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You're right that it's not all nice timing, but it is really neat to actually have live broadcasts for once to watch what you can. We've actually been using the Chatroom channel some, for at least the start of the primetime block before it gets terribly late, and it's been a lot of fun! I invite anyone watching in the evenings to pop in for a bit and say hi.Catspaw wrote:The time zone issue could be worse, but it could also be a little better.I like that there are evening events to watch live, but the early morning stuff is really early.
I bit the bullet and got up super early this morning to watch Canada win the first ever gold in mixed doubles curling, and it was totally doable and worth it, so I shouldn't complain too much! It was early but not unbearably early....every once in a while.bookworm wrote:You're right that it's not all nice timing, but it is really neat to actually have live broadcasts for once to watch what you can. We've actually been using the Chatroom channel some, for at least the start of the primetime block before it gets terribly late, and it's been a lot of fun! I invite anyone watching in the evenings to pop in for a bit and say hi.Catspaw wrote:The time zone issue could be worse, but it could also be a little better.I like that there are evening events to watch live, but the early morning stuff is really early.
#Olympics
We've been in there during figure skating mostly so far and we mainly commented between routines on how the skaters did and react to the scores. You don't have to have ongoing chat while watching the action.Catspaw wrote:I should try to remember to stop by the chat one evening. If I'm watching something I really care about, I usually don't have a computer screen in front of me because I want to focus
it looks like I missed the chat party tonight because I'm the only one on, but the pairs skating is also over. I couldn't tear myself away! What an exciting final flight! I was so sure that Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford, the top Canadian team, would end up in fourth after they had a great skate but still (deservedly) ended up in second place with two teams left, but the Russians were kind enough to make enough mistakes to bump themselves down and get Canada bronze! Woohoo! There were some beautiful performances, and it was so moving to watch the German team win after the lady had won bronze in two previous Olympics with her previous partner and now finally got her gold medal! Her joy was contagious! (Except for to the Chinese team.) The silver medalists were good sports, but to miss gold by a few tenths of a point has to hurt, and to me the Chinese lady looked like she wanted to go find some place quiet to cry her eyes out. Not that I blame her, and she showed good sportsmanship. I felt really bad for her. Figure skating is a roller coaster of emotion, that's for sure!bookworm wrote:We've been in there during figure skating mostly so far and we mainly commented between routines on how the skaters did and react to the scores. You don't have to have ongoing chat while watching the action.Catspaw wrote:I should try to remember to stop by the chat one evening. If I'm watching something I really care about, I usually don't have a computer screen in front of me because I want to focus
I didn't remember offhand, but once you described the incident, I remembered it. It's probably more memorable for Americans than Canadians,bookworm wrote:The saga of Lindsey Jacobellis continues.
If you're too young to remember the 2006 Games, or weren't paying attention back then, her legacy is being responsible for one of the most infamous and incredible incidents in snowboard cross. She had pulled out to a huge lead in the final, no one else in sight just cruising to the gold, but decided to show off by doing a trick going over the second to last jump, fell, and got passed to only win silver. It was such an unbelievable moment. I've said before in one of these threads that I have that call forever engrained in my memory. I will never forget that incredulous "she went down on a showboat trick!"
In Olympics since then that moment seemed to haunt her. It was like that was her chance and since she blew it she wasn't allowed to have another one. She went off course early in the 2010 semifinal, and unexpectedly crashed while leading the 2014 semifinal. It looked like this could finally be her redemption; she finally made it back to the final, was in medal position of some color almost all the way along, but dropped to fourth at the last moment. Four 100ths of a second off the podium.
This is an interesting concept that I didn't really think of. Curling kind of, sort of reminds me of Pétanque, (I had to copy and paste that cause I couldn't remember what it was called) the French game where you toss steel balls as close as you possibly can to a wooden ball, while standing in a marked area. It probably isn't very hard to compete at this, once you've got a little practice under your belt, to calculate how far you need to roll the ball. Something like Figure Skating or Ski Jumping takes consistent and grueling practice sessions, and athletes usually have been training for years. I don't really know too much about curling either, although, it looks like it requires some balance.bookworm wrote: To compete at the Olympics you're supposed to have to be the best in the world. If there's something that I could pick up as a hobby and with reasonable but not extraordinary effort and practice get pretty skilled at, it probably shouldn't be an Olympic event. In my current mindset I think of it like table tennis. I enjoy watching it played at high levels, and I'm totally in favor of having world championships, but Olympic table tennis seems like a stretch to me.
I'm not a huge curling fan, but the more that I watch, the more that I appreciate the intricacies of the sport. I think the jokes about curling being the only Olympic sport where you can have a beer and cigarette between ends should be in the past! Somebody could play at an intro level and have fun curling quite quickly, but the same could be said for skiing or snowboarding. It's the intricacies and strategy that only come with a lot of practice that make it special at the Olympic level. I would suggest watching an entire curling match during the Olympics with good commentators explaining the strategy, and listen to the curlers talk about their intentions as they plan their shots. The shots that great curlers can make are really amazing! I have been impressed often how they can throw just the right weight and get just the right curl on the stone to bump other stones just right to move things into the perfect position. You can't do stuff like that right after you pick up the sport. To me, that's what makes it as worthy of being in the Olympics as other sports.bookworm wrote: I admittedly don't know a ton about curling, but I more or less understand the goal and I know in general how the goal is achieved, though not the details and intricacies. I haven't ever actually seen a match, but I do want to. From my current understanding I would side with the previously expressed middle ground. I don't have any issue with curling as a sport, but I do somewhat question the legitimacy of it being an Olympic sport. I'm hoping someone, probably Catspaw, can help me either affirm this is a reasonable stance to take or open my eyes to something that would tip me one way or the other.
If Chess is an Olympic event (which it is during the Summer Olympics, it's just rarely televised), I'd say Curling has more than earned a spot. It's a game of intense strategy, precision, adaptability, and teamwork. Sure, it's kind of boring to watch if you don't really know what's happening, but so is Chess.Catspaw wrote:I'm not a huge curling fan, but the more that I watch, the more that I appreciate the intricacies of the sport. I think the jokes about curling being the only Olympic sport where you can have a beer and cigarette between ends should be in the past! Somebody could play at an intro level and have fun curling quite quickly, but the same could be said for skiing or snowboarding. It's the intricacies and strategy that only come with a lot of practice that make it special at the Olympic level. I would suggest watching an entire curling match during the Olympics with good commentators explaining the strategy, and listen to the curlers talk about their intentions as they plan their shots. The shots that great curlers can make are really amazing! I have been impressed often how they can throw just the right weight and get just the right curl on the stone to bump other stones just right to move things into the perfect position. You can't do stuff like that right after you pick up the sport. To me, that's what makes it as worthy of being in the Olympics as other sports.bookworm wrote: I admittedly don't know a ton about curling, but I more or less understand the goal and I know in general how the goal is achieved, though not the details and intricacies. I haven't ever actually seen a match, but I do want to. From my current understanding I would side with the previously expressed middle ground. I don't have any issue with curling as a sport, but I do somewhat question the legitimacy of it being an Olympic sport. I'm hoping someone, probably Catspaw, can help me either affirm this is a reasonable stance to take or open my eyes to something that would tip me one way or the other.