Winter Olympics - The Bad

Want to know what I disliked the most about the Winter Olympics coverage? The coverage. NBC did a horrible job, and yet wondered why their ratings were bad. As I said before, I wanted to watch events that I normally can't see throughout the year. Yet, NBC assumed that I wanted to watch figure skating and ice hockey. Two sports that are shown throughout the year. Of course, I can't figure out why they thought hockey would be watched. Most people didn't know the NHL went on strike, so if they aren't watching professional hockey, why would they watch amateur hockey (with professionals)? As for ice skating, you can watch that all fall, because that's ESPN's counter-programming to Monday Night Football. Yet, NBC thinks I want to watch that. The other problem is the scheduling. I realize NBC has a problem because the European location means most of the events are on tape which means I had to avoid ESPN.com while goofing off at work so I wouldn't know the results before I got home. Still, there was another scheduling problem. Mainly, I didn't know when the events I wanted to see might be on. I'd look at the schedule and seven sports would be listed from 8 to midnight. That would be fine if they had them in half hour blocs, but they didn't. It would be 8 minutes of speedskating (that I wanted to watch) followed by 11 minutes of ice skating (which I didn't want to watch and half the time wasn't even the event, but some crap human interest story). So I either sit through some garbage I don't want to see while waiting for something I do want to see or flip back and forth with something else and possibly miss it. Yes, Phil, I know I could get Tivo and solve this problem and make my life much more wonderful.

I've said before I don't get too worked up about U.S. success in the Olympics, so I don't put too much stock in calling someone a "bust". After all, a lot of Americans are hyped going into the games only because they are Americans, not because they are necessarily the best. Just because you're the "best chance" for a U.S. medal in your sport doesn't mean you are one of the top three in it. Plus, you are competing against others who have considered tops in that sport, not to mention those athletes who pick the Olympics to have their great moment in the sun (or at night since a lot of events seemed to be after dark). However, there was one dud. I'll be honest, I didn't care much for Bode Miller before the Olympics. As most people know, I'm not big on liberal views, but I don't dislike liberals (for some reason, a lot of my friends are liberals). However, Miller belongs to that group of liberals I despise - the limousine liberal. Usually limousine liberals are like "environmentalist" Laurie David who rails against SUVs, but only flies on private planes. Or a John Kerry who says the rich (including him) don't pay enough in taxes, but when given the opportunity to pay more, doesn't. Miller fits right in. He wants to be seen as a rebel skier who hates corporations and the rich and thinks the Olympics are "money driven". However, that doesn't stop him from making about $5 million a year from endorsements by non-corporations like Nike. Oh wait, Nike is very large corporation. Of course, he also hates the spotlight, but never shies away from it (video game, radio show, website, autobiography released just in time for the Olympics), unless he's just lost another race. I realize that endorsements are the lifeblood for many Olympic competitors, but others American skiers seem to make do (by "make do" I mean win medals) without taking money from every company that comes along. Hell, he's a paid endorser for Barilla pasta. Personally, I think it's great that a skier can make $5 million at his sport, but to pretend you don't care about money while pimping yourself out to just about anybody makes you a hypocrite.

Actually, if he was just a hypocrite, I wouldn't concern myself with his losing every race he entered. After all, he may have been the World Cup champion, but he'd won one (I think) race this past year, so why should he be considered the favorite. He was overhyped, but he did nothing to downplay it. The problem is his reaction after the races. First, he kept trying to sneak off. I'm willing to bet his face would have been pressed up against every camera he could find if he won. Second, he didn't even seem to care while he was racing or after. I wouldn't have had a problem if he said he was just beaten by skiers who were better that day, but, he tried to say that he lost because he tried too hard. Then he took it to the next level. His Olympics have to be viewed as a success (despite being 0-fer) because "he rocked" on the local bar scene, and "got to party and socialize at an Olympic level". I'm all for athletes enjoying the Olympic experience, but if your only Olympic goal is getting drunk in local bars, why not pay your own way there (as I pointed out, he can afford it) and let someone who does care about winning have your spot on the team? Well, except Nike probably wouldn't have signed him if he was going to skip the Olympics. Of course, Bode is a common man who doesn't care about money or fame and just wants to live his own lifestyle. Of course, I'm not sure how many ski bums without $5 million endorsement deals can afford a lifestyle that includes golf outings to Dubai.