Men's Journal

All week, Men’s Journal editor GORDY MEGROZ will provide an inside look at the events, athletes, and parties that make up the Winter Games. In his first dispatch he observes the mood in Yaletown and considers the odds of Bode Miller taking home more Olympic hardware.

I finally made it to the Winter Games at about five o’clock Monday afternoon and it’s not feeling so wintery. In fact, the cherry trees are blooming here in downtown Vancouver. Not that I’m complaining—the town looks great, there’s tons of energy, and it’s nice to escape the dirty slush puddles lining the New York City streets (one of which I stepped in this morning leaving my apartment).

I’m staying in Yaletown, which we here at the magazine described as a “drinking” destination in our February issue. Apparently the Irish contingent heard the same and have made Yaletown their home. Word on the street is that their late-night partying isn’t sitting so well with some of the locals who are used to the bars shutting down at two in the morning. I vow to investigate further to see just how great the drinking scene really is in this section of the city.

I need to wake up early to head to Whistler, so tonight I enjoyed a great, laid-back dinner at Cioppino’s with a bunch of the marketing team from Oakley, former Men’s Journal gear guru Paul Hochman, and his wife, former Olympic ski racer, Carrie Sheinberg. Carrie raced in the 1994 Games in Lillehammer, Norway, and told me she continues to return to the Olympics every four years, despite not competing, “because there’s nothing else like it. It’s like a two-week long wedding party. It just feels good and the party never stops.” I’m already getting that feeling. I’ve been to a lot of sporting events—playoff baseball in Fenway Park, the U.S. Open, the NBA playoffs—but this already feels like a much bigger deal. And it feels this way despite the fact that since I’ve landed, I haven’t seen a single event. Not live or on television. That will happen tomorrow up at Whistler where they’ll be running the men’s super combined alpine event. This is the event in which mensjournal.com contributor Ted Ligety is the defending gold medalist. This time around, I think Ted has a much better shot at gold in the giant slalom. But I love Bode Miller’s chances to win another medal. After picking up a bronze in the downhill today, I predict he’ll be loose, which should garner him another chunk of hardwear at these games.

Tomorrow night I’ll let you know how it went up there, provide some photos, and hopefully score an interview with one of the guys on the hill. That’s if I can get to sleep tonight—it’s gonna be pretty hard if the fireworks don’t stop.