MS Walk '08

Sat., April 5, 2008

MS Walk
Washington, D.C.
Approximately 2,000 walkers

I was honored to participate in the annual MS Walk on behalf of my Aunt Patricia and Chris. Our team, the Unbreakable Spirits, checked in and began walking around 8:30 a.m. The start/finish point for the route was on the side of the Canadian Embassy located off Pennsylvania Avenue. It was a beautiful spring morning with a temperature of 58º. We enjoyed the scenery of the monuments along the way. I'm proud to announce that our small, four person team raised more than $1,000. Way to go!!!

Thank you to everyone for your donations and support!

Super Pet Expo

*L to R: Gizmo / Karen and Elwood

Sat., March 29, 2008

I took my eldest furry kid, Gizmo (my 11-year-old pug), on a field trip to the Super Pet Expo at the Dulles Expo Center in Chantilly, Va. The place was packed with people and curious dogs everywhere. I was surprised to see a lot of people pushing doggie strollers! We made our way through the various vendor stands as Gizmo periodically stopped to sniff other leashed attendees along the way. The product that entertained me the most was POOP-FREEZE, a spray that as you may have guessed, you use when your pet has diarrhea or loose stool. Their motto is "Just frost and toss." We met Elwood, a 3-year-old Chinese Crested and Chihuahua mix and his sweet owner Karen Quigley. You may recognize Elwood, he's the winner of Animal Planet's world's ugliest dog contest. We bought Elwood's children's book 'Everyone Loves Elwood.' Karen signed the book for us and Elwood gave us his paw stamp of approval. (A portion of the proceeds from the book go towards helping homeless animals.) Exhausted from our wild adventure, we headed home.

Newseum Event

* The Great Hall of News

Sat., March 29, 2008

I was invited to an advance opening of the Newseum. You start off on the ground level of the building in a viewing room where you watch a brief film on the history of news and the important purpose it serves in relation to freedom of speech. Upon exiting the small theatre, you walk by a section of the actual Berlin Wall and around the corner you enter one of the large glass elevators that takes you up to the 5th floor. On the top level there's a terrace with spectacular views of Pennsylvania Avenue. You work your way around the parameter of the building, downward through the various levels until you're back where you started. There are artifacts from every aspect of media -- print, radio, television and the Internet. There are also cool interactive features like the Newsroom, where you can act like a professional TV reporter. I attended a broadcast demonstration in the Knight Studio -- a state-of-the-art 2,800-square-foot TV studio used by the Newseum and other media organizations to produce news and information programs. On the day I visited the studio, it was used to demonstrate the various roles people serve and the types of equipment needed to produce a professional TV show. Overall, the day was a powerful reminder of why I fell in love with journalism and the field of media in the first place.

Exhilarating Experience

STATS
Sled: #1
Pilot: Landon Phillips
Riders: A couple and myself
Time: 53.08 seconds
Speed: 78 miles per hour (5 G’s of force, equivalent to a 40-story drop)

Thurs., March 20, 2008

The day I had been anticipating finally arrived ... I pulled into Olympic Park around 3:10 p.m. My purpose for being there was to embark on a once in a lifetime experience -- a run on the official Olympic bobsled course from the 2002 Winter Games. It is the only facility in the United States where you can go down the full Olympic bobsled track used by the athletes. My heart was pounding with anticipation!

I had about one hour to kill before orientation started, so I decided to tour the grounds. Midway on the mountain I stopped at the main building, which housed an interactive Utah ski and 2002 Winter Games museum. Further along the way to my destination I observed the Freestyle Training Pool, Ski Jump, Women and Men's Luge tracks and Bobsled track, all of which were incredible to see in real life. I soon approached the bobsled starting gate area at the top of the mountain. I checked in, signed the required legal waiver and took a seat in the classroom. The room was filled with 19 participants and some observers. Seven bobsleds were scheduled to make a run that day. John Green, our knowledgeable instructor got straight to the point, informing us on the best position for our head, neck and arms; health precautions; what to expect during the run and how to protect ourselves if, in the rare event, the bobsled were to flip over. He went on to tell us that our head with our helmet would feel like 50 pounds due to the G forces and that EMTs would be at the finish line as a precaution.

Ready to go, we headed over to a rack of helmets. I selected a red one in honor of my Ducati. Each bobsled aka "The Comet" held an experienced instructor positioned at the front and three riders. We were warned that the roughest position was the rear. Thankfully, I was positioned right behind the driver. The only modification made to the sled for untrained riders such as ourselves was that the rear brake had been moved to the front. Also, instead of running at the start of the track and jumping in, we were positioned in the sled and two guys gave us a push.

Off we went down the 8/10 of a miles course around 16 swift curves. It was AMAZING; unlike any rush I had ever felt. It seemed to end in the blink of an eye. When we reached the finish line we carefully unloaded. I felt a little dizzy, but on top of the world!


About My Driver: Landon Phillips was my pilot. He started driving bobsleds at the age of 13. He went to the Olympic trials in 2002 when he was 18 years old. Landon didn't make the Olympic team, but he was selected to be the forerunner for all the bobsled races during the Winter Games. He raced bobsleds for the U.S. for one more year, left to live in Ecuador for two years and returned to the U.S. in 2005. Since that time he’s been driving passenger bobsleds at Utah’s Olympic Park and attending college.

