Day 326: If Only That Puck Went In...And Other Stuff. [SPOILER]

This post is chock full of spoilerific fun so if you're not up to date on the hours of Olympic coverage on your DVR, please come back another time.

WOMEN'S HOCKEY FAIL:

With 1:24 left in the gold medal match between the US and Canadian women's hockey teams, the puck skittered down the ice towards the empty net the Canadian goalie had just vacated to give them an extra attacker. It clanged off the post. It will be the play I most remember when people talk about this tightly played game.

I'll also remember how the US team's defense sort of fell apart in the waning moments of the game as they surrendered a two goal lead with just under four minutes to go. The game-tying goal came a mere 30 seconds after the missed empty net shot—a miss that now loomed large as the teams finished regulation tied at two. Sudden death would decide who wins the biggest prize in women's hockey.

But penalties will kill you and that's exactly what they did to Team USA. Giving Team Canada a 5-on-3 advantage is just asking for trouble. Trouble revealed itself in the form of a 3-2 loss and a second straight silver medal for the Americans. Normally I'm happy with any color medal for my country, but this second place was just downright depressing.

HOT DIGGITY, TED LIGETY:

Congratulations to Ted Ligety as the 29-year-old won his second Olympic gold medal in the Men's Giant Slalom on Wednesday. He pretty much made the rest of the field look like amateurs on the bunny hill since he had almost a full second lead after the first run. He probably could've skied down that course backwards and still won gold. Ok, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration—that was a seriously shitty course where one turn had Ligety almost pointing his skis back up the mountain in his second run. Evil conditions but nothing Ted couldn't handle. No big whoop.

COOL RUNNINGS, US-STYLE:

The American women have made history in the two-man bobsled by earning two medals—a silver to Elana Meyers and Lauryn Williams and a bronze to Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse. Elana Meyers also becomes the first US woman with two bobsled medals and her teammate, Lauryn Williams becomes just the fifth Olympian to medal in different events at the Summer and Winter Games. She also has a gold medal from the 4x100-meter relay in the 2012 London Olympics.

So the current medal count shows the USA in the lead... naturally... with 25 total medals. However, Norway leads the charge in the gold medal count with 10 first place finishes. Only a few more days left and then a long, four year wait for the Winter Games to return.

Day 320: Well, THIS Has Only Happened Three Times Ever [SPOILER]

Have you seen the Olympic Men's Slopestyle Skiing final? Yes? Ok... read on. Please vacate the premises if you haven't had a chance to watch it. Last chance...

Slopestyle Skiing is yet another inaugural event in this year's Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. It's basically exactly like the snowboarding side of slopestyle except on double-tipped skis and it is oh so much more exciting. The tricks are more technical and more dynamic in skiing because, you know, there's more equipment with which to contend. It's been one of my most favorite events to watch this year—mainly because as a former skier, I know I would never be able to do any of this stuff.

I would call myself a lazy skier. I was never interested in challenging myself and wanted nothing more to ski green circles and blue squares all day long. The longer and less challenging a trail, the more I wanted to ski it. There were no bumps or jumps in my world (at least on purpose) and the only time I ever found myself skiing backwards was purely by mistake. (And that was usually followed by a spectacular wipeout.)

So basically I'm just in awe of the skiers that act like it's no big whoop to go spiraling through the air and do it with such grace and confidence. Those graceful Americans came in to this event with a pretty good chance of cleaning house. Nick Goepper, who had just won gold in the Winter X Games, was the favorite to take gold in this high-flying contest. And Nick didn't disappoint posting a first run 92.40—but it was two of his teammates that took the podium by storm.

Joss Christensen, who finished 6th in the X Games, posted a first run score of 95.80 that no one could challenge. He was the final skier named to the Olympic team and he celebrated by throwing down four practically flawless runs over the course. Gus Kenworthy finished second and will take home the silver and hopefully some Sochi stray dogs too.

It's the first time the US has occupied the entire medal stand in an event since 2002 when the US men swept the halfpipe event, and only the third time ever (1956, men's figure skating.) The three medals gave the US five in a span of 15 hours with the women snowboarders taking gold and bronze in the halfpipe.

