We've never been big on Valentines Day. My motto has always been I'd rather be treated a little bit special every day instead of really special just one day. And I think I have nothing to complain about there! But this year unexpected plans have come together that will see us going for dinner at an event the Salvation Army is hosting as a fundraiser. The dinner will be prepared by the Culinary Institute so should be very good. Because it finishes at 9:00 and Lloyd goes to work at midnight, there's not much point in going home so we plan to take in a movie instead. Gosh - Dinner AND a movie for Valentines - guess there's a first time for everything.
I've asked for tomorrow off so I can bake something to take to the benefit auction and it just happens to be a long weekend so I'm really looking forward to 3 full days off work! I won't be able to spend the days sitting at my desk watching the olympics as I work. It's been great this year how that has worked out. I was doing some reading yesterday on the kids speed skating club website and boy, do those kids have amazing Olympic influences to inspire them. Besides the fact that James' coach has had three of his kids make it to the Olympic, his son now coaches the Korean speed skating team. I also hear that the young man who unexpectedly won a silver medal earlier in the week is also related somehow to the family of Meghan's coach. They had lots of fun on the weekend when they had their meet and one of the olympians showed up with a medal that the kids could get their pictures taken with. Really nice inspiration to keep these kids actively involved. I realize that pretty much none of them will ever reach that calibre but if it keeps them inspired enough to keep at it, we'll at least have a bunch of healthier, happier kids.
There was a story in the Guelph Mercury yesterday about a young man who spent his teen years with our kids club and was skating yesterday in Russia. I happened to see he race and unfortunately the outcome wasn't good for him but it was a great experience for him just the same.
Former Cambridge speedskater enjoys first taste of the Olympics
By Josh Brown
SOCHI, RUSSIA — Richard Shoebridge got the start he wanted.
The speedskater shot to the front of the pack one lap into his 1,000-metre short track qualification run Thursday at the Iceberg Skating Palace in Sochi.
Then the home crowd got behind Russian Vladimir Grigorev, one of four racing in his heat.
"Usually you can hear the skaters behind you and hear them building up speed and trying to make a pass," said Shoebridge, who was raised in Cambridge but it representing Great Britain at the Games.
"But out there it was so loud because the Russian guy was in the race that you couldn't hear people making a move."
By the second lap — of the nine tours in the race — Shoebridge had a foe on the inside and outside. Halfway through the race his skate got kicked and he never recovered. He stayed with the group until the final lap but couldn't push forward and finished last.
Only the top two from Thursday's eight heats advanced to the quarter-finals, which run Saturday. Grigorev and China's Tianyu Han came out of Shoebridge's heat while Canadians Charle Cournoyer, Olivier Jean and Charles Hamelin also made the cut from their respective groups.
"I tried to make an inside pass to sneak in and get up to the qualifying positions," said Shoebridge, of his strategy on the final lap. "But with short track these days, if you make a tight inside pass, you start rubbing against the guy on the outside and lose you speed like that."
It wasn't a good day all around for the Brits in the event. All three entries failed to make it out of the heats.
Shoebridge was born in South Africa but his family moved to Cambridge about 17 years ago. He attended Jacob Hespeler Secondary School and was a mainstay at the Cambridge Speed Skating Club during his teenage years. His family still lives in Hespeler.
The 28-year-old made it to the Canadian Olympic trials leading up to the Vancouver Games four years back but didn't crack the squad. Since then, the dual citizen has been skating for England.
"The crowd was phenomenal," he said. "It was nothing like I ever expected. But it was fun."
Before the Games, Shoebridge was planning on retiring from competitive skating. But now that he's had a taste of the Olympics, he's on the fence.
One of the things inspiring him concerns best friend Gilmore Junio. The Canadian long track speedskater's tale has turned into one of the most uplifting stories in Sochi.
Junio made the selfless decision to withdraw from the men's 1,000 m long track race Wednesday so teammate Denny Morrison could compete. Morrison made good on the generosity by taking silver for Canada in the event.
Before making the call, Junio ran it by his pal.
"To be honest when I first heard about it I was kind of gutted for Gilmour," said Shoebridge. "He earned the spot and had every right to skate. I kind of questioned why he was doing it.
"But he wants the best for his team and it actually proved to be the best move."
Junio and Shoebridge became close friends while training together at Calgary's Olympic Oval and have known each other for the past 12 years.
"The thing he did is just a true expression of his character. He's such a great guy off the ice. He's one of the best sportsmen I know."
Shoebridge plans to take in some other Olympics events — likely with Junio — before returning to England.
"It was a great learning experience for me just being able to race in the Olympics," he said.
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