Ducati Field Trip

Thurs., March 20, 2008

I heard from a Utah local that there was a Ducati dealership in Salt Lake -- as a guidette and Ducati owner I had to check the place out. Taking a break from skiing, I went on a mini road trip to Salt Lake Motorsports, Inc. Along the way I stopped by the Ducati Cafe in Park City (cool concept I thought). I quickly discovered it was closed. Chris, a SLM employee I met later that morning informed me that the cafe did really good business during the Sundance Film Festival, but not so much afterwards.

Thirty miles later I pulled up to a HUGE Ducati red building (the pic above is just the showroom; there was also a large service area to the left)!!! Upon entering the store I was greeted by Lacey, a really cool gal working the front counter. The showroom floor housed various models of Italian-made motorcycles and scooters as far as my eyes could see. I was a kid in a candy store but with limited funds and suitcase space (torturous). There was also a diverse selection of women and men's apparel and accessories. If you're ever in the Park City/Salt Lake area I definitely recommend visiting SLM ... make sure to have your credit card though, because you won't be walking out empty handed.

Mountaintop View (My Spring Vacation)

*360º footage shot on top of Park City Mountain Resort: Powder Keg run
(NOTE: The footage is a little shaky because I was turning while on skis.)

Sat., March 15, 2008

Skiing is naturally exhilarating -- but when you combine it with spectacular mountain views, crisp air and a fresh powder base, there's nothing like it in the world!!! I'll take this over sitting in a cubical any day of the week.

Winter Classic

* 360º wide-angle view from our seats: section 222, row 10, seats 27 and 28

Tues., Jan. 1, 2008

(This isn't a game recap since it was nationally broadcast in its entirety, but rather my personal experiences of the day.)

My younger brother and I enthusiastically hit the road in our rental car at 9:30 a.m. for our destination -- the Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park. Our adventure started out with a bang (literally) ... we were coasting along on Abbot Road when a sheriff vehicle the size of a Suburban broke free from the traffic and sped past us down the median. The officer hadn't gotten far before tearing off the front of a car that had been patiently waiting to turn. There were tons of witnesses since it happened in front of a bar parking lot full of tailgaters. We continued on our journey, driving past several lots advertising parking for $15 and up. At one point there was a little boy around 4 years old standing on a corner with his dad holding a sign decorated in Sabres graphics reading "Honk if you believe." It was so cute. I beeped the horn a few times and the little boy revealed a big smiled. We soon found a good lot on the opposite side of the road that appeared would be easy to exit from after the game. It cost $25 but was worth every penny. There was a sea of tailgaters -- the most I had ever seen in my life at any sporting event. Everyone was dressed in a mix of hockey gear and ski gear. The majority of people were wearing Sabres apparel from different eras. The beer and grilled items flowed freely. It was only 10:15 a.m. when we pulled into our parking space. The game wasn't scheduled to begin until 1 p.m., so we hung out in the car for a while to stay warm knowing we had a long time ahead of us in the cold. At approximately 11:45 a.m. we bundled up in our remaining layers and broke open our hand and foot warmers. We joined a massive group of game attendees walking over to the stadium. When we reached the entrance of the stadium we saw giant NHL blow up hockey players and Sabres and Penguins team jerseys; a cool ice sculpture; a stage with various acts singing cover tunes; a virtual hockey game section sponsored by Verizon and several merchandise stands. We made our way to our seats after a few confusing rounds around the stadium. We had a great view. As we looked out in front of us at the rink we couldn't help but think that it appeared smaller than normal, although I'm sure it was regulation size. There was a separate mini rectangular rink at our end where pee wee players faced off during some of the game breaks. The stadium seats filled up quickly and everyone seemed to be in high spirits.

An announcer declared that the event we had all been waiting for was about to begin!!! Flames shot out on the left and right sides at our end of the stadium as members of each hockey team walked out from the locker rooms and entered the arena. Then, individuals representing various divisions of the military marched out and unfolded a huge Canadian flag at one end of the stadium and an American flag at the opposite end. Irish tenor Ronan Tynan movingly sang 'God Bless America.' Fireworks shot up all around the top edge of the stadium and helicopters flew overhead. Collectively all of that made for a really moving experience. Next, the puck hit the ice and it was game on! Impressively, it pretty much followed the timing of regular indoor games, except for the frequent need to remove snow/ice shavings and repair the rink surface. As expected, drunken people were scattered throughout the stadium. The crowd was very vocal about the game plays. I don't think the people watching at home saw the same things that were displayed on our giant screen -- a group of enthusiastic shirtless boys were featured cheering. As the tournament went on, more and more guys were displayed on the screen without their shirts on! Keep in mind the temperature was around 30 degrees that day and snowflakes fell consistently the entire time. I overheard a guy behind us say to his friend, "I don't want to be on the screen that badly." The crowd attendance remained solid until the very end. I think all of those who stuck it out deserved shirts stating "I survived the Winter Classic." I was pleasantly surprised that the traffic both before and after the game moved efficiently, as did the lines to the bathroom (which from a woman's standpoint is a huge deal). The Sabres gave it their all. I had a great time and would absolutely do it again if the Sabres were involved.

Ticket to Game $60
Official Program $10
Winter Classic Experience ... Priceless