I'm excited for some more speedy alpine skiing tonight and have successfully managed to avoid spoilers all day. I've become an expert at dodging results—which should itself be an Olympic sport!

Day 282: Lindsey Vonn Sadly Out of Olympics

The human body can only take so much and Lindsey Vonn's knee is a perfect example as she announced Tuesday that she would not be competing in Sochi next month. Vonn crashed last year in the Super G at the World Championships where she tore two ligaments in her right knee and suffered a tibial fracture. She came back to compete at the end of 2013, but crashed again in November. Not to be discouraged, she made another valiant attempt but skied off a French course after her knee buckled. And now, with the games just a month away, she has run out of time.

"I am devastated to announce that I will not be able to compete in Sochi," Vonn said in a statement Tuesday. "I did everything I possibly could to somehow get strong enough to overcome having no ACL but the reality has sunk in that my knee is just too unstable to compete at this level."

It's a sad realization that the most successful skier in American history will not be around to defend her downhill title. In 2010, after announcing she was battling a shin injury, she came out just a week later and became the first American woman to win gold in the downhill. After crashing in two other races, she finished third in the Super G. Vonn will turn 30 this year so competing in 2018 is not a complete long shot. With her determination and perseverance, I wouldn't be surprised to see her hurtling down the mountains of South Korea.

There's no doubt that Vonn is one of the toughest competitors in the skiing field. Back in 2006 in the Torino Games, she crashed during a training run and had to be airlifted to the hospital. She wanted to compete so badly, she got up out of her hospital bed and tried to leave without being officially discharged. She skied just two days later finishing eighth and while not winning a medal, she did win the US Olympic Spirit Award.

Lindsey's withdrawal from the games in Sochi leaves a spot open for another skier on the team. This could be the chance Mikaela Shiffrin has been waiting for. Described as a "phenom" by Bode Miller, the 18-year-old is the current slalom World Cup champion—the youngest in US history. She has won two of four World Cup slaloms this season and is targeted as a potential medalist in both slalom and giant slalom.

While it's sad we won't get Vonn's sparkling presence at the games next month, it will be nice to see a wide-eyed Olympic rookie get her first taste of the global spotlight.

Day 193: This Might Be Why I Stopped Skiing

Unlike most kids these days, I didn't start skiing the moment I could stand upright. It was probably more like 5th or 6th grade. But once I started, I really fell in love with it. And like with any other sport I attempt, I was just ok at it... never really wanting to progress much past the blue square intermediate trails. You could call me a lazy skier because I definitely was never interested in actually challenging myself on the mountain. I'll take a long, windy cruising trail any day.

As I got older, things happened that made me start to really hate skiing. I had equipment problems that made trips to the slopes painful. Then there was the thought of someone hurtling uncontrollably down the mountain that set me on edge constantly. After witnessing the degradation of skiing etiquette, I lost my faith in the people around me and their ability to not run me over. And skiing while wrapped in layers of bubble wrap probably wouldn't be a good idea.

So a few years ago I decided to just give it up all together and maybe find a new winter sport to get me out in the fresh air. What I really miss about skiing is not lugging gear to a mountain, putting on eighteen layers of clothing, hiking up to the chairlift and then having all your sweaty under layers freeze solid the minute the chair embarks on its trip to the top. I don't miss that at all. I miss the apres ski. I miss going in for lunch and never going back out. I miss big fat Bag burgers and ice cold beers all afternoon.

I know we live in the east where the mountains are tiny compared to other parts of the world and we don't often have to worry about avalanches. But it could happen, right? I recently came across the story of freeskier Aymar Navarro who triggered an avalanche during a film shoot in the Spanish Pyrenees. The sliding sheet of snow was so massive that the skier was actually floating on top of it for a while before he fell and was swept under the rapidly moving sheet.

But guess what? He survived. Navarro was wearing an avalanche ABS airbag which is designed to inflate when activated and keep victims from being buried too deeply. The airbags don't guarantee survival but they give a crazy skier a fighting chance. Take a look at the video...

Or maybe this is the reason I quit skiing. Just the thought of getting caught in that shit makes me instantly claustrophobic. Yikes.