So is there anyway for us to watch this 100 day countdown?

Everything I find says its on the NBC affiliate "Universal Sports" network. The only listings I can find on it are US location cable plans.

Does anyone know if there is any way to view it here locally?

the rings in coal harbour light up tonight right?

it will be during the 100 days on the today show, jay leno show, conan o brien etc. you just have to tune in to those shows the next 100 days - probably something today

jay leno is on at 10 pm conan at 11:30 pm all on king 5 tv unless you have digital and can watch it 3 hours earlier

So, I notice now on the website they show you what your seat numbers and everything are, which is cool.

Does anyone know when tickets will actually ship?

^I think tickets start shipping sometime in December

Oooh, it would be nice to get them for Christmas!

I should have been more specific in my question earlier. What I was specifically talking about is the 1-hour special on the Vancouver Olympics being shown on TV tonight via the US "Universal Sports" channel which NBC owns and which is available via some US cable companies.

I couldn't locate any Canadian equivalent channel.

Does anyone know if that specific 1-hour program is showing on any Vancouver channels?

maybe it will be on CNBC or MCNBC which is in canada i will look at my digital guide

checked: nothing tonight - but they might repeat on the weekend

lighting ceremony is at 6 pm!

and a zip line is going in at robson street for the olympics! same company as the one in whistler

the rings are lit up - showing all 5 colours right now

I snapped a shot of the Rings as they were being towed over to Coal Harbour. They are very bright! Looks good

http://img42.imageshack.us/img42/1172/img4245b.jpg

(sorry for the crappy shot - only had a few seconds to grab the camera and get the shot before it left my view)

lots of international perspective on the 100 day countdown...

USA Today
Crafty Canadians allegedly ensuring home-ice advantage

New York Times
Economic Boost Seen From 2010 Games Preparations

Xinhua
Canada celebrates 100-day countdown to 2010 Winter Olympics
Olympic Village of Vancouver Winter Games handed over

140 articles at google news...

It seems someone was wise enough to figure out it's easiest to "Own the Podium" when nobody else is allowed to compete. :haha:

thought this was interesting-

BOULEVARD
Artist: Adrian Gollner and Pierre Poussin
Where to find it: Cambie Street and in Yaletown (installed Dec. 15)

This light installation has three elements: Fireworks, on Cambie Street, will serve as a "boulevard of entrance" for people coming into town, says Adrian Gollner. Rain Barrel will create a path of blue light between Vancouver's two live event sites. And, concerned that the Olympic flame will only burn inside BC Place for paying customers, the artists decided to create Flame, in Yaletown. "We thought one of the things we could do at least was give away some flame for free," says Gollner.

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/news-centr...ancouvers+push

Oh my :P

from panasonic canada;

Adding to the excitement, Panasonic's Full HD 3D Plasma Home Theatre System will be on display for the world to see at the David Lam Park live site for the full 17 days. Another global first, visitors will experience high-quality, true-to-life 3D images created by distributing Full HD visuals to both the left and right eye.

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/a.../19/c2763.html

sounds cool

from http://www.bellinghamherald.com/602/story/1163547.html

Seems interesting, not a big deal but might workout as intended.

http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465...73/2244274.bin

Source
http://www.vancouversun.com/business...273/story.html

It cost them $250,000 to buy 80 stickers?

... How do I get in that business :P

450 decals from 80 different countries, plus installation, plus permits and other misc red tape courtesy of city hall..

Source: Vancouver Sun

Good on Richmond,

^That's awesome. Now they just have to get their act together for Holland House (obviously the province and the feds do as well).

if your into boats....

Russian tall ship Kruzenshtern to visit Vancouver during Olympics
BY JEFF LEE, VANCOUVER SUN

http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465...n?size=620x400

VANCOUVER — The Russian tall ship Kruzenshtern will visit Vancouver during the 2010 Winter Olympics. And if all goes according to plan, it will offer half-day cruises to the public for the duration of the Games.

On Tuesday the four-masted barque, the second-largest of its kind in the world, weighed anchor from its home port of Kaliningrad and headed for Vancouver carrying the flag of the Sochi 2014 Winter Games organizing committee.

The ship, with 120 cadets aboard, is scheduled to arrive at North Vancouver's Burrard Drydock on Feb. 10, according to Rocky Rocksborough-Smith of Triton Marine, the ship's B.C. agent.

The ship will be open to public tours two or three days a week, said Roxborough, who is also hoping to obtain a temporary coastal trading license "to allow it to take the public for short cruises" into Howe Sound for a small fee.

