Blogtober Day 2: Mark Pavelich

Now, today we're moving from sand to ice. And I could talk about this guy FOREVER, so please read on as I struggle mightily to keep this short(ish).

It's no secret that I'm more than a little bit obsessed with the 1980 Olympic hockey team. Pav isn't a Jim Craig, Mike Eruzione or Mark Johnson-type marquee name so he usually doesn't get any recognition, which TOTALLY needs to change. Because he's awesome, with a capital AWESOME. Have I mentioned that he's awesome?

In the pre-Olympic season, Pav ranked fifth on the team in points, behind three guys who went straight to the NHL after the Olympics and one guy who ended up playing in the NHL for 17 years. Casual. During the Olympics, Pav scored one goal but was tied for the most assists on the team with six in seven games. It just so happens that, in the Soviet game, he had assists on the first U.S. goal scored and the last U.S. goal scored -- yes, he assisted The Goal, Mike Eruzione's game-winner. But really, this wasn't a coincidence: Pav hated the attention he got when he scored goals himself (and all attention in general), so he "lived to set people up." (And he was really freaking good at it.)

According to The Boys of Winter, "If you got to an open patch of ice, Mark Pavelich would find you."

He also played in a freewheeling way that other players had a really hard time figuring out, born from years playing pond hockey up in Minnesota. Bah Harrington once asked Pav what breakout play they were going to run on their next shift, and Pav answered, "We're going to start on one end of the ice and end on the other." Best. Answer. Ever.

Pav was undrafted after the Olympics, mainly because people underestimated him because of his small size (he's only 5'8"). But according to his Hockey Hall of Fame bio, "he himself felt that being small only made him more determined and a little meaner." He went pro in Europe, but after one season was back in America and playing for Herb Brooks, the new head coach of the New York Rangers. He set the Rangers record for points scored by a rookie (76) and is one of two Americans to ever score five goals in an NHL game.

(Keep in mind, this is a guy from middle-of-nowhere, Minnesota who's ridiculously private and introverted and who hates the media and all forms of attention, who was able to flourish in New York City, the media capital of the world. If that doesn't deserve a HUGE standing ovation, nothing does.)

But interestingly, probably the coolest thing about Pav is the way his career ended. When Brooks left the Rangers in '85, his successor reverted back to the un-creative dump and chase style of hockey, which is basically the antithesis of how Pav played. Hockey stopped being fun for him, so he retired. Seriously. Granted, he un-retired to play a little bit more in the NHL and then another few seasons in Europe. But when he stopped liking what he was doing, he stopped doing it. 

And nowadays, Pav is just doin' his thing in a cabin he built back in middle-of-nowhere, Minnesota. Hunting, fishing, being reclusive, not playing hockey and not talking to the media. His 1980 teammates joke about his hermit-like habits but, as Jim Craig said, "He could care less about the limelight. He just lives his life and is happy ... all of us should be that courageous."

So, I know I'm not doing this whole fan letter thing to get approval from the people I'm writing about, but I'm not going to lie and say it wasn't SO COOL to see this in response to yesterday's post:

Total squeeeee moment! (And we've spoken before, via email, for that Misty/Kerri story. And now he's read my blog. Yooooo.)

Blogtober Day 1: Todd Rogers

Woohoo, day one! I figured it'd be appropriate to kick off my fan letters with some volleyball royalty since, y'know, I work there. And it just so happens it was this guy's birthday yesterday! So without further ado...

Todd's been holding it down on the men's side of the beach volleyball world for as long as Misty and Kerri have been around on the women's side. He was an alternate to the 2004 Olympic team and an Olympian in 2008 and 2012, winning gold in Beijing -- yep, the U.S. swept the beach gold medals, and I'll bet you didn't even know! He and former partner Phil Dalhausser are considered one of the best American men's beach volleyball teams of all time; they were the world champs in 2007 (and were the first ever U.S. men's team to win it), set the record for most consecutive FIVB matches won (40), set the record for winnings by a men's team in a single season ($387,700), won a total of over $1 million in prize money and won over 500 matches together. At the 2008 Olympics, Todd finished tied for first among all hitters with 125 kills in seven matches. So basically, even though he just turned 40, this is totally the guy you want on your team. He's the definition of a baller.

Todd's nickname is The Professor because of his mental approach to the game. He himself has said that he's not a great athlete compared to some of the guys he's playing against (and he's also considerably shorter than most of them), so he's had to, "change the game to one that is a match of wits rather than brawn to give [himself] a fighting chance." According to his new partner, Ryan Doherty (who has an absolutely hysterical blog, FYI), Todd can watch a guy play for five minutes and know his game inside out. Professor Todd ain't no run-of-the-mill beach bum!

Also, with his salt-and-pepper goatee, Todd looks far more like his nickname than his actual profession. And check out those shorts!

Todd isn't sure if he's going to try for a third straight Olympics yet, but after mentoring Phil to become one of the best players in the world, you can be sure that Ryan has the entire volleyball world in front of him. If Todd does decide to stick around, keep your eyes open for these two in Rio. My fingers are most definitely crossed!

Welcome to Blogtober!

Hello, dearest readers!

Remember when I blogged every day in July last summer? Well, I've been seeing some blog-every-day challenges floating around recently, and I was inspired to create my own for myself.

