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Opening brings new perspective

I spent much of the last almost seven years with a frown on my face, a sour taste in my mouth with any mention of the Olympics. I was at home not even thinking about watching the opening ceremonies and then I talked with a friend and turned them on.

I spent much of the last almost seven years with a frown on my face, a sour taste in my mouth with any mention of the Olympics. I was at home not even thinking about watching the opening ceremonies and then I talked with a friend and turned them on. Let me stress how much time I spent having a huge chip on my shoulder about the Olympics.

Not even a minute into the ceremonies I never felt so proud to be Canadian as I did then and now. I feel I have a new awakening in my outlook on the Olympic event. Imagine the Olympics as a moving corporation that every few years comes to a town near you. At the end of the day, no matter what your view or opinion about this corporation, it will come visit you.

Now comes the moment of truth, the fork in the road. You have the choice to spend your time while you are waiting for this corporation to reach you, in one of two ways: for it or against it. It really breaks down to these two views.

I spent the last seven years against it. Did I solve anything, did I bring a new awareness, is anything going to be carried forward to the next town from my actions? The answer to all of these questions is no. My name is forgotten come next Thursday when the new issue of Pique hits the stands.

What I realized is these Games are not about me, these Games are about all of us, even the bitter ones. This is the one time we have to come together and showcase the beautiful place we are so lucky to live in.

Here I am sitting in my living room and the world is right out in front of me. I am so lucky; I really had no idea.

Yeah, there will always be things that someone will like and dislike about something. But I have learned a lesson tonight and it was all about the approach. If I can just reach one opposing force in Russia my message is: at the end of the day you have to come to a realization that it's coming and there is nothing that will stop it. Embrace it and everyone try to work together on both sides of the fence. Examine the faults in the past cities and try to not let them happen to you. And look at ways of making improvements to the event.

But it has to be done in a positive, educated and professional way. Sitting in your living room being all mad and ranting is going to solve nothing and leave you bitter.

Go Canada.

Paul Rowe

Whistler

 

No friend of new AWARE

For more than 20 years our resort municipality has had a vibrant environmental organization that had continually been the lead on issues that were important to the viability of our corridor. Partly because of AWARE we have more wetland than we would have been able to save otherwise, we became part of The Natural Step, developed a vision in 2020 that is the envy of cities across Canada, created a Centre for Sustainability, have credible recycling, are the first community in B.C. to be carbon neutral, maybe have the greenest municipal council in Canada and more. There is much to be proud of, and much that could have been showcased this winter. Where AWARE had influence it did so because it kept a rational stance, made connections backed by research, focused on acting locally with solutions rather than protests, and worked with councils to make a better stance for the environment, (and sometimes held back on easy criticism in order to produce a future win).

Sadly that era appears to be behind us. We now have an AWARE board that publishes blanket statements that confuse opinion with information, implies connections where few exist, makes banal observations as if they should alarm us, but give no credit to the fact that things are much better than they might have been otherwise. Most unfortunately AWARE appears to have given up on working with organizations to help them become more environmentally sound. "Holier than thou" criticism is so much easier.

The new model of AWARE has published its damning stance on Whistler's Olympics. They include such items as concern for loss of biodiversity, "huge" energy and water demands, and in the same statement (but with the writers not recognizing a problem of logical typing) accuse VANOC of a "lack of institutional accountability." It may be a surprise to this AWARE board that it would be difficult in the extreme to accept the responsibility of running an event of this size and have no impact. With effort, however, VANOC has sought ways to reduce these impacts. By starting with an office of sustainability, and at least acting on some issues to reduce their footprint, VANOC has made many strides towards producing the "greenest" Games to date. Green enough? Certainly not. As green as we are technically and socially able to produce at this time? VANOC has probably come pretty close. Besides the major legacies we have been given, there is a new spirit of voluntarism in the town and a bigger sense of community that I think will bode well for our local environment too.

The new AWARE finally wants to "provide warnings and solutions to problems experienced in Whistler to the IOC and future host cities." The president of the new AWARE connects the Olympics in a causal way to poverty when empiricism shows the opposite and wants a more democratic IOC showing that she has no understanding of the structure of that organization either. With the kind of shooting-from-the-hip analysis and thought that has gone into their criticism to date they are unlikely to find willing listeners from either future host cities or, I hope, the group she represents. It could have been otherwise.

Six years ago as we won this bid, there were members of AWARE who saw the Games as an opportunity to showcase just what this community has accomplished and wants to accomplish going forward, that can be taken as good for the environment. With this latest statement from AWARE we have lost that opportunity.

Al Whitney

A past board member of the old AWARE. and certainly no longer a member of the new

Whistler

 

We'll get there together

I am a bus driver from Niagara Falls, Ontario. I am here for the month driving for B.C. Transit.

I would like to send a huge thank you to all the local riders in Whistler for helping us this past week or so, with the routes and directions; there has been little time for learning.  It has been a little difficult but also a lot of fun! And because of your help I know that we are all going to have a very memorable experience.

Margaret Gilbert

Niagara Falls, ON

 

Transportation embarrassment

This letter was addressed to VANOC CEO John Furlong. A copy was forwarded to Pique for publication.

This is to let you know that the bus service at the Olympics is a serious disaster and an embarrassment to us as Canadians. Thousands of people stood in the wet snow and rain Saturday for hours on end after the completion of the women's biathlon and ski jumping competitions. Our foreign guests were enraged and apart from being extremely cold and wet I was embarrassed as a Canadian that we could not get these basic logistics together.

