Posts Tagged ‘Olympics’
It’s come to my attention in these past few days that a lot of people have no idea what the point of curling is…and for that matter, why it should be an Olympic sport. Sure, there are those that genuinely love it. But really, I think I know the reason why curling is such a necessity for the Olympics.
It gives the normal people hope.
Seriously! Just as Pandora left hope in the box and all was not lost, curling is the hope in the box of aspirational athleticism. You have those waif-like girls who are 16-years-old or those completely fit and toned men and women of skiing, snowboarding, speed skating, etc. that just make you feel…well, klutzy, inept, lazy and borderline gross. And beyond those sports that are just ageist, how many of us are really going to go out there and try to become masters at maneuvering an icy track with speeds up to 90 miles-per-hour? I know my own mother gets nervous when her car hits 75 mph.
My point is, curling is the sport that you think to yourself (or mention in passing to your friends) that if you really, REALLY wanted a medal or at least a chance to compete, curling would be the way to go. It doesn’t seem like one of those sports that really requires brawn or hours of endless training that results in pain and suffering.
Heck no.
Curling is the icy relative of shuffleboard, the stereotypical sport of the elderly and retired. You think shuffleboard, you think cruises. You think curling, you think…hey, I could be an Olympian! And I can wear nifty pants!!
I give you, exhibit A (nifty pants):
Does anybody know what goes into becoming the world’s best curler? Does it involve hours and hours of grueling practice to perfect the art of…sweeping? Even if it does, it sure beats a lot of the other sports where when practice goes wrong you could seriously maim yourself.
So there you have it - curling. The eternal hope for those with secret ambitions of athletic world renown. Deceptively accessible to the masses but…c’mon, let’s face it: how many people are really mobbing the ice rink to capture America’s heart in curling?
And to inspire some of you future Olympic curlers out there, here’s a re-post of a graphic that describes the art of curling from The Good Blog. Enjoy. And good luck.
I know that a lot of people hate reading posts from someone in their twenties about how old they feel. Yeah, I know. It gets a little obnoxious.
When I think about it, being in my exact mid-twenties isn’t old at all. In fact, it’s definitely not as old as it sometimes seems in my head. I can still go out to bars two nights in a row without any raised eyebrows (three is pushing it for me, I admit) and I believe that my college-esqe ways of eating poorly (ramen noodles or spaghettios, anyone?) is acceptable. Heck, I can even put on heels, dress up and go to a club and not grouse about it TOO much…even though I do grouse about it. I can even somewhat run half-marathons!
But despite all the things I tell myself about my prime years in my twenties, I can’t help but feel a little decrepit when I look at the television during the Olympics, comment off-hand that some guy is good looking ….
and then realize he is nineteen years old. Oy. Nineteen. Nineteen was when I was still a sophomore in college, barely figuring out what I wanted to do as a major. I didn’t have a job, I didn’t have anything in the bank, and … I WAS STILL A TEENAGER.
Sigh. Add “warning signs of pre-cougardom” to the list of “things that make me feel old” along with “people my age getting married and having babies.”
Oh, and on a side note - I wonder if I’ll be able to handle eating poorly like tuna fish sandwiches for dinner twenty years into the future. Is it an age thing, or am I just really good at being cheap? Sometimes I wonder.
