Medal Day for Canada at London 2012!

Wow, 3 more bronze medals in 90 minutes on Day 4; I believe!!!!  Now known as Triple Medal Tuesday.

Antoine Valois-Fortaine wins bronze in Judo.  Looks like his first Olympics, only 22 years old!  He beat USA.

10m synchro diving pair Meaghan Benfeito and Rosaline Filion for their bronze win.  They finished 7th in Beijing, so this must feel great!

Christine Girard who lives in White Rock gets bronze for weightlifting, first ever for Canada!  She was 4th in Beijing.

All 4 are originally from Quebec.  I remember the 2010 Olympics and most of the short track speed skating team is from there too.  Wow, they must have some passion and drive over there!

Also, Michael Phelps makes Olympic history with 19 medals, the most ever.  Congratulations!  When they interviewed him, he said he just had to relax, have fun, enjoy himself!  And he did, he came back after the disappointing first few races.  It was in him.

Women's gymnastics team placed 5th, a first for Canada.  Even going to the finals was a first.  Great job girls, Elisabeth Black, Victoria Moors,  Dominique Pegg, Brittany Rogers and Kristina Vaculik! It all looks so good, I love gymnastics, but I can't do it, I tried in high school.  Brittany is from Coquitlam, BC!  The rest of the team hails from Ontario.

Olympic withdrawal

Although I didn't get much sleep during the Olympics due to my work and volunteer schedule; although some volunteer shifts in the rain were not my favourite, nor the early 5 am starts, I have to say that I'm a bit depressed now that the games are over.

The radio stations are saying that lots of people feel that way. Perhaps it's the idea that nothing is on tv except meaningless reality tv or fiction. Perhaps it's nowhere to go, nothing to do on a weeknight, or weekend, for that matter. Perhaps it's no visitors to strike up conversations with, or no athletes to cheer for.

Whatever it is, bring the feeling back! I hope Vancouver sorts itself out and our entertainment industry finds ways to bring people closer together, to party, enjoy the city, become more friendly. Maybe all those foreign investors will come and buy businesses, and make us an international destination. Not that it's not right now, but in contrast to world cities, we don't have the large gathering places, like plazas to hang out, the public washrooms, the clubs that open til the wee hours of the morning. After all, we are only ~ 2 million large for Metro Vancouver and you consider other cities with way more than that.: London England > 7 million, NYC > 8 million, Paris 14 million, etc.

Well, the only thing I found interesting to do this weekend, was a 3-day international salsa festival, and spray painting for strata on my condo building (get that graffiti artist out of me).

last day - Royal Canadian Mint, Closing Ceremonies and German Fan Fest

The last day, and most people are supposed to be watching the men's gold medal hockey game, Canada vs. USA. So, how come I got to the line at the Royal Canadian Mint and was told it would be a 5 hour wait?! What are you all doing here? I guess they were all thinking the same as me, that it would be slow...

Well, I waited 3.5 hours from lining up, to touching the medals. It was a long line, where you got a stamp and a white glove to get access to the medal room for 10 minutes with about 20 other people. Somehow, we all got photos. The Olympic medals are circular, and the paralympic ones are more square. I met Dan, the Project Manager, who has been working on these for over 2 years! But what a gig! I almost want to apply!

People lined the streets, pouring out from the pubs to celebrate our win, 14th gold medal, the most ever, against USA!!!!

We headed to the (Australian) Moose Bar to watch the closing ceremonies. It was the only pub not over capacity and still had tables. We were right by the tv, but it was so loud at times, that it was hard to hear. What great talent they showcased: William Shatner, Michael J Fox, Micheal Buble, K-Os. It was definitely more upbeat than the opening.

We then went to German Fan Fest. My elementary school friend was in town. He lives in Germany now, and when he bought Olympic tickets, he got VIP. We got in, although there wasn't much of a line. However, we didn't have to pay the $20 cover and got a free bratwurst and beer.

Acoustica was the in house band, what a gig! They were dressed in red and white.

We noticed that there was a VIP tent, but it wasn't us, but meant for the athletes, VVIP. We saw some athletes in ski suits, yellow, with pink vests (for the girls) and blue vests. Neither one of us knew who any of them were, but my friend went over to speak to 1 of 2 ladies. He recapped his German conversation with me:
Hi, are you an athlete?
Yes
What sport do you do?
Luge
Did you win a medal?
Yes, gold
GOLD?! (at this point, I knew the conversation was not going well)
Hey, take my picture (as he hands me his camera)
She did not look impressed. She pointed towards her friend and said, she won silver for bobsleigh.

He still didn't know her name. We didn't have an iphone to check. How embarrassing is that!
She is Tatjana Huefner, luge gold medalist.

