SEATTLE — In honor of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, we attempted four sports athletes would be competing in at the Games. But this wasn’t the first time we tried Winter Olympic sports.
Four years ago, we traveled to the Whistler Sliding Centre and Whistler Olympic Park in British Columbia, Canada, the site of the 2010 Vancouver Games, to try bobsled, luge and the biathlon. We were also given access to the ice rink in the Richmond Olympic Oval outside Vancouver for a lesson on speedskating.
We also attempted downhill skiing at Alpental, one of the areas at the Summit at Snoqualmie, and ice dancing at the Olympicview Arena in Mountlake Terrace.
Here's a look back at those experiences:
Biathlon combines cross-country skiing with rifle shooting. It's the combination of the two sports that creates the challenge. Jake ended up hitting only one of five targets with a .22 caliber rifle. The stock is super lightweight and designed to quickly let the athlete unload five shots in 10-15 seconds.
Athletes must master the ability to calm their bodies and heart rates before they transition to shooting. And with the tiny targets 50 meters away, there is literally NO margin for error.
This was an intense experience. We were given a thorough safety lesson with several other tourists before the experience, but we were assured it was safe. The track we visited is considered the fastest in the world.
Olympians can reach speeds more than 90 miles per hour. The Sliding Centre doesn't put tourists in at the top of the course because they said we'd be sliding too fast to enjoy the experience.
A professional bobsled pilot steered the sleigh while we sat behind him. The entire experience is less than a minute, but there are about four to five seconds of really intense sliding where you can hardly see straight, and you are being jostled around pretty good in the sled.
This felt a little more dangerous than the bobsled. That's because we're alone, and no professional is there to manage the steering required to take on the corners.
This experience was, by far, the most nerve-wracking. We were lying flat on our backs with our heads peeking forward slightly.
Speed skates are razor-sharp and feel very different than other skates. Our coach David Morrison, a speedskating coach at the Richmond Olympic Oval, taught us how the athletes stay low and forward over their skates at all times. He used an upside-down bucket to act as a brace to help us practice cross-overs and carving our turns.
Just for fun, Jake attempted the shortest race, which is the Men's 500-meter race. It took Jake 1.29.0, and his legs were burning.
We met up with Anne Goldberg with the Seattle Skating Club, who taught us a choreographed routine on the ice. We started by learning some basic steps, then some spins, and finally, we learned a routine.
We learned the importance of centripetal force with your partner. Finding that special balance is critical to keeping a good rhythm.
Jake ski raced in high school, so he clearly had the advantage in this sport. Chris Loewy with Team Alpental Snoqualmie had some great advice about staying out in front of your skis and carving the downhill edge into the snow to turn around each gate.
Mimi, on the other hand, is a novice on skis, so it took her a while to get down the course, but she was a good sport when she fell on the mountain.
If you missed any of the Winter Olympic sports Jake and Mimi attempted this year, you can watch by clicking the links below: