Winter Olympics

I’m clearly in a loving mood this week – well, I guess Sunday was Valentine’s Day. Anyway, along with Dublin bikes and Winter light, something else I love is (are?) the Olympics.

I will watch any sport, provided there’s a promise of a podium, a national anthem and some crying at the end of it. It's the mystique of the Olympics, I suppose; the fact that the Olympic gold is the one everybody wants to win.

My new-found favourite sport is snowboard cross. Four riders (see, I'm picking up the lingo) at a time shoot down a course, ducking and jumping over obstacles (and each other). The first two across the line proceed to the next round until only four are left in the final. This is a sport for insane people, but when you see them whooping and bouncing along the bumps you start to think, ‘hey, maybe I should take up snowboard cross.’

I’ve also been picking up skiing tips from the men’s downhill … I need to jump up in the air more, I think.

I’m watching coverage even as I type. Coming up: curling (meh), luge (more exciting), pairs figure skating (love it when they’re really good, love it when they fall – can’t lose!) and women’s snowboard cross. Good times.