There was also a group of men, but I just couldn't embarrass myself. Especially since he told Tatjana that he's not German, but his wife is (and I'm not his wife), and I'm wearing his German coloured scarf. If I had my Canadian red on, I would feel a little better for being so ignorant.

He said that it's so hard to keep up. Germany won 30 medals, Canada won 26, totalling about 56 ahtletes, and include all the non medalists! Germany has 152 ahtletes, Canada has 205, and there were 2622 in total. Congratulations to them all!

My friend ended up asking a non ski suit wearing guy, who his athlete friends were. We were told luge silver medalist. I found one: David Mueller. I still gotta find the other 2...perhaps Torsten Wustlich, luge, and luge gold medalist Felix Loch? Hard to tell when they're not smiling in the Olympic photo and I've got one guy here with his eyes closed. I hope I got it right, and congratulations!!!

We headed out about 1230am and walked up Granville. Tons of people on the street, doing nothing but wandering around and not wanting to go home. I had to work on Monday, so I wanted to go home to sleep. I didn't want the Olympic party to end either, but I needed sleep. We got to Robson and Granville and there was still a sea of people. There was tons of trash on the streets, the smell of urine as many guys had to find a place to pee after all the beer drunk this afternoon, and lots of graffiti on the cutout pose statues.

It's like Vancouver was given the opportunity to really party like we've never done before. I felt emotional each time a medal was won by a Canadian. I felt friendly as an Olympic volunteer. I felt like an ambassador for Vancouver to all who came and wanted to enjoy the city and the Olympic fever. I felt that I could really go out with friends and see what happens, be spontaneous, adventurous, but patient at the same time. I really got a chance to enjoy my city in a way that I've never had.

I think being a volunteer gave me the opportunity to do things, and see people I would never get the chance to (Tyson Heung, Apolo Ohno, Patrick Chan, Joannie Rochette). I think volunteering allowed me to see how all the prep comes together; it makes me appreciate how this massive event was coordinated, and with many hiccups. I don't think I will volunteer again, I would rather get paid ;! Hmm, London 2012?

In so many ways, I'm so proud to be Canadian, a Vancouverite, but at the same time, I feel that the world will take me somewhere else where I can really be myself, and happier than ever, to be able to let loose, hang out, enjoy the city. Unless of course, Vancouver loses its "no-fun city" logo...

I think my volunteer life may be coming to an end, and perhaps even Vancouver as a home. I will wait and see how this moment in time has altered my life journey. I feel that something will happen for me soon, I just don't know what. I feel detached and this will allow my destiny to come to be.

the contest

With the Olympics almost over, I remembered that I have this poster about winning given to me when I got my Event Management certificate over 10 years ago. I really like it and I think it embodies competition really well.

The contest lasts for moments
Though the training's taken years
It wasn't the winning alone that
Was worth the work and the tears
The applause will be forgotten
The prize will be misplaced
But the long hard hours of practice
Will never be a waste
For in trying to win
You build a skill
You learn that winning
Depends on will
You never grow by how much you win
You only grow by how much you put in
So any new challenge
You've just begun
Put forth your best
And you've already won.

- W.A. Clennan

Victory Ceremony and Great Big Sea

Tickets for tonights medal ceremony was only $22 retail and since my friend bought and sold a 3rd for $80, he made enough profit selling it that we didn't have to pay anything! Crazy what people will pay for Olympic tickets!

There were 2 medals awarded tonight at BC Place and 2 at Whistler. No Canadians tonight.
My friend was in from Germany, and there was one.

Ladies parallel giant slalom snowboard, Netherlands for Gold, Russia and Austria following.
Freestyle skiing, men's aerials, Belarus for Gold, USA and China following.

Biathlon, men's 4 x 7.5 km relay, Norway for Gold, Austria and Russia following. Alpine skiing, Germany for Gold, Austria and Czech following. Germany's Maria Riesch is a top athlete for that country.

It was Newfoundland and Labrador day today and there were musicians from there but unfortunately I didn't who any of them are. Too bad they didn't have their names on the screen.

Great Big Sea are the headliners and they were very energetic. Too bad we were 3 rows from the top of the stadium, but still some energetic fans up here. I would say that it was about 80-90% full. They only used half the stadium. The semi final men's hockey game was on next door at Canada Hockey place, so I think most of the people were there. Canada vs. Slovakia. We kept getting updates along the way, but we found out later it wasn't accurate (We heard 4-0), but we still won, 3-2! On to the finals on Sunday with USA!

After the concert ended, we met up with my friends from Germany. They were wearing German colours in the form of a Dr. Seuss style hat and a wig. They were getting a lot of attention, good and bad, but still lots of fun. Next time I travel, I'm going to wear Canadian colours and walk around and see what happens.

