Standing in sensible shoes atop a swaying tower, seven stories above the street: My first 2010 Olympic moment. Looking over the precipice, I'll confess right now, my knees began to wobble
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The perils of aiming for zipline gold
- February 12, 2010 6:23 PM |
- By Noah Love
Story provided by
Brian Hutchinson, National Post
Standing in sensible shoes atop a swaying tower, seven stories above the street: My first 2010 Olympic moment. Looking over the precipice, I'll confess right now, my knees began to wobble. Next to me in the other starting gate grinned a string bean man from Chinese television.
"Ready?" asked the Aussie zipline safety guy. The Chinese nodded maniacally and jumped. He shot down the corded metal line, screaming what I guessed were Mandarin epithets. Then he flipped himself head over heels and stretched out his arms. An Inverted Iron Cross.
Oh. My. Dear. Lord.
I clung to a metal bar at the starting gate, ashamed. I thought I saw the Aussie smirk.
I'd let my country down. Sure, it was only media try-out day at an Olympic Games-sponsored zipline installation. But this stung. Set up over busy Robson Square downtown and open to the public for the duration of the Games, the zipline is a rickety-looking but perfectly safe contraption involving ropes and harnesses, carabineers, a stair climb of some 80 steps, and about 30 seconds of falling hang time across Robson Street, to a shorter landing tower set up beside the Vancouver Art Gallery.
Also involved is a waiver form absolving the operating company, Ziptrek Ecotours, from responsibility for certain things. Such as lost property and, er, serious injury.
This was my second attempt. The first was unsatisfactory; my form had sucked. I'd flailed around in my harness and had forgotten to let out a manly battle cry. Clearly, gold was lost. The daring Chinese had just cleaned my clock.
Second place was still up for grabs. A young Japanese woman appeared in the other starting gate and giggled nervously into her mittens. I can take this, I thought. Four steps to the ledge, one deep breath, and whoosh. It wasn't medal worthy, but it was a personal best.
About the Author
- Bruce Arthur Bruce Arthur is the National Post's national sports columnist. A Vancouver native, he has been with the Post since 2001, and a columnist since 2005. He is covering his second Olympics, after the 2008 Games in Beijing. He expects these Games to be slightly less propagandistic, and for China to win slightly fewer medals.
- Joe O'Connor Joe O'Connor is a roving sports feature writer with an open-ended beat. He joined the National Post in 2002, and has spent the past seven years bouncing from sport to sport, offering fresh perspectives and delivering unique stories wherever he goes. Whether it has been getting Don Cherry to open up about his love life; George Chuvalo to talk about heartbreaking loss; or racing down the side of a mountain with former Crazy Canuck, Dave Irwin, the veteran Postie chases a story wherever it leads. Before joining the newspaper he was a two-time silver medalist at the National Magazine Awards. Vancouver will be his first Olympics.
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