The use of the ship as a backdrop for the 2014 Olympics is part of an ambitious campaign by Sochi’s organizers to promote the next Winter Olympics after Vancouver. The Russians recently leased Science World at the head of False Creek as their hospitality centre, and they have made several high-profile visits to Vancouver in recent months.

"There's no reason for a Russian tall ship to be here in February except for the Olympics, and I can guarantee you it's 100 per cent here for the Sochi delegation," Rocksborough-Smith said.

The ship will also act as a hospitality centre for Russian business and sports delegations, he said. "I've been told (Russian premier Vladimir) Putin will be here."

The barque, built in Germany in 1926 and given to the Soviet Union in 1946 as part of war reparations, now belongs to the Baltic State Academy. Its visit to Vancouver is part of a six-month training expedition. In an interview with Russian newswire RIA Novosti, Tatyana Babushkina, a ship’s representative in Russia said the vessel will visit Belgium, Spain, Peru, Venezuela, Panama and other countries.

At 51.3 metres tall, the Kruzenshtern is one of the the tallest sailing ships in the world and its height will force sailors to bring it into Vancouver's inner harbour at low tide. It will clear its masts under the Lions Gate Bridge by less than 10 metres.

"There's no excess amount of room here," Rocksborough-Smith said. "If they pick the wrong tide, the pilot will be picking up the pieces."

here's a rendering of what the new LED lighting will look like along hamilton/cambie streets.
this is by artist Adrian Göllner / Pierre Poussin and is permanent.
http://www.adriangollner.ca/upcoming_files/image004.jpg
http://www.adriangollner.ca/upcoming.html

"The intention is to brighten the nights, add to the excitement of the games and make the City visually remarkable.
Mounted to lampposts and utilizing the latest LED technology, the street lighting schemes will not only be beautiful,
but also provide a sense of direction and place for visitors."

:previous:

Awesome! Are you positive these light installations are going to remain post Olympics?

neat

As part of the legacy component of its Olympic and Paralympic Public Art Program, the City of Vancouver has commissioned a collection of light-based artworks and sculptural installations to animate 2010 Winter Games venues and signature locations around the city. All of the works are permanent installations with the exception of the Central Library project, which will be mounted for one year.

New permanent public art projects include:
Vancouver City Hall
Georgia Street Entrance to Stanley Park
Under the Cambie Street Bridge at West Second Avenue
Cambie/Hamilton Street Corridor
Vancouver Central Library – North Plaza
Southeast False Creek Olympic Plaza

http://olympichostcity.vancouver.ca/...nues-sites.htm

Great to hear. Thanks!

Olympics-related Omega boutique store opens in Vancouver
Friday, December 4th, 2009 | 7:00 pm
Canwest News Service

Canada's first Omega boutique store officially opened Friday in the lobby of the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, a four-month Olympic retail venture expected to generate millions of dollars in timepiece sales.

The 500-square-foot Omega Olympic boutique features watches costing as little as $2,000 or as much as $400,000, but Omega brand president Gregory Swift expects the "heart" of the collection will be in the $5,000-to-$10,000 range.

"Based on our experiences at the Torino and Beijing Games, this is certainly a revenue exercise [and not just a marketing exercise]," he said of the Olympic store concept. "It will be the only place to see some of our high-end limited pieces and we expect [sales] per square foot to be one of the top in the world for the time of the Olympics."

The official 2010 Olympic timekeeper has 75 flagship boutique stores throughout the world but none in Canada until now. Its only other North American boutiques are in New York, Beverly Hills and Mexico City.

The new Vancouver store,which closes at the end of March 2010, will maintain a multilingual staff of about six people before the Olympics and then double its staffing levels during the Games. An Omega watchmaker will be on site at all times, with a fully outfitted bench that allows visitors to watch them do their detailed, precision work.

The store will sell limited-edition Vancouver 2010 watches, along with a wide assortment of exclusive timepieces like a $105,000 gold pocket watch that replicates a 1932 design and timing movement.

Swift said a diamond-studded Omega Tourbillon watch in a platinum case will cost about $400,000. A tourbillon timing movement counters the effects of gravity by mounting the escapement and balance wheel in a rotating cage; it can take a watchmaker up to nine months to assemble one.

It took builders about a month to construct the temporary store, Swift said, noting the back portion of the boutique never touches the existing wall of the historic hotel.

