Olympic Rockers

On Friday all eyes will be on Sochi’s Ice Cube Curling Center as Canada takes on Great Britain in the Men’s Olympic Curling Finals.

That’s how hip Curling is now. The sport’s venue is named after a famous Rap star.

Related:

“Curling: Right on the Button,” Kristi Finefield, Library of Congress blog

Sir David Attenborough describes Olympic curling [video]

“Curlers more likely to hurt themselves than lugers, speed skaters,” Christopher Ingraham, Washington Post blog

“Getting to the Core of Olympic Curling Stones,” Julie Leibach, Science Friday

“Why Curling Ice is Different Than Other Ice,”  Smithsonian Magazine, Erica R. Hendry

World Curling Federation website

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It’s Bobsled Time

“The Bobsled Song,” written and presumably performed by Sidney Mills and Jon Notar, produced by Groove Guild.

Just in time for Sochi’s two-man bobsled competition, the Jamaica Tourist Board has released  this music video supporting the island’s bobsled team, led by veteran Winston Watt. The retro 8-bit animation is a turn-by-turn representation of the 1365-meter (4478-foot) course at the Sanki Sliding Center.

Related:

“It’s Bobsled Time (in Warrenton, Va.),” Tim Regan, WCP City Desk

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Snow Shortage in Sochi

Today in Sochi, the Pearl of the Russian Riviera on the Black Sea, the temperature hit 63 degrees Fahrenheit. Nice for folks who came to enjoy the subtropical climate, palm trees, historic hotels and spas, and wide beaches; not so good for the Winter Olympic Games.

The snow cover is so slushy that Olympic officials have tapped into Sochi’s Strategic Snow Reserve. Many Americans would gladly donate the deep snow that currently covers their cars, sidewalks, and roadways, but that’s impractical due to Sochi’s strict “Buy Russian” policy. Shipping snow to Sochi from Russia’s subarctic climate zone via Trans-Siberian Express would take too long; maybe they can use some of those Soviet-era cargo blimps.

More:

“Sunkissed beachgoers strip off in Sochi as hot weather turns ski and snowboard runs into slush,’ Dan Bloom, Daily Mail

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Image: Sochi Intourist Travel Brochure, 1937.

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Sochi

Sochi, on the Black Sea, is the Pearl of the Russian Riviera, with a subtropical climate, palm trees, historic hotels and spas, and wide beaches. Just the place to hold the Winter Olympics!

Now Sochi has a trio of ugly mascots, couples toilets, rampant corruption, 70,000 gallons of borcht,and a torch that’s been to outer space, but but no garlic picking, booze, dogs, yoghurt or gay people. In Sochi, Olympic Corruption seems to be this year’s demonstration sport.

 Other Sochi developments:

“Freezing Sochi: how Russia turned a subtropical beach into a Winter Olympics wonderland,” Duncan Geere, The Verge

“Meet the man who plans to ski down Sochi’s slopes in a mariachi-style suit,” Allison Jackson, GlobalPost

“Will Sochi Have Enough Snow?” Tim McDonnell, Rolling Stone

“Welcome to Sochi, would you like a ceiling in your room?” Alphonso Van Marsh, CBS News

It’s Sweeping the Olympics!

The gleaming ice! The competition! The … brooms?

Curling, king of winter sports. Don’t miss the 2010 Winter Olympics action.

Remember: Curling takes big stones.

 

Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

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Olympic™ Ski Cheese

Photogenic Olympic™ skier Lindsey Vonn has created a culinary opportunity, trying to heal her bruised leg by applying fresh curd cheese. She calls the soft stuff by it’s Austrian name, topfen, but the cheese is also known as quark, quarg,  Tvaroh, Tvorog and curd-cheese. Fresh cheese aroma is too subtle for a marketable celebrity fragrance, so it’s time to profit by cookin’ up some celebrity ski cheese recipes.

First USA Olympics™ Triumph

 

Team USA scored big in initial Winter Olympics™  competition.  Snowboarder Greg Bretz won the McNuggets™ Eating Contest in Vancouver. Mr. Bretz beat teammate Ricky Bower 60 to 34.

McNuggets™  and related lubricating sauces are synthesized by the  McDonald’s™  Corporation. McDonald’s™ is the official restaurant of the 2010 Winter Olympics™. This is handy, since Vancouver has absolutely no other restaurants.

 

McDonald’s™ , McNuggets™ , and the letter “M” are registered trademarks of the McDonald’s™ Obesity Corporation. The very word Olympics™ and the burping cartoon guy are registered trademarks of the IMF IOC, which has the gall to link athletic excellence with junk food. Anyway, all this advertising crapola is used here under the parody clause of the Fair Use Doctrine.

Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com. No rubber chickens were harmed in preparing this mashup.

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