We headed towards Japadog, since we didn't eat yet and it was so famous, they had to try it before going home. I tried the Okonomi the other day (bonito flakes, fried cabbage, mayo on kurobuta pork, okonomiyaki sauce). I tried Ume today (bratwurst, plum sauce, raw red onion). Better than a standard dog for sure.

On the way, we stopped at Beard Papa's for the famous Chinese style cream puff. Here is their welcome to the world tower of cream puffs.


We were headed towards Germany Fan Fest (which was at Steamworks pub near the Waterfront station) because my friends have VIP tickets since they bought their Olympic tickets from Germany. However, we got sidetracked by the fireworks, fire and light show at Robson Square. We stopped to go to the Roots store because my German friends wanted to buy some clothing. So easy to get distracted here, so many things to see and do, and so many people.

While we were there, we saw the finals for the short track speed skating. Canada won gold and bronze for the men's 500m (Charles Hamelin and Francois Louis-Tremblay). Finally, Charles Hamelin got his medal! His girlfriend and silver medallist Marianne St-Gelais jumped from the stands and onto the field of play to hug and kiss him! How cute is that! That's the kind of support and love that an athlete deserves. Apolo Ohno got disqualified, and Korea took silver (Si-Bak Sung). Korea is just so fast! Poor Tyson Heung, my non-Canadian favourtie, finished 5th. Hey, at least you're here competing, not everyone can do that. I wish I was the one to support him...:)

We also got Gold for the 5000m relay. Yay for the Hamelin brothers! It was so disappointing to watch them come in 4th and 5th place in the individual 1000m race behind Apolo Ohno and the 2 Koreans (Si-Bak Sung and Jung-Su Lee) especially since they were leading most of the race. I think they can't pass as well as them. Olivier Jean and Francois Louis-Tremblay were the other 2 members.

3 more medals for us, we are now 3rd for the medal count and the most gold, at 10!!!! How proud am I to be Canadian. I find myself so emotional when our athletes win. I played sports throughout my student years and still play recreationally now. Too bad it's too late for me to be an Olympian, but I BELIEVE!

Since it was just past 11pm, we decided to head over to the CTV live broadcast with Pamela Martin and Bill Good on Robson Street to see if we could get the Germany colours on TV. It was crazy loud and pushy, lots of Canada flags, people on people's shoulder's, 9/11 signs, etc. There was a spectator with a large paper mache Muk Muk and she moved from the back to the front and then we couldn't see anything at all. We stayed for almost the whole hour, but then just couldn't take it anymore.

We headed towards GE plaza and got our photos taken with the bobsled and the snowboard. It was raining a bit, but it was just too hard to use an umbrella. We just stuck it out and then headed home about 1130pm. No Germany Fan Fest tonight.

LiveCity Yaletown

In the late afternoon, another friend and I headed to LiveCity Yaletown. I tried to come last night, but the line was way too long, considering that the men's hockey team won the quarter finals against Russia.




Today, we only waited 10 mins. The women's gold medal hockey game was on with Canada and US. We were there for the 2-0 win! Another gold for Canada, 17th medal, 8th gold.

We tried to assess the lineups for the sponsor pavilions, Coke, Acer, Samsung and Panasonic, but really didn't want to wait more than 10 mins, so we skipped them all.

We went to Vancouver House instead. It displayed some green initiatives as well as the recently approved laneway houses. ~ 866 sq ft models that are $280,000 to build! Yikes. If I had enough property, I would just make an extension, or sell and buy and bigger place with suites already built in.






We went off to find Haida Gwaii house, near BC Place and it was a tiny shop.

downtown Olympic stuff

I headed downtown with my friend to go check out things during a weekday. We were both hoping to come across shorter lineups. It was a clear day and not raining.

We started at GE Plaza at Robson Square. Circus West performed for half and hour and it wasn't too bad. I've taken these hand balancing classes before, so I know how difficult these poses are and seeing how young these kids are, I just wish that I found the sport earlier so that I would know how to do it.

We walked to the Bell Ice Cube and missed gold medalist Ashley McIvor by ~ 15 min. Bell has live interviews with Olympians at 3pm. We were in line and got in late, so only saw some former Olympians from 1988 or 1992, 2002 Olympics. I didn't know who they were unfortunately. Maybe someone can help me out?

We headed to LiveCity downtown and our wait was only about 10 min. The men's hockey game was supposed to be on at 430pm, so we wanted to get in before the hoards of fans did. There were no lines at both the Canada Pavilion and the Manitoba Pavilion.




























Freestyle skiier Kristi Richards was signing autographs.

last shift, #13, ladies figure skating

For my last shift, I tried to get a media post, as I wanted to see the hubbub, but was misdirected and could only get posted inside at a media access point. In the meantime, Apolo Ohno was doing an interview and I caught him here.

It's figure skating again. 2 volunteers from my team are figure skaters and one of them pointed out Scott Hamilton. I would not have recognized him. Of all the other media coming in and out, CTV, NBC, RDS, SDS, French TV, etc, I didn't recognize anyone.


The media compound is a bunch of trailers, and I have no idea what's inside. The press have lots of cameras, video equipment and designated spots to be.














I saw the last part of Canadian skater Joannie Rochettte. Her mother died suddenly of a heart attack a few days ago. I think she held it all in until she finished skating. She was so emotional at the end and wanted to cry I'm sure, but not in front of the media. A bunch of us volunteers also felt tears swell in our eyes. One of the volunteers actually got her flowers, a "torch" like vase and a bear for hugs. How thoughtful is that? She finished 3rd in the short program, so I hope she can still stay in the top 3 for the long program to win a medal.

I got off shift at ~10 pm. While I waited for the Games Express bus, there must've been almost 6-7 buses that passed us by as "not in service" or not even full! How can you can see the line of blue jacket volunteers and not pick us up?

On the way home on the skytrain, there was a lady who just collapsed and fell out of the skytrain doors onto the platform and puked. Her friend said that they both drank, but this reaction was not normal and that she may have been drugged. Her friend said that she's been drugged before too. There was also a gentleman who stopped to help and also said that him and his friends have had that happen too. How common is this? And why don't people report this stuff? I really urged the ladies' friend to report it, not to just sleep it off, as there might be a guy wandering around drugging drinks and hoping to get somewhere. I felt helpful by calling an ambulance when no one else would. I really hope there aren't a lot of "bad things" happening during the Olympics. When the paramedics came, I headed for home.

In news coverage, I heard we won gold in ski cross, so I stayed up til midnight to watch. Ashley McIvor!! Medal #10 for Canada, our 5th gold! Ski cross is a great spectator sport.

For my last shift, I got a large blue Swatch watch. I won't be keeping it or some of my other souvenirs, and maybe try to sell them before it loses value on the market.

I gave VANOC 111.5 hours of my life and some of it was good, and some not so good. I put some comment cards in about the unfair deployment of volunteers, selfish and unreliable volunteers, poor food nutrition and quality, lack of leadership and organization skills from Team Leads and Supervisors and poor communication from venue managers to volunteers. I did however, put in some glowing comments about some fellow volunteers I worked with and that they were responsible, helpful, had great work ethic and a joy to work with. I guess you get the whole gamut.

I remember now why I didn't want to be supervisor. I remember volunteering for merchandising for the 1999 Jazz Festival as the assistant to the coordinator. We had a lot of trouble coordinating volunteers, because they call in sick, they don't do their roles, they feel it's all fun and games, not a job. I volunteer to get into the "behind the scenes" action as I have always wanted to be an event planner, but not a human resource person. Or maybe, it's just because good help is hard to find. But to all the joyful volunteers, congratulations for helping out with Vancouver 2010 and being part of Team 2010 with a smile on your face and a great attitude.

cauldron, 4 hosts and aboriginal pavilion

Well, I forced myself to stay up after I finished my 5am volunteer shift so that my sleep pattern would return to normal. I called a friend and headed downtown.

We went to the new convention centre and waterfront to see the external cauldron. There were lots of people, but actually not as many as I thought. Maybe 4pm is the time to show up!

There was about a 45min wait for the upper viewing platform. I'm just not that interested in anything that long.

We headed over to Canada's Northern House. It was on Hastings St, at the old Hard Rock Cafe location, I think. Again, only a 20min wait! We got in and saw a caribou and inukshuk. There were lots of animals, stone and bone carvings, and we saw some traditional artic sports. Kind of like hangman with the man replaced by a stuffed toy seal, and trying to kick it.



We headed over towards Live City Downtown and bumped into the BC Hydro building, and hardly a line, we thought it was closed! An employee who is native carved 2 statues and is now in the building as a legacy. We saw the home of the future, 2 converted shipping containers made into a living space with "smart" appliances and sensors.

We kept on walking and hit the 4 hosts building, which is the Vancouver Community College downtown campus. All the aboriginal vendors are in there, lots of wonderful glass and silver native art. Really expensive carvings and figurines, up to $12,o00! Some decent bangles and earrings from $60 to $120.

We kept on walking and found the aboriginal pavilion at Queen Elizabeth theatre. There is a dome theatre with a short 9 min movie about the native people of Canada. It was pretty good, and again, we only waited ~ 20min.