A few months ago, I posted on my Tumblr about an Olympian named Peter Norman, who has an AMAZING story but probably 99% of people have never heard of before. I expected it to not get a single like or reblog, but it shockingly got 61 notes! It made me wonder what other random tidbits about Olympians I know that people may actually care about. So that's what October is going to be -- a different Olympian every day. :)

But then, last week, I received a sign from the universe. My boss lent me a book called Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon that, first of all, is incredibly inspiring and made me want to go MAKE ALL THE THINGS. But more than that, there's a page titled "Write fan letters" in the chapter called "Be Nice." It basically says to show your appreciation for someone else's work without expecting anything in return. When the author suggested writing a blog post about someone's work that you admire, I was sold. Don't you just love having your ideas validated like that?! (Ironically, though, the very next page is titled "Validation is for parking.")

Hence, Blogtober was born!

Every day, I'll be writing a fan letter of sorts about a different Olympian, explaining why they're incredibly awesome and why you should care, and doing it in bite-sized chunks (because lord knows I could blab forever). I tried to stay away from the big names that everyone knows so I could try and expand some people's horizons, but I can't leave out my favorites in a month full of fan letters! I will, however, leave out Jim Craig and RA Dickey, 'cause I've written (read: fangirled) about them before.

I'm excited about this, guys! I've got my list and I've got some graphics ready to go. It's going to be a fun, nerdy month. :)

#GladToBeHere

Flash back with me, if you will, to the spring of 2012.

I was studying abroad in London, topped-up Oyster card in my wallet and an email saying, "hey, we'd like you to volunteer with London 2012 Ceremonies all the way through the end of the Paralympics!" in my inbox. Life was good.

And then reality happened. My student visa expired in June, which meant I would no longer be allowed to work and would have to leave the country. I attempted to get a work visa, which you need a sponsor (aka your employer) to sign off on, only to find out that L2012C didn't sponsor visas. I went to the U.S. embassy for help and was literally turned away at the door (thanks a ton, America). So I grudgingly packed my bags and bid a tearful adieu to my hopes of working at the London 2012 Olympics.

It sucked. Goooood times.

Now, let us return to the present. As I'm not working or interning for the USOC (*pointed look in their direction*), I applied to be a volunteer with them at the USA House during the Sochi Olympics. The USA House is basically the USOC's hospitality center during the games, for sponsors, athletes, athletes' families, etc.

It's where Shaun White meets Wayne Gretzky. Because, y'know, why not? [via]

It's also where Jim Craig speaks to the media in front of a GIANT CHALK MURAL (!!!) that was also signed by Bonnie Blair, Peggy Fleming, Scott Hamilton, Dan Jansen... [via]

Basically, it sounds like the coolest gig ever. And as of very recently, there's an email in my inbox that says, "hey, we'd like you to come to Sochi and volunteer with us!" Super cool, right?

Welp. Reality, once again, kicked me in the shins. Round trip flights to Sochi are almost $2,000, Russian visas cost $305, and the USOC doesn't cover any of its volunteers' expenses. So that means I'd have to find a hotel to stay in (HA) for three weeks (DOUBLE HA), as well as pay for transportation to and from Olympic Park and meals (and the exorbitantly expensive souvenirs, because let's be real). Basically, if I wanted to get myself to Sochi and stay in a hotel -- not going anywhere else, not eating anything, and not buying souvenirs -- that would cost me a cool $5,000. And that's a conservative estimate.

Considering I, a) make minimum wage, which is barely enough to cover my living expenses, b) don't have five grand to my name, and c) am biding my time before student loans come and hit me like a truck...

For the second time in under a year and a half, I have the opportunity to volunteer at the Olympics, and have to turn it down.

How. Is. This. Even. POSSIBLE?

I feel like this is becoming a joke. Applies for USOC internships for four straight years? Rejected. Tries to volunteer at London 2012? No visa. Tries to volunteer at Sochi 2014? No money. That's funny, universe. Reeeeeally funny. At this point I think it'd be easier to become an Olympic athlete and get there that way.

I could totally rock those pants and be a curler, right? PyeongChang or bust! [via]

But I'm not here to whine. (Well, okay, I'm here to whine a little bit, because... I mean, seriously? Seriously?) This whole situation has made me take a step back, take a deep breath and appreciate what I'm doing and what I have.

Since being out here in Colorado Springs, life has sort of fallen into a rhythm, and it's really easy to lose perspective of how freaking cool this all is. But sometimes I'll be returning to the OTC from work, and there'll be tourists posing in front of the Olympic rings that I see so often it's become routine. Or I'll be eating lunch on a Saturday and spot a tour group being led around outside. And just the other day, when a shooting coach asked me what I was here for, his response to hearing that I'm an intern was, "Oh, so you're someone, huh?"

It's interesting going back and reading my old posts about how badly I wanted what I have right now. Two and a half years ago (omg) I wrote this post that says:

And being vocal about my passion will one day lead to blog entries written from inside one of the Olympic training centers as I eagerly await the start of my internship.

I'm kind of impressed with myself, to be honest. Granted, things didn't happen exactly how I pictured them, but I came pretty damn close. And then there's the added benefit of being the resident ceremonies expert during London 2012, and the resident volleyball expert when Rio 2016 finally rolls around! Working for an NGB is incredibly cool, as is working for an organizing committee. Had everything happened the way I originally wanted it to, I might not have gotten the chance to learn this firsthand.

So even though I'm about to decline yet another awesome volunteer experience (just allow me one more moment of bitterness), what I have been able to do has been 100% amazing. And I couldn't be any more #gladtobehere. (Hashtag credit goes to the awesome Chris Yandle! [Twitter//blog])

And hey, now I can put the $2,000 I won't be using on airfare towards buying souvenirs! I think that two grand will be able to buy me one t-shirt and a pen.