Vancouver 2010 - Ski Jumping

Our home base for the Olympics is the Semiahmoo resort in Blaine, WA, on the opposite side of Drayton Harbor from the Peace Arch border crossing. We are about fifteen minutes from the border, 45 minutes from Vancouver, and three hours from Whistler. Traffic is heavily restricted in the city and on the Sea to Sky highway leading to Whistler, so we will rely on the Sky Train for Vancouver events and buses to Whistler.

We left Semiahmoo at 4:00 this morning to catch a bus from the British Columbia Institute of Technology for the ride to Whistler.

Our first event of the Olympics, the first medal event of the games, is Men's Normal Hill Ski Jumping from Whistler Olympic Park.

We got to the top of the mountain and climbed off the bus at 7:00 just as the sun was starting to rise over the trees. I have skied here before in a former life and it is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Snow capped mountains frame the view in every direction. The morning was crisp and clear as we set out for the jumping hill.

We trudged through the snow and ice, my new Yaktrax providing outstanding traction. Our first stop was the concession stand for some hot cocoa, but I was distracted by the full menu and the promise of pork schnitzel. When bacon is not available, any pork will do. We had assigned seating in the grandstands for this event so we headed to our seats. There is not a bad seat in the house and we had a great view, but these are not box seats. The benches were cold, hard, and wet. Our asses suffered greatly.

There are two hills at Whistler Olympic Park. The taller hill on the left is called the "Large Hill," while the shorter hill on the right is the "Normal Hill." There is reader board on the left and a video board on the right.

Ski jumping is scored using two components, distance and style. Judges award style points based on the skier's tuck riding down the hill, the "V" position of their skis and the forward position of the shoulders in the air, and the telemark form of the landing. Style and distance tend to be positively correlated; jumpers with the most perfect style will usually carry the greatest distance. Forerunners take multiple jumps before the competitors to help marshals set the course. The bar from which the jumpers take off can be adjusted up or down the hill depending on conditions. Optimal conditions allow for take-off speeds of between 86 and 87 kilometers per hour. This ensures that most skiers land between the red lines on the hill. If the best jumpers go much beyond that zone, the hill flattens out and the force of impact increases exponentially. Wind is also closely monitored. Counter intuitively, headwinds favor the competitor, tailwinds are a disadvantage. Wind at the back of the skier creates a vacum as they jump, while wind in their face creates lift and carries them further. Fellow SSBD blogger James J. claims that ski jumpers are never more than ten feet off the ground. I can't confirm or deny this claim, but it seems about right.

There are 51 jumpers. Each will get a practice jump and one competition jump, then the top 30 jump in the final round.

How was it??? Well, repetitive and boring. 130 jumps looked almost identical. 20 meters separated the shortest from the longest and not a single jumper fell. Not that I was rooting for injuries, but there was not a lot of excitement to keep us warm. Nor were our loyalties rewarded. Not a single Canadian qualified and the Americans were not competitive. In the end, there was little suspense. The favorite coming in to the competition had the longest jump of the first round at 105 meters, the longest jump of the second round at 108 meters, and the best style scores. Swiss jumper Simon Ammann took the first gold medal of the games.

Next Event: Men's 500m Speed Skating

TG