We decided to leave about 7pm and realized that the women's hockey game just finished at Canada Hockey Place (GM Place). We had avoided almost all the crowds until now! Well, we were lucky, as most people were headed back into downtown and there was no real wait for the skytrain.

Not bad to get all that in, in ~ 3 hours! "Go Canada Go" and Canada flags were posted all over corporate buildings. It was great to see the patriotism come out.

shift #12 - figure skating training again

I was late, just can't wake up anymore; my 3rd 5 am shift in a row. I was caught by a team lead on my entrance and taken to the Coliseum, but I was lucky to be inside, because other hosts who were late got posted outside.

Really short on staff now, even the team leads need to cover 2 areas. I was on the entry team, but since the training is really boring to me, I preferred to have a seat and be an access monitor for the lower arena where the athletes can go. I sat most of my shift and then was rotated to ushering. So many people in the wrong seats, and the quality of the skating was dull to me.

Some of the skaters don't do their whole routine. You follow them once their music starts, but then they stop their routine and so you watch another skater on the ice. I watched the Canadian pair do free dance. I was a little more impressed with this style as it added holds and body flips, etc, like circus arts on skates. They just won gold in ice dance - ice dance and free dance combined! Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. Canada's 10th medal.

I got my 12th shift gift. We had a choice. Originally I picked a pair of angora gloves with cut off fingertips and the mitt cover, but it had so many holes, I figured it wouldn't be warm. I opted instead for the fleece lined black gloves, but they were quite large, probably for men, but I didn't want a toque nor another scarf.

Last shift tomorrow, and they told me it would be a watch!

shift #11 - workforce entry

Ah, another 5 am start. I just can't get enough sleep!

I was assigned outside to the foxtrot team, working the workforce, or accreditation entry. We just scan staff in and make sure they go through random security screening when the computer system says so.

Nothing of note today, other than another ticketed figure skating event, ice dance. Lots of fans showing up at 6am to watch! Just crazy. Some Japanese fans came without tickets and were hoping to see famous people. Too bad we couldn't let them in, and that the athletes come on a bus and get dropped off at a secure entrance...We had other people just walking the grounds and wondering what was going on. Too bad I don't speak Mandarin to help these women out.

I worked with 2 other wonderful volunteer hosts and we managed ourselves for the whole day. Margaret Ardine and Christianna Wilder. Goes to show you that there are great volunteers out there, and also bad ones. Lots of people quitting, not showing up for their shifts, or leaving early.

I got off at 130pm and went home, hoping to stay up, but eventually ended up on the couch fast asleep for almost 4 hours!

I caught some tv coverage and Canada lost to the US hockey team, we missed another medal for the ski cross when our Canadian Chris Delbosco crashed on the last bump, he could've had bronze. We got silver in the long track speed skating though (it looked almost like a Gold, but not quite), ladies 1500m, Kristina Groves.

1st day as a spectator

Finally, a day to enjoy the Olympics without working or volunteering, Friday Feb 19. My friend is in from out of town, but working for the Olympics and we hung out most of the day.

We met up at Olympic station on the Canada Line, and hopped onto the Olympic streetcar. Just ~ 30 min wait, which isn't bad for a Friday. We got to Granville Island. It was a gorgeous sunny day and it was perfect for walking around taking in everything.



First thing we saw was Atlantic House, at the Arts Club Theatre. They only have lines for food tasting and some entertainment, but we weren't going to wait for an hour.


Next one was House of Switzerland, Bridges restaurant. He had raclette and I had a sausage.

We went over the Place de la Francophonie but there was nothing on, I guess mostly nightly entertainment.

We went to Candahar, which was a recreated bar from Belfast. There were wood chairs, pretty bare bones atmosphere. They serve whisky, beer and wine for $5.75.






We ended up at Richmond O-Zone for the evening. It's near Richmond City Hall and Minoru park. They had big screens, but not really much else. I really wanted to see the BCLC games dome, but it was a long line and I had a volunteer shift at 5am and it was already 9pm. We couldn't get into Holland Heinekin House either because it was full and no one was leaving. Pretty disappointing. We did try some ice wine from Iniskillin winery. Pretty darn sweet and I like the vidal grape.

I'm looking forward to seeing other stuff in the following week.

shift #10 - ticket taking

It was bonus gift day, volunteers got a silver medallion and thank you pin from IOC. At least that was a welcome surprise for me, since this is another 5am shift and 2 more to go.

I got on the "entry" team which is at the arena, but I decided to take tickets, as it was a practice figure skating session and I wasn't too interested in ushering. It was so cold in the morning, my new long johns, and extra layer of fleece did not help. Gates open at 6am, people only pay $30 to watch the entire program, ladies and ice dance for 6 hours. The only thing is that there are other skaters on the ice, and some people may not show up.

