No training today - but lots to do

Over the past few days we have had the honour of eating lunch in the start house.  As you sit amoung the photos on the wall, you can see all the history of the Hannenkam with this being its 69 year running.

We are now honoured guests there.  Lunch is always soup, salad, main course and dessert.  Good thing we've been on our feet all day just to work off lunch then dinner.

As I said earlier, we didn't train today.  There was a 10am start planned, but thankfully they blew the race off about 9am with the plan to do the same thing tomorrow.  With the current weather, even tomorrow is suspect as it snowed most of the day.  

Yesterday, as we were working on the start, we could hear a helicopter coming up the hill.  Not that uncommon as they use helicopters here just like we use skidoos back home.  However, this time it was the Red Bull Attack Cobra.  This thing makes quit the sound as it approaches, almost taking your breath away.  Well, it came right over the start house then stood on its noise as it then headed back down the course.

I'm uploading some pictures from the last few days to the my web site.  I've been trying to capture just how steep the approach into the finish is.  

This one comes close.  In the middle of the red fence to the left is a wooden tv tower that you can just see.  Mounted to that tower is one of my radar units.  Skiers will reach over 141kph on the approach into the finish.  Did I mention that there is a jump just before the finish.

You can see what happened to Scott on the approach to the finish last year.

This is a race not for the timid.

Yet another short post

Sorry, but yesterday was a very long day. Ted, James and I worked late trying to debug a problem with some video. At 8pm, in the dark, we called it a night.

For those of you wondering (Barry) dinner was Schnitzel and it was amazing, as was the rest of the meal.

I crashed shortly after that, as today (Tuesday) was the first training day and I had to be on the lift at 7am to ensure all my devices were installed and running by 9am with a 10am start.

Well, it is now 9:09am and training today is cancelled. Why? As it is just 'puking snow' all the way from the bottom to the top and there is no way anyone can keep up to it including the Austria Army (they must have taken a page from Mel's book, or was it the other way around).

Short blog tonight

Why you ask?  (Isn't this a great view of the village?  I took this today from the Red Bull arch).

1. Well, I'm dying from a head cold.
   
2. I didn't ski off the hill until dark (we are talking the Hannenkamm here, not some baby ski hill in North York)
3. Just barely made it to dinner

About the dinner part.  Other than fine wine, and one of the very best Peppercorn Steaks I have ever had in Europe, not to mention the dessert, I'm beat.

I guess that taking Tylenol Nighttime just after dessert and then having that followed up with some Pear Schnapps... I'm done.  Now, the owner of the villa did lecture me on the medical benifits of taking Schnapps (must be as good as Oregeno Oil).

Tomorrow is another day.  Lots to still do before the first training run on Tuesday.

The food...

Is amazing...

Dinner tonight here at the Villa:

Saladbouquet with roasted shrimps

Clear soup with slice pancake (this shoulds weird, but was amazing)

Saddle of Lamb (don't tell Carolyn, but this was amazing as well -- even though I can't stand lamb)

Vegetable and polenta

Cranberry-Scheiterhaufen with poppy-seed parfait

This is how we eat almost every day.  We have our own chef for dinner.  Good thing we are on our feet all day, or we would put on 100 pounds.

Short blog tonight as those at the end of the  hall don't have any WiFi (Ted and Andy--well, Ted sort of has some Wifi).  So, I have to configure one of our special routers to extend the WiFi down the hall.

As for this room the WiFi router is just below us (for those of you internet challenged people like my Dad, Wifi is wireless internet and is pronounced "Why Fi").  

Today's pictures are on my website.  http://www.walkerphotography.ca/gallery/7116228_Vr58d

Made it to the Villa

Getting to Austria is always like John Candy in Plains, Trains and Automobiles. The last 48 hours were no different.

It starts out simple enough with an upgrade to Business class and the fully reclining beds on Air Canada. Dinner is Manitoulin Rainbow Trout (those of you who know me, know I'm not big on fish). But, it was pretty good anyway. I watched one movie (Burn after reading -- pretty funny) and then managed to squeeze in 4 hours of sleep.

On approach to Munich, we find out the airport is just about closed due to frozen fog. We circle around for a bit and then the pilot tells us that he is headed to Zurich to get fuel before we run out (not a bad idea). 2 hours later we do make it into Munich.

Coop has beat me here and manages to find me even though none of our cell phones are working. I had to pay 8 Euro's for 60 minutes of internet so that I could get on T-Mobile with my iPod to send text messages to Ted in Austria to tell Coop that I'm here.. somewhere.

That works out OK, and off we go to get our train tickets. Having done this before, we know that it will take 3 trains to get to Kitzbuhel with the first one leaving in 8 minutes. That is a 50 minute ride to downtown Munich.

We totally get confused in Munich city center. Nothing makes sense and we can't find the long haul train station (sort of like Toronto with the subway in one place and the GO in another). When we finally make sense of it, we have about 3 minutes to dash all over. Coop sprints it out ahead of me and I'm trying not to loose site of him. I know it is track 13, but in the confusion, I double back to the next track (I was on the right track in the first place - no pun intended). Coop dives on and tells the conductor to wait for me as he can see me running down the platform. Since I got confused, and did a 180, the conductor says too bad and off he leaves (this is Europe... the trains do run on time).

Soooo... I have now realized that he's gone and he has the combined ticket. I have to purchase another and have 2 hours to kill (at Starbucks--and another 8 euros for 60 minutes of internet so I can text Ted that we got split up, etc.)

Things go well after this point, and I make it to Kitz. The good news is that Ted is there to help me with my bags right off the train (something you can't do in an airport much anymore). The automobile part is that you can walk to the Villa Mellon http://www.villa-mellon.at/ faster than you can drive to it as you have to drive all the way around Kitz to get back.

Our host here is amazing. Dinner is Monk Fish (where is the beef around here??).

Kitz - here we come

The team is headed to Austria to do our magic again. I'm currently at YYZ with an overnight flight to Munich.

In Munich I meet up with Brian and we make our way to Kitzbuhel.

mike@portcredit.net

Sent via BlackBerry on the Bell Mobility network

Kitz - here we come

The team is headed to Austria to do our magic again. I'm currently at YYZ with an overnight flight to Munich.

In Munich I meet up with Brian and we make our way to Kitzbuhel.

mike@portcredit.net

Sent via BlackBerry on the Bell Mobility network