My recommendation is to fire whoever runs this and work hard at getting this fixed before this does serious damage to our reputation as a developed country.

Cheryl Derksen

Linda Givens

Dale Snyder

Paul Snyder

Tom Givens

Paul Derksen

 

Remembering Walter

Thank you for including Walter Zebrowski among those who "We are," in your editorial of Feb.10.

Very few seem to know the critical contributions he made to the beginnings of Whistler. He was one of those few who realized that if the power line was installed down the east side of the valley, as was to be the case, there would never be major ski development. It is because he instigated a successful appeal to the government that the power line is where it is, allowing everything else that has followed.

Back in the '90s when there was a contest to name the run now known as "Peak to Creek," I wrote in to Whistler Mountain Ski Corp. in support of naming it "Walter's Way." I backed up my request with a short history of Walter that I had gleaned from Paul Burrows, another Whistler icon, who had been helping Walter write his personal biography.

Walter's history is the stuff of a Hollywood epic, including wartime heroics, emigration, courage, struggle, persistence and ultimate success on a grand scale. After gaining all that success, Walter lived out his life in Whistler in the most humble fashion.

Perhaps another campaign should be undertaken to get a run named after him. He was the most inspirational person I ever met and his direct influence on Whistler deserves to be honoured with his name on a run, as has been the case with so many others. While they are all very deserving, no one deserves that honour more than Walter.

Ted Ralfe

Fernie, B.C.

 

Making poetry

At the end of your opening remarks you wrote, "We also have the opportunity to make poetry. Not everyone has that chance." I am quite certain you did not mean write a poem but were using poetry to describe an experience like you would be doing if you said when we get the rhythm right, making love is pure poetry. However, inspired by just the slimmest hope you did have writing a poem in mind, here is another one of mine.

 

"Olympic Dreams"

We all should have Olympic dreams

To be what we can be.

That's what real life should be about.

It's not the life I see.

Life is about preeminence;

To be the number one.

We think unless we win that "gold"

Our life will not be done.

 

But winning gold is not life's end.

When there we'll only find

That striving for external "golds"

Did not bring peace of mind.

 

The "golds" we win can't fill the void

Left after we ask "Why?"

That is a race we cannot win

No matter how we try.

 

Too, gold we pull toward ourselves

Is from another's hand;

And conflict that results destroys

Our common human band.

 

Now if the band we wish to mend,

We must pursue our dream;

But in cooperation with

Each member of our team.

 

When all of us race to the ends

Of our capacity,

Up on the highest podium

Will be humanity.

 

You already know I was not invited to recite my poem at the opening ceremonies. I was not at all surprised for it does not meet the criterion of needing to feed the jingoistic frenzy of the Canadian fans waiting to worship their Olympic gods. I do not anticipate being asked to recite my poem as long as we remain addicted to the entertainment epitomized by the Olympic Games and as a consequence the televised media continues to inhabit the body of the IOC it snatched four decades ago. In fact, my poem may never be read. It could be our addiction will end as all addictions do so we won't have the opportunity to get the rhythm right and though we may write poems, we will never make "poetry."

Doug Barr

Whistler B.C

www.thelastwhy.ca

 

Kudos to Canada!

Whether at a Whistler event or medal ceremony, on the bus or in line for the bus, or just strolling in Whistler Village, there was a tremendous sense of camaraderie. Everyone cheered for their "home team," as well as for all the other athletes, especially the ones without a large home country contingent.

We were our own little melting pot, my husband a naturalized U.S. citizen from Austria; me born in the USA; and our hosts, German-born and Singapore-born Whistler residents.

And, don't forget the neighbours - French- and Czech-born Whistler residents.

We truly had a One World experience. Now, about the snow.....

Ginny Fankhauser

East Northport, New York

 

No I in 'team'

Caught in the Olympic storm, Pemberton has shown its true colours by moving forward with new and pre-existing winter events ideas. The town, fresh off the success of "It's Our Day" and with tonight's Winterfest Celebrations kicking off with the (Feb. 12th) Artisan Exhibit and Opening Ceremonies Celebration, one must remember: it takes a committee to create an event, and a village to support its success.

The Spirit of BC Committee-Pemberton Valley as a whole has been hard at work since those warm summer days when the torch was yet to be released and Olympic dreams were still miles away. Stephanie Coughlin, who took over the role as Spirit Chair, has worked alongside a group of talented and creative individuals to ensure that local success occurs in Pemberton during Games time.

These two great events have (from the beginning) been created and presented by a collection of dedicated Spirit members, Rotarians, Lions, Village of Pemberton and SLRD, Community Centre, Pemberton Chamber and countless other volunteers. Together, these are the groups who keep the Olympic/Pemberton spirit alive.

When working as a team it's important to remember that singular accolades take away from the picture as a whole. It may take one or two individuals to form an idea but from conception it immediately grows to a multiple of dedicated volunteers who spend countless hours pre, during, and post events to ensure complete success.

That being said, thank you to all the hard working Pembertonians for the success of Spirit of B.C.'s "It's Our Day" and to a job well done, on what will no doubt be another highly successful Pemberton Winterfest 2010.

Michelle Murray

Ontario

 

Wonderful ending

Many thanks to the wonderful person who returned my ski helmet and goggles to the Whistler Blackcomb Lost and Found on Monday, Feb. 1st. I only wish it was possible to thank you in person for your kindness.

My day of skiing was great, the bus adventures were hilarious, the loss of my helmet and goggles was upsetting. However, due to your kindness, the day ended wonderfully.

Once again, many thanks.

Ian Johnson

Whistler