RHYS BOWEN: Tomorrow is the start of the winter Olympic games. Are you looking forward to it or can you give it a miss?
I love all kinds of sport--I'll even watch a darts match when I'm in the UK and I'm excited to watch the Olympics, but some events more than others.
I'm not madly keen on the new competitions in which people jump and twist on snowboards. Boring.
And the twenty-five mile cross-country ski competition? A trifle ho-hum.
I really love watching ice-skating but I find myself getting really annoyed when the US skater skates flawlessly and the Russian sits down three times and then is awarded the gold medal!
So what am I looking forward to? Speed skating is exciting, so is ski jumping and downhill skiing. And ice hockey.
I may even watch the curling--you know when they sweep with brooms to make a big stone go very slowly across an ice rink. I really think I could compete in that one!
I enjoy watching the bob-sled and luge but the result seems so unfair. If someone wins by under one second they are champion. I'd give it a tie.
And let's face it, the TV coverage is so biased toward the USA that if we lose early on in a competition it is never shown again. Hockey? What hockey?
How about you, dear Reds. Are you excited? What are you planning to watch?
HALLIE EPHRON: I'm impressed by anyone who can go outside and do anything in the cold. Always up for watching the figure skating, or ski jumping, or the flashier sports. I confess I won't be able to watch the luge without cracking up and remembering Lucy at... was it Bouchercon? Claiming the luge as her sport.
LUCY BURDETTE: I had fun thinking of that Hallie--amazingly enough, the audience didn't believe that had been my sport! I will watch the Olympics--in fact a little worried about what a time sink it can be. I love the figure skating most of all, but would rather not stay up as late as the network wants you to. We'll probably watch a little of everything--so far not rooting for anyway in particular, though we do have a kid from our town in CT who competes in the aerials. (Feb 17-18, Mack Bohonnon.) I'm really hoping things go ok in South Korea though...
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I love watching all kinds of skiing competitions, and I plan to enjoy the snowboarding, too - it's the wave ot the future, Rhys! Figure skating is always pretty, but frankly, with all the horrible stuff coming out about US Olympic gymnastics, I'm holding my breath waiting for the skating establishment to crack...
I like speed skating, in part because it's so exciting, and in part because I goggle at the size of the skater's thighs. So much muscle! And the thing that annoys me about the broadcasts - aside from the late hours that Lucy points out - is the way they construct a narrative around a few athletes, and then their coverage becomes all about those stories. That's not sports journalism, that's reality TV.
INGRID THOFT: I usually watch the opening ceremony, so I can enjoy the team uniforms. I love seeing what each country chooses to wear to represent their homeland. Frankly, I find that the American outfits are boring. I think it’s time for Ralph Laurent to pass the design baton. Perhaps to Zac Posen?
I love the figure skating, and I also try to catch the ski jumping and luge. I like watching those sports because I think they’re bonkers! How do you practice them? And how do you survive?!
DEBORAH CROMBIE: Oh, yes, I'll be watching! At least as much as I can manage, and as much as is available, since we cut the cord on our satellite TV. We will have NBC, but will I have to pay extra to see things that aren't broadcast on the main channel?? I've already informed the hubby that we'll be watching the opening ceremony on Friday night. I like the ski jumping, the speed skating, the snowboarding, the luge, and especially the figure skating, but I'll watch pretty much any of the sports, including curling! As Ingrid says, I'm riveting by the bonkers sports. Human nature, isn't it, wanting to watch someone else do something incredibly dangerous?
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I am way too competitive, I know that.
But starting there. What gets me is the devotion, and the focus, and even the physical possibility, that allows these people to get to the Olympics. My sister Nina and I might be in the Olympics for Sock-skating on the hardwood hallway, but I can pretty much say I never seriously thought that no matter what I could ever do, that I could possibly be in the Olympics. Have you?
The BEST, in a SPORT? Not a chance on the planet. So what does it take to do that? It's fascinating.
So yeah, I'll watch anything. (Except, like, basketball.)
That said. I agree it's--manipulative-- to pick one person and make them the story. I'd adore to just watch it, purely, with no backstory or jingoism.
JENN McKINLAY: Olympic lover here! I watch all the games, cry with happy tears when an underdog wins (doesn't matter from which country), cheer when the American flag is hoisted, and love the human interest stories about the hosting country. I still remember the Japanese macaques (snow monkeys) soaking in the hot springs at the Nagano Olympics. Love, love, love the Olympics and the global perspective it gives humanity -- even if it's just for a few weeks.
RHYS: I think the Jungle Reds should have got together a curling team, except for Lucy on luge of course! Now I'm feeling excited! Not much work will be done in the next two weeks, I fear.
