On Friday, I visited the USOC-run USA House. It is not open to the public and has become the stomping grounds for athletes, sponsors and dignitaries. USOC Director of Corporate Partnerships John Pierce gave me a tour. The hip facility includes the USA Team Store, a media work room, the AT&T All-access Lounge with complimentary Acer laptops, Panasonic flat screens with a constant stream of the Olympics, Wii entertainment, the Bud Lounge with full bar facilities and a constant flow of free food.
My husband would have threatened to move in.
The USA House hosts both past and present Olympic athletes and at one point, I chatted with Olympic gold medal gymnast, Shawn Johnson.
OK, I mostly acted like a giggling groupie when I asked to take her picture.
The true highlight was meeting one of my idols: Olympic legend Bonnie Blair (see my interview with her here).
She was instrumental in helping me win the Microsoft Office Winter Games Contest and we spent an hour together talking about Office '10, her Olympic experiences, and visiting Allstate’s Hall of Fame Tribute Wall where she will be included amongst the chalk murals. Bonnie told me the reason why I was her choice for winning the contest is because she loved the humorous perspective I share on my blog about motherhood.
Following our interview, we watched speed skating on the 105-inch Panasonic television in the Bud Lounge. Bonnie gave me the insider scoop on the behind-the-scenes action and we were reprimanded for being too loud.
It was then I knew she was my kindred spirit.
It was fascinating to watch the qualifying heats of the 1,500m Men's Short Track as Apolo Ohno strove to tie her record. I entitled this photo: "I'm coming for you."
And he did later that night when he won the silver medal. He now shares Bonnie's record for the most medals awarded to an athlete at the Winter Olympics.
She was, of course, gracious about his victory. I was so inspired and entertained by her that I knew I'd be her BFF if we lived in the same town.
Or I’d most certainly be her stalker.
Cool tidbit: The USA House had a smattering of guitars autographed by the AT&T Team USA Soundtrack Bands such as Sugarland, Hoobastand and others. To download these songs, go to www.att.net/TeamUSA or text USA to 2257. All proceeds benefit Team USA. Also, be sure to go to www.OfficeWinterGames.com to download your free Microsoft Office 2010 Beta.
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12 Comments:
BFF, indeed. Sounds like you're kindred spirits!
Or a stalker. :-)
-Kate
How cool!
Thus far, the trip seems far out of character for your norm.
My, my! How will you ever come back to earth after your ten days?
(I suspect J., H. and B. will help with the return to reality.)
Not only are you her fan but she is a fan of YOURS! Now that's pretty amazing.
...and I love that the two of you got into trouble for being too loud. Don't make them seperate you, Amber.
"I'm coming for you." I love it. I often entitle my photos, too. That was hilarious.
Yep, she was definitely even louder than me. But boisterous and so fun.
Serf--that trip is a wee bit out of the norm. It could be tough coming in for a landing when it's done. :-)
Sounds amazing. It was awesome to watch on TV and you could feel the spirit of crowd even through the TV for when that team came through.
Lori T.
You are becoming cooler by the minute. I am loving the updates. Keep em coming!
P.S. I'm a fan of you too!
It is so cool that you were there to see Ohno tie Bonnie Blair's record with Bonnie Blair! So cool!
It really was so cool. Definitely the highlight of my trip so far. :-)
What an amazing experience you are having--how many times a day do you pinch yourself????
Enjoy it all.
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