Ladies' Cross Country Skiing Relay in Whistler during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
I made my way up to Whistler on Thursday on the Alberta Train to catch some Vancouver 2010 Olympics events. First up was the Ladies’ 4×5 km Relay Classic/Free event at Whistler Olympic Park. After a bus ride from Whistler village and an almost 20-minute walk up the gravel path to the venue, I could hear the crowd already cheering.
The ladies had already started their competition so I searched for the best vantage point. Up on the hill, overlooking the far side of the finish line and beside one part of the race route seemed like the best bet. It was here that I was able to get a video of the gals near the middle of the race and also close up photos of them passing by in front of me (see video clip below).
A Cross Country Skiier competes in Whistler during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
The crowd was thrilled to be cheering for their country and it ended up the Norway team took the gold by what seemed like forever (24.6 seconds in competition time). Germany and Finland took silver and bronze respectively (see a video clip below).
I had to boot it back to the village to meet my cousin. While waiting for him at the base of the gondola, I was able to catch the overtime gold in women’s hockey on the Whistler Live outdoor screen that lead Finland to a bronze medal of Sweden.
From there, we went to Sushi Village (4272 Mountain Square, 604-932-3330) to grab a bite to eat. Unfortunately, I heard that some restaurants have upped their prices for the Olympics (similar to some places in Vancouver), and I’m sure that was the case here. But the sushi was great, the service friendly and I was starving, so good sushi was worth the price tag.
A Tribute to Nodar Kumaritashvili, the Georgian Luger who died during the trial runs at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.
I have heard that the Swiss House in both Vancouver and Whistler are one of the most popular pavilions in the Olympics. So my cousin and I decided to head there to see what all the fuss was about.
The Swiss House is actually just operating as a regular restaurant. We went inside anyways and ended up grabbing a drink and hanging out with some Swiss curling fans (they ended up losing 7-5 to Switzerland in the semi finals).
From there it was off to the Cinnamon Bear Grille (4050 Whistler Way, 604-966-5060), a surprisingly casual bar in the Hilton Whistler Resort & Spa. I was so disappointed to only be able to catch the first period of the gold medal women’s hockey game between Canada and the United States, but I had to catch the Alberta Train back to Vancouver.
Fortunately, they had it set up and playing on TVs in the train’s lounge, so I was able to watch Team Canada’s glorious 2-0 win to capture the gold medal and the hearts of the country. Those ladies rock my world.
All in all, Whistler had all the hype that’s buzzing around Vancouver during the Games, but on a small town scale. No matter what, they always put on a good party.
Copyright 2010 Lori Henry
I met Lori on the Alberta Train that day. She’s described the atmosphere perfectly.
It was such a pleasure to meet you- what fun!