Scanning was fine, reminds me of my Ticket Master days working doors. There were some problems with people's tickets not scanning. Boy, are those people nervous that they wouldn't get in! Some people bring all their tickets, some people bring the wrong ones, one lady didn't buy one for her kid, who is four, saying that he will sit on her lap, where other people are buying tickets for their babies.

Since I was off at 130pm, it was great to go home and have a nap. This also enabled me to watch the speed skating finals. I was cheering for Canada and Tyson Heung from Germany. I learn so much from TV coverage, it's just so much more informative than being live, but you get the atmosphere and crazy buzz if you're there for a medal finish.

The Hamlin brothers lost their 1000m final to Korea and USA champ Apolo Ohno. They lost steam in the race and came 4th and 5th of 5. Tyson didn't make it through the quarter finals because Charles Hamelin and Apolo Ohno were in his heat and only the top 2 advance. I found out that he's from Brampton Ontario, no wonder he seemed so polite and a lone wolf from the German team, it's that Canadian part of him.

For the ladies, our Kalyna Roberge fell in a heat and our Tania Vincent lost steam also and came last in her 1500m final, coming in 8th. So disappointing.

There's so much pressure on those athletes, but they must want it so bad, that they have to take risks. I've seen a few passes where falls happen and lots of infractions and disqualifications, mostly Korean men. Gotta have good sportmanship!

shift #9 - ingress and egress

Well, I knew it was coming, an outdoor shift. I was with the "plaza" team. I was at the spectator entry, doing "pacer" work. We let only one spectator through the magnetometer at a time, ensuring that the security person watches them go through and if it beeps, the spectator gets wanded for all metal items on the body.

It was so sunny in the afternoon, it was great, I had to bring out my sunglasses. It's funny the stuff people bring to the games, flags, signs, the costumes they wear, etc. It's a sign of patriotism and great spirit. Good for them.

The security guys confiscated a couple of pocket knives, but nothing else to note. There was some inconsistency in messaging from the security people: can you bring in water, can you bring in food? The whole point of "no liquids" is that it's potentially a threat to public safety. The supervisor was on the side of the spectator, saying that if you stand in line for an hour, you get thirsty, you drink from your bottle and now you have to dump it at the gate?

Funny how many people will come late to a figure skating event having paid hundreds of dollars. Lower bowl seating tickets are $450! Some of the Japanese come in their wooden sandals and kimonos, it's great to see, but cold for the feet, I'm sure. It's men's figure skating today.

Ingress was probably the fastest 3 hours I've had volunteering. Once the crowds went in and the sun went down, it was quite cold. My team lead let us have an extra hour break once our entry tent was closed. There was one security guard, Badi, who was very friendly and a great screener, always ready for the next spectator, trying to get them through as quickly as possible. Other workers didn't have the same work ethic. I heard about 5000 people were hired by security for the games, but I don't think any of them would stop a threat, they were more into standing with a metal wand, or into customer service and socializing.

I read in the paper that there was a 2nd security breach, where an x-ray operator thought he saw a gun in a bag, but didn't stop the bag or person, was too busy calling over a supervisor and cops to check out the video! These guys are protecting our games?!

Egress was quite a steady flow, ~12,000 people leaving the arena and trying to get home. Really cold now, ~ 2100h. I feel bad for the spectators, they have to walk ~ 400m from the street to the entrance and same on the exit. The way the organizers mapped out the venue, in my opinion, was not the best way. I think the spectators always come last, where media, sponsors, etc get priority treatment. I heard USA Evan Ysacek upset the favoured Russian Evgeni Plushenko for Gold. I saw Patrick Chan skate and he fell a couple times and came 5th.

For my 9th shift, I got a silver plated keychain for "Team 2010" from Birks.

shift #8 - short track speed skating

Yay, I was posted inside again! I was at the south end of the Coliseum and watched the first half of the races. I missed the finals for the women and the qualifying for the men's relay.

Women's 500m quarter and semi finals and men's 1000m heats. Lots of crashes and some of our Canadians qualified, but we only won silver for the women's 500m; Marianne St-Gelais; we got edged out by a toe by China. Canadian Jessica Gregg got 4th and Italy got Bronze. Our other Canadain Kalyna Roberge got 6th. Gregg lost some power because of 2 bad starts in her heat with Great Britain's Sarah Lindsay edging into her lane. They both fell twice and lost some energy.

I missed the men's 5000m relay, but we qualified.

Gold medalist Jennifer Heil was in the crowd and people were asking her for photos and autographs.

Quite a short shift, as the competition is only 2.25 hrs long. Met a really cute policeman from Montreal Police, Luc. And I saw my cutie from Germany race, Tyson!

