everyone. I’m sorry to all of those who have been waiting for another tidbit of what I’ve been experiencing on the west coast since my first post over a week ago.
I hope it’ll be worth the wait.
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Well I’m here.
Besides leaving the -21 C temperatures behind in Toronto ( it’s at least 10 C in Vancouver), it’s a fact that I get to escape my hometown during the most frigid month of the year to work at the Olympic Games.
Not only do I get paid but I’m stylin’ with free gear.
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Do call it a comeback.
Trailing by double digits early in the contest, the Raptors rallied to win their ninth road game of the year in a 106-104 thriller against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night.
Down by five late in the game, in front of the zoo known as New York fans, the Raps did what they’ve been making a habit of in the past month: playing tough defence.
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With 20 seconds remaining in the fourth, the Miami Heat watched Raptors forward Antoine Wright, a career .295 shooter from three-point land, launch a crucial three ball with Toronto up by four.
Considering the offensive weapons at the Raps’ disposal, that would be a best case scenario for the defence.
In one fluid motion, Wright released the jumper and buried the shot to cement an exciting 111-103 win over the visiting Miami Heat on Wednesday night.
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You can’t stop the Rock.
A week after Toronto’s dramatic overtime win in their home opener, which featured a royal rumble-style line brawl, the Rock showed they like to use their hands for offence as well.
Led by rookie sensation Garret Billings’ five goals and Bob “Whipper” Watson’s 45 saves, the Rock streamrolled the Rochester Knighthawks 17 to 3 before 10,104 at the Air Canada Centre Saturday night.
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Give them an ‘A’ for effort, but, unfortunately, two more in the loss column.
For two consecutive nights, the Raptors hung tough until the very end only to fold in the final minutes and spoil a chance to climb the standings.
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After hitting only three of their first 16 shots, it looked liked the Raptors would treat the Air Canada Centre crowd to a game as stimulating as waiting for a delayed flight to arrive.
However, what followed couldn’t have been more the opposite.
With a complete team effort the rest of the way, the Raps dismantled and dominated the Dallas Mavericks in a convincing 110-88 victory.
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Almost déjà vu all over again.
Four days after blowing a 23-point lead to the Indiana Pacers, the Raptors let a 28-point lead shrink to eight before finally icing the New York Knicks late in the fourth quarter, winning 112-104.
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Hedo Turkoglu calmly dribbled along the baseline, gliding past the Indiana Pacers’ porous defence for an uncontested reverse lay-up.
That basket gave the Raptors a 59-36 lead with four minutes left in the second quarter but it all came crashing down, in a demoralizing 105-101 loss on Monday night.
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Chris Bosh showed the critics why he doesn’t know the meaning of the word ’slump.’
After an average 18-point performance versus the Orlando Magic on Wednesday, Bosh led the Raptors back from a 13-point deficit to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers 108-106. (More …)
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The Toronto Raptors took the lead early in the first quarter and then hung on to beat the Orlando Magic 108-103.
Despite leading by as many as 16 points in the fourth quarter, the Raptors almost saw that lead disappear thanks to a one-sided reffing effort involving nine straight foul calls against Toronto. However, the lead was too great for Orlando to overcome as the Raptors went to .500 (17-17) for first time since starting the season 5-5.