The 2010 Games will be Omega's 24th Olympiad as official timekeeper and the Swiss company will have at least 250 timekeepers at Olympic venues, along with a large contingent of workers from its European and North American offices. Omega will use the Hotel Vancouver as its city headquarters during the Games, taking a large block of rooms there and leasing the entire 14th floor for Olympic hospitality. It expects to host about 260 corporate guests during the Games.

The company plans to bring at least three or four international celebrity "ambassadors" to Vancouver during the Games. No names have been announced, but its current roster of ambassadors includes George Clooney, Nicole Kidman, Cindy Crawford, Michael Phelps, Sergio Garcia and Michelle Wie.

http://www.kelowna.com/2009/12/04/ol...-in-vancouver/

as 'little' as $2,000... hehe

With the Olympics coming you'll be seeing a lot more celebrities in Whistler. Here is a sighting of "celebrity" Paris Hilton getting cozy with Quatchi. Hope Quatchi got his shots afterwards :haha: http://vancitybuzz.blogspot.com/2009...cozy-with.html

I was in the store yesterday, actually. I don't like Omega watches, their styling is just bad. And their Vancouver 2010 watch looks really cheap compared to their Beijing 2008 watch. I'd imagine that's why they aren't really selling. Though, I suppose, some visitor will decide to pick up a cheap $5000 souvenir come game time. I believe this is the ugly $400,000 piece (which sells for about $170,000 less in the USA), though you never pay MSRP for watches.

http://www.thefinestwatches.com/imag...9D6D4203_x.jpg

And here is the ugly Vancouver 2010 piece.

http://images.askmen.com/fashion/wat...cs-watch_2.jpg

I super frickin' excited about that Russian tall ship. I'll definitely be checking it out.

Local hotels gear up for an onslaught of Olympic visitors

Hotels promise to be secure, but not to the point of being ‘unfriendly’

By BRUCE CONSTANTINEAU, Vancouver Sun
December 4, 2009



Pan Pacific general manager Tim Tindle, wearing red Olympic mittens, is ready to welcome the world to Vancouver. He says the Olympics will present new challenges and the hotel’s usual February complement of 375 workers will be expanded to 475.
Photograph by: Ward Perrin, Vancouver SunVANCOUVER - Supplies have been stockpiled, extra staff have been hired, finishing touches to new properties are underway and security arrangements are in place to protect visiting dignitaries.

Downtown Vancouver hotels are just about ready for the onslaught of Olympic visitors set to hit town early next year.

“It’s going to be a very different operating time for us because the average length of stay will be much longer than usual — about 24 days,” Pan Pacific Hotel general manager Tim Tindle said in an interview. “That brings different needs, like bigger bars of soap and bigger bottles of shampoo and extra coat hangers because guests will bring a lot more clothes.”

Olympic broadcaster NBC will take over about half the hotel during the Games, with other lodgers to include Asian media, the European Broadcasting Union and print organizations like Sports Illustrated, Reuters and Associated Press.

Tindle said Games-time check-ins will ramp up from around Feb. 5 and the hotel will be fully occupied by Feb. 10, two days before the Olympic opening ceremonies. The hotel’s usual February complement of 375 workers will be expanded to 475 during the Olympics.

Tindle hopes hotel food and beverage operating hours will expand from 16 hours a day to 19 or 20, depending on liquor authorities’ approval. Room service will run 24 hours a day as usual but with a larger staff and a wider menu selection.

“We’ve had a large request for Korean food and our culinary team has Korean-trained chefs so that’s something we can handle,” he said. “We normally don’t serve Korean food mainstream but for 21 or 24 days, we probably will be.”

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts regional vice-president Mark Andrew expects several international dignitaries will stay at Fairmont hotels during the Games. The company operates the Hotel Vancouver, the Waterfront, the Chateau Whistler and the Pacific Rim, which is scheduled to open in late January.

“When you see a head of state during the Olympics, chances are they’ll be staying at one of our iconic properties,” Andrew said.

He said security plans for the dignitaries have been coordinated with the RCMP and the International Olympic Committee and while the hotels will be secure, they won’t be secure to the point of being “unfriendly.”

The hotel chain recently hired about 350 people from more than 5,000 applications to staff the new Fairmont Pacific Rim, a 377-room property set to open next month near Canada Place. The new hotel receives its first Olympic guests in early February so deadlines are tight.

“You usually have a little time to get things going when you open a new hotel but in this case [general manager Randy Zupanski] has no time,” Andrew said. “He’s opening to the eyes of the world.”

He said the company has brought in experienced Fairmont employees from around the world to train new staff and be on hand during the Games to ensure the hotel offers “phenomenal” service.