No photos today, the volunteer boss is getting more stringent on that, but how can we take photos when we're in full uniform and on break? Not possible and lots of volunteers are doing it. Just don't get caught I guess.

shift #7 - men's figure skating short program

Yay, I was inside again, Tribune team. I was posted right beside the media and press boxes and the Olympic Family Lounge. There are so many desks for the press and broadcasters. Tons of laptops, cameras, video equipment, microphones, etc. I was standing beside France Television and these are probably very popular people and I have no idea who they are.

I had to block off access to this restricted zone (sections 8-11 and C - I) and the public were not too happy. We blocked off one set of bathrooms too, just for the Olympic family. I had to escort Patrick Chan's grandfather, 90 yrs old to the washroom. He didn't have a pass, but his other family member did, so gave him the pass. I guess people are used to the Coliseum and going all the way around. Everyone seemed to want to go around and check things out.

I watched the last half of the men's figure skating short program. I saw Patrick Chan skate, he came 7th overall with 81.12 pts. We have another guy, Vaughn Chifeur, but he didn't make the top 10, he was 27th with 57.22 pts. Lots of point differentials, the highest being in the 90s, all the way down to 40 something points. Even though I don't know much about figure skating, you can just tell when some skaters perform great turns, clean landings, awesome footwork and great performances. I love it when the music is upbeat and the crowd claps along.

Russia, USA and Japan are currently 1st, 2nd and 3rd.

I saw some people interviewing and asked who it was. It was Elizabeth Manley, Rod Black and David Pelletier.

shift #6 - figure skating pairs short program

My supervisor said, how romantic, volunteering at the Olympics for pairs figure skating.

I got a little stuffed Miga for my 6th shift, worth ~$20. I'm on the entry team today.

I saw my sister; lucky for me, I was posted to the section she was sitting at. I gave my Miga to her. She has more Olympic spirit than me, spending money on tickets, buying Olympic mitts and a Canada scarf! Good for her. And her fiance watched the men's moguls and our first gold, Alexandre Bilodeau in freestyle skiing !

I watched most of the pairs figure skating short program, with the exception of dinner break. I learned that the short and long program scores get combined for the total score for the medal. I was inside doing ushering at sections 22 to 24, upper bowl of the Coliseum. Pretty fun to be able to watch and help people find their seats. Section 22 was for athletes and it was interesting to see them in their country uniforms and cheering on their team mates. Lots of people throwing out gifts for the performers.

The poor spectators who have to go up to the last row, 26 at the top. It's quite steep and some people are elderly or have bad knees. I guess those are the cheap seats and then I heard that some of the flags at the top are blocking their view from the big screen. I guess the organizers didn't check that part.

I saw Josee Chouinard MC'ing in the crowd. She interviewed Brian Boitano. The closest I've been to a real Olympian.

Our Canadians, Jessica Dube and Bryce Davidson came 6th with 65.36 pts and Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay came 7th with 64.20 pts. The Chinese pair, Xue Shen and Hongbo Xao came 1st. Germany and Russia are currently 2nd and 3rd.

shift #5 - figure skating practice session

First day of competition for the 21st Winter Olympic games! It's finally here!

I started at 5am. There was a ticketed session for figure skating practice, pairs and mens this morning 7am to 1pm. I guess tickets would be cheaper than for competition. I was assigned outside and it was cold and I was not happy, but had to do my job. Just doing access monitoring again and not letting spectators into acredited zones.

During my breaks, I would go in and look to see who was on the ice. I saw a pairs routine, although I don't know who they were or what country they're from. I did get a chance to see Patrick Chan warm up. The only reason I knew it was him, was because of all the cheers and people telling me. Have a look at the video.

I also saw the performance of Austria skater, Viktor Pfeifer, not very interesting, not a lot of jumps, but mostly dance performance. I saw pairs from Ukraine, but didn't know who it was.

The opening ceremonies were great on TV. The commentary really helps. Since I saw the dress rehearsal 2 days ago, I now know what some of the actual segments really mean. I really enjoyed Sarah MacLachlan's performance, and seeing Nelly Furtado and Bryan Adams. The poet was really good, and I really like the maple leaf with roller bladers.

shift #4 - Killarney training session, short track speed skating

New venue today, Killarney Centre. This is the training venue for short track speed skating, and probably my most eventful and exciting shift yet!

I saw lots of teams today as I was posted at the athlete entry and in the rink beside the athletes as they warmed up, trained and cooled down. First up was Australia in green and gold suits like skeletons, Tatiana Borodilina and Lachlan Hay. They trained along side Japan, ~8 athletes, in black and gold suits; and Russia. ~5 athletes, through relays. The Australia girl used to compete for Russia and they all probably know each other through world cup competitions anyways. Lachlan is tall and fast!

