Day 16

These Olympic Games just keep getting better and better and then soon enough, in the blink of an eye, they will be gone. Gone like the Titanic, with a soft gurgle and then silence. Day 16 was another big day for Canada. A record day in fact. But let's start today's blog by talking about what's most important. Me.

Vancouver 2010 has truly been an inspiration to me. I realize just how important health and fitness is. So from this day forward, I am switching to Baked Cheezies, and Coke Zero. I know what you're thinking, and yes, it will be very difficult. But with a lot of self-discipline and determination, I can stick to this promise. I also got back on the excercise bike for the first time in...uh, okay for the first time. Here is the photo to prove it.

Canada won a record three Gold Medals on Day 16, and not only lead the US and Germany with 13 Gold to their 9 and 10 respectively, but also now have the most Gold Medals by any host Country in Winter Olympic history. We should be very proud. I think the Canadian athletes are finally starting to understand the concept of owning the podium.

Canada won yet another Gold up on Cypress Mountain in the Men's Snowboarding Parallel Giant Slalom. Jasey Jay Anderson was the fastest down the hill. In the Long Track Speed Skating Men's Team Pursuit, the Canadian team struck Gold, while in the Women's event, the Canadians finished fifth.

Our third Gold Medal of the day came in Men's Curling at the Vancouver Olympic Centre. Canada's Kevin Martin beat a solid, pajama-wearing Norweigian team 6-3. Not only did I watch the game (match?) but I stayed awake the whole time. (Of course it's nearly impossible to fall asleep while eating Pizza) It was pretty exciting. This may cause another uproar among the women out there, but the men seem to be a lot better curlers. I watched the Women's final and it was not good. I'm just wondering why that would be. All I can think of is that the men would be stronger sweepers. Anyways, overall, for Canada to finish with a Gold and a Silver in Curling, I think that is pretty damn good.

At the Pacific Coliseum they wrapped up the Figure Skating with the Exhibitions, which are always my favorite part of the whole event. Not only are the skaters relaxed, but there are no rules and they are generally there to entertain the crowd. It's also cool that they are in the spotlight. Again Joannie Rochette stole that spotlight. She skated an old exhibition skate of hers to a Celine Dion song called Vole (Fly in English) because her Mother loved Celine. It's a beautiful, heartbreaking song that perfectly suited the moment. More tears shed, more Kleenex used by yours truly. I also really enjoyed the Chinese Gold Medalists for Pairs, Shen and Zhao. There was also an eleven year old male skater from Vancouver that did a brilliant program. (I didn't catch his name but feel free to Google.) If he continues to improve, he seems to almost be a can't miss Olympic Contender in 2018. I think it's so great that they do things like this. He will remember that moment forever and will likely be a better skater because of it.

Following the Figure Skating was the Bronze Medal Men's Ice Hockey Game between the Slovaks and the Finns. I barely had time to go into the kitchen and grab another bag of Baked Cheezies. This was a great game by two solid teams. Finnish Goalie Kipprussoff bounced back from a bad game against the US and the Finns came from behind and beat the Slovaks 5-3. The Slovaks were a little unlucky not to tie it up late in the game. Pavol Demitra played awesome once again and was definitely one of the best forwards of the tournament. There is a good chance he will win the scoring race for the entire event. I just hope that he puts that much effort and intensity in when he returns to the Canucks. If he can play like that, the Canucks will be a lot more dangerous. Hell, we may even make the Playoffs. I know. That's crazy talk.

I have bought a lot of Olympic Merchandise over the last few months. One might even suggest that I've become obsessed. I bought a large plastic bin that I will store it all in once the Games are over. I'll be putting my Olympic Coin Collection, 3 Olympic Pins, a Quatchi stuffed animal, Olympic Program, Olympic Hockey Program, Olympic Torch Run Book, Red Olympic Mittens and every edition of The Province (and The Vancouver Sun on Saturdays) into my bin. I will continue to wear all my Olympic clothing and then when they are worn out or are too small for me, I will forge Wayne Gretzky's name on them and sell them on E-bay. My point in all this useless drivel is that I was intending to order the Official Blu-Ray box set of Vancouver 2010. I went to CTVOlympics.ca and checked it out. It was $80 which isn't too bad for 5 discs. The problem is that since Visa is a Sponsor of the Games, I can't use my Mastercard. And to make matters worse, it doesn't look like it will be available in stores. I have a real problem with excluding a large group of Olympic supporters (people with Mastercard and American Express) because of sponsorship money. I compare it to an artist who sells their album exclusively at Walmart. (I spit on any artist that sells out to Walmart just to make a few extra million and screws their fans that don't live anywhere near one. Except for the Eagles. I like them.) After checking the frequently asked questions on the CTV website, I discovered that there is a toll-free number you can call and then set up a way to write them a cheque for the order. So now I feel better. I have no problem bouncing a cheque to get my Commemorative Olympic DVD.

Day 17, and sadly, the final day, is the day all Canadians have been waiting for. Yep, it's the big Men's 50 km Cross Country Skiing. Should be exciting. Besides that, the Gold Medal Ice Hockey game features Canada taking on the US. It will be fast paced, exciting, with some heavy hits and some great goaltending. And my blood pressure will probably go through the roof. I saw on Twitter that someone put "Canada, closed on Sunday between noon and 3pm". That pretty much sums it up. Not to mention that this is the hottest ticket in Canadian Sports history. Even hotter than a Raptors ticket. There are suites available in Canada Hockey Place for $138,000 dollars. That's not a joke. I'm serious. I'm thinking for that much I expect my own lifetime parking spot and half the shares in the Canucks. $138,000? All I can think about is that would buy me a whole lot of Pizza and Baked Cheezies. Anyways, back to the game (notice how anything I talk about always leads to food) I think the key will be Goaltending. The only way the US wins is if Ryan Miller badly outplays Luongo. I don't think that will happen but this is the equivalent to a game 7 in the Stanley Cup Final and anything can happen. I have a strong feeling that I'll be sitting on the very edge of my comfy easy chair, probably watching the game through my fingers.

A few hours after the big Gold Medal Hockey game, the Closing Ceremonies are set for right across the street at BC Place. I'm very excited about it but I will also be very sad when it's over. I guess I will have to go back to my normal life of watching Wheel Of Fortune and reruns of The Golden Girls. Maybe I should start a blog about that. Either way, as I've said many times before, the legacy will live on and most importantly, the lives of Millions of children, in Canada and around the World will be forever altered by Vancouver 2010. And tomorrow, that legacy begins.