The Off Topic Topic

[Eddie Teach]

I never understood that attitude, I always found Winter Olympics more compelling than watching the endless swimming and running events.  It's also more spectacular to watch, since there are some sports where the competitors are going really fast and on the verge of losing control.

The swimming and running events are over within a couple minutes(the ones people are interested in do at least). Your cherished auto races last forever. :

[Sheilbh]

Yeah. With the exception of curling I find the Winter Olympics pretty dull 

[Admiral Yi]

First of all they need to nuke that X Games shit from orbit.

[DGuller]

I never understood that attitude, I always found Winter Olympics more compelling than watching the endless swimming and running events.  It's also more spectacular to watch, since there are some sports where the competitors are going really fast and on the verge of losing control.

The swimming and running events are over within a couple minutes(the ones people are interested in do at least). Your cherished auto races last forever. :

Yeah, the individual events may be over within a couple of minutes, but there are 210 of them.

[Eddie Teach]

Anything that's not a final or is over 400m can be missed.

[alfred russel]

Most of the great events are in the summer Olympics, but the winter have some good ones too. Hockey may be the best event summer or winter. The downhill ski events are badass considering how on the edge the men and women are. Lots of events are on the verge of not being sports: half pipe freestyle, ski jumping, skeleton, bobsled, etc: but I can't hate on them too much because of the danger. That also makes them fun to watch.

Even something like women's figure skating that I would ordinarily have less than zero interest in becomes rather impressive because I can't imagine a more intimidating stage than being 18 and having 1 shot to nail your long program with the entire world watching.

Endurance events are also great. I respect the hell out of those guys. Not only do they perform grueling tasks over long periods, they also ingest enough drugs to kill and average horse while evading the testing regime.

[Razgovory]

Winter Olympics 

Hoping there's some good counter programming

I never understood that attitude, I always found Winter Olympics more compelling than watching the endless swimming and running events.  It's also more spectacular to watch, since there are some sports where the competitors are going really fast and on the verge of losing control.

This year may be even more interesting then usual if the Chechens show up.

[derspiess]

First of all they need to nuke that X Games shit from orbit.

Yep. They're actually fine for what they are, but they have no place in the Olympics.

[jimmy olsen]

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2014/01/22/22404421-ny-town-mourns-brave-8-year-old-who-died-saving-six-people-from-trailer-fire?lite

[jimmy olsen]

First of all they need to nuke that X Games shit from orbit.

Yep. They're actually fine for what they are, but they have no place in the Olympics.

Most of them require as much or more athleticism than figure skating which to many people symbolizes the winter games, so aside from tradition, what about them turns you off?

[Duque de Bragança]

Yeah. With the exception of curling I find the Winter Olympics pretty dull 

Ice hockey über alles!

[Syt]

I used to love the Olympics, and usually went out of my way to catch as much coverage as I could. L.A., Seoul, Barcelona or Sidney, I was glued to the screen. Even more so for the Winter Games in Calgary, Albertville, Lillehammer etc.

It has stopped for the recent Olympics. It's become so overhyped, commercialized and gigantomanic, and focusing on the cheap emotional melodrama (the broadcasters) that I just don't enjoy watching it any more.

[Josquius]

The olympics at least has gymnastics to perve at and feel paranoid and guilty about.
Plus nationalism.
The winter olympics has none of that.

[Syt]

I still like the old EPYX Games series, though (Summer Games 1&2, Winter Games, California Games, World Games).

[Duque de Bragança]

Plus nationalism.
The winter olympics has none of that.

If going by curling yep.
However, ice hockey has that too, though it pales compared to the Cold War ambient even inside the Warsaw Pact (Czechoslovakia-USSR say around '68).
Putin won't tolerate a defeat vs the Yanks!