Women apparently go ~ 40km/h, so imagine the guys! I saw much more speed later in the day. The rink is bigger than the normal hockey rink and tons of thick padding all the way around. They use small cones on the turns and change the placement of these cones to skate on fresh ice, so that there's almost 3 rings to skate around. They replace each other in the relay by having a skating following on the inner track and change after ~ 1.5 - 2 laps, by pushing each other. It's fascinating how coordinated this is.

Next up was Great Britain and Netherlands, 7 athletes each. Great Britain in navy blue with the Union Jack and Netherlands in black and orange. The Dutch team was fun to watch, they seem to really like to practice relay throughout the entire hour that they were on the ice. Good looking ladies on the Dutch team.

Next up CANADA! Yay! I was so happy to be able to see them. They had the rink almost to themselves, with the exception of a lone Czech Republic girl, Katarine Novotna. Canada has 10 skaters, the only one I can remember seeing is Olivier Jean, because of his hair. Black and red suits. Most of the team is from Quebec and I heard this is because they have a really good short track speed skating program there. Apparently the sport really took off when one of our athletes won a bunch of medals in Calgary. Cool! Only 2 athletes are from BC.

Then, Team USA. 10 athletes again. Apparently Apolo Ohno was the one to watch. He is fast, but mostly known for his win on Dancing with the Stars! They're all the same to me. This was the only team to use all their ice time, that they had to be kicked off the ice for the next set. I always found that USA teams have so much drive, and I could really feel the intensity in the rink. Coaches were pushing their athletes hard and they were training hard, every minute. The pace was fast and really intense.

A bit of press for Canada and USA showed up. The Olympic News Service is a bunch of journalists who provide interviews or facts for to help out other media services. I met a fellow, John Crumlish, who has been to 3 Olympics. He says he doesn't always get credit, but his coverage may spark a good interview or be used in actual press.

Last set was France and Germany. There was a young guy who I really liked. He was training on his own, warming up, getting sprints in, spoke good English, really polite and really good looking :). I noticed that he seemed to be the lone wolf of the team, either dedicated or just focused. Tyson Heung, I'll hope to see him compete for real. Tons of relays for the German team, fascinating to watch.

On the French team, one woman I remember is Veronique Pierron. Funny, there's so many of them, they're all so young and once they put their suits and helmets on, they all kinda look the same. Amazing how they can get to this level of competition by their 20s. If only my parents got me into volleyball! Too bad for me.

I saw the Olympic torch relay go by. I was at my post and couldn't really see it, but there were vehicles with music, security escorts, runners and the community. Pretty cool. It was supposed to go by my work and actually stop, so I'll have to ask my colleagues tomorrow. It was supposed to be at the RCMP Memorial with musical ride horses and the whole shebang.

For the 9 hour shift, I was really cold most of the time, but had a fun time. I met some Montreal Police, some RCMP from across the country and a diplomat protection detail lady, Andrea, from the US. Love to see what people do for work and why they've come.

On a final note, I got the opportunity to see the final dress rehearsal for the Opening Ceremonies at BC Place last night. I didn't have many expectations until a coworker mentioned that he went to the rehearsal 2 days ago and it blew him away. I was a bit disappointed, but there were certainly some highlights. Mum's the word, as I won't be the leak, but I'm hoping to watch the TV coverage of the live ceremonies and compare.

Until next shift...

shift #3 - pre games training - short track speed skating

Oh man, 5am is not my idea of fun! I got my first gift for volunteering, a Team 2010 pin.

This time, I was on the "foxtrot" team, we were stationed outside all day. At least it wasn't raining, and there were some posts with heaters. I was cold all day and just couldn't warm up.

I scanned people coming into the venue and stopped a bunch of external staff who didn't have the right accreditation. Man, people get impatient when you don't give them access!

There are 4 designated entrances to the Coliseum and they service different people; public, media and workforce. VANOC has hired security and have cops all over the place. Apparently 6000 officers from all agencies across Canada are here. Security has a x-ray machine but right now we're only doing random screening. I think when Games times starts, they will be screening everyone.

When I had a break, I went to watch who was on the ice. I saw men speed skaters from Italy. I saw them do a start with 4 people and they went into formation really quickly and were totally synchronized! Pretty amazing choreography. They had another person skating alongside the 4some on the inside track and then he replaced the lead skater at a later point to carry on the relay.

Then I saw women's Chinese team . They were not as coordinated as the Italian team, but it's just practice now. The Olympics are brand free, so only the country name or 3 letters are on the team uniform somewhere. I saw 2 Bulgarians rotating in with the Italian team, one lone guy from Kazakshtan and a few others. It's a much better view with the binoculars.

3 am just couldn't come fast enough!