Another new downtown hotel, the Coast Coal Harbour Hotel, also gets an Olympic trial by fire when the 220-room West Hastings property opens on Jan. 15.

Renaissance Vancouver Hotel Harbourside event planning and operations director Ed Murphy said his hotel will scramble to handle an expected 450 to 500 people a day for breakfast, more than double the usual demand.

Meeting and event space on the 19th floor will be converted to catering space to serve up 250 breakfasts a day while food and beverage facilities will extend their operating hours to accommodate the early-morning, late-night habits of Games visitors.

The 442-room Renaissance recently completed an 18-month, multi-million-dollar renovation that included physical and technological improvements to every guest room.

Murphy said the hotel will beef up security, including using dogs on hotel property patrols, to protect guests who will include IOC and European Broadcasting Union officials.

He said the hotel will be careful to display the right Olympic corporate brand names to reflect the sponsorship of the 2010 Games. The Renaissance, for example, normally sells Pepsi products but during the Games, it will also sell beverages made by Olympic sponsor Coca-Cola.

“Panasonic is a Games sponsor so when we renovated our revolving space on the 19th floor, we bought Panasonic televisions rather than some other brand,” Murphy said. “Maybe they’ll see we’re using their products in an awesome space.”

Four Seasons Hotel general manager Simon Pettigrew said the hotel will become a virtual 24-hour-a-day operation with all the activities and festivities scheduled during the Games.

He said the hotel will load up on non-perishable goods, like toiletries, in January and take daily delivery of fresh items in the middle of the night during the Games when traffic congestion is not an issue.

“Our storeroom guys will be taking deliveries at two or three in the morning instead of eight in the morning so their lives will be turned upside down for awhile,” Pettigrew said.

The hotel has spent the past few months training staff to multi-task so they can shift from one department to another as the need arises during the busy Games period. Pettigrew said the Podium Pursuit training program will ensure workers exceed guest expectations.

Hyatt Regency Hotel general manager Steve McNally said the 644-room hotel is still working out which Olympic sponsors and broadcasters it will host but feels confident its 450 employees can meet any challenge.

“We’ve told them to take advantage of this time,” he said. “They’ll work very hard but they won’t be working 24/7 so we want them to go to events and take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

bconstantineau@vancouversun.com

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
http://www.vancouversun.com/travel/L...330/story.html





Also, Mods, I have a suggestion. We are so close now to the Olympics that I, for one, would like a single super thread in which to put everything in much the same way we have the downtown developments thread. I suggest that this existing popular thread be it and renamed something along the lines of "2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games super-thread". Any thoughts?

But which one can you actually tell time with?

I'm a little surprised the Vancouver 2010 watch doesn't have an inukshuk on it. Glad, but surprised. The off-angle olympic rings are a little odd too, not sure why you'd want to have it that way.

I was already under the impression that this thread effectively served that purpose, but so that there is absolutely no doubt I will take you up on your name suggestion. Thanks for your input.

Well... not on the *front* anyways.

http://www.watchsites.net/watches/wp...h-caseback.jpg

:D

And the Olympic rings are on the end of the second hand, so they go around the clock with the second hand.

ahhhh, I see. Well at least that damn inukshuk is hidden! Still nothing special though, I'd take a regular speedmaster instead.

They should've worked more on the design, nothing really stands out.

So roughly 80 countries will send athletes to Vancouver, but in how many countries will the Olympics be shown on tv?

‘A big price’: U.S. Olympic team clothing unveiled


http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465...n?size=620x400
2010 U.S. Olympic uniforms being unveiled at The Bay on Tuesday in Vancouver.
Photograph by: Bill Keay, Vancouver Sun

VANCOUVER — Label-hungry shoppers will love the U.S. Olympic Team apparel by Polo Ralph Lauren, unveiled Tuesday at The Bay.

But the cost of the decidedly chic, Whistler-ready line — the first of about a dozen foreign team collections to be featured at The Bay — may leave some people scratching their toques.

“That’s a big price,” said Margrit Buletti of Switzerland, shaking her head and examining a $785 puffy red ski coat.

This was echoed by shoppers Duncan MacLellan and John Abbrusci, both of Vancouver.

“What?” said Abbrusci, laughing. “Really?” said MacLellan.

Bolstered by these reactions, we hatched a plan.

Even though the sleekly stylish U.S. line was conspicuously devoid of any controversial antler sweaters, nerdy mittens or hoser-ish toques, we decided to engage in a little retail competition.

