From North Bay to Vancouver Part 1-Photo Gallery

Jason (in orange) and Marissa Pichette (Maple Leaf Touque) engulfed in a sea of Canadian fans at Cypress Mountain. Photo from TSN's on-line feed.

North Bay residents and avid Baytoday readers, Jason Pichette and his wife Marissa are in Vancouver this week to attend the Olympic Winter Games. With tickets to both the preliminary and final for Aerials, they will be cheering on local product Steve Omischl all the way to Gold. All the while they will be providing readers with a glimpse of their experiences at the games.

A story book adventure was unveiled at Christmas this year when we unwrapped Olympic tickets from my wife’s parents. A long standing ski family with ties to the freestyle ski community, they knew the impact such a gift would have on my wife. We both played the “what if game” when the games were approaching however we knew that being part of it was a dream that is parallel to winning the lottery. Opening the gift left both of us in shock knowing that “thanks” would never explain how we felt. Now each day from opening the gift until the opening ceremony felt like a Disney commercial where the child was “too excited to sleep”. It arrived, the opening ceremony, and it seemed that every minute of the coverage would send goose bumps down my arm knowing that we will be part of the games.

Feb 19th, we departed North Bay and headed for Toronto. When we arrived at Toronto Pearson International Airport the games were apparent everywhere. Every major sponsor and small corner vendor peddled their Canadian garb with ease. Many of the travelers showcased their country apparel with pride. As we sat and waited for our flight we engaged in several conversations with people from all over shaking with anticipation to share their association to the game. We encountered parents, family, friends all heading to the games to cheer on a specific athlete. The typical traveler could not be easily identified as everyone appeared to be happy and excited to get to Vancouver.

We entered the plane eager to get off the ground but eagerness created some giddiness from my wife which sparked several inappropriate plane crash scenario comments. I was quick to acknowledge the dirty looks from nervous travelers and attempted to change the subject. I couldn’t help the occasional chuckle as she chanted the theme from “Jaws” as the plane took off.

“Vancouver?…I think we took the wrong plane!” Although all of the signs stated Vancouver and show cased the Olympics, the climate was not what we expected for the winter games. Cherry blossoms, NO snow and 10 degrees! The warmest February on record with very little snow fall. We have no idea how the city of Vancouver can make the Winter Games happen but follow us on our journey and hopefully we can give you a glimpse.

Jason & Marissa Pichette