Friday was a bit of a lazy day to be honest. I dragged myself out for breakfast about 7am then only again around midday when I went for a wander to Eau Claire Market. I grabbed a smoothie and got very tempted to make an outrageous purchase or two there, but it didn’t meet an important criteria for my random purchases… has to have some relevance to the place I am visiting. I hung around in the park for a while and wandered about the area.
During the lazy morning I had somehow randomly come across the Olympic Village website and that they did Bobsled experiences with professionals. The course the infamous Jamaican Bobsled team did and at the park where Eddie The Eagle featured in the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. I was desperate to do it but when called they had no availability for today. I started to work out how I could tweak my plans to fit it in on Saturday, it was going to be tight but I thought it would be worth it.
Given I did very little on Friday I treated myself to a fairly swanky 3 courses at The Keg. It’s nothing too grand but it was very good food and I had Scallops w/Bacon, 12 oz Baseball steam and Billy Miner pie for dessert. I was absolutely done when I finished and it was back to the room to watch (you guessed it) HOCKEY!
I’d been singing Cool Runnings song all day so it was time to go to sleep and dream of entering Wales in the winter olympics.
On the Saturday morning I was again up stupid o clock for breakfast and then watched the horses because my old man and I now do weekly horses together and put the winnings in a pot. No winners for either of us today which after an amazing first 4 weeks, we now have 2 winless weekends! I watched a bit of the rugby and then had to check out. I left my luggage in, went back to Eau Claire to grab a smoothie and then headed to the Olympic village via bus!
The bus trip was a bit brutal but taxi costs were crazy and I knew I had to get taxi back as I was leaving it all very tight to get my bus to Edmonton. Eventually I got to the olympic village after an hour and 10 bus/walk combo. I was well early so grabbed some food and wandered around the historic olympic site. There was junior hockey on in the Ice Centre (4 rinks) and junior olympians were practicing ski jumps outside on the course so it was plenty to see and the skills these people have is unreal.
At 4pm I was getting a bit nervous and headed off to the registration room. I asked to be in the first lot because was needing to head back. I filled in my waiver form and got a free hat then just waited to be taken up to the bobsled track.
Outside the track is the original Jamaican bobsled which was used by the team who inspired the film Cool Runnings. When we got up we had a very short briefing and got our helmets sorted. I was first up with 2 other guys and Sarah was our pilot. She was part of Team Canada and missed the podium by 8th tenths of a second in the first ever Women’s World Cup in Salt Lake City.
We walked down to the bobsled, had our photo taken and she got us in. We were given a push and off we went, the next 40 odd seconds were just the most exhilarating ever (and terrifying). It is impossible to explain it in words but it is easily one of the best things I have ever done. The G-force is unbelievable and the speed is frightening! We had the fastest time of the day so far which was cool and even though it was over so quickly, I was buzzing and to be honest, 4 hours later and the adrenaline is still flowing!
I managed to get to the hotel to collect my luggage in time and then it was off to the Greyhound station to catch my 4 hour coach to Edmonton. I am now sitting in the hotel in Edmonton, it;s 22:51 and I am knackered! Up at 7 tomorrow for The Arsenal game on TV and the Islanders in the evening, my last full day in Canada.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoZE-gEccnE”]