We pitted the $785 puffy coat against a similarly warm parka, by HSBC’s Canadian Olympic Team line.

...

http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/p...117/story.html

They're so hideous. Seriously. Gross.

I'm sure people who had doubts about HBC's involvement with Vanoc are glad (Beijing's uniform disaster aside). I know I am.

I'm surprised by the writer's disparaging offhanded remarks on our uniforms though, hoserish, yes, but trendy as well.

Concord Pacific named Official Supplier of 2010 Winter Games


VANCOUVER, Dec. 8 /CNW/ - With 66 days to go until Canada's Games begin, Concord Pacific Developments, Inc. (Concord Pacific), and the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) announced today the Vancouver, BC-based company has been named an Official Supplier for the upcoming Games.

Under the agreement, Concord Pacific will make a financial investment in the Games as well as provide land for VANOC's use in preparation for and during the Games as part of a value-in-kind agreement. This includes access to 4.8-hectares of land on north False Creek adjacent to Concord Place Exposition and Activity Zone. The land will be used as staging areas for a number of critical back-of-house activities, including: security, broadcast, workforce, and ceremonies. In return, Concord Pacific will have rights to market and promote within the real estate development product and service category for the 2010 Winter Games and rights to associate with the Canadian Olympic Teams competing at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the London 2012 Olympic Games. The company also made a significant monetary contribution to the Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) earlier this year.

"As Canada's leading developer of master planned communities, we at Concord Pacific believe we have a commitment to build the fabric of communities that goes far beyond contributing amenities and building homes," explained company president Terry Hui. "Our company has been a proud sponsor of citywide community events and charities for over 20 years in Vancouver and a supporter of the 2010 Winter Games since the initial bid.

"The excitement ramping up in the final days before the world's best come here to compete at venues all around us is contagious," he continued. "We're ecstatic about stepping up even further to become an Official Supplier of the 2010 Winter Games."

The last phase of Concord Pacific Place, located along the False Creek in downtown Vancouver, is the development site that connects the Olympic and Paralympic Village Vancouver to Canada Hockey Place and BC Place.

"We're excited to officially welcome Concord Pacific into our sponsorship family for the 2010 Winter Games," said John Furlong, VANOC's CEO. "Staging the Games in a city surrounded by the ocean and the mountains provides a beautiful backdrop but unique space challenges. However, through the commitments of partners like Concord Pacific, we've been able to access the areas we need to operate successfully in constrained spaces and we're grateful for their support as we enter the final planning stages towards delivering great Games in 2010."


About Concord Pacific and Concord Adex


Concord Pacific is a proud community supporter of annual citywide events and a contributor to various charities year after year. Concord is a developer of multi-phased, master planned residential neighbourhoods that are strategically designed to enhance the lifestyles of its residents. The company's legacy as a master-planned community developer began with Concord Pacific Place on the former Expo `86 grounds on Vancouver's False Creek waterfront. This project has steadily transformed the city's skyline and redefined urban living. To date, Concord Pacific Place includes more than 10,000 homes, intermixed with parks, schools and a variety of retail and commercial services. The final phase of the community will transform the northeastern shore of False Creek into a truly sustainable community with innovative architecture and engaging public spaces of world-class scale and use.

Concord Pacific is also creating new communities across Canada such as Concord Adex Developments in Ontario including CityPlace in Toronto and Concord Park Place north of Toronto; Porteau Cove just north of West Vancouver; Concord Gateway in Richmond and Park Place Community in Central City, Surrey BC. For more information, visit www.concordpacific.com.

...

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/a.../08/c9154.html

Surveillance cameras to be installed downtown for the Games


Approximately video 100 cameras will be installed throughout the downtown core to watch the streets during the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.

The city says the devices will be on Granville Street from Drake to Cordova, on Robson Street from Bute to Beatty, on Hamilton/Mainland from Georgia to Drake, along with LiveCity Yaletown and LiveCity Downtown.

Signs will advise people they are being watched.

"The cameras will be deactivated and no further monitoring will take place after March 28, 2010," a city press release said.

...

http://www.theprovince.com/entertain...334/story.html

All that money, organization, time and energy for something that will last only months. I personally think they should leave some of them up, but knowing Vancouver thatd be a difficult idea to fly.

the headliners for the concerts in BC place during the medal ceremonies - which you have to pay $20 and up were announced and could they be any more boring and snooze?

nelly furtado, great big sea, INXS, trooper, Loverboy, bare naked ladies

oh i am so glad they kept those names secret - yawn

LOL snooooooooooooooore