Not All Olympians Get the Red Carpet Treatment

[lady_mercury]

So, we're all familiar with our Olympian boys partying out like rock stars and almost living like them. They get to travel the world, compete, have interviews, magazine spreads, free food, get a stipend just to train for the Olympics and various other big time competitions from the USOC and US Speedskating, and if they win medals -- very nice

Comments

[skyllo01]

"THE WINTER OLYMPICS: LETTING WHITE PEOPLE WIN AT SPORTS NO ONE ELSE CAN AFFORD TO LEARN."

[gryffindorgeek]

Oh wow! I was thinking that were you like a pro on the ice already and that you just made the conversion to speed skating. Agh, now I'm really considering it. Maybe I'll look into over the summer when I'm back home in the States. I'll want to get out of the summer heat anyway, lol.

haha ragespiration! Show that 7 year old who's boss!

[lady_mercury]

LOL no no no. I live in Florida, closest thing to snow and ice is the frost in our freezers. I do/did inline for a while, so that was my only saving grace from toppling over -- I know how to hold my balance on the skates and skate on the ice, but anything more than that and my balance is knocked out of whack. Speedskating is totally a technique sport.

BUT YOU SHOULD DO IT. And find a club that skates during off season! AND BE AWESOME 8D

He's so cute, ADD tho, but cute.

[lostlegendz]

I'm in the exact same position. I've also got some extremely mild CP (like so mild you can't tell unless you're a doctor) and some exercise induced asthma, so I was super hesitant to try any sport all my life. My parents and friends have been so supportive of me trying speed skating, and while it is hard at first, it's totally worth it.

I suggest getting special short track inline skates before going on the ice if you can. They help a ton. Part of the CP had me tiptoeing all my life so my calf tendons are super short and my ankles were super weak and it hurt like hell. I'm sure you'll be fine though! :D

[gryffindorgeek]

That's awesome. Good for you! How long have you been speed skating then?

Short track inlines, hm? Do they sell those at normal sports stores, or is it something you need to order online? (Basically, what's the difference?)

[lady_mercury]

Speed skating inlines cost as much, or more, than ice speed skates. They're technically the "same" boot. Inline's heel bracket is farther out than an ice boot and sometimes they have three instead of two.

http://www.bont.com/products/boots/vaypor/

They also lack breaks. I think the ankle support is less on an inline than an ice boot too. Half of my club are inline -> ice people so they just change out the wheels and put blades on. You're not supposed to do that because the lack of support but they still do it.

[gryffindorgeek]

Oh, I see. I fear the lack of brakes may be a problem for me. XD Did you buy your ice skates, or are you just renting them?

[lady_mercury]

Currently, I'm skating on figure skate rentals because my skates have not came in yet. They're all custom made so I have to wait 3 weeks before I even get them (probably why the damn things are $344).

There's no breaks on speed skates either! You gotta learn how to skate without them eventually XD

[gryffindorgeek]

Omg $344. I should probably get a job before pursuing this. I'm already blowing so much money studying abroad this year.

lmao I know! But lemme take baby steps first, okay!

[lostlegendz]

I'm renting mine, but I'm not sure how easy it is to find them for rent in other cities. The place I skate at is run by the same people that run the Olympic training center in Colorado Springs, only it's closer to Denver.

[brbsb]

I started speedskating recently and I took figure skating lessons as a kid but hadn't been on the ice in years. My coaches told me that they actually prefer completely new skaters cause it means there are less bad habits to break (cause speedskating is completely unlike other ice sports).

[gryffindorgeek]

Oh that's interesting! Good to know! Maybe it won't be so bad, then.

[lennoxs]

god, ikr? i'm a rower, and last night i had to spend over $100 for stuff to take on our trip to texas for spring training (which costs around 1k to go) plus i'll need $100 spending money and regattas, which we have every weekend, cost a lot of money, too. and i'm going to need my own boat and oars sometime soon, which can cost as much as a car, plus fees to be a part of the club. i want to row in the olympics eventually, so it's worth it, but it's my mom paying for everything since i'm only 15 right now. i wanted to cry last night when i saw how much we were spending simply on new clothes and travel toothpaste and crap. :|

it's not just the winter sports that are like this, a LOT of summer sports (i.e gymnastics) burn through your pockets. and it sucks. but if it's your passion, you do what you have to do, i guess.